When Oregon learned of its potential bowl opponents, there were several interesting candidates. Iowa, Northwestern and Wisconsin each would have been fine choices. But there’s no question that the Redbox Bowl committee struck gold when they matched the high-flying Ducks with their familiar cross-country foe, Michigan State, for their third meeting in five years. The rubber match won’t be for a spot in …
The Pac-12 conference has been left out of the playoff again. That is news to no one. The conference’s best bowl game will be the Rose Bowl, featuring 9-3 champion Washington. The Pac-12 is the only conference without either multiple “New Years Six” bowl teams or a team in the College Football Playoff. The case could be made that since Marcus Mariota left Oregon, there hasn’t been …
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 …
“Are you sure she won’t chomp on my hand?” We had just brought home Abbie from the Humane Society and I was playing tug-of-war with her for the first time and she snapped the stuffed animal from my hands, clenched it hard in her teeth and buried it under her paws. She laid her head on her paws, looked up …
The 2018 Oregon Ducks had their share of superstars. The team that has become famous for producing some of the fastest, most dynamic athletes in the country once again fielded a number of quality players who became household names this season. But who among them was the best? If you had to choose the one player that impressed you the …
My friends–we have progressed as a site because such an amazing group of Oregon fans who have turned the comments below articles into a “high-brow” discussion of Oregon sports that will always be “TROLL-FREE.” I am always interested in a short article to start a discussion, a “Ponder-Point” if you will, and a reader brought us a tremendous topic for …
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 …
Time to review the season, and note that I did not ask if you were satisfied with 8-4 as a regular season record, but if having a 8-4 result for this year was acceptable to you. There is so much that goes into making such an assessment, which makes it a great “ponder-point” for us to chew on. So many of …
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 …
Give thanks for what? My friends, on Thanksgiving Week, I have a lot to be thankful for concerning FishDuck.com and all of you! I did not anticipate the comments below the article to become as much fun as they have. We are the only Oregon website that is guaranteed “TROLL-FREE” because I enjoy ruthlessly deleting offending comments that violate our rules. The …
Mario Cristobal is not Chip Kelly. Kelly is an offensive mastermind, whose fast-paced, spread-option system took the country by storm. His innovations, matched with some of the most dynamic athletes in the game, led the Ducks to their most successful period in team history. But for all of his acclaim, Kelly couldn’t get over the hump. Although his offensive brilliance …
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. …
