David Marsh

I just wonder what else is left to be done? Oregon uniforms have redone the shoulder design, helmet design, gloves, shoes and even the numbers. I guess they could work on pants. But that seems silly and would probably create an insanely busy looking uniform. Oregon even dressed up to look like the duck. It was a silly look but they did it for a game. I just don't know what else can be innovated upon in terms of aesthetics and design that would be seen as revolutionary in some way. Sure they can change the style of the wings and that sort of thing but that's a design change not something new.

They have the wings on the shoulders back. They actually look like a mashup of the uniforms from the last decade. 2012 - winged helmet though with a 2020s style where the helmets don't have the liquid metal look. 2014 - style of winged shoulders 2018 - bigger numbers 2021 - a callback to the 2007 uniforms with those sheet metal looking crosses on the shoulders. Overall... They're good. Part of me was expecting more but I think there is only so much design they can do these days. It feels like it's all been explored.

Cristobal got Oregon on that list for the first time. Remember this is about talent on paper, not on-field coaching or ability. Oregon made the national championship game twice with rosters that were below the blue chip ratio but couldn't finish the deal. There are always teams that have a blue chip ratio but never sniff at the title.

I'm sure it did ... And I'm sure it may be part of the reason we got Donte Moore via the transfer portal. I think he originally flipped to UCLA was because they would be in the B1G. These B1G footprint kids can now come to Oregon and know they'll be able to play in front of family at least once or twice a year without them coming to Eugene. A lot of the B1G schools are only a few hours from each other. So in Finny's case, located in Maryland, Oregon will play games at Maryland, Penn State, and Rutgers. Ohio State is a longer drive but certainly not far. That means that Oregon will have a game rather close at least once a year. That sort of thing matters and shrinks the distance a little. Whenever Oregon goes to playing California there is always a lot of families of athletes that go to the games. Now the same will be true across the B1G.

It's bold. And it kinda has a new school-old school vibe to it. The trees being the new... But just have bold blocks of color gives it a bit of an old look to it. Personally... I like it. Though I think I would have liked it just as much without the trees and just the bold green. One thing is for certain... Everyone is not going to forget where they're playing.

And the anti Oregon League is led by USC, Michigan, Ohio State and Washington.... Because the Huskies can't help themselves.

Mariota is such a good example of the disconnect between college football, NFL scouts and coaches. What made Mariota special at the college level was the spread offense and how he worked in space. What he basically got at Tennessee was a series of coaches who wanted him to fit a pro style offense that didn't use his skill set. And then their offensive line was so bad that he was sacked do much that his confidence took a massive hit. The NFL just assumes at times that college will make plug and play players for their industry. These are the worst coaches and programs. The best evaluate the talent and adapts the scheme and coaching to maximize the talent. I wish Mariota the best. At least he is still getting paid better than the majority of us.

Someone should tell Dabo Sweeney that it's that easy. I think the portal is a little harder than how it's usually precieved as a shopping trip. It's still recruiting and finding the right fit. The biggest difference is that you have film that shows you what you're getting at this level of play. Regardless... I think it's a do or die season for Kelly. He either gets the women's program back on track or is done. What does back on track mean? I think they just need to make the dance. We'd like more than that but the women's basketball program has been such a disaster in past years that making the tournament would be a major achievement this year.

I imagine that the 25-30 fits their desired statistical average. Out of the thousands of high school football players these eval sites only scout a fraction of them all. A lot of their focus does boil down to players to participate in the extracurricular football... That is 7-on-7 tournaments, camps and whatnot. I'd imagine in any given year there are probably only about that 20-30 players who have the freak of nature physical abilities to be considered a 5 star. I'm sure there are more who would be considered 5 stars but there just aren't the eyeballs to see them all. Justin Herbert was a 3 star. He didn't participate in many of those as for mentioned extracurricular football activities. He also played baseball and was injured for part of his high school football career. As a result he was given a low star rating. But as an incoming freshman to Oregon Herbert was big. He was 6'6" and had a cannon of an arm and all the mental abilities of a top tier football player. He won offensive rookie of the year in the NFL! But he didn't do enough camps and stuff and never had the eyeball on him. If he did I'm sure he would have been a high four star or five star. There are absolutely limitations as to what these scouts can ever see. It's also important to note that these scouting services aren't looking for players who might be good at the college level but those who could make it in the pros. This video does a good job explaining some of the pitfalls of recruiting. It's a big long but worth it.

