It’s amazing what one victory can do for a program. Everybody looks for “signature wins” as a way to validate premier players and coaches. Sure, beating up on poor competition is nice. But to really prove itself, a team has to show out in the big games against equally-matched, or even superior opponents. The best players and coaches earn their …
It’s a beautiful thing when elite talent meets proper technique. That’s what’s happening with Oregon’s all-world freshman pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux as the season nears its end. After a relatively quiet start to the season, Thibodeaux has emerged as Oregon’s best pass rusher, leading the team in tackles for loss and sacks. Thibodeaux’s physical attributes (size, length, athleticism, etc.) have …
It’s crazy how quickly things change in college football. Oregon entered Saturday night’s match-up against Arizona State riding a nine-game winning streak with its eyes set on the College Football Playoff. Sixty minutes later, those aspirations went out the window. The desert hasn’t been kind to Oregon recently, and it was more of the same on Saturday, as the Sun …
It took all of 32 seconds in Oregon’s Saturday night match-up against Arizona for the Ducks to confirm something that seemed so unlikely just a short time ago, and it’s almost strange to put into words. With two weeks to go in the regular season, the Oregon Ducks control their own playoff destiny. Let that sink in. Of all the …
As fans, it’s hard to let go of the past. Oregon fans still cling to the glory days at the beginning of the decade, when the Ducks were on the doorstep of a National Championship. But it’s not just the title-contending seasons that fans long for. So accustomed to scoring seven touchdowns a game and breaking 70-yard touchdowns routinely, fans …
Everybody loves an exciting, explosive spread-option offense. The Ducks had one of their own under Chip Kelly and Mark Helfrich, and many legendary offenses have thrived using this still-effective scheme. However, with defenders becoming bigger, faster and stronger, and with the importance of having a healthy starting quarterback, head coaches of spread schemes now have to determine whether it’s worth …
So, you’re saying there’s a chance? After Oregon’s week 1 collapse against Auburn, and a couple of ugly wins against Stanford and Cal, fans weren’t even sure if the Ducks would win their division, let alone be College Football Playoff contenders. Yet here we are. What looked to be a pipe dream just a couple of weeks ago is actually …
No one’s going to confuse Oregon offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo for Oklahoma wunderkind Lincoln Riley. The latter is arguably the brightest offensive mind football right now, and his offense is once again lighting up the scoreboard this season. The same can’t be said about Arroyo, whose offense has struggled at times to live up to the lofty expectations of highlight-starved …
The transformation of Oregon Football under Mario Cristobal is in full swing. The days of scoring 40 points a game are officially over, as it’s clear his strategy is to grind out hard-fought wins by using his team’s size and strength advantage. For Oregon fans who grew accustomed to high point totals and exciting offensive highlights, this new style is …
A third of the way into the season, there’s plenty to be excited about as an Oregon fan. The Ducks’ defense is playing historically well, Oregon finally kicked its Stanford curse, and it even has one of the best punters in the country. Sitting at 3-1, with a clear path to a Pac-12 title and even an outside shot at …
Oregon’s week 3 matchup with Montana offers little suspense. Montana is a talented FCS team that ranks 20th in the STATS FCS Poll. But let’s be honest; if the Ducks don’t win by more than 40 points, there will be outrage on message boards across the Northwest. Since today’s game gives the coaching staff an opportunity to focus on the …
To say that Oregon fans were underwhelmed with offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo’s play calling in the Ducks’ week 1 loss to Auburn would be an understatement. No one shouldered more of the blame for Oregon’s abysmal second half showing — in which the Ducks failed to put up a single point after their first possession — than Arroyo. But for …