David Marsh

Sonny Dykes runs an air raid... if they want to keep that offense that would be a good hire. However, I have said it a million times now it feels like... the air raid doesn't win Conference Championships, let alone National Championships. It is an offense that allows schools with less resources and lesser recruits to compete and play spoiler. WSU did it with Leach, Dykes did it when he was at Cal. USC is doing it now and guess how many Conference Championships they have won with it so far? Yep... none... and they are a far cry from doing it again this year. Leavitt may be a good Head Coach or DC hire for USC though... however, they may need someone who wants to recruit more. USC doesn't typically require a power recruiter but going against Cristobal is though. Williams has done well at a few positions at USC but USC's roster may be highly ranked but it is an absolute mess. They have some good recruits in some places where in others they have some very bad recruits in others... namely the offensive line.

The SEC does a lot to avoid the cannibalism by only having 8 conference games, at least from a final record perspective. Also the SEC has had some pretty down teams that have been punching bags for everyone in recent years. Vanderbilt and Missouri have been typically free wins for much of the conference. Arkansas and Kentucky have also been bad and good punching bags though those two teams have been fighting back and are both ranked this year. Mississippi State is basically the WSU of the SEC which is why Leach fits right in there.

Well here we go again... here are my week 6 power rankings. 1. Arizona State (5-1) (3-0) - Arizona State remains undefeated in Pac-12 play after defeating Stanford. Right now they are certainly the team to beat in the South but they still have a couple of challenges left on the schedule, namely Utah coming up next. Utah seems to be getting themselves together and that might cause some problems for ASU. 2. Oregon (4-1) (1-1) - Oregon had a bad loss against Stanford and you take the context of that game with the injuries, Moorhead being in the hospital and everything else they were bound for a bad game that resulted in a loss. Oregon State lost last week to Washington State so Oregon really hasn't moved here but other teams have moved around them. It will be up to the Ducks to put on a show against Cal and show that they belong in the conversation. They still have a win against Ohio State which counts for something as we see what this team can be when things click. 3. Oregon State (4-2) (2-1) - Oregon State stumbled and lost a close game. This is still a good team that will bounce back and make a bowl game for the first time since 2013. They still have some big tests to come in Oregon and ASU later this year. 4. UCLA (4-2) (2-1) - UCLA and Oregon State look pretty close right now. Oregon is probably pretty close in this pack for that matter but we will just have to wait and see how and if the Ducks desperate themselves this Friday. UCLA is a good team and have a strong veteran core to the team. Would they beat the Beavers if they played tomorrow? Maybe, but I'm still higher on the Beavers right now. Also UCLA's win against LSU this year is looking worse by the week. 5. Utah (3-2) (2-0) - Utah is on the rise and they may very well yet topple the two Pac-12 South teams ahead of them this year. Utah is on the rise and will continue to improve this year. Utah probably stands a good shot against both UCLA and ASU when they meet this year. Don't sleep on Utah. 6. Washington State (3-3) (2-2) - This team is figuring themselves out a bit. Oregon State's defense played pretty bad that allowed them to stay in the game and eventually win it. With that said this team has four to five losses left on the schedule unless they kick it up another notch. They could make a bowl game but it will take some luck. They however, might beat Washington this year for the first time in a very long time. 7. Stanford (3-3) (2-2) - What to make of this Stanford team? Well they aren't that good but they have had their moments. They yet again have ruined the possibility of a perfect season for Oregon, with some help by the refs. They played Oregon at their lowest point so far in the season as mentioned above but have been destroyed by UCLA and ASU. 8. USC (3-3) (2-3) - This USC team is bad but dangerous. They may win a few more games and maybe even make a bowl game this year but that feels like a tall order at this point. They probably have two more wins on their schedule but they will need to upset someone to get a bowl game. This team has some talent but it is a long way from coming together, especially not in a year where they don't have an official head coach. This team is waiting for the season to be over. 9. Washington (2-3) (1-1) - Washington was idle this last week so my opinion of them hasn't really changed. This team has only beaten Arkansas State and Cal, neither of which are power houses. They need to prove themselves to move up this list. This week they play UCLA at home which gives them a chance to prove themselves. Though Washington is an awful team on the road so playing inside the comfort of their home stadium won't be too impressive if they eek out a win. 10. Cal (1-4) (0-2) - Cal is one of the three teams in the Pac-12 without a win against an FBS school, the other two are below. Cal had a bye and they are sitting at the bottom. They look slightly better than Colorado to date as they have a bit more offense but they still don't look good. 11. Colorado (1-4) (0-2) - Colorado sat idle this last week but they still haven't looked good this season. Again the defense looks decent but they don't have an offense. 12. Arizona (0-5) (0-2) - Arizona hung with UCLA for a half but with the injury to their new starting QB McCloud and being out for the season... this is probably where this team will remain. I thought this Arizona team might be able to steal a game maybe two from other bad Pac-12 teams but that looks less likely now.

