Mike Merrell’s Three-and-Out No doubt about it. Oregon football 2016 is a mess. Whether it’s football or anything else in life, there’s a point where you’re better off to just call it hopeless and start over. Unfortunately, many see Oregon football as being at that point. The good news is that these “many” with their pitchforks and torches aren’t the …
Mark Helfrich: Lost Along the Oregon Trail
Mark Helfrich and Oregon football 2016: So much written, so much argued, so much uncertainty. Amidst the turmoil, one thing is clear: The program now stands at a critical crossroads and turns taken here … or not taken … will shape Ducks athletics for many years to come. In short, the Roman Empire is falling and we must decide: Have …
Is Your Coach Helfrich Decision “Good-or-Good?”
Some of our decisions in life are bad-or-bad such as the upcoming Presidential election. Yet some choices are similar to, “Who gives Royce Freeman a rest … is it Tony Brooks-James or Kani Benoit?” Now that is choosing from good-or-good, as both back-up running backs have done well for our beloved Ducks. Could many of you be in that decision mode when contemplating whether …
Dana Altman – The Right Stuff for Ducks Basketball
A two-and-a-half mile walk from the legendary loudness of Autzen Stadium will bring you to Matthew Knight Arena: a $200-million office for a $2-million-a-year coach. In a few weeks, Altman will be entering his 27th season as a college basketball head coach and his 7th as the coach of the Oregon Ducks. During his career he has won Coach of the Year awards …
Ducks’ Struggles Could Cost Huskies a Playoff Spot
For more than a decade, the Washington Huskies watched their hated rivals to the south rise to the upper echelon of college football. This rise was accompanied by the annual beating the Ducks put on the Huskies each fall for 12 straight years. As Ducks fans are painfully aware, the decade of domination over the Huskies has ended. The Ducks are 2-4 and licking …
Herman for Head Coach 2017
Having just stepped out of a screening of the film “Denial” in my new home in Seattle, I realized the title sounds similar to a river in Egypt appropriately describes what this writer thinks has infected Oregon fandom. Right now, as I write this and you later read this, in its last performance, Oregon barfed on itself in Autzen Stadium and …
Coach’s Comments: The Oregon Culture Has Troubling Warning Signs
This was a very difficult article to write, as it runs contrary to my core beliefs about the Mark Helfrich/Oregon coaching situation. But like learning football and sharing it with you over the years, as I come into other opinions that make sense to me, I feel compelled to share them. We don’t know the truth, the inner happenings in …
Oregon’s Football SOS – Iceberg Dead Ahead!
Chip Kelly may be the next Pete Carroll. And by that I mean he will likely be fired soon from the pro ranks. Carroll failed to impress during his first at-bat (6-10, NY Jets, 1994) and boasted only slightly better success during his second attempt at the Patriot’s helm, which ended after his 8-8 finish in the 1999 season. Fourteen …
While Oregon Football Tailspins, Three Ducks Basketball Games To Anticipate
For those expecting an epic border clash, there was disappointment. For those that were hoping to see a resurgence to save the season, there was despair. For those that predicted a win, there was embarrassment. If you watched looking for discipline and effort, I imagine you turned the channel. On top of that, there was plenty of celebrating in Oregon …
The Oregon Ducks Have Cancerous Flaws
There’s an old saying attributed to English historian and philosopher Thomas Fuller that goes, “The darkest hour is just before the dawn.” I’m sure you’ve heard this saying in one way or another. It’s intended to give hope to those who have none and to those who see no end in sight for their suffering. After this weekend, I think …
Firing Mark Helfrich Is Fool’s Gold
Imagine the horror: your team has patiently built itself from its historically-mediocre origins to become one of the nation’s elite, with a succession of conference titles and high NFL draft picks, when one year suddenly everything falls apart. Your genius coach is gone and his successor is suddenly, after years of riding the coattails, struggling just to post a winning …
Are the 2016 Oregon Ducks a Lost Cause?
Is this season a lost cause? Many fans are already asking the question, just five games into a 12-game season. The struggles have been well documented. The defense not getting any consistent pressure, the linebackers out of position, missed tackles at every level. The offense humming one minute, then pedestrian the next. Repeated attempts to run up the middle despite …