HDuck

mid second quarter... UCLA trails Indiana 28-0.....Bruins have 41 total yds....just 2 rushing....Indiana has sacked UCLA 3 times already In 7 prior games, the 20 pts scored by Oregon is the most against the Indiana defense....next best was 15 by Iowa

There are currently 9 teams in the Big Ten with a 3-1, or better, conference record. Each has 5 games remaining. Below are the overall, and current B1G record, of each of the next 5 opponents combined. 14-21, 4-16 - Indiana - face UCLA, Maryland, Penn St, Wisconsin, Purdue 16-19, 6-14 – Ohio St 21-14, 8-12 – Michigan 21-14, 9-11 - Minnesota 22-13, 11-9 – Oregon 24-11, 14-6 – USC 24-11, 11-9 - Iowa 25-10, 13-7 – Northwestern 29-6, 15-5 – UCLA - face Indiana, Nebraska, Ohio St, Washington, USC The spread in remaining schedule difficulty is pretty amazing. Indiana faced Illinois, Iowa, Oregon - with a bye before Oregon. Their other 6 B1G opponents are bottom half of B1G.

Stein and Louisville? I believe Louisville's QB this season is a senior. His backup, a junior, has appeared in 3 games and attempted 9 passes total. I imagine if Stein went to Louisville at least one guy on the Oregon roster would follow him. Brohm has also been an assistant and a head coach in the Big Ten. Penn State likely also has him on their possibilities list.

the most recent AP No. 1 at end of season: 2024: Ohio St 2023: Michigan 2022: Georgia 2020: Alabama 2019: LSU 2018: Clemson 2013: Florida St 2010: Auburn 2008: Florida 2005: Texas 2004: USC 2001: Miami 2000: Oklahoma 1998: Tennessee 1995: Nebraska 1990: Colorado 1988: Notre Dame 1986: Penn St 1984: BYU 1976: Pitt For list below, the final AP poll was before bowl games; 1960: Minnesota - then, lost the Rose Bowl, for example 1959: Syracuse 1953: Maryland 1952: Michigan St 1945: Army 1939: Tex A&M Ole Miss was a "power" in 1959 and 1960, and No. 1 in some non-AP rankings. For example, 1960 would have been No. 1 if ranking after bowl game. Would Nebraska and Notre Dame fans have believed back then, they would enter No-Title Land? Texas? USC? Oregon at No. 2 final AP poll: 2014 2012 2001 Oregon at No. 3 2024 2010

Fire the coach? Some of it is circumstantial. Getting 10 wins, but two losses were to teams in games where your program was favored. Or, where your team lost because it played with little inspiration rather than an ill-timed referee's call. A losing streak to your rival. DeBoer would feel the heat with 3 straight losses to Auburn, regardless of W-L. Controversy over players who transfer out rather than retained. And, so on. I think the fan expectations are more circumstantial than just W-L.

It’s the visibility. It’s ability to attract and retain players and coaches. As they say at In-N-Out, "double-double." My guess...if Texas, Oklahoma, USC, UCLA...were in the Pac, it would not have prevented a raid by the SEC/B1G. And, in that event, UO/UW would not have been on the list headed East.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/dan-lanning-provides-context-on-oregon-ducks-qb2-position-with-austin-novosad-luke-moga/ar-AA1OQYqN

As Happy said earlier, being in the B1G probably means 4 CFP slots most years. Being in the Old Pac would likely mean 2 at the most. Some years 1 based on the image of the conference nationally the last year prior to USC/UCLA escape. The Ducks have a better chance being 4 of 18, than 1 of 12. Likewise, Beavis undoubtedly has a better chance in the New Pac of the one G6 CFP slot (just compete with Boise State) than they would ever have had in the Old Pac.

"could go back in time..." How about knowing what you know now about what the future will probably look like 5 years from now, what would you change? Which programs, aside from OSU/WSU, would be in a better position 5 years from now if the Pac had stayed together? Money? Visibility? National consciousness? For Canzano, it seems beyond nostalgia. That he believes OSU/WSU became victims and every other Old Pac program should have sacrificed their future to keep them whole. Colorado will be better in the old Big12. USC/UCLA/UW/UO will be better off by a multitude in the B1G. UA/ASU will be more competitive in the Big12. Utah is probably a wash especially since it is now paired with BYU in the same conference. Maybe Cal & Stanford, would be better off 5 years from now in the Old Pac than the ACC? So, four out of the 12, including OSU/WSU?

