College football nation: Johnny “football” stays away from pens and the Heisman race

Jeff Hostetler FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

    Oh my goodness, two weeks until kick off and then we can finally quit all of this quiet time and bring the noise. Then we can start figuring out if the SEC will be re-re-re-re-re-re-re-repeat as National Champs or if someone else will steal the spotlight. I know for one thing, Texas A&M needs this season to get …

The Fan on the Street and Fall Practice for the Washington Huskies

Kim Hastings FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

  I’ve lived in Tacoma, Washington, for the better part of two decades.  During that time, Tacoma has had several nicknames.  First, it was “City of Destiny,” then, “America’s Most-Wired City.”  But my favorite is the one that was just adopted, “You Can Smell the Huskies’ Desperation From Here.”  Living up here gives me the unique opportunity to talk to …

5 Oregon receivers who put the “go” in Go Ducks

Josh White Men of Oregon: Players and Coaches

  Oregon Football is often defined by one word: Speed.  Whether it is the grueling tempo that the offense uses, or an individual player racing past an entire defense, the Ducks do it fast. Over the last few seasons, observers would see LaMichael James, De’Anthony Thomas, or Kenjon Barner breaking a long touchdown run on the highlights and might assume …

Chip Kelly Update: the Double Stack Value Meal

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

McDonald’s will sell you a double stack hamburger for a dollar*, an astonishing food value for so little money. Chip Kelly coached his first NFL (preseason) game Friday against the New England Patriots, and served up a heap of double stacks, himself. In this case, the “double stack” is a flexible (aka “packaged”) play with one running back and four …

Which Current Ducks Have A Shot at the Record Books?

Joey Holland Editorials

Kevin Cline  Offense.  Defense. Special teams.  While Oregon may not be Alabama or Ohio State in terms of tradition, prestige, or heritage, the Oregon football program has a rich history filled with star-studded teams and immense talent in all three phases of the game. Among the long list of former Oregon football players, a handful stand out atop the school’s record books, …

Fall Camp Update – Which Players are making the biggest impressions?

Luc Hancock FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Kevin Cline With the dog days of summer behind us, the Ducks have officially begun their season, diving into fall practice.   Comfortably installed in their new digs, Helfrich and company have high expectations from fans and the media for this upcoming season.  This month of practice will be crucial for the coaching staff to identify talent and ultimately decide who will …

Ducks’ Championship Quest Stands at a Pivotal Moment

Don Gilman FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Kevin Cline “The Quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little, and it will fail.” — J.R.R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings This year is one of the most important years in the history of Oregon football. During the years of Mike Bellotti, the football program was solid – very successful, but never quite reaching the …

Recruiting Update: The Dancing Bear Returns

Mark Flores FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Kevin Cline Football Recruiting News You thought I was going to lead off with Portland Trail Blazers legend Arvydas Sabonis, didn’t you? What! This is football season… oh, just you wait. Oregon is waist deep in two-a-days, and a clearer picture of the 2013 campaign is rapidly taking shape. Headliners of head coach Mark Helfrich’s first recruiting class, running back …

Pac-12 Rougher, But Ducks Look Tougher

Alex Hausman FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Gary Breedlove Amid all the off-season changes and rumors swirling around the mighty Ducks of Oregon, there is still a strong belief around the nation that these Chip Kelly-less Ducks can contend for a national title, and that the Ducks are favorites to win the Pac-12 crown.  If you look across all major sporting websites, specifically at their college football previews, almost every expert has …

“CROSS”OVER: AIR RAID PRINCIPLES IN THE OREGON PASSING GAME!

Brian Flinn Fish Reports

From Video The “Air Raid” passing attack is among the most popular offenses in college football today, yet you can actually see components of it at Oregon!  It has a passing philosophy and scheme that can trace its roots back as far as San Diego Chargers Coach Sid Gilman and BYU Coach LaVell Edwards (and my college head coach Larry …