HappyToBeADuck

Thanks DiscoDuck for posting this. It was refreshing to actually understand what Coach Lanning was saying. No Florida Boys confusing coach speak....... Coach Lanning comes across as humble and sincere. Taking note and recognizing the genuine love he and his family have felt. Recognizing that the bar for Oregon coaches, players and fans is a National Championship. Just remember that these young players, in all Duck sports, need to feel love and appreciated, too. Like the boomers clinged to the telephone, television and popular hang outs for social information these youngsters get it all on and from social networks. Consider being thoughtful when and where you post. These youngsters are certainly connected. Go Ducks........

Nothing like having potential world class track athletes see thee world class track facility. Nothing like having those potential world class track athletes be 4☆ football players who can see world class football facilities..... Nothing like having 5☆ QB's who can put the ball into the hands of a wide open speed burner 60 yards downfield..... Make it happen Coach Lanning!

Well for me, it is difficult to guage the intent of the tweet. These youngsters are 16 and 17 years old. Youngsters on a fun, fast paced, whirlwind weekend. Youngsters who are trying to determine if they want to spend the next few years in Eugene. Social life is a critical component in that decision. No way any of us can truly tell if that tweet was a notice me I am special or come and say hi. In reading the replies it appears that other recruits were just welcoming others to come say hi, too. Turn the clock back to high school and for me a hello and a smile from a cute college coed would have been epic. Legendary perhaps..... Last decade I had 6 teenage grandkids go thru college. Didn't always understand their texts sometimes. They spoke a different language. This decade brings 7 grandkids thru college and their older siblings from last decade don't understand the new language. It is so much fun to watch them interact. The only common denominator was they love each other. Each new, young Duck will communicate in their own way. In the way they know how. Not how I want or feel they should. So I am going to enjoy them and show Jahlil and others the love. Come be a Duck and thru trial and error we will show you the love. And have fun. Hope you met some great fellow students this weekend.

Just an observation, but if you take Clemson, Florida State and Miami out of the ACC and into the SEC, B1G or BIG12, what do you have? A top level basketball conference... The academic ignorance displayed by the narcissistic, know it all presidents in the ACC is only surpassed by the narcissistic, know it all presidents of, well the PAC. The 2 weakest conferences making non business like decisions. Decisions that continue to weaken their positions. The ACC leadership ignorance is matched by the PAC leadership arrogance. Both conferences had an opportunity to change the landscape of college sports and failed. Now the SEC and B1G, If they want, can form 2-24 team Super Leagues (Jon Joesph Choir Master) with 4-12 or 8-6 team divisions. You can guess who their members will be. The rest, per NCAA, can form their own division. Say goodbye to non revenue sports both men's and women's in that division. Their is no Alliance. It's every school for itself. Those unwilling to change may get trampled.

I believe that Mario is at a crossroads in his career as a HC. MC is at the beginning of his 11th season as a head coach. Not at the beginning as Coach Lanning is but ELEVENTH season. As for evidence, that MC will or will not get to a CFP appearnce, well I have none. But I do have eyes and a thought process that can assimilate what I see. 1. Did not see any change or improvement per in game management from his first game at Oregon to his last. 2. Did not see him turning over the reigns to his OC or DC. Everything became predictable. If the fans could see that, well other coaches could. (Wittingham, Shaw, Smith) 3. Did not see the team, under MC, stop losing the games they were supposed to win. (ASU, Stanford (twice), OSU). Cannot make the CFP if you lose games you are supposed to win. 4. To me, the Ducks finished 20 and 21 on losing notes. Once Shough lost his confidence the 20 season went down hill. In 21, losing 3 out of your last 4 games is telling. My eyes saw players who were tired, not motivated who had lost the will to win. The best recruits in Duck history and MC could not get them over the finish line. From what my eyes saw, my brain tells me that unless MC is willing to change, he will not get to the CFP. If he does, even with 5* Florida talent, he will get out coached.

Just an observation but Jahlil does not look happy in this picture....... Maybe, as a young person, he may be a bit overwhelmed by the recruiting process. Or simply torn between 2 great schools. Play close to family and friends or be taught by a top notch defensive coaching staff. Unlike many high school recruits, for Jahlil the right choice may lead to the NFL. Tough choices start early for top talent......

2 top PAC teams playing 2 top SEC teams, what could go wrong? Truly love these high risk, high reward games. If the Utes and Ducks win they can reside in the top 10. Take care of business and their late season game will position one team for the CFP. Lose these games and there's still a chance for redemption if they run the table until their late season match up. Odds are the Utes and Ducks will be playing for the Fiesta and Alamo Bowls. But with these high stake games a victory certainly raises the expectation bar. Thanks Jon for listing these potential big game matchups.