He trusted Mitchell but that resulted in Mitchell getting a season high in yards for Oregon receivers and a problem with opposing defenses just putting double or triple teams on him because he was the only big time threat. JJ III looked decent and was improving in 2019 to help Herbert out. Breeland was a big target until he went down with an injury in 2019.

Maybe things have changed since Moorhead? Probably not. Herbert was QB under Helfrich, Taggart and 2 years of Cristobal with Arroyo. The mental component is a big deal... though mechanics do help settle the mental as well. Knowing that your body will just do the things and do the things right keep you from over thinking a lot of the game. Also... Herbert had more problems with receivers not catching the ball that hit them in the chest or in stride than getting the ball to them.

In another post I wrote out how I'd change the rule. But in short targeting is supposed to be about player safety. So if there is helmet to helmet contact, even incidental have both players leave the field for a play or two to be checked out and cleared. You could also "flag" them for no penalty yards but as a sort of warning or marker. If either player is involved in another significant helmet on helmet contact then consider pulling them from the game and maybe awarding penalty yards. Then if there is anything outright blatantly bad... Such as lowering the head yards out in such a manner to inflict a hit with the helmet then yeah... The current rule would be suited for that sort of thing. The problem is most targeting calls aren't on the obvious blatant and flagrant hits... It's on incidental contact. Especially when an offensive player lowers their head and the defensive player only has two choices. Not tackle at all to avoid the hit or tackle and risk targeting. That's not fair.

Yep the path has opened for us... and now we have to take this gift and run with it. None of that 2013 crap where Stanford does us a favor and we repay it by losing and giving the tie breaker back to Stanford... ugghh that was not a good game. Here's to looking forward to next week and Oregon v Cal to see what the coaches have cooked up for us. With some hope that it actually looks good!

I am happy that TAMU won... always nice seeing Bama knocked down a notch. I do think Georgia is now solidly the No.1 team in the country and it isn't even close.

Watching the last five minutes of the Alabama v Texas A&M game where it has some similarities to the Oregon v Stanford game. Bama has not played well this game and it is close. However, there is definitely a difference in reffing. The SEC refs are either protecting Bama or just letting things okay out. They didn't flag a play that may have started early and it resulted in a touchdown... It looked like there was some movement but that's just my perspective. The 2pt conversation had a look that the receiver may have pushed off the defender... Would have been flagged in the pac-12 but not this game. Then there was a play that had a bit of a late hit where the Bama defender clearly lowered his head but due to a height difference it wasn't crown of the helmet that made contact but the face mask and maybe part of the helmet. Targeting was called and then over turned. That would have been targeting in the pac-12. KT was in the air and coming down with his hands out and there was incidental contact that was deemed targeting. From an Oregon and Pac-12 fan perspective the refs are protecting the crown jewel of the SEC. Just some observations. Reffing may be bad in the Pac-12 but the bigger problem is that reffing solid different in every conference and isn't consistent across college football.

Thank you for your kind words. I think this is an interesting example with what Oklahoma did to beat Texas. Bama did it against Georgia a few years ago with Tua as well. Though we can point to examples this has worked in the past the question is, does it apply to THIS Oregon team? I want to say... Yes it absolutely should! But the reality may not be so and we don't have access to all that practice time. We will have to wait a week to find out if the coaches think it's time or not. The fans think it's time, that's for sure. Also remember this team is 50% freshman and we are expecting them to play like seniors.

