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Thanks, Don, for a terrific follow-up article. LeVar Woods. I believe there may be method in this seeming madness? A recent article on The Athletic predicted the coach of every P4 team in 2030. Woods was ticketed for the Iowa job with the author suggesting that LaVar's experience would be broadened by working in the conference for another defense-oriented coach. To absolve themselves from blame in the hazing scandal, Pat Fitzgerald was the administration's scapegoat. As part of the settlement of Fitzgerald's Wrongful Termination suit, he was absolved of all blame and received a settlement payment estimated to be around $100 million. However, does Michigan State have the money to field both a champion-contending basketball and football team? Will Fitzgerald be able to recruit quality high school and portal players at the level of Ohio State, Oregon, Michigan, and USC? Mark Dantonio succeeded at Michigan State by developing lesser-talented players who played for Sparty for the entirety of their college football career. Can a 'development program' compete for championships today? IMO, Jedd Fisch's coaching prowess is underrated. But like Fitzgerald at Michigan State, does he have the resources to win Big Ten titles? His record in Husky Stadium is excellent, but on the road? He is 0-2 in Seattle versus the biggest B1G boys, Ohio State and Oregon. Michigan. Say what you will about Harbaugh, but the guy returned his alma mater to championship level. When it comes to organization and discipline, the Wolverines under Whittingham are being compared to Harbaugh. Under the new OC, Jason Beck, I expect we'll see significant improvement in QB Bryce Underwood, and I know we will see a better scheme on offense with better play calling. Michigan will always have the money and the desire to compete for Big Ten and national titles. Having to play Ohio State in Columbus in early November and playing Michigan in Autzen the following Saturday will test Oregon's championship bona fides. USC? Riley won B12 titles and many games at Oklahoma, but consistently failed in the postseason. Entering his 5th season with SC, Riley has not taken SC to the playoffs or competed for a B1G title. No doubt that under GM Chad Bowen and AD Jen Cohen, SC NIL money has been aligned, and the recruiting is on par with any program in the country. Shouldn't a guy making ten million a season to coach a brand-name Blue Blood have been able to figure this out on his own, as did John McKay, John Robinson, and Pete Carroll? I think SC has everything going for it, but for the guy at the top. This is a prove-it season for Riley. Will he come through? Gary Patterson put great Ds on the field at TCU. He will be facing better competition in the Big Ten than he did in the B12. Does he have the Jimmies and the Joes and the coaching moxie after our seasons away from the game? Jim Knowles was great when coaching future pros in Columbus. Knowles flamed out at Penn State, especially at UCLA, after holding the Oregon offense in check. Matt Patricia improved Ohio State's defense. Patterson is in the College Football Hall of Fame, but will his defense be that much better than what D'Anton Lynn put on the field? Perhaps Riley will get SC to the top of the B1G and CFB, but I have my doubts. He has picked up a win from trading Notre Dame for take your pick of San Jose State, Fresno State, or the team formerly known as La-La. San Jose in Week Zero is why SC has two byes this season, the first coming in Week 8. SC is at Rutgers the Saturday before hosting Oregon. Oregon plays Portland State at home before heading to LA, as close to an off week as a team can get. Kirk Ferentz and DC Phil Parker's coaching chops will be tested in 2026. Iowa is 104th in returning production. But I still expect Iowa to be a tough out for every opponent. Thanks again, Don. It's so good to be B1G. 😍

While OBD haven’t broken through with winning it all, you have to actually be in contention to win it all, and USC has yet to qualify for any version of a playoff that featured more than 2 teams. Recruiting success isn’t new for them, not sure why they think this is the year…but feel free to at least qualify for the modern era playoff once. Any team on this list not making the expanded playoff at least 4 out of 5 years should be considering firing their coach imo. Top-10 Average Composite Recruiting Classes (Last 5 Years, roughly 2020-2024, according to Google): Georgia Bulldogs: Generally considered #1, with consistently elite classes. Alabama Crimson Tide: Top-tier finisher annually. Ohio State Buckeyes: Consistent top-three finisher. LSU Tigers: Elite recruiting in Louisiana and nationally. Texas A&M Aggies: High-ranked classes, including the record-setting 2022 class. Clemson Tigers: Consistently top-10, strong under Dabo Swinney. Texas Longhorns: Elite recruiting pedigree. Oregon Ducks: Top-tier recruiting under Dan Lanning. USC Trojans: Elite recruiting in California, particularly strong in recent cycles. Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Solid, consistent top-10 to top-15 classes.

This 'stuff' is what makes a rivalry. And it also shows that Dan is No. 1 on USC's Most Wanted poster. Great, bring it on. In the 2026 Big Ten opener for both teams, the only thing that matters will be revealed by a photo of the scoreboard at the game's end. When it matters the most, when at Oklahoma and at SC, has Riley walked the walk? No, not ever. In 2025, SC's recruiting class was No. 1 in terms of quantity. Dan finished ahead of Riley in quality, again. I do not want Dan to sink to SC's level, but a perfect response to SC's post would be to post a photo of All-America guard Emmanuel Pregnon, a player who found the grass greener at A School Up North. 😁 Is there any grass in South Central that isn't fake?

