The battle for first place in the Pac-12 Conference and national polls was raging this weekend in a four-game series between softball powerhouses No. 3 Oregon Ducks and No. 2 UCLA Bruins in front of the largest crowds of the year at Jane Sanders Stadium in Eugene. Yes, more than 600 lucky fans were in the stands to cheer on …
A lot of noise has been made about the ineptitude of the conference in which the Oregon Ducks play. From some random guy deciding when penalties should stand, to bowl game opt-outs and criminally poor refereeing in all sports, the Pac-12 has long been the worst that the Power Five has to offer. The conference took their first step toward …
It’s my birthday today. And while I am not a big birthday person (after 21, do any of them really matter?), it would have been a nice gift for our Ducks to be 2-0. This, of course, would have meant a gigantic victory over Ohio State, which would have gifted me the right to rub it into the faces of …
Once again, the B1G and the Pac-12 have moved in lock-step. This time in the two conferences’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Both the B1G and Pac-12 powers-that-be made the very difficult decision to take a big (no pun intended) financial hit in order to err, if they err at all, on the side of their student-athletes’ safety. No fall …
The blog Bear Insider published this article to preview each Pac-12 team, and it included some interesting comments about Oregon concerning the 2019 season and the upcoming 2020 campaign. I thought it would provide us some information about the other conference teams going into the season and some discussion points about Oregon’s prospects this fall. (I list their bullet points …
Once I had a conference, I made it run, Made it run just fine. Once I had a conference and Keith Jackson called it a King. Brother, can you spare a dime? (To the tune of “Brother Can You Spare a Dime?”) In 1970, a USC team led by coach John McKay (an Oregon graduate) went into Tuscaloosa and played like …
(To the tune of “The Gambler” by Kenny Rogers) On a warm summer’s eve In a manse in San Francisco I met up with a gambler He was looking slick and chic. We both took a flute Of champagne from his table And as we were sippin’ He began to speak. He said, “Son, I’ve made a livin’ Out of …
Lay a map of Texas over Western Europe and you will find that The Lone Star State covers Germany, Austria, The Netherlands, Luxembourg and parts of Belgium, France, Italy, Croatia and the Czech Republic. And the great state of Texas is 28 times larger than the Green Mountain State, Vermont. That’s a lot of hat and a lot of cattle, …
“What’s that you say? ‘Jackie Robinson, Johnny Wooden and McKay have gone away’? Hey, hey, hey!” B-r-r-r-ing! “9-1-1.” “Quaaaaaack!” It’s Poor Puddles calling to report animal abuse. Our fine-feathered friend has been whipped, spurred and ridden so hard by Trojans, Cougars, Huskies, Sun Devils, Beavers, Wildcats, Utes, Bears (both Golden and Bruin), and even two-ton Ralphie, that he is starting …
From the Pac-12’s “Taj Mahal Palace” in San Francisco, large-living Larry “Spendthrift” Scott has reached out to me to seek my advice on how to re-brand the conference. No surprise, as this is completely consistent with Scott’s other cogent business decisions. He just sent a big check to my consulting firm, better known as “JJ’s Crystal Ball Enterprises” (JJCBE). Apparently, he forgot …
“The time has come,” the Walrus said, “to talk of many things. Of shoes, and ships, and sealing wax, of cabbages … and Kings.” Alice In Wonderland Apparently, Arizona State (ASU) President, Michael M. Crow heard the call of the Walrus. (The Walrus, by the way, was the symbol of death for many Norse cultures and also for the Beatles’ “Abbey Road” …
Part 1 of 2 With writers at The Oregonian, San Jose Mercury News, and Fishduck’s own Ryan Robertson having all recently sounded alarm bells on the state of the Pac-12, I will attempt to compress all of the madness into a concise and easy to digest two-part read. Part-two will be published on December 21st. Darren Perkins —————————————————————————————– The Pac-12 …