Best of luck and continued success at the next level and in life to CJ. He had some big time runs that we will remember. Closing out Utahs quest for a CFP appearance in 2019 and P12 Title game. And silencing tOSU crowd in the once invincible shoe. The CJ/Dye Era apparently has come to an end.

So much click bait going on it has become difficult to separate facts from fiction. Both these players would be great recruits if they sign their LOI's. Not sure that even guarantees that top players will stay put with the program. Because the landscape can and is changing daily its difficult to even get excited about a player becoming a Duck. Let alone a sportswriter who heard it from a friends brother in law, whose sister in law once dated an assistant coach. It seems with NSD fast approaching we seem to know more about what isn't happening than way may actually occur .........

JJ.....Eventually one of the three conferences (BIG, BIG12, ACC) will determine expansion is in their best interest. Someone will ask how do we capture the West Coast audience? How do we expand our footprint for recruiting into California? How do we make ourselves more attractive to our network partners and advertisers? How do we give our NIL partners a better ROI? How about USC, Oregon, UCLA, Utah, ASU, UW(Barf, get your head out of the toilet)? It's going to happen because it makes smart business sense to expand. Then 6 presidents are going to be outside looking in... Serves them right. Mike West......This conference still matters to the fans. This conference still matters and has value to the networks. But this conference does not matter to the Presidents. Their stand pat inaction has left the conference weak and vulnerable. Took the puppy (the conference) out to play in the fenced front yard this morning. Fortunately, I noticed a hawk (other conferences) in the trees less than 50 feet way. The puppy was not aware of the hawk. The hawk was definitely aware of the puppy. Our puppy (the conference) is only concerned with itself. The hawk (other conferences) are aware of what's in their best interest. Look what the SEC did to the BIG12. Only the 12-PAC presidents, full of academic arrogance and narcissistic ignorance didn't see it. It was up to me to take care of and protect my puppy. She didn't feel or understand the potential danger. The PAC presidents either don't understand or don't care about the potential danger. You decide which it is?

David, as the article mentioned MH inherited talent, scheme and culture from Kelly. The culture was built steadily, with Brooks and Belotti establishing continuity. A long, slow climb to success. Coach Lanning inherits great talent from MC. The talent that transferred or moved on to the NFL most likely will be replaced. But the last 3 HC 's at Oregon let the culture slip away. How confident will the returning players be after 3 beat downs in 4 games? Can Coach Lanning and staff restore their confidence? If the players buy-in to the Lanning culture then 2022 could be special.

Does the PAC put a compelling product on the field? IMO, not very often over the last few years. Of course it depends on what you find compelling. It's purely subjective to the fans but not the networks. Past ratings play a big role in future TV contract negotiations. Ask yourself what games in the 2021 football season were compelling to the networks? tOSU/Oregon, LSU/UCLA definitely. Maybe Oregon/UCLA? I only watched Oregon games because of my love for all things Ducks. Moving ahead. USC/ND, Stanford/ND, Oregon/Utah (1 and 2). Those games had potential but 1 team in each game failed to show up. The TV entertainment potential never materialized. When given national exposure the PAC failed to deliver most of the time. The PAC had terrible OOC losses and as a result we had very few games between 6-0 and 5-1 teams. You know the kind of games that are compelling to fans in other regions. Half full stadiums, no energy and multiple games that meant nothing do not attract the networks. The last 2 seasons I found myself watching BIG and BIG12 games because they were compelling. The weak ass leadership of the PAC in 2020 allowed fans and the networks to look elsewhere for programming entertainment. In 2021 I continued to watch the BIG and BIG12 games. Ask yourself if Wisconsin/Penn State, Iowa/Minnesota, Baylor/Texas Tech, Iowa State/OSU were more compelling than Arizona/Colorado, Cal/Oregon State, WSU/Stanford. Even if fans around the country wanted to watch those PAC games, they would find it difficult. The PAC 12 Network has poor distribution and the Networks don't cover most of those match ups. However, if the games were of interest or compelling the narrative would change. It takes consistent winning by all PAC partners to change the narrative. How many partners are committed to winning? Ask yourself if PAC games were must watch TV? OOC and conference games sure are in BIG and BIG 12 country. Then ask yourself how exciting were PAC games. Not many PAC games equalled Baylor/Oklahoma, OSU/Baylor, The Red River Rivalry, Michigan/MSU, Iowa/Penn State. Just think some of those match ups would be in the PAC-20. Conference games starting at 9:00 am and lasting thru early Sunday morning. Baylor, OSU, TT, Iowa State fans would stay up late to watch their team play Oregon, USC, Utah, UCLA. But guess what, the networks would have those games on in prime time. Just a side note, ESPN covered the BIG12 men's BB games all day. National exposure. You could make a case that a PAC-20 would rival the ACC in men's BB It's not to late to change this mess. The Presidents need to pull their collective heads out of the academic ignorant b...s. Then on bended knee, with a mix of humility, invite the new BIG12 to merge with the PAC12. Form the first 24-team super conference with all 4 time zones covered. Forward thinking and bold moves to leverage the changing landscape.. 24 teams, 4 time zones with Oregon and USC as anchors would be impossible for the networks to ignore.

