HappyToBeADuck

As a big OBDF fan the comments and analysis on this specific thread are as good as it gets. First class, well thought out and flow with ponder points. The best part of all this is that Dante can make this happen! If he reads pre-snap and audibles this young man can make it happen Dante doesn't throw 50/50 balls. We have watched him throw precision strikes, 40 to 50 yards downfield, 8 feet off the turf! Commentators have praised his play. This game is Dantes to take. His potential in October is now moving toward experienced talent, coupled with execution. Add in the future NFL talent around him and this Friday this old grey beard gives OBD's a better than even chance to win. Go Ducks.....

When I set up the TV to tape the Orange Bowl game I was tempted to not watch it live. That way I could fast forward thru the mindless and endless commercials. For some reason I decided to watch the game, live! That first half was torture as the offense worked hard against that great TT defense. OBD's, as you all know, moved that ball and continually self-destructed at critical times, keeping points off the board. Completely dominating the first half and only leading 6-0. The offense kept TT in the game. 2nd half was better. Way better....... My youngest son, Michael was at the game, sitting about 15 rows up in the endzone. You could see all the Duck colors thruout the game in the endzone. His view point was endzone to endzone. He was in the endzone with a first hand view of the MU strip sack. Our TV view is from one sideline across the field to the other sideline. Many times replay shows the endzone to endzone viewpoint. Not often enough. Thru out the game, Michael would text me that Sadiq was wide open, Johnson was wide open and that Dante simply didn't see them. (Roll outs would help with that vision. Of course, we as fans didn't see that. Later in the day I watched the game again. By some miracle, the first half recording was endzone to endzone and no announcers. Just the PA announcer. On each play the announcer would tell who ran or caught the bsll and who made the tackle. It was nice...... As I watched the first half play you could see all 22 players and see what Ducks were wide open. TT had no answers to covering ALL the Duck receivers. From that view I could see what Michael was seeing. IU will have no answers either. WS needs to call timely plays to exploit this. And help Dante recognize this. As we watched the game, Dante was hitting wide open recievers. On those same plays the TE's and other receivers were open for big gains or TD's. WOW! At the start of the 2nd half my recording format went back to normal. Darn! Point is, Mike West is correct in his assessment. One of the best defenses could not cover all the Ducks receivers. IU won't either. GO DUCKS......

Spot on again! Strong analysis, breakdown and explanation. Mike, Thank you! In the first game the Duck TE's caught 3 passes. If WS uses them on 1st and 2nd downs that catch total combined should be double digits. Dante needs to read the IU defensive set and make them pay everytime they blitz. There will be an open area to throw to. 2nd and 2 opens the entire playbook for WS and Dante to exploit the Hoosiers defense. Their front seven will wear down, if WS spreads the field. Let them chase after the play, not at Dante. I hope the coaches do a better job of calling plays that work to the Ducks favor. In October, it may just be me, but at times DL and staff had no answers to what Cignetti adjusted to. Especially the ingame adjustments. Cignetti is an outstanding coach! Mike, as I read and reread your article my takeaway was to keep the Hoosiers D off balance, guessing and on their heels not their toes. It is the recipe for a win...... Another outstanding effort by the Ducks D will be needed. Keep IU under 20 points and OBD's will have a chance to advance. As always OBD's must play smart, aggressive and clean. Don't give IU anything easy. GO DUCKS!

Whether its Will Stein or not someone has helped Dante since the IU game. With Dante's hard work and someones teaching he has improved considerably. He has been looking over the defense, calling audibles, reading his progressions and for the most part throwing to the open man. The pressure IU put on Dante was brutal and quick. He was not prepared. Against TT tech the pressure was constant yet Dante stayed calm and made good decisions. Only bad snaps and untimely holding penalties kept Oregon from running up the score. More reps and Dante will just sharpen his skills. I just don't see Oregon having a QB development problem. Bo Nix came to Oregon broken from the SEC and Auburn fan base. WS adjusted some of his sets to accomodate Bo's skill set. You don't go 48-7 over 4 seasons with a QB development problem. TT has a QB development problem? Go Ducks. Let's make DL's record 49-7.

