For the second consecutive season the Ducks are being led not by someone recruited to Oregon, but by a transfer. Not by someone who came in as a 17 or 18-year-old who learned the system from the ground up. Not by someone who’s knowledge of the Oregon offense was built systematically, step-by-step, day-by-day, little-by-little, until it became second nature. No, …
There is no substitute for hard work and preparation, and if anyone is the perfect Week 1 embodiment of this mantra it is true freshman linebacker Troy Dye. Dye wasted no time making an impact in his first collegiate game, loudly introducing himself to the UC Davis backfield and the yellow-clad Oregon fan base with back-to-back tackles on the fifth and …
Don’t kid yourself into thinking any concrete conclusions can be drawn from one week of college football. That said, Pac-12 foundations were poured from Eugene to College Station, Seattle to Sydney. The concrete is still soupy but with the right reinforcements Oregon has a legitimate shot at the Pac-12 … If No.1: If the Pac-12 conference continues to look mediocre … …
Over the past couple of decades, Oregon has developed into a top Pac-12 program and a force to be reckoned with on the recruiting trail. Oregon’s unique culture, exciting style of play, success on the field, world class facilities, flashy uniforms, etc., have enabled the Ducks to pull in a number of blue-chip recruits from around the country including De’Anthony Thomas, Royce Freeman, …
While I am known for being a Sunshine-Pumper when it comes to my beloved Ducks, the team of coaching consultants at FishDuck.com are much more grounded and can give a realistic assessment concerning the state of the Oregon football team after one game. Yes, you have seen opinions from sportscasters who are not any better at knowing things than the …
There’s been a lot of grousing about preseason rankings and critics. When did Ducks fans develop such a thin skin? Rather than pound the table, I say bring it on. To the national pundits we’re known as the Blur or Track Town, USA. Speed may impress, but it doesn’t always earn long-term respect. We hear it all the time. They …
For the second year in a row, much to the dismay of national pundits and a segment of the Ducks’ own fan base, Oregon‘s prolific offense will be led by a graduate transfer. With last week’s release of the two-deep depth chart, Oregon’s closely-watched quarterback battle was officially decided (for the opener, at least). Montana State’s Dakota Prukop, one of …
Mike Merrell’s Three-and-Out It’s time for my fourth annual calling out of three teams that I think are overrated. Qver the past three years, I’ve been right on 7 out of my 9 picks. Of course the two times I’ve been wrong, I’ve been very, very wrong (See Ducks, below, for explanation.), so take it to Vegas at your own …
A vast colosseum lies brooding on the banks of a wide lazy trout-filled river. Surrounded by nothing but forest and thick grass, both barely waving in a gentle breeze under azure cloud-dappled skies. Such is the vision of Autzen Stadium from the top of Skinner’s Butte on game day in the fall. A stadium, a field, soldiers marching to battle …
Handicapping the 21st-ranked Ducks’ chances of proving prognosticators wrong. This August, preseason polls have been unkind to Oregon compared to recent years, with the Ducks ranked No. 24 in the first Associated Press poll and No. 21 by Sports Illustrated. In 2015, by comparison, the Ducks were ranked No. 7 by the AP going into the season, and in 2014 were ranked …
Twenty-one Power Five coaches won nine regular season games in 2015. Nineteen of those coaches are back with the same school this season. Of the two coaches not returning, one is Art Briles, formerly of Baylor, who was fired not for how his team’s on-field performance, but rather his team’s horrifying behavior off of it. The other nine-win coach who …
Summer’s perennial promise has again faded into guilt. I am not so old that summer has lost all its romance, yet every summer I grow more eager for the gift of fall: Oregon football. And as each season starts, we tend to look backwards, however briefly. Many may prefer to forget the Alamo Bowl, but in all things we must …