Charles Fischer

I am shaking my head again at our good fortune of having Dan Lanning, who recruited Will Stein to be our OC. Below is a quote from Ryder Lyons, a 2026 QB prospect, and it is from an On3 article with some other great stuff that I'll leave to the subscribers. “I think Coach Stein is just an incredible human, not even a coach,” he said of the Oregon OC. “You get those, there’s some people where you can kind of just tell they’re being a little fake, it’s not real. But you never really get that from Coach Stein. I’ve never felt that it’s just being fake. He’s not just being a recruiter, he’s not telling me what I want to hear. He’s just telling me what the truth is, which is a big deal ’cause a lot of these coaches kind of don’t do that.”

Gentlemen, you exemplify the height of what we strive for on this forum, and what so many who left us do not have the guts to be. You disagree, but do not take personal shots at each other, and are humble in your disagreement. (I wish I could say I was as noble...) Was this the exchange of the year? Both you guys take a bow... And aside from being classy--I love both your takes on the topics!

You nailed it Alex. This is the biggest, most consequential off-season in Oregon football history, IMHO. Meanwhile, in October last year I wrote, "Forget about next year, as you rarely have so much experience stacked into one season as we do this year." And that was true until the incredible off-season! That was the definition of, "this did not age well!" I am still shaking my head at all the good fortune... Do Oregon Fans ‘GET’ How Special the 2023 Team Is? | FishDuck FISHDUCK.COM A high percentage of Oregon fans and media sources outside the state do not truly understand how special and unique this 2023 team is in terms of experience.

Google is your friend....explanations in the article below. Bracket set for 2024 Pac-12 Baseball Tournament in Scottsdale PAC-12.COM 2024 Pac-12 Baseball Tournament | Pac-12 Standings | Tickets | Bracket (PDF) | Pac-12 Tournament Record Book

AMEN Duck-Brother. I'm sure the Pig-2 know what they're doing....

NORMAN, Okla. — Oregon took three-time defending national champion Oklahoma down to the wire Sunday, before the No. 2 Sooners eked out a 3-2 win at Love's Field to advance to the NCAA Super Regionals and end the Ducks' season. A home run by Tehya Bird and an RBI single from fellow senior Emma Kauf tied the game at 2-2 in the third. Another senior, Morgan Scott, got the final 10 outs in the circle for Oregon, but she took over after the Sooners had rallied for a run in the fourth — which proved to be the difference in a tightly contested game. "Any time you're in a game like this, it's going to be tough — we're gonna throw punches, they're gonna throw punches," UO coach Melyssa Lombardi said. "And it's about just staying in it, staying in it. We always talk about that it doesn't have to look a certain way. It's just the ability to fight and persevere and stick together and go get what we want, and you could really see that from our group today." The loss ended the UO careers of nine seniors, including Bird, Kauf, Scott, Ariel Carlson, Hanna Delgado, Vallery Wong, Alyssa Daniell, KK Humphreys and Raegan Breedlove. "Version 6" of the Ducks under Lombardi finished the year 30-21, having reached an NCAA Regional final for the fourth year in a row. "I grew up going to games at Oregon, and it's always been a dream of mine to play here," said Carlson, a Eugene native who is planning to remain with the program next season as director of player development and analytics. "Wearing this jersey is so special and I'm so proud of the direction this program is going. Playing for this staff and with these girls, it's been amazing. I couldn't ask for a better team or a better program." How It Happened: Elise Sokolsky started in the circle for Oregon and allowed two singles to open the game, for which the Ducks were the designated home team. But she minimized the damage by allowing just one run, on a sacrifice fly, a theme for UO pitchers on the day as they kept the Ducks in the game. Freshman Taylor Spencer (7-4) took over for Sokolsky in the second after a one-out double brought in another run that made it 2-0. Spencer walked a batter with two outs but stranded both runners, again limiting the damage. "I'm so proud of this team," Carlson said. "We knew they were going to come out hot from the start — that's what they do. So nothing really surprised us. We knew it was going to be that kind of game, back and forth. So we were prepared for it. The Pac, our entire schedule prepared us for that, so we were ready to go when that happened." The Ducks proved it in the third, after Spencer threw a 1-2-3 top of the inning. Bird hit a one-out solo home run, her second of the weekend to give her multiple homers in two straight NCAA Regionals. With two out in the inning, Kai Luschar singled. She took second on a base hit by Carlson and advanced to third on an error, and Kauf drove in Luschar with a single to tie the game, though Carlson was thrown out at home trying to score the go-ahead run on the play. "It was really special to be able to do that for my team and keep us in the game," Bird said of her homer that sparked the inning. "It's something I'll never forget, for sure." The Sooners answered in the top of the fourth. Spencer got two quick outs, but the next three batters reached, the third on an RBI single that put Oklahoma back in front, 3-2. Oregon managed a two-out double by Daniell in the fourth, and Kauf singled again in the sixth. But the Ducks weren't able to forge another tie or take the lead, and their season came to an end. "I've been going to Oregon camp since I was 9 years old, so Oregon means everything to me," Bird said. "It was the only school I've ever wanted to go to, and as soon as I got that offer, there was no place else. When coach Lombardi came in as coach and I was already committed, I knew that I was going to stay a Duck no matter who was there, and it just made it so special that coach Lombardi was there for us. So Oregon means everything to me and I'll be a Duck for life." The Ducks ended the Norman Regional 2-2, with a win over Boston University on Friday, a loss to the Sooners followed by a win over the Terriers in an elimination game Saturday night, and ultimately Sunday's finale of the double-elimination weekend. "I just can't say enough about my team and how proud I am of them," Lombardi said. "This group of seniors has been an absolute blessing. They all came at different times, but they're all leaving together and what they've created together — the standard that they've set for our future teams — I think Version 7, they are gonna be able to take Version 6's lead. "I know that no matter what's next for them, that they're going to excel, and then they're gonna be just really, really good at what they do. They're invested in us, not just in softball, but just invested in us as people and willing to do what it takes for us all to be great together. So I love the fight that we had today. We were right there, just needed a couple more. But to see us yesterday and then to see what we did today, that's Duck softball right there. And so I'm just proud and blessed to have these guys by my side." Notable: Carlson's third-inning single gave her a 10-game hitting streak, the longest by a Duck since Terra McGowan had a 12-game streak last season. McGowan spent this year in the staff position Carlson will take over next spring. … Carlson tied Janie Takeda Reed (2013) for sixth on the single-season total bases list with 121. … Bird wrapped up her career with five homers and 13 RBIs in NCAA Regional play.