A Wolverine's Predictions for the Sweet 16 - Entirely Objective, of Course Maize n BrewMarch Madness: Bold predictions for the second week of th...With March Madness starting back up tonight, here are some bold predictions for the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament:

Don, I loved the first article, and like that one...I have a little disagreement. I believe we need to see more proof of rising, and being formidable and thus I would remove USC and Michigan State from your list until they have done it. Two teams I would add are your Iowa, and Illinois because they have proven to win nine games last year, and both beat SEC teams in bowl games furthering solidifying my concern about them. (They beat Vandy and Tennessee) I love the discussion!

Dan Lanning will get his...both in recruits and in victories. Thus far, all we see or hear from USC are banal utterings without any backing in results...

A lot of love for SC right now. I think the fat lady knows best "While USC is now right with Oregon in terms of recruiting, the same cannot be said for the on-field results. The Ducks have owned the rivalry between the two programs dating back to their days in the Pac-12. The Ducks have won the past four matchups between them. USC has not won since a 2016 regular season matchup." Hidden Ripple Effect of Danny Lang Committing to USC over Oregon

🤔 Hmm...Always on their minds. Leading up to their 2026 season clash in Los Angeles, the USC Trojans posted a video mocking Oregon Ducks' coach Dan Lanning's "The Grass is Damn Green in Eugene" after beating Oregon in a recruiting battle. Painting the Grass Blades RedThe Trojans posted a seemingly target video Wednesday evening to the official USC Football X account shortly after the Trojans flipped 247 Sports ranked four-star cornerback Danny Lang, who committed to USC over the Ducks, Auburn, Alabama, and Arizona. According to 247 Sports, Lang was the No. 53 ranked player in the class of 2027 and helps continue the Trojans' dominance on the recruiting trail with a No. 9 ranked group for the class of 2027. The video, which focuses on a patch of green grass, gets spray-painted over with a red hue applied by someone wearing a USC Trojans' plastic bracelet and classical composer Edvard Grieg's "Morning Mood" playing in the background. "Guess the grass wasn't greener," appears on screen in gold text after the red paint covers the patch of grass on screen. Fodder For "Ducks vs Them" VideosUSC throwing barbs at Oregon isn't the first time an opposing team took swings with the potential for an unsavory result on their end. Oregon Ducks On SIUSC Mocks Dan Lanning And Oregon And It Could Backfire BigThere's no secret that since joining the Big Ten Conference, the Oregon Ducks and USC Trojans reignited a rivalry rooted in their previous Pac 12 Conference day

This is probably not going to age well on Sept 26 and then again in two years max when Riley is gone for not having made an expanded playoff. USC Mocks Dan Lanning And Oregon And It Could Backfire Big

Arch No. 1 no surprise, but I'd still take Moore No. 1. Top-5 College Quarterbacks Setting The Market With NIL Valuations

After having looked at the twelve Big Ten teams that did not make my “Top Five” list, let’s look at the teams I think are about to make life harder for our Duckies. I have listed them here in order of degree of difficulty as I see it starting with least to most. Even Mr. FishDuck paused from his gaming ... The Five B1G Teams About to Make Life Harder for Oregon

In order to get ready for the upcoming Spring Game, how about a look at the history of Autzen Stadium Oregon's Autzen Stadium, consistently ranked among the nation's top 10 venues to watch a college football game, only got better in 200?2. Get Ready For Oregon's Spring Football Game: A Look at the History of Autzen Stadium

Well, Nebraska is 19-6 and ranked No. 24 at D1Baseball, and we face them in PK Park later...

The Big Ten has quietly dethroned the SEC in four surprising ways. These include superior recent College Football Playoff advancement, narrowing the geographic recruiting gap, securing dominant multi-network media rights, and accelerating premium offensive and defensive line development. For nearly two decades, Southeastern Conference programs collected national championships and served as the sport’s undisputed cultural center. However, shifting financial infrastructures, ... Four Surprising Ways the Big-10 Dethroned the SEC

That's a big three game series against a very good team, great opportunity to pick up some wins against a team that should be in the tourney, we don't get much of them in the Big 10, biggest games are of course going to be against UCLA and USC.

Could be, personally I still maintain that a huge problem is the non-focus on a actual college environment and the focus on crap like fan-cams and the like. Students are atrocious at this point in terms of their participation, it's such a long way from the pit crew of yesteryear. All of this has contributed to an environment at games where you don't feel like it's worth it to attend. I'm a huge fan of college basketball, so these last few years have been hugely frustrating, it hurts to see Dana struggling like this with mediocre to bad players. I'm sure this is the end, either it's this year or next. Altman deserves better I think, but that's the way it goes.

