These are not two of your favorite people to contemplate right now, but I would ask for your indulgence and fantasizing along with me. I understand how people are angry at Coach Willie Taggart for leaving after only one year, but if Coach Mario Cristobal had been offered his dream job in Florida after only one year–wouldn’t he have bolted …
We’ve all heard the consensus point of view from Duck fans: Mario Cristobal regressed the development of Justin Herbert and Anthony Brown. Both QBs spent two years in Cristobal’s offense, but is that statement hyperbole — and is there information that could provide a definite answer? Taggart’s Offensive System Let Herbert Shine Herbert’s true sophomore year in 2017 under new …
In the last five years Oregon has seen two head coaches leave for their dream jobs. Willie Taggart didn’t even finish coaching the entirety of his first season at Oregon before he jumped at the opportunity to coach at Florida State. Mario Cristobal left after the Pac-12 Championship game after leading the program for four years. Both names prompt angry …
There is no doubt that the Chip Kelly era at Oregon was a magical time. Kelly’s four-year tenure as Head Coach of the Oregon Ducks was the greatest run in Oregon football history. In those four years, the Ducks went 46-7 and played in three “BCS” bowl games and one national championship game. Oregon was the coolest, flashiest, and most confident …
The Oregon Ducks football program is teetering on the edge of total collapse. Nevermind the embarrassing and infuriating loss to the Utah Utes in the Pac-12 Championship game, led by Anthony Brown and one of the worst quarterback performances in recent memory. (Ahem. Why not play Ty Thompson in the second half? I’ll wait.) If we can set that aside, the future looks …
Many fans feel unsettled by the lack of football in Autzen this fall and see this as a “cop out” season for the Pac-12 board, a “cowardly move” to avoid lawsuits. Missing out on some of our best players’ last seasons at Oregon may seem disappointing now, but head coach Mario Cristobal has prepared for this. Sure, the Ducks have …
It’s safe to say that 2020 hasn’t produced a typical college football off-season. Compared to the COVID-19 Virus, very little football has been discussed. On top of this, we have a culture war mounting across the nation, which has compelled a group of Pac-12 players to threaten a boycott unless certain demands are met in regards to racial injustice, COVID-19, …
… of the sand. What’d y’all think I was gonna’ say? After the Ducks came out throwing to start Friday night’s game against Colorado, ESPN color commentator (and former UW QB) Brock Huard repeatedly kept making the point of how the Ducks needed to establish the run. He emphasized that running is this team’s identity, as they have been formed …
The first article I ever wrote for FishDuck.com was about the issues Oregon would have against bigger receivers in 2018. It was an article that was proven right at times (see Stanford) and wrong at others (see Arizona State). Regardless, I felt the Ducks would be unable to overcome their lack of size at cornerback to be among the nation’s …
The offensive coaching staff was the biggest disappointment of the Ducks’ 2018 season. Some of you will hem and haw and throw out lame excuses like, “they need time to adjust to a new system,” or, “the wide receivers were sub-par,” or even, “a coach needs four years to get his system in place.” You get four years when you’re …
Oh baby, the day is here! How will the Ducks do in the final LOI signing date for the 2019 class? Let’s keep track and I will be writing in the comments when Oregon has received the official letters of intent so we can take a big sigh of relief when the three we know of come in. Let’s take …
One of a few aspects of the Oregon Ducks offense that seemed unusual to me, as the season progressed, was the lack of gap schemes. Not to say there weren’t any, but for a team that was thought to be a power run team, the scarcity of these plays was puzzling. That was until Oregon’s game against the Arizona State …