30Duck

This should come as no surprise to anyone, my favorite, not only Oregon player, but any player, is Ronnie Lee. He is the all time leading scorer for the Ducks, and would have even more points if there had been a 3 point line back then. He didn't have a great shooting %, but at the end of the game, he had the green light, except, because above all, Ronnie played to win, Greg Ballard usually, or any other Duck had a better shot, he'd get the ball to them. He was the captain of the Kamikaze Kids, was in the middle when the Ducks used to stand on the midcourt line and, "stare down" the other team. I have to give Marv Harshman, coach of the Huskies back then, for giving the Huskies, Groucho Marx masks to wear during one of the stare downs. Much better humor than John Wooden had. Ronnie and the Ducks never made the NCAA's, they actually didn't do all that well in post season play. But, even more than did Chip's teams change the way football was played, Harter, led by Ronnie Lee, changed basketball. Ronnie didn't have a great NBA career, the Trail Blazers could have taken him, but took Lionel Hollins, from ASU, after Ronnie and the Ducks beat Lionel & ASU in the Far West Classic. He ended up going to Phoenix, where he played an otherwise anonymous player, named Don Buse. But, despite all the great, record setting, award winning Ducks since, Ronnie Lee is my #1.

I was amazed last night, when on ESPN, Pawl of all people, thought that this season convinced him that the Playoffs NEEDED to expand to 8 teams. He was worried that the emphasis on The Playoffs was already creating a "Win it or Bust" situation for teams, and that having only 4, and the same 4, every year, is bad for the sport overall. I couldn't believe that I was hearing this on ESPN and from Mr SEC, but if he knows it, everybody does, and there could be an expanded playoff sooner than we thought.

The pre-season 1st team point guard could be back in time to really help the Ducks this season.

This Iowa State team is going to be a challenge, this post should make that clear. The Ducks are going to have to play their best game of the year, on both sides, to win this one.

Dorlus was a revelation in the SC game. It wasn't only him of course, the whole DL had been M I A all season. But they all found their game against the Trojans. Whether they were instrumental in holding The Trojans to 38 yards on the ground, or pressuring Slovis, it was a sight to behold. KT got the big stats, and well deserved, but the DL really works like it did in that game when all the guys are getting it done; rotation without any dropoff in effectiveness is what the Ducks had against USC, and what they will really need against Iowa State's Breece Hall, the leading rusher in the country. Of course the Ducks have handled that guy before when they played Wisconsin.

Charles, Oregon's brand is indeed changing, and bringing back to back conference championships with it. But the brand that is really changing is the Forum you have created, both at the original FishDuck, our Mac Court, and our palatial new arena, OBD. There is NO other site with the close to the activity, matched with civility, anywhere. I check out some other Duck-centric sites, and find arguing, name calling, redundant posts running rampant, and some days, under 10 posts total. But not here. At FishDuck, the flock is strong, and active. This of all years we have needed that Ducks more than ever to distract us, and not only that, but because of the quality of the discussions had at FishDuck, we have all made new friends. It's, "Cheers", where everyone knows your name, and new folks, who peered through the window, are greeted graciously when they walk in. Now, we've got a Bowl game to win, both basketball teams are off to great starts, as the Ducks look to continue their domination. Soon the softball season will start, and Lombardi's Ladies will look to get back to the championship, and baseball has a new look. What a great time to be a Duck!

If there is one thing that Ducks can do, it is follow

I agree. Not for this bunch of Ducks necessarily, but Oregon is used to NY6 Bowls, this is new territory for ISU. The win over USC, which made the Ducks repeat winners of the conference championship, that's right, Huskies, Ducks, winner of twice as many conference championships as you, should have the Ducks in the right frame of mind to win another Fiesta Bowl.

Sadly, unlike the Invitational, I don't see a way to make the Heisman Trophy work anymore. It's just become another ESPN production, with a hand picked cast of characters. It's amazing that Marcus won, though if anything, that shows what a Brand Oregon has forged for itself.

I'm going to trust that whoever the quarterback is next season, he's going to be GOOD. If he turns out to be Shough maybe he has a transformational season to match Dennis Dixon. If Brown stays and comes out on top, he's a veteran, so positive with that. Butterfield, Ashford, probably the longshots, along with the new guy, Thompson, who is receing acolade after acolade, and could be the quarterback that dreams are made of.

My favorite memory is easy, it has stayed at #1 for 50 years. Oregon 41 UCLA 40. The Ducks trailed 40 to 21 with 4 minutes left. Coach Jerry Frei had a feeling and took Dan Fouts out, replaced him with Tom Blanchard, 3 plays later, Blanchard connected with then Bobby Moore, for a touchdown, 40-28 in 33 seconds. UCLA coach thought he'd replace his QB too, Jim Nader for Dennis Dummitt. Nader fumbles, Ducks recover, Blanchard to Moore again, 41-35, 2:24 left. Oregon recovers the onside kick, a pass from Blanchard, this time to Leland Glass gets the ball to the Bruins' 10 . But during the drive, Blanchard separated his shoulder, and Fouts is back in. On the second play, Fouts is sacked, it's 3rd & 14, 1:00 left. Fouts find Greg Specht on a crossing route, touchdown Ducks, who now led 41-40. The Bruins got the ball back, but Dennis Dummit's last pass was picked off. This was all on radio, but I'll never forget it. It wasn't my first road game, but definitely my favorite. September, 1980, Husky Stadium. The Huskies were 2-0, outscoring their 2 opponents, 95-14. Oregon was 1-1-1, they were coming off a 35-7 win over Michigan State, but the Huskies weren't worried. After it was over, the Ducks and their quarterback, Reggie Ogburn, had won, 34-10.

You don't need perfect vision to see that the 2020 Pac-12 football season was a farce. Of course with Larry Scott in charge you had good reason to have seen it coming. When it finally got going, the divisions should have been eliminated. It would have been easily done, and a lot of the laughter on how the season ended, with our beloved Ducks being the punchline could have been avoided. But, that's the past, the Ducks are in the Fiesta Bowl, and as Shough said before the game against USC, "We might as well win it". I think he's right. The Ducks are once again the underdogs, and for now I think that helps them. They haven't built up enough to carry the favorite label all the time. But another NY6 win will go a long way in getting them there. Iowa State is #10, the Ducks are #25. I don't know much about the Cyclones, but apparently a pass rush will definitely cause them problems, and after the USC experience, I think the Ducks can get after them. Don't do it for the Pac-12, you're carrying it already. This years conference championship is certainly as valid as the mythical half a national championship the Huskies bark about. Win it for you, and us!.

That is actually the title of a great Woody Allen movie. Actually, the movie is fantastic for the first hour or so, but loses it a bit as it plays out. I don't know what to call this one, "Gone With The Wind" maybe.