The past two seasons the Oregon football program has primarily used zone blocking schemes to run the football, and this blocking concept usually has the offensive line moving in unison at the point of attack. These schemes take advantage of a defense by using double teams initially, then having one of the two blockers peel off to attack a linebacker …
The question I’ve posed aloud numerous times on this site for the current coaching staff at Oregon that has never been answered is a big one … “When the Oregon Spread Offense under Chip Kelly/Mark Helfrich from 2008 through 2016 averaged nearly 43 points a game, (42.8) and it became the brand of Oregon football and what we were known …
This is not a “Mario Cristobal Hit Piece,” as some of my articles questioning Oregon’s coaching may have appeared to be. In fact, there are many elements of the Civil War victory that point to superb coaching by this staff. I wish to point those out, along with some items to ponder as we wait for our upcoming bowl game. For …
Coach Mario Cristobal had a chance to see what his offense should always look like, scoring 28 points in the first half of their win over Arizona State. In the second half, the offense and their coaching staff were strangely absent. The freewheeling game plan, so successful in the first two quarters, was put away, or forgotten, in the vault. …
I could not believe my eyes. I have written extensively about how this staff could not win a National Championship someday unless there were massive changes and Coach Mario Cristobal became more flexible on offense. I felt there was a very low chance of that happening, as it appeared that he was going to be stubborn about “establishing the run,” and …
Oregon’s offense has undergone a facelift, and the results haven’t been flattering. The once ultra-exciting and innovative unit that produced historically great results now looks ordinary and predictable. Finding something positive in the midst of such offensive regression is challenging, but there has been one resounding bright spot: Dillon Mitchell. The former illustrious recruit from Memphis has become a bona fide …
Last Monday felt like the earth moving in Oregon, as my article sent shock waves among Ducks fans on both sides of the conundrum. My objective was to declare my thoughts about what I was seeing, and it gave permission for others to voice their concerns about the future of the team as well. We had spirited debate all last …
When the Ducks win, I am hard to be around. The only time it is worse is when I am the first to publicly state a major issue–and to be right about it. I began voicing concerns about the Oregon offense after the San Jose State game, and last week declared that this was a warning sign. Of course, I …
In just over half of the first Mario Cristobal season, we have already experienced some extreme highs (Washington), lows, such as the underwhelming win against San Jose State, the choke versus Stanford, and the fiasco that was the trip to Pullman. These are clues about where we truly are, and give us signs as to what to look for in …
“I feel a lot better — don’t you?” That sounds ludicrous to most, but it is my honest feeling the morning after, as my perspective is a little different than most. (Some would say quite flawed at times, but I can live with that). You see, I honestly thought Oregon was going to be clobbered by Stanford due to the …
Alright … I was wrong in last week’s article. And not just once, but in a couple of places. I was erroneously applying prior knowledge of the Oregon Spread Offense to the new Oregon Offense that features the Pistol formation the majority of the time. In this article, I will apologize, own up to my errors (each of them) and …
Mario Cristobal notched his first win as the head coach for Oregon, a 58-24 thrashing of the out-manned Bowling Green Falcons. The game was also the end of a nine-game losing streak to teams from Ohio and perhaps the beginning of a streak that might stretch beyond one game. Quarterback Justin Herbert began to make his case for Heisman consideration, …