Both teams are now better versions of themselves when compared to the October version. In common opponents (PSU, Iowa and Whisky) the outcomes were hard fought wins. IU beat PSU on an amazing game winning drive and OBD's last minute game winning drive against Iowa was amazing. Both Defense are outstanding and can be dominant. IU's offense is more consistent than OBD's. However, strong Defenses (Iowa and tOSU) held IU 's offense in check. Both teams had a chance to win against IU The Duck D is for real and capable of holding IU's offense under 20 points. The question remains; can the Duck O stop shooting themselves in the foot with penalties and mistakes. OBD's offense kept TT in this game thru 3 quarters. Ducks should have scored 35-42 points against TT. At times the best defense on the field was the Duck offense. This will not work against IU. They have an offense that will make you pay for your mistakes. Keep IU offense off the field. Sustain long time consuming drives that end in TOUCHDOWNS! This should be a great game that OBD's can and should win. All 3 phases show up and play clean and Ducks win 27-24. Go Ducks!

Charles, i did hear that comment but there wasn't much information offered, other than the comment. We, as Duck fans are in a special place, for sure! Who would have foreseen that OBD's only loss last year was to the eventual NC. And our only loss this season is to the current #1 team. With a clear shot at redemption. Over the years, Duck coaches have lost games to teams they should have beaten. In some cases, those losses kept Oregon out of title games or a shot at the Natty. DL seems to have that resolved. Now the only challenge left is to win the Natty. Wonderful time to be a Duck and to be a OBDF member. Thanks Charles for this unique forum.

At this point when IU and OBD's face off next week, they will both be facing the best team they have played against all season. Again! I give the Hoosiers a slight edge because of their consistency all season in all 3 phases. However, if IU plays like they did against PSU then they will lose to the Ducks. As long as OBD's plays crisp, clean and brutal! Follow the coaches game plan and move onto the Natty...... This will be a great game! If they reranked the teams then IU would still be #1 and the Ducks #2. This is gonna be special. Go Ducks!

Alex, solid article about the 3 things we learned about OBD's from the TT game. IMHO, the Ducks are underestimated because they have shown this season thru 14 games that you don't know what they will bring each game. Some games, good defenses slowed down or confused the Duck O. Other games the Duck D would go stretches where they couldn't get off the field. An outside onlooker might ask; how could a great team need a last second field goal to beat Iowa, or how could the Ducks only score 21 points against Whisky.? Or play so poorly, at home against Indiana? Remember, only the SEC teams were allowed close wins or even losses to rise in the rankings...... To this Duck fan, a homer fan, I never saw OBD's take a good or great team to the woodshed for a thrashing. Except yesterday! The Defense was so dominant and the Offense fought thru a great front 7 and their own self-inflicted wounds to win. That was as big a win as any Duck team has ever had. Indiana will not be so forgiving of the careless and sloppy play from OBD's offense. It may take 40 or more points to beat IU even with another spectacular effort from the Duck D. TT was a very good team but IU is a great team. Proof, they carry the Duck scalp on their belt. Both teams have improved since the first game. However, the Ducks must play clean, mistake free football in all 3 phases to win. Or OBD's D can just pitch another shutout...... This Duck fan is proud of the staff and players for overcoming that loss, winning 8 games in a row and getting their shot at redemption. Go Ducks! It is all out their for the taking.

Mike, you spoke the silent part out loud! This game has the makings of a rout. The rout will happen if 2 critical components are executed by OBD's: First, the Duck offensive line must keep Dante upright and give him time to flow thru his reads. Mike you recognized the glaring speed advantage the Ducks skill position players have over the TT secondary. Dante needs protection and he will deliver! Second, the Duck defense must hold the edges. MU and TT must force the Red Raiders run game into the strength of the defense. Play clean and disciplined, win the battle on first and second down. TT is not strong or efficient in 3rd down and long. Force TT to be one dimensional on offense and OBD's win! GO DUCKS......