True... Though again MC said what he said because there really wasn't anything else to say. It was all pretty boiler plate stuff.

The Oregon fan base on the whole is very negative right now, unbearably so at times. This forum has been mild compared to the other ones out there that I browse. Fans have been screaming about a couple of quarterback related things this past week, especially around why Brown is still the starter which is justified. First off, Cristobal said to the media a few days ago that Brown is still the starter. This is a bye week, there have been a few practices but a whole lot of time where coaches haven't even been in the state of Oregon as they have been out recruiting and visiting recruits. Also the players are in recovery. In short this isn't a normal week and though there are certainly discussions going on behind the scenes amongst coaches about the QB situation. Though at the end of the day there is NO POINT for MC to say anything besides Brown is still QB1 right now. They haven't had time to fully evaluate their options and why should MC appease the fans and tell us they are opening the QB competition and give Cal a helping hand? Second, let's not forget Moorhead had surgery before the Stanford game and was unavailable for that game. That hurt the play calling, no matter what is said and something like that probably had the players a bit rattled and players get used to their coaches and what the play calls look like. Changing this up right before the game would have had an effect on the players and this is an anomaly and the timing couldn't have been worse but it is what it is. Furthermore, Moorhead is not only the OC but also the QB coach. When things were looking bad at Stanford and Oregon is without their QB coach any idea of putting in a backup QB would have gone right out the window, unless of course they had to put in a freshman because Brown went down. Moorhead would be involved in any change in quarterback decisions coming up, especially next week. Hopefully Moorhead is back at practice in some way next week and I am sure he will be involved in the conversation about quarterback. As Moorhead is still recovering, MC is probably telling the truth that Brown is still QB1, but mostly because there probably haven't been any official changes made at this time. The team really needed this bye week to get healthy. However, the fans really didn't need this bye week, this is probably the most negative I have seen the broader Oregon fan base in a very long time. Remember we only have 1 loss and it came with numerous factors, the reffing being a large factor as well, and many media pundits have said as much as well. I'm channeling Jon Joseph's optimism right now but Oregon is still in it for another Pac-12 championship and maybe even a playoff berth if they take care of business. Stanford lost last night to Arizona State which helps out Oregon a lot. I think I just needed this rant probably more than it needed to be heard. I think there are some problems at quarterback and I do believe that we need to see one of the freshman play to give us all some hope of the future. But for now we just need to be a bit more patient and wait for next week. If things don't change next week then I feel the negativity is more warranted.

Hopefully just that Oregon is a horribly injured and depleted team that after a bye week Oregon looks a whole lot better. At least that is what I am hoping.

Oddly enough I think Helfrich would have held onto his job for another year if he played Herbert from game one. Fans would have been appalled by the defense but the bigger question around Helfrich was could he replace Mariota without a grad transfer? The answer was yes, with Herbert but too late. Not saying Helfrich would have lasted much longer regardless but just a thought.

My friend I find myself conflicted... In all our back and forth over the last few years I have always found myself the optimist and you the realist. On this occasion I feel our roles have been reversed. I am finding it difficult to find any confidence in the current state of the team... Though there is a small part of me that is hopeful. I just want to see growth from this team and coaching staff.

I said it in another forum post somewhere... but this is completely the right thing for Cristobal to say regardless of what the decision is behind the scenes. There is no reason for him to give away a quarterback change, if one has occurred, until the game itself, especially during a bye week. No need to give Cal any information they may use to better prepare themselves for next weeks game. I'm still hoping we will see some changes coming because Brown isn't cutting it.

Oregon and Stanford have a special relationship because between the two of them they have ruled the conference for a decade+. One of the first articles I wrote for FishDuck was actually about how the Pac-12 Championship game sucks because for so many of those years the Pac-12 Championship Game should have been played as a rematch of those two teams as they were by far the best two teams in the conference. Stanford as spoiled many of our seasons but we have spoiled a good few of theirs. In 2015 Oregon basically single-handedly kept Stanford out of the playoff and ensured McCaffrey wouldn't win the Heisman.