OREGON ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | WEDNESDAY, MARCH 25, 2026 BASEBALL | @OregonBaseball Potent Offense Gives Ducks a Sweep at UC San Diego LA JOLLA, Calif. — Senior Drew Smith and freshman Brayden Jaksa both hit towering home runs over the centerfield wall so spark No. 20 Oregon to a 12-4 win over UC San Diego in nonconference action on Saturday at Triton Field. Smith’s 410-foot shot in the first inning gave Oregon the early lead before Jaksa bested him slugging a 447-foot line shot off the batter’s eye in fourth inning. Smith finished 2-for-6 with four RBI while Jaksa went 1-for-3 with three RBI and two runs scored. With the win, the Ducks (21-4) finished a two-game series sweep of UC San Diego (9-13). How It Happened: Oregon did not waste any time taking control of the game, scoring four runs in the first inning. Ryan Cooney laced a double over the third-base bag to lead off the game before Jax Gimenez reached on one of three hit-by-pitches in the first. After an out, Smith made it 3-0 with his team-leading ninth home run of the season. Following the home run, San Diego native Angel Laya singled and moved to third on back-to-back hit batters to Maddox Molony and Gabe Miranda. Jaksa made it 4-0 with a sacrifice fly scoring Laya from third. An unrelenting hitting attack... UCSD cut the lead to 4-2 in the second, but Oregon got those two back in the fourth. Miranda led off the inning with a walk, before Jaksa crushed a two-run home run to center field. After the Tritons scored one in the fifth, Oregon answered with two in the top of the sixth. With two outs, Cooney singled and Gimenez walked to put a pair of runners on for freshman Naulivou Lauaki Jr. The Ducks designated hitter ripped a two-run double into the right-center gap to push Oregon’s lead to 8-3. UCSD put another run on the board in the seventh, but UO shut the door with a run in the eighth and two in the ninth. Cooney led off the eighth with a single before scoring on a Smith base hit. In the ninth, the Ducks loaded the bases on three free passes (BB, HBP, BB), setting up pinch hitter Josh Schleichardt who came through with a two-RBI single. Gimenez capped the scoring with a sacrifice fly. Box Score Notes: Jax Gimenez, Maddox Molony and Gabe Miranda all reached base four times … Three Ducks had multiple hits led by Ryan Cooney (3-for-6, 3 R) … Michael Meckna picked up the win after going 1.2 innings in relief … Blake Crawford, Tanner Bradley and Cooper Markham combined to get the last nine outs without allowing a hit or walk with four strikeouts between them. On Deck: Oregon continues its California road trip when the Ducks open a three-game series at UC Santa Barbara on Friday.

The condoms always stock up on skill players but suck in the trenches. More of the same here.

💯 There isn’t interest in OBD right now, but there has been enough interest to build the arena and I have attended the Phil Knight Invitational…there’s interest, just not in the current OBD regime imo.

Picked the Toejams Was scheduled to take a visit to Eugene in June. Will he still do so? 6-0, 160 lb, he his going to have to gain some weight to matchup with Big Ten RBs and TEs

Ducks win 12-4 from the relentless hitting attack in the late innings. Maddox Molony walks, and for the second time today....Gabe Miranda gets plinked. Then Brayden Jaska gets walked, and Josh Schleichardt hits to shallow CF that the fielder bobbles which allows Molony and Miranda to score! The runners advance due to a groundout, and then Jax Gimenez sacrifice-flies to score Jaksa. True freshman Cooper Markham came in to pitch the ninth for Oregon, and dispensed with them 1-2-3 to finish the game! Official press release--as always is 2-3 hours after the game, and posted below.

The last game Ryan Featherstone pitched was on Wednesday, March 11th against the Xavier Musketeers. He only pitched 1.1 innings, giving up two hits and two runs. He had one wild pitch and struck out for batters. He threw 31 pitches.

9-4 Ducks after eight innings. Ryan Cooney gets a hit in shallow CF, and is advanced to second on a groundout. Drew Smith then hits through the left infield to score the lightning-fast Cooney from second base! I was very surprised to see Tanner Bradley come in to pitch? Isn't he usually the first relief pitcher on Friday? Did he bring him in just for the eighth inning, knowing that if the Tritons are going make a move--it has to begin this inning? 🤷‍♂️

8-4 Ducks after seven innings. Nothing on offense, and Meckna's relief was replaced by redshirt freshman from West Linn, Blake Crawford. He is a strong looking 6'4", and the run scored by San Diego was on a passed ball by catcher Brayden Jaksa.

8-3 Ducks after six innings. Ryan Cooney gets a hit, and Jax Gimenez walks. Naulivou Lauaki gets a deep hit to CF/RF gap that bounces against the wall, and scores Cooney and Gimenez! Michael Meckna keeps the scoreless for Oregon in relief of Twist.