ATTENTION DUCK FANS! We’ve got a shot at this whole playoff thing. On Tuesday, the College Football Playoff Committee announced its first set of top 25 rankings. As expected, Oregon was ranked seventh in the country behind a pair of Big Ten teams, three SEC teams and Clemson. There were a few surprises in the rankings, such as Ohio State …
Playoff Rankings Are Coming! Is Oregon Set to Crash the Party?
“Telegram! Singing telegram for Coach Kyle Whittingham!” “I’m your man. I’m Coach Whittingham. What’s up, my man?” “I have a singing telegram for you, Coach, from Puddles in Eugene. Without further adieu, this is for you and your team, too.” [To the tune of “See You In September?”] Will I see Ute in December? Will I see Ute when the …
Note to Ducks: The Trojans Will Be Back
In explosive fashion, the Ducks destroyed USC on Saturday night. But as we all know, USC isn’t really USC right now, and hasn’t been for a decade. They’ve painfully spent the past 10 years learning what their blue-blood counterparts learned long ago; that in the modern era of college football you can’t rely on reputation alone. But, make no mistake …
Opponent Reaction: “Fight Off” for USC vs. Oregon
Oregon won big at USC on Saturday. They won so big that USC might end up searching for a new head coach. That was the basis of almost every question posed to Clay Helton after a massive home loss to the surging Ducks. One reporter asked Helton if he went in to the game thinking that he was coaching for his …
Three Times Oregon vs USC Proved to Be a Classic
Time to open up the DVR and realize that we’ve seen this movie before. The seventh-ranked Oregon Ducks are set to face off against the under-appreciated USC Trojans football team. Oregon is coming off a thrilling victory against Mike Leach’s Cougars while the Trojans are coming off a come-from-behind win against Colorado. This is not the first time Oregon has …
Sooners Stumble and Ducks Dodge Disaster in Week 9
There was Never A Doubt that Oregon would beat the dreaded Cougs, right? CJ Verdell can smell Roses, after all. And a walk-off field goal definitely tops a missed extra point! Week 9 is officially in the books, folks. By now, you know the drill. Here’s your one-and-only, one-stop shop in case you missed some of the week’s biggest storylines. …
Oregon’s No Playoff Contender Yet, and That’s Okay
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 …
Ducks Get Cougars Off Their Back
The only thing worse than having a monkey on your back is having a Cougar on your back. Because if there’s a Cougar on your back, it probably has its jaws locked around your neck as you lay there in the dirt, bug-eyed, getting the life sucked out of you. As you “enjoy” your last few moments of life, there’s …
“Coug-it” Discussion: Can Oregon Side-Step the Mental Minefield?
The curiosity component in playing the Cougars seems to be bigger this year than the vast majority of contests with Washington State in the past. There are so many interesting questions on both offense and defense, and frankly, concerning what is in the minds of our young Beloved Ducks, that I would suggest that the drama unfolding tonight is going to …
Ducks Down the Dogs in Wacky CFB Weekend
(While the following is a fictional conversation between Troy Dye and his mother, it’s hard to imagine their real post-game phone call going much differently.) “Mom! It’s Troy, Mom!” “Are you and Travis Okay? No injuries?” “We are both fine Mom, and smiling from ear to ear.” “Did you win, Son?” “Did we win? Heck yes! We beat those dirty …
Cristobal Out-Coaches Petersen in Signature Win
Oregon fixed its biggest flaw against Washington on Saturday — a flaw that goes back to 2015 as the Mark Helfrich era was beginning to crumble. A flaw that lost somewhere in the vicinity of 10 games over the last four seasons. Oregon made major coaching adjustments at halftime. There was no collapse or letting the game slip away, as …
Ducks Close Out the Huskies in Signature Win
The gloom and doom of the dark clouds and rain hung over Husky Stadium on a late Saturday in October like the ominous slasher in a cheesy teenage Halloween horror movie. And when the blood finally dried, it was the Huskies who were one of the teenagers who got slashed, while the Ducks were the lucky one who barely escaped …