Initially sending out signals they were considering leaving the NCAA outright, the Power Two Conferences have been playing hardball in this year’s negotiations for the second stage of expanding the College Football Playoffs. Fans, the media and coaches alike howled at the audacity the leaders of the Power Two conferences displayed last week. Mr. FishDuck has been thinking to buy …
Oregon fans and critics alike have sung the praises of Eugene’s own Justin Herbert. The cannon arm, the prototype quarterback physique, and the sneaky athleticism that led the Ducks to a Conference Championship and Rose Bowl win, all reasons for Herbert’s selection by the Los Angeles Chargers at the six spot in this year’s NFL Draft. But one virtue remains unsung. …
Just yesterday I put it out there for anyone to donate an article or give a topic to discuss for one of the three open days every week … and Mike West comes through already! So do email charles@fishduck.com if you have something to say as either a discussion-starter with a couple of your own paragraphs with your view, or …
From the angst-filled opener in Dallas, to the dramatic finish in Pasadena, Duck fans marveled over Andy Avalos‘ 2019 Oregon defense. No amount of glowing anticipation could match the outstanding improvement Avalos’ troops demonstrated in just one year. With only two key additions, Oregon’s defense garnered 97 tackles for loss, 41 sacks, 20 interceptions, 42 quarterback hurries and yielded only …
Chip Kelly arrived in Eugene as a virtual unknown from the University of New Hampshire. From 2007 to 2012, Kelly changed the landscape of college football with his blur offense, transforming Oregon into a national title contender in the process. Following a lull under Mark Helfrich and Willie Taggart, Mario Cristobal started restoring dreams of a “Natty” in 2018, inciting FishDuck’s …
“Winter” and “college football” don’t often co-exist in the same sentence. But with COVID-19 threatening fall kickoffs, a delayed start is one of several options being kicked around by college presidents and university athletic directors. Reser Stadium in late January? What could possibly go wrong? College presidents have declared there will be no football, basketball or any other college sports …
Before Andy Avalos introduced his brilliant defensive schemes last fall, Oregon’s glaring weakness was its inability to defend players in space. Ducks defenders often looked like ghosts pursuing pac-men all over the football field. Former defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt shored up some of the weaknesses, but it was Avalos who put a stop to the flow of embarrassing big plays …
There was much dismay among Ducks fans when Andy Avalos’s Boise State defense overwhelmed Marcus Arroyo’s offense in the 2017 Las Vegas Bowl. FishDuck fans across the nation fretted over Arroyo’s up-and-down, “roller coaster” tendencies. Little did we know it would be Avalos’s defensive brilliance that would redeem Arroyo’s roller-coaster offense just two years later. Even when Coach Eric Boles …
Oregon’s now-former offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo took us on a bit of roller coaster ride this year. While his offensive play-calling was at times boring and predictable, at others it looped and zoomed with the excitement of a Disneyland thrill ride. Extending his tenure to coach the Rose Bowl game, Arroyo came California Screamin’ out of the chute, engineering a …
As we look back on the roller coaster ride recently departed offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo and Mario Cristobal have taken us on this season, I want to share some thoughts you might not have considered. Many an Oregon fan — especially on this website — have criticized Arroyo for “dishonoring” the blur offense we so adored. One major gripe fans …
If ever there was a time for Marcus Arroyo to shed his image of being predictable, the second half of last Saturday’s game was it. Justin Herbert’s Helter-Skelter first half performance last week cast a chill through living rooms of Duck fans across the nation. Memories of flame-outs in Pullman and Salt Lake City last year reared their ugly heads …
It is becoming clearer by the week the kind of passing wizard we have in Marcus Arroyo. While some fans have criticized Arroyo for his lack of creativity, my goal today is to remind you that Arroyo is a passing specialist, tasked to bring a physical brand of football to Oregon. Indeed, in back-to-back weeks, Coach Eric Boles introduced more …