The PAC-12 Championship between Oregon and Arizona was a battle of the babies, with both teams led by talented freshmen. Friday, the Ducklings crushed the Wildkittens, which is a great sign for Oregon’s future. Arizona’s Anu Solomon (287 yards passing) and Nick Wilson (3 TDs, 92 yards on the ground) killed Oregon in the Wildcats’ upset victory last October. Friday, …
Joey Holland reporting for FishDuck.com from the Arizona Press Conference at Levi Stadium following the Pac-12 Championship Game. “Wasn’t a good night. Next?” A succinct opening statement from Rich Rodriguez after his Arizona Wildcats fell 51-13 to Oregon in Friday night’s Pac-12 Championship Game. Arizona defensive end Dan Pettinato shared his coach’s curtness. “They just played better than us tonight,” said the senior …
Rich Rodriguez bears an uncanny resemblance to the man who sold me my first car. “Creampuff,” the man said. It was a ’62 Buick Electra, purple with zebra stripe seat covers and sawdust in the transmission. Many detractors think Rodriguez has a car salesman mentality — shifty, not-to-be trusted. RichRod started his coaching career at his alma mater, West Virginia, …
Another game, another win, another stat sheet explosion for the Ducks. Marcus Mariota is all but assured the Heisman with his sixth game this season of 300 or more yards passing. Royce Freeman and Byron Marshall executed to perfection; both breaking the 100 yard barrier for rushing and receiving, respectively. So, can the Ducks carry that momentum into this weekend’s …
The Arizona Wildcats upset Oregon for the second year in a row Thursday night, and coach Rich Rodriguez was exultant after the game. “I don’t know if anybody picked us. … Not on the road. Lightning doesn’t strike twice. In fact, [the end of] our video we showed our guys last night actually showed a guy getting hit by lighting …
I predicted the scenario that happened in Pullman, on Saturday. Others were insistent that the Ducks would blow out the Cougars. But after turning on the television, the Cougs were up by seven. In my last article I mentioned that the mid-level pass defense wasn’t effective against Michigan State, so it’s only natural to think that in a game against …
To get this out of the way now … I have lost my place as No. 1. It was a great run while it lasted, but for now I have been banished to (I hate to even speak it out loud) fifth place. I didn’t have a bad week necessarily; I finished with 178 points, which was actually my third-highest scoring …
Thursday is known as “upset day” in the Pac-12. Be wary of Thursdays! Oregon State shocking No. 1 USC comes to mind. So does Washington surprising No. 8 Stanford in 2012. And, of course, there was Stanford’s takedown of the Ducks last year (sorry for reopening that wound). But these are just a few of the upsets that have occurred on …
Marcus Mariota shines under pressure in conference opener The first road trip for the Oregon Ducks was not pretty despite managing to survive. Highlighted by seven sacks, the Washington State Cougars exposed Oregon’s obvious weakness in Week 4. With three starting linemen sitting out Saturday due to injuries, the Oregon running game never got going, and the health of Mariota became a concern. Luckily we have this …