If Butterfield is 3rd on the depth chart after spring ball, I would look for him to transfer. Depending on how close he is to getting his degree may alter his time table. JB committed to Oregon in May of 2019. He took no other visits. He wanted to be a Duck. Not sure of his enrollment date but he should have put a dent in his credits toward a degree. When he came to Oregon he was listed at 6'6" and 180 pounds. 2020 season did not count against his eligibility. Assuming he takes 2021 as a redshirt year, then he hits the field in 2022 as a redshirt freshman. With 4 years eligibility left. He was listed in 2021 as 6'6" and 218 pounds. Another 12 pounds and the boy who enrolled will now have his man body. NFL man body. Once he garners his degree he could move on to a NIL deal and a coaching staff who wants give him playing time. Good for Jay and others who have this opportunity before them. Or he could earn his field time and remain a Duck.

Most everything we read or hear coming out of the USC hype machine should be taken with a grain of salt. As usual, even before the National signing day has arrived the USC faithful, ESPN and the Socal media have awarded the PAC title to the Trojans. Been there, heard that and yet see them rebuild their dynasty. Trojan fans should be excited at the off field developments. Riley is potentially a step up. But you still have to develop players and coach against Shaw, Whittington and others. Look at the talent our previous coach and his staff brought to Oregon. Yet did the Ducks make it to the CFP? A All Star cast has to prove it on the field at a near perfect level. Should the Trojans make it to the CFP then it's good for the PAC. Oregon will just have to step it up. Both teams need to be 12-0 or 11-1 when they meet in the PAC title game. Stop all the talk and posturing. Get it done on the field. That's goes for both teams.

Had to read that article 3 times to wrap my head around all the complexity of issues. Ever have a bully on the play ground settle an issue? It often ended bloody...... In 7th and 8th grade we had a big athletic bully backed by twin brothers, Twins were 1 year younger. For almost 2 years, no one stood up to them. They picked on everyone and recess was dreaded. Occasionally somebody would challenge them. It did not end well. The collective group would not stand up to them. One day, the bully was picking on, name calling and embarrassing a very sweet, shy girl. All of us, except the bully had been together since kindergarten or 1st grade. We were all friends. Bully showed up in 7th grade and had no friends. As tears rolled down her cheeks, I foolishly told the bully to stop. I told everyone to stop picking on her. She was a friend and I wanted this to stop! Immediately, the bully stepped into me and I did not even reach his shoulders. Was about to get the beating of my life. Just after the first blow landed on most of my face, to my surprise, 3 of my friends attacked the bully. As the twins moved into the frey, they were met by the rest of the 8th grade class. It was over quickly. The play ground changed because the group stood up to the bully. Will the group stand up to the bully (Sankey and SEC)? Not a chance this will happen! It's going to be bloody and the bully will have his way......... That article makes it clear that change is going to happen. Their are pros and cons but the bully holds all the cards. From all my 43 years in business I assure you that the PAC'S decision to not merge with with BIG12 will be detrimental in this process. One conference, 20 schools with a common cause to negotiate their collective interests. No amount of West Coast academic ignorance is going to stop this bully.

The NIL could play a big part in his decision. Family, girl friends, friends and social media will also be a part of the decision. Teammates....... Coaches? Yes the coaches will matter. Where will he get the best preparation for an NFL career. Which coaches the last 3 years put the most players in the NFL? My view would be slanted to Oregon. Homer for sure. Personally both schools have alot to offer this young man.

Jon, I read an article in the San Jose Mercury News that the networks would want to reduce the payouts for any reduction in conference match ups. Unless the PAC replaces those games with P-5 OOC match ups. Makes sense from their perspective. Oregon/Utah is a better ROI than Oregon/Portland State. The article mentioned that the PAC was trying to get the BIG to roll back to an 8 game schedule. Then those 2 conferences could play each other in a better quality OOC game. I think the article was by Wilner. Don't know if it's conjecture or real time discussions. However, if the PAC had expanded to 14 teams to match the BIG, then the decision could have been easier. The execution seamless. Zero forward thinking by PAC Presidents to be better positioned for the changing landscape. The networks would prefer a MSU/UCLA game to broadcast over Colorado/Arizona. Bottom line, the Networks are okay with changes during their current agreements with the PAC. They just want P-5/P-5 match ups not P-5/FCS. Only the SEC gets that privilege.

