Some people call this “the Dead Zone,” the part of the NFL season where everyone is on vacation, training camp rosters have been filled to 90 and the draft, OTAs and minicamp are over. It’s the boring time when nothing happens, right? I don’t think so. In some ways, this is the most interesting time of the year. Writers have …
The Dawn of the Second Coming: The Oklahomafication of Chip Kelly’s Offense
Judging by the numbers, the Philadelphia Eagles had one of the best NFL offenses last season. They ranked third in scoring, fifth in total yards, sixth in passing yards, and ninth in rushing yards. However, PhillyVoice writer Jimmy Kempski persuasively argues the fast-tempo positively skewed the Eagles’ offensive statistics. Apparently, Eagles head coach Chip Kelly also decided the numbers didn’t add up, …
Chip Kelly Update: The Coach’s Reading List for Players
Football is a nearly year-round endeavor these days, for players, coaches, and (obsessive) fans. Between the Senior Bowl, the NFL Combine, free agency, the draft, and OTAs, news keeps flying year-round. Except for right now, and the next 6 weeks. This is the dead spot, the one stretch of solid vacation that coaches and players get. In prior years, Chip …
Oregon’s Tradition is Their Innovation
With the 2015-16 season quickly approaching, there has been a lot of talk about which team is the best “bet” to win the National Championship next year. After a trip to the Rose Bowl and National Championship last year, it seemed that the Ducks were on their way to a new level of recognition among college football fans. However, Vegas and …
“The Dutchman” and the Original Vertical Passing Game
In Oregon’s history, there have been many players and coaches of note — from coach Cal Young and his one-game inaugural season in 1984 to Chip Kelly and Marcus Mariota. Although most people say Mariota is the greatest Oregon player of all time, another man held that honor since the 1950s. Back in the era of leather helmets, the hero of …
Oregon’s Steps to Football Excellence
Make no mistake, Oregon football has been making great strides. In the past 20 years, Oregon’s football program has risen from an unsurprising loser to a perpetual championship contender and truly one of the nation’s elite programs. All of this has been accomplished with three different head coaches and the inevitable change in personnel as players graduate from college — …
Is Year Three the Most Important for Oregon Head Coach Mark Helfrich?
There are coaches on the hot seat in every college football season. Although Oregon football head coach Mark Helfrich isn’t listed in AthlonSports.com‘s College Football’s Coaches on the Hot Seat: Spring Practice 2015, he may be entering his most pressure-filled season to date in 2015. His hot seat is one that is filled with the high expectations of a program that hasn’t …
Chip Kelly Update: A Vision Takes Shape
In his first two years as an NFL coach, Chip Kelly was a whirlwind of change, challenging the conventional wisdom on everything from players’ food to game tempo to the team schedule (giving his team Monday off after Sunday games instead of the usual Tuesday). And while Kelly’s “college boy” style was mocked at first, much of the NFL has …
Loaded With Talent — Ducks Passing Game Set to Soar
Although Oregon has been a run-oriented football team the past few years, the number of times they have run the ball has decreased in both of Mark Helfrich’s seasons as head coach. The difference in the Helfrich era thus far has been athletic passers playing the QB position rather than runners who can somewhat throw. The Chip Kelly-type QB will always be defined …
Gary Campbell — The Man in the Suit and Behind the Offense
Rich Brooks, Mike Bellotti, and Chip Kelly are all coaches responsible for great seasons and the current state of the Oregon football team. As fans, we attribute success and failure to the head coaches, but it is never just the head coaches that are responsible for the success of a team. Too often we give the head coaches — and sometimes …
Unconventional Superstars — It’s Just the Oregon Way
Easily the most highly touted player to come out of college in recent memory, Andrew Luck checked all the boxes. At the combine he measured in at 6’4″ and a stocky 230 lbs, and every time he threw a football people swore you could hear the laces sing in pure awe and glory. Seriously, the guy was the living, breathing …
Oregon’s Receivers Are Poised For a Breakout Season in 2015
The Oregon Ducks have revolutionized the way that college football is played, and for almost 10 years now, the Ducks have been the most entertaining team to watch. Oregon’s no-huddle offense, comprised of speed, great athletes and misdirection, has influenced many programs across the country. Chip Kelly, who is currently the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles and one of …