The offensive coaching staff was the biggest disappointment of the Ducks’ 2018 season. Some of you will hem and haw and throw out lame excuses like, “they need time to adjust to a new system,” or, “the wide receivers were sub-par,” or even, “a coach needs four years to get his system in place.” You get four years when you’re …
Recently on this site, it was argued that, since women’s sports typically don’t produce much revenue, the coaches of these sports should have drastically reduced salary increases. The precipitating event, the departure of softball coach Mike White, centered around his claim that five Pac-12 Championships and five College World Series appearances — in just nine years! — merited a salary …
Amateur athletes aren’t getting paid yet, but things are heading in that direction. The subject of compensation for student athletes has dominated the college football and basketball landscapes for years now. From Ed O’Bannon’s groundbreaking lawsuit to a handful of Northwestern football players attempting to unionize, it seems that the NCAA’s current structure is inching closer to a total facelift. …
The New England Patriots have clearly established themselves as a true football dynasty. They’ve dominated the NFL for the past two decades, but this hasn’t always been the case. Before Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, the Pats were a laughing stock for years. How did this transformation take place? Let’s take a look at “The Patriot Way” and learn from …
Ever feel really let down by a loss, especially an upset? It kinda ruins your weekend. A grey-blue pall overhangs one’s thoughts, feelings and attitudes for days on end. An entire lost season can crush our individual or collective spirits for even longer. How do you cope? Do you hit the sauce, snort something, rage at your spouse and kids, …
The University of Oregon just finished within the top 10 of the 2019 recruiting cycle. To build on that success, the Ducks will need to build the 2020 class with defensive talent. A lot of that responsibility will be placed on new defensive coordinator Andy Avalos. So, that begs the question: what kind of a recruiter was he for the Broncos? Boise …
Coach Cristobal is a quiet giant, but his challenge echoed throughout the Willamette Valley: “We’re firin’ this thing way up, take the heat or melt away!” This was revolution, not evolution — but was it just hot air? Let’s look at this season’s most successful NFL and FBS teams for traits and possible clues. First off, they’re all defensive juggernauts. …
This has been an ideal offseason for the Ducks so far. No transfer QBs, no scandals and no coaches chasing “dream jobs.” In a sport that’s full of turnover and turmoil this time of the year, this offseason should be viewed as a big win for Oregon. Moreover, I’m confident the Ducks will be better in 2019. Here are four …
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, …
The picture above speaks for itself: Win the Pac-12, go to the Rose Bowl. Dominate enough games and you have a shot at the Natty. In Chip Kelly’s years, this was a foregone conclusion. In Mark Helfrich’s, not as much. Now Mario Cristobal is launching his effort to propel Oregon like a Phoenix from the ashes of the Empire formally known as “Fast Hard Finish.” Last season, …
Often, coaches explain that winning “all three phases” of the game is the key to victory. For the Ducks next year, there is reasonable hype around Justin Herbert’s offense and Troy Dye’s defense. But, what about special teams? For optimistic expectations to be fulfilled in 2019, the Ducks need to win with special teams — an important one of three phases of …
Over the years, several things have intrigued me about sports, but one of the most intriguing aspects is how well they function as a slice of life. We see the whole gamut of emotions and behavior, don’t we? ABC’s Wide World of Sports captured it so iconically years ago with “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat” being …