Larry Scott, the embattled Pac-12 Commissioner, is finally making his way out the door. Jon Wilner of the Pac-12 Hotline, in an article also posted on oregonlive.com, takes one of his final parting shots at Scott. I’m sure he’ll have a few more before Scott’s reign ends on Jun 30th. I’ve taken my fair share of shots at Scott over …
How Does Oregon’s 2021 Defense Stack Up Against 2014’s?
Oregon’s 2021 football team has the hype and personnel to make a run at the College Football Playoff and maybe even a National Championship. Last week, I looked at how this year’s offense stacked up against the 2014 team, and today we turn to the defense to compare 2021’s team to the last Oregon team to reach the Playoff and …
Winning 11 Games is in Mario’s Hands
Jon Wilner of the Pac-12 Hotline posted his under/over predictions for all Pac-12 teams. The under/over for the Ducks is nine wins, of which Wilner goes for the under while citing Oregon’s lack of a proven quarterback. The only team that Wilner predicts to win more than nine games is Arizona State. Given Oregon’s talent advantage, in addition to a …
Duck Football: Protecting and Treating ALL Oregon Athletes
Concussions are common among athletes who participate in contact sports, and Ducks football is no exception, of course. When a player is involved with a collision, a concussion happens when the brain gets banged around and the neurons get damaged. This causes them to lose the ability to effectively transfer brain signals, and often emit instant behavior changes that are …
How Does Oregon’s Offense in 2021 Stack Up Against 2014?
2014 was the first year of the College Football Playoff, and Oregon was the first team to win a CFP semifinal game. The 2014 season was an incredible year for Oregon fans, as Marcus Mariota was the first Oregon player to win the Heisman, which he did while setting QB records — not only for Oregon but for the entire …
Justin Herbert: 2021 NFL MVP Candidate
My infatuation of Justin Herbert continues as I ask readers to excuse me for yet another article regarding the former Oregon quarterback as I have written about him several times this offseason. I can’t contain my enthusiasm after what he showed us last year in his first pro season and believe that Herbert has the inside track to becoming the …
Why the New Transfer Rule Is Great for the Pac-12
On Monday the Pac-12 voted unanimously to approve immediate eligibility for intraconference transfers. In other words, players transferring from one Pac-12 school to another no longer have to sit out a year, but instead will be immediately eligible to play. The ACC recently decided to do away with the rule within their own conference, and the NCAA is considering doing …
Most Impactful Coach: Rich Brooks or Chip Kelly?
Rich Brooks had a record of 91-109-4 while he was head coach at the University of Oregon. He did not have a single season of 10+ wins (although he coached when there were fewer games, making 10+ wins harder to obtain), had only one conference championship and one bowl win in a whopping 18 seasons in Eugene, and finished a season …
How Safe Is CJ Verdell’s Starting Spot?
Last week I wrote that no starter was safe on Oregon’s offense. One of the positions not mentioned in that article were the running backs. In the Spring Game, there were only three active running backs: the two starters in C.J. Verdell and Travis Dye, as well as walk-on Aaron Smith. Dye looks as dynamic as ever and will absolutely see …
Justin Herbert: Better Than Trevor Lawrence?
I was sitting on my couch sipping coffee and wiping the sleep from my eyes Monday morning when I heard sports pundit Ryan Clark — of ESPN’S sports talk show “Get Up” with Mike Greenberg — mention that he believed Trevor Lawrence’s “rookie year ceiling” would be to put up the same type of numbers that Justin Herbert did in …
Tight End: Oregon’s New Elite Position
Oregon Head Coach Mario Cristobal was an offensive lineman. He loves to recruit and coach the big guys in the middle, often giving the Ducks one of the better units in the country. He is improving at recruiting pass-catchers, and what would an offensive line coach love more than pass-catchers who can block? The tight end room at Oregon might …
No Starter Is Safe On Oregon’s Offense
The Oregon Spring Game showed off the years of work Mario Cristobal and his coaching staff have put in on the recruiting trail. Oregon team has the deepest and most talented roster in program history. This led to one of the most competitive Spring Games in recent memory, where the offense narrowly defeated the defense. The competition was not limited …