I don't think we are completely out of it. But there is a lot out of our control. We need to see a team playing for the future and playing to win. We see a lot of playing to not lose right now out of Brown. That invites more losses. Better to believe we are out for now and swing for the fences and if we get ourselves back in it we are a better team for it.

I'm not happy about this statement either... it begs the question as to how bad are those freshman qbs? However, HOWEVER! there might be a little hope. This is a bye week and next week is full prep for Cal. Why would Cristobal say anything besides they have full confidence in Brown? It would only help Cal in their prep process and do NOTHING for Oregon besides appease the fans. Now, I would like to be appeased, not going to lie, but what is keeping me from full panic mode is that I would say the EXACT same thing if I were Cristobal this week.

To date I have found Moorhead to be very private as an individual. He has been probably more reserved in interviews than other coaches. I'll be more concerned if we don't hear anything for a week.

In 2017, 18, and 19 Oregon had a stellar quarterback in Justin Herbert but in all those years really lacked a stable of receivers for him to consistently throw the ball to. Just look at what he can do with receivers who can catch the ball! Now we have the opposite... we have the receivers but don't have a quarterback who consistently gets them a ball in a place to make a play. We have seen over thrown deep balls, late passes that come behind the receivers, and just outright missed reads where Brown puts the ball into traffic and thankfully it has only resulted in one interception to date. Switching out the quarterback would start to see an improvement here. It would take some time because Thompson (presumably) would have to build a relationship with his receivers a bit ... but he has a much better feel for the ball. 2015 was the last time Oregon was in sync with a good QB and receivers. We could be again but we need the right quarterback to do it.

Depending on what it is that is certainly possible. I haven't seen any updates to Moorhead's status just yet. I don't expect to hear about it really until next week. Bye weeks often consist of some lighter practice, some more reps for 2nd, and 3rd teams and coaches making some recruiting visits.

I would say fixing the QB problem unlocks the receivers which opens up the whole offense. The funny thing in 2018 and 2019 the problem was flipped. Oregon had the QB in Justin Herbert but lacked the receivers. Getting the QB right is tough and for I will say 3 of this year's games Brown has been the right QB, knowing the lack of experience behind him. Now, I think it has flipped. I struggle with the topic of the article because on the one hand... this is absolutely true that the talent has failed to produce. However, some of this talent has absolutely produced big results. The Sewell brothers, KT, (i know all super highly ranked), Dye and Verdell have developed and made jumps every year. The offensive line would look better if there were better RPO reads going on from the QB. The amount of youth gives me pause on a blanket statement like failed to develop. I'm on the fence right now... I think 2022 is the YEAR Cristobal really has to prove it. I would have said it was this year, but 2020 doesn't count for the majority of teams, Oregon being one of them.

That's the real question.. if not Cristobal then who? And the answer is... none of the current top coaching talent is leaving where they are at for Oregon. Some of the up and coming coaches are also probably not good fits for Oregon as they really are mid-west coaches. So that leaves a whole lot of questions with no real answers.

One observation I recently saw was a large part for the offensive line not looking as good is if Brown has the wrong read. The RPO system is designed to be flexible. Whatever the defense gives the offense takes. This is an article going over Browns shortcomings from last Saturday and is worth a read. It wasn't stated in the article but if you look at the pictures provided you really do start to get a sense the offense is doing their job but Brown isn't doing his correctly with what is happening. The 4th and 1 at the goal line at the end of the 1st half is such an incredible example when you see if in still frame. The offensive line has pulling linemen to do something COMPLETELY different than what Brown actually does. It wasn't a play even designed to go up the gut, the linemen were pulling to attack the edges more. I now really want to see what this line does when a QB is doing the right thing. As for the defensive line... Ughh the injuries on defense make it really tough to gage how well the whole defense is doing. They have shown some growth but they aren't there yet by any means. The defense could use some big bodied guys to plug some holes though.