Head coach Mario Cristobal savored two Thanksgiving treats: dinner with his team and family, and the next day, for dessert, a 55-15 win over rival Oregon State in a Civil War game that was never as close as the final score indicated. The outcome revealed that Oregon could dominate the line of scrimmage and run roughshod over the worst Pac-12 …
8-4. By all accounts an up and down season. Perhaps some optimism but in general most fans are not completely satisfied. There’s a general feeling of mediocrity, underachievement, and that things must improve. Welcome to modern day Oregon football. For historical perspective, in 1990, the Ducks went 8-3 and went to the Freedom Bowl in Anaheim, CA. Fans were elated. At …
The 2018 Oregon Ducks have been like a box of chocolates: when they take the field, you never know what you’re going to get. One week, it looks like they could go toe to toe with the best teams in the country. Another, it looks like they’d get smoked by conference bottom-dweller Oregon State. Fans are growing restless with the team’s hot …
Oregon’s offense is stagnant. Constant complaint from fans and poor performances against below-average defenses make it abundantly clear that there are some serious flaws. Article after article details the issues that the Ducks have with play-calling and running the ball inside even when there are nine defenders in the box. But this is not why Oregon’s offense is stagnant. The culprit …
Coach Mario Cristobal had to be thankful that UCLA made a ton of mistakes in Chip Kelly’s return trip to Autzen Stadium. The Bruins are very young, with fewer senior starters than Oregon: one on offense and two on defense — which might account for the five turnovers and 11 penalties, not to mention a flurry of dropped passes. Cristobal …
Hopefully, Oregon isn’t there already. The Ducks went 7-5 in Willie Taggart’s first season. We all felt a little better about that because we knew with a healthy Justin Herbert the Ducks would have cruised to a 9-3 record. Coming into this season with “Slick” gone, a new coach who we trust, recruiting up, an improving defense, and a healthy …
The Duck defense couldn’t tackle or put pressure on the quarterback, and the offense had an Alamo Bowl half where it couldn’t get the snap count right or protect its own quarterback. The end result was a perfect storm for Washington State as the Cougars had their best day ever in knocking off a no-longer cocky flock of Ducks. Oregon …
Oregon’s lost to Washington State has brought Oregon Duck fans clarity on exactly where the program stands: Improving, but not there yet. The loss to the Cougars exposed, among other things, the Ducks lack of depth at receiver and lack of defensive play-makers. Most importantly, it showed the lack of experience Oregon has at bouncing back after an emotional victory …
Some Tuesday morning thoughts as I finish taking in the Husky victory last weekend before fully turning my eyes towards Pullman and the ESPN GameDay hosting hysteria of this weekend. 1) Recruiting Per Rivals.com, the Ducks currently sit third nationally for the 2019 recruiting cycle. After witnessing the “best college game I’ve ever been to,” No. 1 overall prospect Kayvon …
All good things must come to an end. Unfortunately for Washington fans, that sentiment may apply tomorrow afternoon, as the Huskies’ status as the premier program in the Pac-12 is in jeopardy. There’s no doubt that Washington currently sits atop of the food chain in the Pac-12. They’ve completely overhauled what was an underachieving roster and transformed it into a juggernaut. …
In the game of football, it only takes a few seconds for euphoria to turn into tragedy. Just ask Oregon, who experienced this firsthand last Saturday in an instant classic. With 2:22 left in a wild fourth quarter against Stanford, the Ducks were reeling. After Oregon surrendered a 17-point lead that should have been even greater, the Cardinal were firing on all …
CULTURE: Shared patterns of behavior, interaction and achievement… developing specific characteristics and knowledge toward a stated goal. Blueprints are available for building and maintaining successful football programs. Alabama is the current gold standard, and has been for nearly decade. Just how did the Tide pull off a culture makeover down south? It has been said that imitation is the sincerest …