Franklin was in the SEC at Vandy. If I were him I would be calling Florida to tell them I can be there for cocktails this evening and let's make a deal. His payments from Penn State could give Florida some flexibility for Napier's severance payment and other cost factors. Will be interesting to see where d-coordinator Jim Knowles ends up. FSU's Norvell can't be feeling too comfortable today.

The NewPac gets a second new head coach: Jay Norvell fired by Colorado State joins the termination at Oregon State. As time passes, the New Pac will resemble Fast Eddy's Used Car Lot. There will be a lot of browsers looking to upgrade their head coach with a low mileage used model. Along with the terminations like Bray and Norvell, there could be a lot of annual turnover. Boise State will likely take advantage of that with a coaching staff that has less turnover and program turmoil. That should be Oregon State's aim too. Run that low mileage son-of-a-gun hard, and hope you can get 3 or 4 good years before you have to buy a new model.

Novosad has been listed as "questionable" on the pre-game injury reports for several weeks. Some type of muscular issue in his back. Moga, I have no clue. As I suggested yesterday, there may be some type of "agreement" with the coaching staff to preserve as much of their eligibility as possible in the event they want to portal. While they agree to stay on the roster in the event of an emergency. On the other hand, some game film would help their chances to be picked from the portal? While they aren't playing future opponents don't have much film to scout. If Moore returns the absence of in-game experience for the two is less of an issue. But, if he doesn't return, you would think Stein would want to see them under-fire before 2026?

According to various chat board reports Novosad was injured earlier this year. As I recall, he did not make the trip to Northwestern, for example. Akili Jr. is redshirting. On the meter that measures 4 game limit during regular season to not lose a year of eligibility, the 2025 participation meter shows: Moore: 7 games Thomas: 5 games Moga: 3 in 2025, was under 4 in 2024 Novosad: 1 in 2025, was under 4 in 2024 and 2023. But, Novosad has already been around 2 seasons and played under 4 in both. If so, his 5 years to play 4 would already have used up a redshirt, plus one, leaving 3 including 2025. Maybe they are hoping 2025 can be appealed to add back the year as an injury year so he would have 3 instead of 2? There are such NCAA appeals available. Sometimes, lately, the program and the kid cooperate to keep the year of eligibility, so he is more attractive if he decides to transfer. Not suggesting that is happening right now between Novosad and Oregon staff...I have no idea...but it does happen more frequently now around college football.

The offense may be happy they have to leave early for a road game at Rutgers so they don't have to spend the next 6 days being forced to watch, and re-watch, the screwups vs Indiana.

I did think it was interesting that near the end of Canzano's interview with OSU AD Scott Barnes, Canzano asked, "what can you offer a new head coaching candidate?" Barnes replied that "we are in the top quartile of resources at our level." So, perhaps, maybe, Barnes is no longer attempting to sell the new Pac as a Power 5 conference. Canzano: Oregon State AD Scott Barnes sounds off on firin...Exclusive 1-on-1 interview.

I think Indiana deserves the kudos. They had scouted Oregon well. Even beyond scheme to the skill sets of individual Oregon players. They loaded the box on defense and threw a lot of blitzes and stunts at Oregon. Their D-line was adequate, but more than adequate when backed up by their DE's and LB's. They were rewarded with 8 sacks and a lot of hurries by Dante. They were mixing the rush to keep Dante guessing so Dante couldn't position RB's for blocking. It was frustrating to watch in person and entertain thoughts on what would happen if Oregon's RB's could just break the box and there would be huge running gains. Likewise, yards after catch if TE's/WR's could catch quick throws. Indiana was not afraid of Oregon's outside speed, especially WR's, because they were disrupting things at the line of scrimmage. Indiana had a bye week to prepare and they took advantage. Why Oregon didn't make better adjustments in the second half is baffling. The fourth quarter stats comparison is beyond baffling.

Observations The O line is not championship caliber. Coach Cig had his team better prepared than Lanning did and I’d say coached better during the game as well. Didn’t see a plan B from Will Stein when the passing game got bottled up. Receivers not getting separation. That paragraph...repeated from above...and I fully concur. Dante Moore "fault" for not making adjustments? Hell, Indiana was running so much stuff from different spots into his face...and Oregon sacked 6 times....he didn't have in-play time to make adjustments. No single blocker "adjustment" was going to slow down what Indiana was able to do on defense. Indiana had almost all their guys in a box within 7 yards of the line of scrimmage. The Oregon RB's couldn't gain more than 3-4 yds. Moore didn't have time. I'm not sure what kind of adjustments Stein could make to what was going on. Whatever, if he did, it didn't work in the second half either. Disappointed the RB's weren't able to gash into the secondary to make IU's box defense loosen up. And, let's stop the nonsense about Oregon's O-line and the Joe Moore Award.