Fact of the matter is since mid nineties, Ducks have a had better coaches, better continuity and have butt whipped the whiners. Fact, the Ducks have better facilities, better doners and maybe even better whiners. Fact, better players. Scoreboard counts you butt sniffing, toilet drinking, academic ignorant.......... Fact this forum rocks..........

If I was the Commissioner of the BIG12, I would poach 4 to 6 teams from the PAC. Just because the genius, acacademic brain trust of the PAC didn't want expansion doesn't mean the BIG 12 or BIG don't want too. West coast eye balls are leverage to a Midwest/Texas conference in negotiations.

Great thought out article Jon. Lots to digest, ponder and discuss. To me it boils down to Academics, Athletics, forward thinking and leverage. Without to much thought on this, in order to protect all of a school's athletic student athletes (Title 9) IT TAKES MONEY. Plain and simple money. The PAC presidents made it clear that the conference members must have enough money and can stand pat on expansion. Real forward thinking by the conference presidents? Academic arrogance the cousin of academic ignorance. Expansion into Texas and Midwest opens up about 50 million more legitimate eyeballs. When negotiating with networks those eyeballs would represent leverage. Maybe a Baylor/Oregon matchup wouldn't interest some on this forum. But the networks would pay for it. In Texas, football is king. The stadium would be full and the television turned on. Utah/Texas Tech, USC/OSU, UCLA/ IOWA STATE would sell to the networks. Not all match ups would be compelling with expansion. IMHO, very few PAC games are compelling. A 18-20 team conference would be better leverage for the future. The future of college athletics is here now and changing daily. The only leverage the PAC truly has is after dark games. In business terms, because I rarely watch them then why would I pay big money for them. Jon, keep it up, your voice makes some sense amidst the chaos.

Thanks Annie for posting the rankings. Once the Ducks and Trojans fill our their class they should move into the top 20 Besides its not how many you recruit but who you recruit that matters. Any needs can and should be filled via the portal Next few weeks will bring a big shuffling of those rankings.

Denver Duck, welcome. Look forward to your comments and posts. I love this forum and the Ducks. My concern is my recurring dream where the Ducks lose 1 game against a lesser opponent almost every year. This happens to all schools except the top CFP contenders. You cannot lose to the teams you should beat and expect to be in the CFP. Recruiting classes ranked 10-25 will not be making it to the CFP. Couple that with some insane scheduling and the goal gets even tougher. I believe Coach Lanning has the potential to be a great coach. Time will tell.........

I agree with Charles that we should count our blessings if we win 10 games next season. 10-2 is possible but 8-4 is definitely in play. As we all know the right talent coached properly can overcome alot in the weak PAC. As Jon mentioned WSU and Arizona create some problems. Especially on the road. That schedule is demanding and requires A plus energy from coaches and players. With the portal in play predictions and forecasts can change daily. Roster foundations are no longer poured in 3 or 4 year footers. The building blocks may be be quick fixes poured over quicksand. I hope Denver Duck is correct on 10-2. A win against Utah or USC in the P-12 Championships should put 11-2 Ducks in the Fiesta Bowl. Just a side note: Why and I mean why does the f. Fool who makes this schedule have the 2 top teams (Utah and Oregon) playing late season? No chance for the loser to recover. Why does a conference that critically needs CFP appearances set up both teams to fail. WTH......

I could be way off base here so anyone please fact check me or correct my comment. One of the reasons for ESD was to get LOI's in so the players could register and enroll in early January. Thus participation in S and C and spring ball. A fair number of players are completing high school early and jumping right in. This is important to these young men and I would hate to see that get skewered Most of the ESD process accomplishes what the NCAA is all about. CHAOS....... David another well thought out and written article. So many parts moving in multiple directions. No leadership, no rudder, no rules. Just how the SEC likes it.

Toss up between Friday Night Lights and either Longest Yard movie.. Greatest sports movie? Another toss up between Slap Shot and The Sandlot. Hockey bus road trips following the Spokane Jets/Flyers into Cranbrook, Nelson and Trail BC rang true to the movie. Booze, babes, brawls and hockey in the late 60's and early 70's without the movie set.. Played neighborhood baseball, all day long in the summer in vacant fields in the late 50's and early 60's. it was simply the best of times.