Ducks for the win 31-28 2 TO's 3 Sacks 279 passing yards

I shouldnt never type again without my contacts and glasses..... Thanks DR. for spotting that. Go Ducks

So many factors come into play before OBD"s and TT put the ball on that tee and start what shoild be a nerve racking game for the fans. No more questions or doubts, SOS won't matter, the talking heads view points carry little weight. It comes down to the players and the execution of their assignments within the game plan. The Duck D holds the key to this game. The Red Raiders offense thrived on 2nd down and short. This opened up their full playbook. TT struggled in 3rd and long. Hold the edges, bottle up the run game and force them to throw the ball. A heavy dose of Chaos is needed. Make them earn every yard for all 4 quarters. OBD's offense must be patient. 14 play, 7 minutes SCORING drives limit the amount of plays the TT offense will get. No self-inflicted mistakes that give TT a short field. TT has not felt the pressure mount on either side of the ball this year. OBD's can make that happen in all 3 phases of the game plan. Going to be a battle that OBD's can and should win. Go Ducks......

Being a Duck homer myself, I can appreciate these podcasts. Even those void of facts. Without a doubt either team can win this game. However, OBD's will be TT's greatest test all season. The Ducks are a 2 deep, balanced squad, not littered, but filled with future NFL players. TT will be the 3rd best squad OBD's faces in the 2025/2026 season. I place IU and PSU games more difficult. I don't care or know what happened to PSU after the Ducks tore their heart and soul from them. That was a top 5 team at home in a whiteout and OBD's left with a W. The Red Raiders, during the regular season, played teams with a combined losing schedule of 70-74. With 5 teams going to bowl games. And TT lost to one of them, ASU. OBD's played teams with a combined 78-66 record. 6 teams will make bowl games. On top of that MSU the FCS Finals and IU in the CFP. That's 8! Schedules and those opponents matter. TT's had an easier schedule to pad their team stats. JMU was no barometer for the Ducks season. TT only the #1's and 1a's will see the field. Barring injury, of course. Benson and McClellen would be #1's on the TT squad and they started as 3's and 4's on the Duck depth chart. This game is a toss up! The team who plays clean, mistake free football will have a leg up. Either team can overcome mistakes but only one team has the #1 pick in the 2026 NFL draft....... Dante is not the same QB that everyone saw against IU. He will be the difference maker in this game. TT, if you don't get to Dante you most likely lose this game. OBD's did not have multiple TE schemes when they played IU. Your linebackers can't cover the Duck TE's and pressure Dante at the same time. Good luck! Hopefully, this is Duck homered enough..... Go Ducks, cover the spread and let's get off to the semi-finals.

Great hire for Michigan and a great fit Whit...... KW earned everything he received at Utah, including anunlimited supply of patience. Football is not life and death for the Utes administration and fans. That will not be the case at Michigan. It is a short leach at best. Either way, congratulations to KW! He earned this moment.

For this Duck fan, the November/December version of OBD's is better than the October version. With real time game experience and a great deal of water under the bridge the current Duck offense has very little resemblence to the offense on the field against IU. Dante is reading defensive sets/formations and calling audibles to avoid trouble. The result, less sacks and more positive plays. He may be extremely talented but he was clueless in the IU game. His line gave up 6 sacks. Goodness.....Since that game the 2 deep line has done what was needed in run block assignments and pass blocking. You don't win 6 games in a row, in the BIG, to close out your conference schedule with out a stout O line executing at a high level. Watch the games again and dont follow the ball carrier. Look at the down field blocking by the linemen, tight ends and receivers. It is exceptional with hat on hat 20-30 yards downfield. Exceptional.... The key component is Dante! In October he was an extremely talented player brimming with potential. And IU knocked his confidence into next week. Thru the course of the season, with hard work, high end coaching and determination, Dante has become a team leader and probably the #1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. With protection and the newly found TE sets(last 4 games) Dante is a difference maker. He will be the difference against TT. I have promised myself I won't melt down when TT stuffs and stymes OBD's on the first few possessions. Those first 8 to 12 plays set the stage for future big plays later. For you younger Forum members, in the sixties the New York Jets had a,QB named Joe Willie Namath. There were no artificial turf stadiums. When bad weather arrived the fields were muddy. The Jets O Lines goal was to keep Joe Willies uniform clean. Sideline camera shots would pan the O line and Joe Willie. The lineman's jerseys would be muddy and bloody. Joe Willie's entire uniform would be clean. In 1969 they kept Joe Willie so clean they won the Super Bowl. Keep Dante's uniform clean and OBD's NFL Light team will put TT in the rearview mirror. GO DUCKS!