David Marsh

We are flying blind when it comes to NIL deals. Though from everything I've seen this is basically the pecking order for portal NIL. 1. Tippy top tier quarterbacks. Rare but there. 2. Offensive lineman. 3. Defensive lineman. Exclude the rare quarterbacks and linemen are at a premium in the portal. Getting good high end linemen is been more expensive. Lanning and co have done an incredible job getting the little top end linemen talent there is in the portal. In the prep recruiting world... There is a lot more talent available in linemen that just needs time to develop. And as stated... Even that 5 star talent requires some development.

I could also see a compromise that sees a re ranking occur after the first round of play, doubt they're that clever though. But just think that Oregon would have played BSU or Indiana in the Rose Bowl last year if they just ranked it straight up.

We'd have to. That's too many games to put players through at that point. I'd also add that each round gets re-ranked.

The reality is that it's nice to have some big games at Noon. But not all big game at noon. Oregon settled into a prime-time slot last year around 6pm because of the way games are effectively drafted by the broadcast companies. The biggest team in the B1G in the east coast time slot was Ohio State and they basically got pure Big Noon kickoffs. I can see why their fan base grew weary of that because that was the only time they seemed to have games.

Just think if this were to happen during a football game? The College Football world would be losing their freaking minds. Let alone the team's fan base that took the L for this happening. It wouldn't happen in College Football, the game would be postponed and finished later. It shouldn't happen in any sport.

You have the right to your opinion. Right now with two toddlers I have enjoyed the 7pm start time games because both kids are in bed and I get to watch the game uninterrupted... Or mostly uninterrupted. But I also know that I'm in the minority for that opinion. Granted I don't mind a 9am game in truth. I'm usually up by then anyways because of the children. However, my eldest doesn't like anyone watching anything on the TV that isn't Bluey or Dino Train these days.

Ouch... That is not good. I would like to see these numbers for the other way.

The first game and a half of the season the offensive line was in a complete mess. The second half against Boise State the offensive line started to look significantly better and then by Oregon State it was a pretty dominant force and it just kept rolling from there. There were several games and plays that they just didn't get the same amount of push at the point of attack. The line certainly was not as good as previous years but some B1G defensive fronts were physically bigger than what we typically faced in the Pac-12 (see the Oregon State game). I think the injuries played a greater role than Terry in the overall decline of the running game this last season. That and not having Irving who had a wonderful combination of vision, breakaway speed and balance that made him an explosive play waiting to happen. James had the power but he lacked the breakaway speed. Whittington had the break away speed but seemed to lack the vision and balance to get him into the open field. Those were problems consistent with these players going back to 2022 and 2023 and not indicative on this particular offensive line. If this year's offensive line starts off as poorly as last year's and there are no real significant injuries, then I'll go ahead and put more blame on Terry. I think the whole staff was put in a difficult position as two preemptive starters and rotational players in Iuli and Bedford were out due to injury so late in fall camp that they did their best to find a solution. The first game was awful and the second game was mostly awful. But by game 3 and 4 it looked much improved. As for the 2016 dreaded Alamo Bowl. The starting center went down for Oregon not long after Adams was out of the game. Helfrich and company had to make a decision. Put in Doug Brenner (who was actually the third string center) or burn the redshirt of Jake Hanson (the actual back-up at any other point in the year). They opted to preserve the redshirt of Hanson as burning it for the second half of a bowl game didn't seem like a good deal. Sure Brenner and Locke were not good... but also blame the defense for that game as well because they gave up the 30+ point lead.

I think he was rehired because he had success and they must have all departed on good terms. I think everyone knew that if Nebraska called he would take that job and that's what happened. In hindsight we can say he shouldn't have left but the reality is that Nebraska has been a hot mess for several head coaches and it wasn't just a Scott Frost problem there. And he found the limitations of his coaching ability at Nebraska. He's not the only coach to be rehired at a school they used to be the HC for. If they understand what the program can offer they know how to sell it and that's harder than ever in this day and age. Additionally, I think Frost likes being able to recruit rather local and the level of competition. We'll have to see how successful he'll be the second time around.

Last year I was seeing Penn State ahead of Oregon in terms of NIL money. I don't know how they get their information but I know that Oregon is always near the top but rarely ever the top.

The last two years have seen a significant decline in the QB run game. I think 2023 was due in part to needing to avoid losing Nix to injury like what happened in 2022. Last year it sounded like from the players that Oregon had some back-up QBs that could fill in for Gabriel if needed. However, even though Oregon went undefeated the vast majority of the wins weren't blow out wins where Gabriel sat on the bench in the fourth quarter. I think for that reason alone Lanning and co opted to run Gabriel sparingly because the team just wasn't super dominant in victory and they didn't want to run the risk of needing a back-up. I think the trend is to not run the QB and I believe that is what will probably continue next season. Stein just doesn't seem to want the QB has much as Dillingham did. However, if Moore and Novosad are super close in terms of ability... then maybe we'll see the coaching staff risk it a bit and run the QB more for the potential benefits.