The athletic department pays attention to demographic trends. Oregon population grew by less than 1/2 of 1% in the last year. And, that was all age groups combined, all ethnicities combined. So, how many "new" fans might find their way to Autzen? What would make them fans? What is the renewal rate on season tickets? What is the pace of replacement with new ticket buyers to ones who "age out," or move away, or who prefer the economics and convenience of watching from home? Aside from restrooms, concessions and wi-fi what will attract new fans, and retain old ones, given similar W-L records as the recent past? Offering alcohol to seating areas can both attract and detract for attendance. I suspect the AD's plans are more data driven than emotionally driven? And, that is why speculation about expansion is relatively modest. Digital and Social Media SportsAttendance Issues in College Athletics and What Leaders a...It used to be so easy. Before the days of every game on TV, of highlights available moments after the plays occur, of Netflix and Twitch – before all that and more, the stadium or arena was t…

Essentially anything that goes on around Autzen would be subject to City approval due to traffic arteries, transit, infrastructure, police resources, etc. Given the political climate in Eugene, no one should ever assume anything relative to what city planners would recommend and what the council would approve. https://www.registerguard.com/story/news/2023/01/24/eugene-uo-university-oregon-autzen-alton-baker-park-science-center/69833009007/

UC Investments and CalPERS are both large investment funds in California, but they serve different purposes and constituents. UC Investments manages assets for the University of California system, including its pension and endowment funds, while CalPERS manages retirement benefits for a wide range of public employees.

Second time for Sabrina. She joins many other "multi-pickers." Charles Barkley leads the list with 6 guest picker roles. 11 people have appeared 3 times or more. An additional 19 (including Sabrina) have appeared twice.

"Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham said on her 'Show Me Something' podcast that she plans to be in Eugene for Indiana at Oregon on Saturday — to 'do some College GameDay type stuff,'" it seems unlikely that Cunningham, a Missouri grad with no real ties to Oregon, would be given that role over a famous Oregon alum. Then again, the show did that exact thing last week by having podcaster and comedian Theo Von in Tuscaloosa for the Alabama-Vanderbilt game. Perhaps Cunningham's ties to Indiana will result in her being a Von-like hostile guest working against the home crowd?

I wonder how much "expert opinions" affect betting? That's another reason that drives everyone including the mailman to have an opinion. Some just get to spout it on TV. The Oregon - Indiana line opened early Sunday with the Ducks favored by 14. That has diminished greatly. It is now around 7-1/2 to 8. Obviously a lot of money was flowing in on Indiana to win/cover that early spread, so the spread had to narrow to get more money flowing to the Oregon side of the house ledger.

The dynamics in the game have REALLY changed the last 3 years due to transfers and NIL. I don't think most of the "expert pundits" have caught up yet. Take Penn State, for example. Pre-season the punditry was they are returning many of their starters, more than their competitors. Thus, they are a CFP lock, and likely for the Natty game. What gets overlooked is the teams they are going to play aren't as static as they used to be when the only roster churn could come primarily from adding freshmen to replace departing seniors. This year's Penn State squad is not playing their opponents last year's rosters (+freshmen). Their opponents are changing their rosters via transfers and NIL. Their opponent may have lost some seniors, but have replaced them with senior transfers who are as good or better. It is difficult to predict how a new guy on the roster like Duke's transfer QB Darian Mensah (from Tulane) will do, but a few guys can have a big impact, like Mensah. You can say the same about other position players, not just QBs. The pundits don't really have the analysis expertise to predict what will happen because there is way more churn in the rosters than there used to be.

4 of the Ducks 5 opponents lost the next game after playing the Ducks. Only Northwestern won. All games were a TD or less. Northwestern had a bye and didn't have to play immediately. 24-30 in OT – Montana State - L vs S. Dakota St 12-19 – Oklahoma State – L vs Tulsa 17-14 – Northwestern – W vs UCLA 24-27 in OT – Oregon State – L vs Houston 37-42 – Penn State – L at UCLA