Call Chip Kelly The Granite Fox. Like Rommel before him he has a gift for commanding men, for onslaughts and misdirections, for stratagems that bedevil and mesmerize a superior force. Rommel took 3-star men and materials and extended a war until he ran out of gasoline and had to haul tanks to the front on rail and by horse and …
It was Saturday, September 29, 2001. Slightly over ten years ago to date, Oregon traveled to Logan, Utah to conclude its non-conference portion of their season in only their third-ever match against the Utah State Aggies. Oregon came in as the highest ranked visitor to ever play in the history of Romney Stadium, and the Aggies were ready to prove …
A FishDuck First! Oregon Football Highlight Video for Arizona 2011 We have seen all the five to ten minute highlight videos out there, and I thought I would add my version to the fray. It is two and a half minutes is all, and has some good up-tempo rock behind it. My question to all of you is….could it …
Simply put, it was ritual. The sports writer sat and watched the college football game or practice. Took notes. Watched some more. Gulped some coffee. Chatted up the guy next to him. Took a trip down the hallway. Composed the first few graphs of the story. Observed some more. Wrote down a few questions for afterwards. Then hurried off to …
Every defense needs an enforcer. Michael Clay was emerging as that guy for the Oregon Ducks. Through two games he had 21 tackles, tied for the most in the conference. The Ducks have played two more since without him, and he’s still fourth on the team in total stops, just behind Stuckey, Boyett and Pleasant, just ahead of Kiko Alonso. …
Last year, against Cal, a team that gave up 48 points to USC, and 52 to Nevada, Oregon, who hadn’t been held under 40 all season scored a mere 15 points, and 8 of those came off of a punt return. It was one of the most painful victories you could possibly watch. To fall from such a high level of …
Every three years since the first major redesign of Oregon’s uniforms for the 1999 season, the Ducks have changed their look after three years. On that schedule, the current look—with its signature gladiatorial-style Duck feathers on the shoulder—is in its third and, presumably, final year. Assuming a change is coming next year, what might Nike’s next version of the uniforms …
Why would Darron Thomas take off running in this game while not before? This is a question we tackled last week, but the answers became even more evident against Arizona. We have examples of THREE positions on the defense being Zone Read in the this game while being introduced to a new play utilizing the strengths of a true freshman …
Overtime rules had existed for decades in professional football, but the collegiate game was slow to come around to extending games beyond regulation. Ties weren’t commonplace, but they did happen. Oregon had in fact played in the final 0-0 tie, the 1983 Civil War game vs. Oregon State, a game so bad it was coined “The Toilet Bowl.” In 1996 …
Like their coach, Duck fans have become perfectionists. Chip Kelly, asked on Sunday about the Oregon running game, which rolled up 415 yards on Arizona after 416 yards on Missouri, and Kelly responded in his clipped New England interview voice that it could be better. The Ducks won by 25 on the road in the conference opener, and most Duck fans, …
If you needed any further proof of the thrashing Oregon was dealing Arizona on Saturday night, all you had to do was scan the stands in the second half, where there were more empty seats than not. A school record 288 yards rushing from LaMichael James will do that to foes and their followers. So will ringing up 35 points …
Oregon opens PAC-12 play with a road game at Arizona, and again the crucial thing is not merely winning but playing in a way that shows improvement and gets the team ready for October and November, an eight-week battle to defend their conference title. Here are some of the key factors in the Ducks’ PAC-12 opener: Keeping the Zona Zoo …