Oregon will never win any recruiting championships. While teams such as Alabama, USC and LSU tend to dominate in the rankings, the Ducks rarely crack the top-15. Year after year they bring in solid, but unspectacular recruiting classes, yet year after year, Oregon takes those same recruits and turns them into champions. Why is that? What is the key that allows teams without …
National LOI signing day is a lot like Christmas for those of us who follow recruiting. A few of us have rich parents and expect the world, while others come from blue collar families. All of us wake up early and wait in agony for mom and dad to come downstairs so that we can start opening presents. Sometimes, we …
Kevin Cline It would appear that after four straight years of BCS appearances, the University of Oregon football team will be left on the outside looking in. Most likely the team will be headed to the Alamo Bowl, something that most pundits and fans would not have predicted before the season began. Yet here they are. There is nothing wrong …
If you grew up playing the original Nintendo system, you might be familiar with an old arcade game called “Marble Madness.” We’re talking about the first Nintendo – you know the one: a directional pad, the shiny red A and B buttons, Select, and Start button. A sleek five-button controller — like God intended. This game would mesmorize kids with elaborate mazes that …
Kevin Cline Great teams make good teams look average. After last night, there’s no doubt that Oregon is a great football team. The Ducks beat the UCLA Bruins, 42-14, in a game that showed the nation they’re more than just an offensive juggernaut. After Saturday night, those left questioning Oregon’s championship credentials are few. With all due respect to Coach …
Kevin Cline “The Quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little, and it will fail.” — J.R.R. Tolkien, Lord of the Rings This year is one of the most important years in the history of Oregon football. During the years of Mike Bellotti, the football program was solid – very successful, but never quite reaching the …
Photos courtesy of Kevin Cline In most of the close games and eventual losses during the Chip Kelly era, a common theme seemed to surface consistently. An opposing team that was able to slow the run game enough force the Ducks to throw would sometimes find that Oregon couldn’t. The 2012 game against Stanford aside, we saw opposing teams like …
Football Recruiting Commitments Oregon’s newest coaching hire, defensive line front man Ron Aiken, is wasting no time in assembling a venerable commit list. This past Monday saw the addition of defensive end Jalen Jelks (3-Star/Phoenix, Ariz.) to the Duck fold and further reinforced Oregon’s commitment to winning the trench war. “I didn’t think I would commit before my (senior) season, …
For Duck fans, a field goal has become a gut-wrenching, last second act of desperation gone awry. The Oregon football program is no stranger to hanging its national title hopes on a fourth quarter field goal, and unfortunately, they have come up short and to the left … twice. Oregon’s prolific offensive schemes and stout defense can only take it so far; …
First it was Nick Saban, then Florida coach Will Muschamp. Now, the latest high-profile coach to bash the spread offense is new Arkansas coach Bret Bielema. Three successful, smart, influential coaches, all of whom are calling for rule changes to slow down the spread offense and give defenses a better opportunity to substitute, get a breather and avoid injury. So …
Today, June 27th, 2013, marks the first day in a new era of Oregon Duck football. The Chip Kelly saga, bowl-ban hype, and 2-year NCAA investigation are now officially over with. This teams past is no longer making headlines, coach Kelly is on the other side of the country, and mystery man Willie Lyles is MIA. While it seems as …
Football Recruiting Commitments Oregon has never been the biggest player in the JUCO ranks due to a crop of venerable prep recruiting classes. Recently however, stars such as former offensive lineman Kyle Long seem to have upped the Ducks’ interest in the junior college pipeline. Last week, Oregon received commitments from two highly touted recruits in that of defensive end Tui …