Beyond that... our rotation of runningbacks just wasn't as strong. Additional note... B1G defenses are a bit stouter on the line of scrimmage than Pac-12 defenses. I did a pretty extensive breakdown of the running game's decline last year over previous years that can be found via the link below. Rebuilding Oregon’s Offense for 2025: Running Back | FishDuck FISHDUCK.COM Oregon’s run game in 2024 was good. At 13-1 with a B1G Championship under their belt, the Ducks were a very good team... I don't think the offensive line was as cohesive as it was in 2022 or 2023. I think the injuries to both Mathew Bedford and Dave Iuli in the early season certainly had a negative impact on our offensive line. Poncho has developed nicely though breaking in a new center does have bumps. Though I will say the runningback room last year just didn't feel as deep as it did in the previous years. In 2022 James was used as a short yardage back while Irving and Whittington shared snaps and Nix actually had the most rushing touchdowns. In 2023 Nix didn't run as much but the combo of Irving and James was pronominal. This last year James was the featured back and without him we didn't have much of a run game. Whittington is at best a change a pace back and the youngsters were still developing. Hoping this year the runningback room and the offensive line reasserts itself. Final note... last season we saw a new Offensive Line Coach in Terry and a new runningback coach in Samples.

There is a lot of talent on this offensive line, even outside of the transfers. Just need to get that line in sync which is something that is difficult to do in mixed squads in a spring game.

Someone is going to have to decide to do some moderating... or not. My bet is on not.

It might make On3's recruiting evaluations better. Though I didn't visit Rivals on a regular basis because they just didn't offer much in the way of content.

Thank you Charles for keeping track on Oregon Baseball and Softball. As someone who loves the Ducks though isn't a baseball or softball fan it's nice to get updates in a nice digestible manner. Additionally.... the Beavers had basically ONE thing over the Ducks in baseball and we just took that away from them!

Novosad had Pancho has his center. That is a significant advantage right there.

Absolutely and I have complete faith that this year's team is going to have a solid starter at QB and a equally as solid backup. I look forward to learning who wins the competition. Though I can see why Moore and Novosad are the front runners. Moga looked good as well. I think the Ducks have a very good three deep.

My proposal is that it should be a few one-off events. Making the team travel 4 hours round trip on a regular basis would be a bad idea for everyone involved. They have to travel enough with the B1G these days as it is. The Ducks are Eugene and Portland is their side show and I wouldn't dream of wanting UO to make their athletic base in Portland. But I'd take my family to some one-off Oregon events in the Portland area for sure, especially as my two daughters get older. They have some cool facilities on their Portland campus and it would be cool to see them used from time to time.

Absolutely! Pay them for the full time job and they shouldn't have to pay a thing to travel. Travel is not optional... They need to be on the field so enable it! Also if it's a full time job the standard of officiating goes up. Which is what this sport needs.

Still early in the cycle. Never underestimate Dan. I'm going to keep that faith. Remember when it comes to NIL the Ducks don't get into bidding wars until the end of the cycle.

Best line of the article. "We're on the plane ride home and I told my mom like, ‘I want to go to Washington,'" Mariota said. "I had got an offer from Washington. Steve Sarkisian was up there and Sark was like, he rolled out the red carpet. I was like, ‘I'm going there. I'm settled.’ So we're sitting there on the plane and my mom's like, ‘You really want to go to Washington?’ I was like, ‘No.’" I can just see a teenager being upset and saying something out of spite and then verbally realizing that they don't want the thing they said they wanted.

I'm completely with you here. Keep the number around. It already has an almost sacred sense to it. Gabriel called Mariota to ask his permission. That's the Mariota legacy. Mariota would have said yes to whoever called to ask but you could tell he was honored to be asked. That's what the Oregon program is all about. Honor the player not the number and honor the player by keeping the number alive.

Now that would be a B1G regret from the other programs. We were supposed to be a filler program and not a contender. How soon until we add the rest of the B1G schools into our tears bucket? Husky and Trojan tears are constantly filling that bucket but I'm sure we can make room.

Only if some special talent becomes available. Lanning and co seem super happy with their guys right now and I think there is some real concern of anyone joining could disrupt the chemistry. If someone becomes available who is like an automatic first rounder and is a perfect pick for Oregon I'm sure Lanning will take a look. But beyond that .. doubt it.