Five Star status is based on their rating score. On 247 sports they gave Dallas Wilson an Oregon commit a score of 94. They makes him a four star. 247 and On3 both have composite rankings that average out. By the composite he's a five star. After players are all given a rating then they're given a ranking by well... Ranking their ratings. There are thresholds as to what makes a five star player. Theoretically you could have a class without any five star recruits. A high four star can be just as good as a five star it's just where they place a cutoff. There are also position groups that are notoriously hard to judge and put proper rankings to. Quarterback and linebacker being two of the hardest positions to truly rank because there is such a mental and leadership component to them. It doesn't matter how far and accurate a quarterback can throw the ball if they can't get the play call, line their guys up, and adjust and read opposing defenses. I love the idea of landing a bunch of five stars but I'm also fine with a class that is composed almost exclusively if four stars.

5 star status is about their physical ability not their mental. Justin Flowe was a 5 star and he is a physical beast. But he just doesn't seem to have the mind for the game and was constantly out played and out of position.

And the best part is... Rotate them all and get them all minutes! Keep them fresh and wrecking opposing offenses. This is what having depth is all about!

The last two years the Ducks have surged in silence. 2022 all the attention out west was on USC. 2023 it was all on Colorado. I'm both years Lanning has gotten his HCing legs and built his roster. If it wasn't for a lack of depth at key positions, Oregon would have won the conference and made the playoffs both years. Now we are ready for the expectations. Oregon should make the playoff this year at a minimum.

I have it penciled that we go undefeated and make the national title game against Ohio State for the third time in the season. Oregon gets their first natty. And... Ryan Day is 0-4 against the Ducks and this creates a colossal meltdown in the Buckeye fan base.

What's sadder... A dabdge that says "PAC 2" OR "PAC 12" ???? I kinda want to say Pac-2 is sadder. Pac-12 is just trying to ignore the fact that anything happened and feels like a placeholder. Pac-2 draws attention to their problems.

Hey... Riley said that defense will come first now. And if he says that you know it must be true.

I love how this is like the third or fourth "major recruiting weekend" in a row. At this point I'm either thinking that the story is reposted or this is just what is expected now.

A couple of corners and a kicker. I think Lanning was making decisions based off Lewis' ability. In 2022 it was clear that Lanning didn't want Lewis kicking anything too long which is why in the longer end of field goal range the Ducks were going for it on 4th as it was also punting no-man's land. In 2023 Lewis' kicking was awful. 2022 was actually pretty good for Lewis but not so in 2023. Lanning may have solved the kicking problem bringing Sappington in from Oregon State.

Crazy thing is that talent wise the state cannot support one too tier program. The state of Oregon doesn't produce enough prep talent for one of the two Oregon schools to compete at a high level. The Ducks keep an eye on in-state talent but between Cristobal and Lanning both opted to be very choosy with it and both have tended to give in-state talent walk on status rather than scholarships. Meanwhile... The beavers are celebrating landing some top in state talent... They're three stars.

I still think that the team to win it all in any given year can have no more than one loss. One loss wouldn't disqualify them but the roster and coaching will just need to be that good to win it all.

This is going to make for some fascinating games this year. So let's just say Ohio State has a better secondary than Oregon. Even if that is true it's not by much. But I think anyone would be hard pressed to say Ohio State has a better quarterback than Oregon. And as for receiver corps... Oregon and Ohio State both have very good wideouts. So let's call that equal perhaps. Does Gabriel provide the x factor that lifts Oregon over Ohio State? Good chance of it. And that's only one game this season. Could this be the year?!

I told my wife that we can't do a fall wedding. She initially thought it was because I'm a high school teacher and that would be too stressful. I said it was because I'd be losing my mind if I had to miss a Duck game and if the Ducks lost it would forever taint the day.

My daughter and I seem to frequently dress as twinsies... Jeans and our green Oregon hoodies. She's two. My youngest is only 2 months but my wife has already purchased a few outfits for her to wear come the season. There will be pictures of me and my two girls all in green this fall. The best part of it is that my wife is a UW grad. She doesn't care about football which is one of the big reasons why our relationship works. Also... My inlaws bought my daughter a stuffed dog. The dog looks like a husky. And this is what she did to it.

I also felt that Lanning didn't want to come in and blow up the roster and the team. He wanted to build trust with the existing team and not come in and blow it all apart. He did a lot of recruiting the team he inherited. Remember Seven McGee and Sean Dollars. Both wanted to bail and transfer and they entered the portal only to return to the team. Yeah neither would amount to much at Oregon and both would transfer the following year. But there is something to be said he wanted to evaluate and build with the team he had which wasn't a bad team but it was far from the team he needed.

Also lost Burch in the first series of the second game. Burch was playing his best by this part of the season. He was probably worth 3 points right there as well. Especially in disrupting the run game.