I brought it up, because I have heard of quite a few problem parents for coaches in the past. Something plausible to ponder in the long off-season…

But I will always remember Akili for this...(the winning points) And this!

I have thought about this before...how a notable alum and player could be a problem for our coaches. Akili was a QB coach for hire, and I believe counseled prior players at Oregon. He is a great fan, and has a very talented son who will sign as a QB this December for Oregon. In fact "Jr." was up here this weekend to help recruit the big group of recruits to OBD, so I love how he is helping the staff. But could a consultant who-has-a-Duck-in-the-fight be an issue later? Playing time? NIL? The complexities of being a college coach these days---whew!

Oregon ended up third in the conference, by only a game. The Ducks were picked to be fourth in the pre-season, and I cannot complain as we had our chances a ton of times where a game would slip through our fingers. We lost three one-run games where we left multiple runners on bases to end innings in those losses, where one hit wins the game and our conference. (We had the tiebreaker on Arizona, as Oregon won that series) We play in the conference tournament on Wednesday against Utah at 2:30, and USC on Thursday at 2:30 in our three-team pod. Oregon needs to do well, to assure our spot in the NCAA tournament, as last year our conference had two very good teams that should have been in the tournament, but were left out. Even though the Pac-12 has won more Baseball 'Nattys than all the other conferences combined....we don't get enough respect. Imagine that!

Ducks got it done, winning 10-4! Now if Oregon State beats Arizona tonight, they win the conference and the Wildcats and Oregon tie for second. Since Oregon won the Arizona series earlier this season...Oregon would become the No. 2 seed in the Pac-12 Tournament and second in the final Pac-12 conference season. Cheer for the Bastard Beavers tonight?

Oregon leads 10-4 after eight innings!

The Good-Guys lead 8-4 after six innings!

After five innings, Our Beloved Ducks lead 7-3!

After four innings, Our Beloved Ducks lead 5-3! Gosh...what a sweet swing!

In a big surprise...Oregon will be playing WSU on the Pac-12 Network at noon today! The stakes are high, because we have a real shot at being second in the conference. The game in Tucson is for the conference championship between the Beavers and Wildcats, and I believe OSU gets it done. If so, that could put Oregon at second place if we win today as well. Why is it important? Because Coach Waz says that nearly every time--the second place Pac-12 team hosts a regional NCAA tournament game, and that is a very big deal. C'mon Ducks! Get it done!

Oregon being in on No. 1 players...is just mind-boggling for us veteran Duck fans. Whew!

A great start in the tournament for the women, and they face Oklahoma Saturday at noon, (same time the Baseball team plays) on ESPN!

Because you are not in our spot. You are at the top of CFB, crunching most who dare to step on the field with you. You have the luxury of being nostalgic, having ‘Nattys, and thus can be gracious. If you existed in a conference that was almost invisible to 80% of the population, and then guaranteed to be relegated to permanent lower status forever....you would welcome the move-out, the move-up, even without immediate success. You have no idea how much I've realized the time difference has been real, and Oregon could be on the moon as far as most think in the eastern time zone. We will be top-of-mind this year, as the team we will present will be a challenge to most.

Look how Bryce Boettcher takes on a sidewinder pitcher, and digs it out....for a three-run homer!