Former Oregon Lineman’s Injury a Failure of Leadership

Jordan Ingram Editorials

It’s hard to see former Oregon Ducks football players and coaches seated in a courtroom. There is a stark difference between the electric greens and yellows of Autzen Stadium roaring with glee at full capacity and the hushed, drab, beige-colored rooms of the Lane County Courthouse. For most folks, this is not a happy place. They don’t sell nachos in …

The Changing Face of Loyalty in CFB Coaching

David Marsh Editorials

Loyalty for aspiring top-tier programs is dead in College Football. The desire for loyalty is commendable and brings stability to both a program and a fan base, but if the goal of a program is to win a National Championship, then loyalty shouldn’t be a factor. This doesn’t mean a school shouldn’t try to lock down its coach for as …

The Rhabdo Trilogy: A Deeper Dive

Phil Anderson Editorials

Every great trilogy needs a bad guy. Star Wars had Darth Vader. Scream 3 had Ghostface. The Final Insult had … well, you get the idea. In January 2017, three Oregon football players were hospitalized with acute overexertion rhabdomyolysis (rhabdo).  On January 9, 2019, one of them — Doug Brenner — filed an 11.5-million dollar lawsuit against the University of …

The Ducks Are On the Verge of Regressing

Darren Perkins Editorials

Hopefully, Oregon isn’t there already. The Ducks went 7-5 in Willie Taggart’s first season. We all felt a little better about that because we knew with a healthy Justin Herbert the Ducks would have cruised to a 9-3 record. Coming into this season with “Slick” gone, a new coach who we trust, recruiting up, an improving defense, and a healthy …

Ducks Football: 10 Tuesday Tidbits

Darren Perkins Editorials

Some Tuesday morning thoughts as I finish taking in the Husky victory last weekend before fully turning my eyes towards Pullman and the ESPN GameDay hosting hysteria of this weekend. 1) Recruiting Per Rivals.com, the Ducks currently sit third nationally for the 2019 recruiting cycle. After witnessing the “best college game I’ve ever been to,” No. 1 overall prospect Kayvon …

Rob Mullens: Better Lucky Than Good

Mitchel Simantel Editorials

What does “It’s better to be lucky than good” mean? And how does this statement apply to Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens? In 2016 Mullens parted ways with Mark Helfrich after two disappointing seasons, and embarked on Oregon’s first true head football coaching search in decades. He eventually found Willie Taggart, and whether Taggart sank or swam Mullens (and his …

Oregon’s Offensive Transition: Insane or Ingenious?

Joshua Whitted Editorials

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. When it comes to Oregon’s offense over the past decade, this is certainly a good philosophy to follow. Under Chip Kelly, Mark Helfrich and Willie Taggart, the Ducks’ offense has been among the most exciting and innovative groups in the country. Apparently, Mario Cristobal didn’t get the memo. We got our first look …

From Slick Willie to Super Mario, Oregon’s Recruiting Rolls On

Darren Perkins Editorials

There really wasn’t anything about Willie Taggart that I was going to miss when he decided to head back to Florida. His game planning was pedestrian, his in-game coaching was sub-par, his media persona was “car salesman-esque,” and his running of Justin Herbert up the gut as if he were Jerome Bettis was utterly mind-boggling.   These things ultimately cost the Ducks a very successful 2017 season, not to mention destroying the 10-win prediction …

Yeech: Do I Have to say, “THANK YOU” to Willie Taggart?

Charles Fischer, Mr. FishDuck Editorials

Admit it, you’ve been thinking about this too. You even know what I’m about to write, but like me, you have not wanted to address it because you are still annoyed at the despicable way he dumped the Ducks. But this is Lent, a Christian time of sacrifice; of cleansing and making amends. Before we put the Willie Taggart era completely …

Oregon Recruiting, Pac-12 Notes and Coug-It, USA!

Darren Perkins Editorials

In the aftermath of signing day, as we try to make sense of it all, I compiled a chart (see below) covering the past twelve years of Oregon recruiting to help put things in perspective—from the end of the Mike Bellotti era to the beginning of the Mario Cristobal regime. At first glance, it’s clear that things took a dip …

Famous FishDuck Writers–Remove Mullens: PASS or NO PASS?

Charles Fischer, Mr. FishDuck Editorials

Something I’m seeing on message boards, in the comments at FishDuck.com and in emails to me — is that quite a number of Oregon fans want athletic director Rob Mullens fired over the 11 million buyout to Mark Helfrich, coupled with being bamboozled by Willie Taggart. I have my doubts about faulting Mullens. Firstly, he felt he must secure the institutional …