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Hopefully the playcalling is better this time around and hopefully Dante works out the glitch where he pauses for a split second which is all IU will need to wreak havoc.

McDonough and McElroy will be the broadcast team for ESPN. McDonough: https://espnpressroom.com/us/bios/mcdonough_sean/ McElroy: https://espnpressroom.com/us/bios/greg-mcelroy/ This season, the pair handled the Miami at A&M first round game, then the Sugar Bowl matchup between Ole Miss and Georgia.

You need a better OC. (On-Line Coordinator.) 🤪

Not so fast on the SEC's title chances. I wouldn't count out a super-motivated Ole Miss team with a magician playing QB. Trinidad Chambers presents a different challenge for the Miami D than the far less mobile Julian Sayin. Miami is 16-12 in its bowl games and won national titles in 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991, and 2001. Miami is 0-4 in the Fiesta Bowl with losses to UCLA, Penn State, Arizona, and Ohio State. The U comes into Thursday night's game with the added pressure of winning and playing for a title on its home field. I expect Ole Miss will have more fans in attendance than Miami, unified by a robust hatred of Lane Kiffin. Miami lost its last bowl game, the Pop-Tarts Bowl, to Matt Campbell and Iowa State, 42-41, with Cam Ward, with Mario's consent, taking a second-half nap. (The folks who wagered on Miami were not happy with Mario's undisclosed bowl game 'strategy.' 🤬) Ole Miss, +3 to +3.5, comes into the Fiesta Bowl 13-1 with rematch wins over Tulane and Georgia, and with the better QB, a guy who can escape pressure. I like Ole Miss to cover and win. The SEC's dominance was more about recruiting local talent and poaching players of need, such as Tua and Brock Bowers. There were few, if any, squeaky clean programs before NIL. Where there is a transactional free market for any endeavor, deep pockets will step up, and talent will be disbursed. HO$E THE HOO$IERS!

I read somewhere that the charter from Eugene to Miami was only about 25% of capacity. Whomever arranged that charter is unlikely to want to risk another pocketbook hit.

There is a misconception than NIL allows teams with high level boosters to be automatically successful. It takes a lot more than cash. They also need alignment with the administration and staff and a plan that allows the program to maximize the use of their NIL funds. Fortunately, Oregon/Nike is well versed in brand management with their athletes. There will always be those athletes who want the quick cash. However, the smart ones will go with the long term investment in themselves.

I haven’t heard anything, but if they had chartered flights for the Orange Bowl, I don’t see any reason why they wouldn’t have them for the Peach Bowl.

I don’t think going with an entirely different offensive philosophy is feasible. Especially since Oregon relies on the running game so much. Stein got pass happy in the first matchup and that’s what got them beat. Dante saw ghosts and lost his poise in the pocket which led to him bailing as his receivers were coming open. One thing that could be effective is to go no-huddle/high tempo. It would stop their defense from making audible adjustments and tire them out. Unfortunately, it would have to be done sparingly as this Duck team isn’t conditioned to keep this tempo for long periods of time. They’re not built for it.

Oregon was coming off a bye and I do think there was some lost focus in that week. Indiana was also coming off a bye but Cignetti is older and a more expirenced head coach and based on the Rose Bowl as well was able to keep his team more focused. Also his team is mostly composed of juniors and seniors which is a huge help for the focus side of things. In short Cignetti's team was far better prepared. Lanning I feel has done better with some bye weeks but on the whole I think that is one area he needs to improve upon. Last year the first bye came a week before playing game 4 against UCLA, who weren't good. Then the very last week before the final game against Washington was the next bye and we'll Washington wasn't all that good either. Then the next bye was a long one before the Rose Bowl and I don't need to get into that. Lanning does a fantastic job getting his team ready on a week to week basis and at times keep his team going when they are tired and beaten up.the Wisconsin game last season is a fantastic example, it was the last game before that bye before Washington, and you could tell that team was exhausted. But Lanning kept them going. So I'm hoping the fast turnaround before the next playoff game will have a far more focused Ducks team. Even the time between first and second round was almost 2 weeks which doesn't play into Lanning's hand as well.

Anyone hear any scuttlebut about airlines adding direct flights from Eugene to Atlanta like they did for The Orange Bowl?

Money has always bought players in college football. Whether it was under the table in a brown paper bag, or now, via contract to represent Joe’s Diner for millions. NIL seems to be escalating fast. We will see who is still standing in another 10 years.

Oregon signed the top high school football player in the State of Alabama the past two years. Let that sink in.

Yes, he now had competition for those players and unlike up-tempo to which he adapted, that dog couldn't learn new tricks aka legalized NIL, unlimited transfers (no longer able to stash players and block from an SEC transfer) and having to re-recruit your own players.

I truly felt that a large part of the slow start to the loss at Autzen was lack of focus following the PSU game. If the Ducks hit the ground in a focused and disciplined manner, this game may be a toss-up, at worst.

I think we need to find a way to keep Dante and offense cooking, starting with playcalling. When the passing game works, we should keep doing it until it doesn't, or at least prioritize it. Air Raid, anyone? I think Dante is perfect for it and we have the running game to sustain it. That may be the ticket against this tough IN defense. Our D should be able to contain Mendoza better than Alabama and keep us in the game. The other thing I have noticed is how cocky Mendoza and gang are becoming and how everyone is giving Indiana credit. Hopefully they reach a point of underestimating us right before the Peach Bowl game.

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I will always maintain that Saban quit because everyone can now do what he’d been doing for years.

The basics have to be there. Some of that is pure talent (arm strength) , some of it is knowledge, some of it is the ability to make plays on your own. The development part is learning the game, the speed of the game, and your OC's philosophy. Dante is way better than average. The speed and complexity of reading coverages under duress is very difficult to master. I watched a play in the TTU game in which I knew what was open after the completion. I reviewed it over ten times to see if I could time reading what was going on quickly enough to make the proper read. It is difficult to master for sure.

It doesn't hurt that their footprint contains more elite football talent in the average county as the entire State of Oregon...

Lanning's comments today... https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/dan-lanning-opens-up-about-dante-moore-s-growth-since-first-indiana-matchup/ar-AA1TvShx

I always wondered how the best teams in the SEC were usually 3 deep.

Familiarity Breeds Nothing Easy as Oregon, Indiana Meet Again in Peach Bowl Oregon and Indiana meet again in the Peach Bowl CFP semifinal, a high-stakes rematch that underscores just how difficult it is to beat a disciplined, well-coached team twice in the same season.

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (CFP Semifinal): No. 1 Indiana vs. No. 5 OregonAddicted To QuackChick-fil-A Peach Bowl (CFP Semifinal): No. 1 Indiana vs....Peach Bowl Oregon vs Indiana Football Odds and Moneyline