There were 6.4 seconds left in the Ducks season, and a berth in the NCAA tournament hung in the balance. It was the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament and defending champion Oregon had put its season in the hands of senior Joseph Young. Dribbling the length of the court, Young pulled the trigger from beyond NBA range and netted a game-winning basket …
Legendary Minnesota Vikings coach Bud Grant was once asked what it takes to be a successful coach. He answered: You need a good wife, a good huntin’ dog, and a good quarterback … and not necessarily in that order.” If there was ever a team that quip applied to, our beloved Ducks fit the “bill” because some of the most …
Mike Merrell’s Three-and-Out Ordinarily, when a reputable football news source publishes bowl projections or preseason rankings, you’d say the predictions were “released.” This past week, Athlon Sports published its preseason Top-25 and final four lists, and there’s no way these things were released, not even with a locked-on ankle bracelet. Athlon tabbed Ohio State, Auburn, Alabama and Baylor as its preseason …
While there are definitely physical and ability similarities between Vernon Adams and Russell Wilson, when he played at Eastern Washington, Adams’ passing game was much more comparable to Johnny Manziel at Texas A&M. There were a lot of “What are you doing?? Great pass!!” moments. Passes that looked like they shouldn’t be thrown — to covered receivers — off the wrong …
After a brief hiatus, College Football Nation returns. There’s a lot to catch up on, America, since the last CFN was published. We’re into July now — I hope everyone had an amazing 4th of July. It couldn’t have been much worse than Jason Pierre-Paul’s – and there are just 52 days until the 2015 college football season kicks off. Without further ado, …
In major Division 1 college football, it’s rare to see an athlete play both offense and defense. The reasons are quite simple: with a roster of more than 100 spots available on college football teams, players are able to become more specialized as depth increases. This allows players to get more in-depth training at a certain position, and helps prevent overuse, …
In my last article I discussed all that Gary Campbell has done for the Oregon Duck program and his impressive collection of game-day suits. Even though his collection of suits is impressive, he may not even be the best dressed coach at Oregon. There is one man who can challenge him for college football’s best dressed coach and that is Don …
It’s mid-July and the time of year when college football fans are in limbo. Spring practices have been over for close to two months and fall camp is still a couple of weeks away. Fans are looking for anything to read, watch, discuss or interact with regarding college football. It is the time of year when fans dissect their favorite …
Stephen Nogosek joined an elite club of Ducks last week when he was named to the USA Collegiate National Team after posting impressive numbers in his three appearances during tryouts (5.1 IP, 7 K, 4 H, S). Combined with his excellent 2015 season for the Ducks, Nogosek looks to be a lock for the closing job vacated by Garrett Cleavinger. …
Those of us who write about football are rarely ex-players or ex-coaches, and frankly that hurts our credibility with the people about whom we write. Chip Kelly didn’t even like having a non-“football guy” as his General Manager. And GM Howie Roseman — a legendary bureaucratic infighter — got kicked upstairs as a result of their death match. Reporters complain …
After star receiver Devon Allen went down with a torn ACL in the Rose Bowl and Darren Carrington was suspended for the National Championship Game and potentially half of the upcoming season, Oregon fans have spent the off-season without a clear idea of what the wide receiver position might look like going forward. Enter Jalen Brown: a 6-foot-1, 200-pound receiver overdue for …
“He’s a project … second-best quarterback in the draft … not pro ready!” Such were the cries of many draft analysts in the first quarter of the year. Of course, they were talking about Marcus Mariota. Many so-called “experts” such as Bucky Brooks, had Mariota falling to the late teens before being drafted. Many others saw him as playing second fiddle to …