Our Beloved Ducks recently completed another school year under pandemic protocols and online classes, which resulted in a unique graduation experience. As an Oregon graduate myself this Spring, I wanted to consider our community and how the Ducks have changed over the years, rising and falling as a dominant program between decades of graduating classes. Fantastic recruiting exhibited by Mario …
Prior to the 2020 football season it was unclear whether there would be any games played at all. The lack of clarity and the restrictions placed on practice once a season was confirmed, made the install of a brand new offense all that more difficult. Coach Joe Moorhead was tasked with implementing his RPO-heavy offense through Zoom meetings and a …
It’s a great day to be a fan of the Pac-12 Conference as embattled commissioner Larry Scott makes his exit while incoming commissioner George Kliavkoff takes a seat in the big chair. We all know the arrogance and poor decision-making that occurred during Scott’s reign. It’s now time to turn that page and take an optimistic approach at the arrival …
Alright, Ducks fans. If you’re like me, you woke up shocked to learn that four-star linebacker Isaac Slade-Matautia was entering the NCAA transfer portal. It’s official — the 6-foot-1, 235-pound Hawaiian native will likely finish his college football career somewhere else, perhaps closer to home? In three years, Slade-Matautia had 131 total tackles, with 12 tackles for a loss and …
The Pac-12 needs a win. It has been more than half a decade since any team from the conference has made the CFB Playoff and it is going on a whopping seven seasons since Oregon got the conference its only playoff win. Last year, no team was even in the discussion for the playoff. That brings us to 2021: one …
Our beloved rivalry game with the Beavers has not only been renamed, but also particularly uneventful in the last decade (for majority’s sake). Of the last 13 meetings, Oregon State has only managed two wins against our Ducks, however the most important of wins being in the Beavers favor: the LAST one. Our Ducks (particularly the defense) fell apart on national …
The Pac-12 in 2021 is remarkably difficult to rank. It is probably the most competitive conference in all the Power Five — that is “competitive,” not “best.” Trying to accurately rank the Pac-12, especially in the off-season, is an absolute nightmare, as any team can beat anyone in any given week. There is a reason why Pac-12 After Dark is …
Penei Sewell had a masterful career at Oregon. He won the Outland Trophy for the nation’s best lineman, he was a consensus All-American, and he might be the best offensive lineman in school history. Sewell has a few challengers for the title of best offensive lineman in Oregon Ducks history. The obvious contender for the top spot is Gary Zimmerman, …
The Oregon offense was stagnant all through the COVID-ridden 2020 season, and the ground attack wasn’t doing the team any favors. The Ducks did average 166.7 YPG (yards per game), a mere eight yards under the 2019 season average of 174.9 YPG, but both of these seasons are far and away from the success of 2017 and other similar seasons …
The 2020 season was disastrous for Oregon’s special teams. The kicking game started out bad, return coverage was often lacking, and Oregon just didn’t have much of a return game of their own. At the beginning of last season, Camden Lewis had placekicking responsibilities and basically picked up where he left off — missing easy kicks. At the end of …
During daily web surfing of my must-see sports sites, I stumbled across a post at oregonlive.com (full youtube video) that hosted a video documenting the tension and excitement of the Detroit Lions’ front office in the minutes leading up to their selection of Oregon offensive lineman Penei Sewell with the seventh overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. It was …
I never thought I’d live to see the day when the Oregon Ducks football team became known for developing some of the nation’s finest talent in the offensive trenches. Growing up in the 80s, it felt like the Ducks’ offensive line was more decorative than utilitarian. Running lanes were quickly clogged with faster and stronger defensive ends, and nearly every …