Charles Fischer

Crushing for the Ducks; it was bad enough that we didn't have really good starters, but to lose a Friday night starter--whew!

Huge, huge, HUGE for the rest of the season. If he had been healthy and available vs. UCLA...maybe all those one-run losses don't happen?

If Oregon could have a great push the remainder of the season--we could have a shot at being in the top 16, and thus a host. That and our home game against Gonzaga late in the season will be big...

Another outstanding post by Axel....love it! Don't even THINK about beating the Ducks!

EUGENE — Willie Taggart arrived in Courtroom 303 at the Lane County Courthouse on Tuesday wearing a blue suit, blue tie, white button-down dress shirt and a pair of eyeglasses. The one-time University of Oregon football coach sat behind counsel table, left of the bench. Two former Ducks’ football players were there, too. Doug Brenner and Sam Poutasi were hospitalized in 2017 after a series of grueling offseason workouts caused what they now claim are permanent injuries. Their lawsuit seeks $125 million and names the NCAA, UO, Taggart and former strength coach Irele Oderinde as defendants. Lawyers select juries in a process known as “voir dire,” in which the judge and attorneys for both sides ask potential jurors questions. The lawyers representing the various parties waded into the jury pool on Tuesday, strategizing and questioning. By the end of business, they’d have 12 jurors and a handful of alternates. Two potential jurors were dismissed early on Tuesday after indicating they were die-hard Ducks’ fans still miffed that Taggart ditched Oregon for Florida State. Said one of them, "Yeah, I'm mad at him for leaving after a year." One retired female juror announced she was biased against “big corporations” and said “something happened and these boys need to be heard.” It prompted an observing attorney sitting in the back of the courtroom to whisper, “She’ll be gone in two questions.” He was wrong. It took seven. But she was struck. The jury took shape. It’s an interesting group. Among those who made the cut were two jurors who said they had medical backgrounds. One other told the court that he attended law school and passed the bar but never practiced law. A fourth juror works as a personal trainer. Another is ex-military who served in Iraq. One observer in the courtroom noted, “lots of salt of the Earth” types. Some notes here: • Legal experts in the courtroom noticed that the Oregon-based lawyers for the university huddled often with the attorneys representing Taggart and Oderinde. Also, that the NCAA’s East-Coast based group of attorneys huddled together off to the side. But the two groups of defendant lawyers did not talk with each other during jury selection. • At one point the lawyers for all sides went into the courtroom hallway during a recess to speak privately. The jury pool remained behind and an open microphone captured some of their conversation. Noted one juror who was selected, “I’m dreading eating hamburgers for lunch for the next three weeks.” • The plaintiffs originally asked for $25 million. They amended their lawsuit in March and tacked on an additional $100 million ask for punitive damages, but only against the NCAA. It’s a clever strategy. The prevailing thought is that a Eugene-based jury might not feel inclined to hammer UO with nine-figures in damages, but would be less empathetic toward the Indianapolis-based governing body of college athletics. The former UO football players at the center of the case will soon outline the damages they believe they suffered during those off-season workouts. They’ll talk about trash cans brought out for players to vomit in and oxygen tanks that were carried in on the second day of workouts. They’ll recount how Taggart told the team shortly after being hired that he was, “going to find the snakes in the grass and cut their heads off.” Brenner told me after his hospitalization, “They took years off my life.” Doug Brenner filed a $125 million lawsuit. Attorney Greg Kafoury represents Brenner. He’s a seasoned litigator with a reputation of getting great results for his clients. Said one attorney who has opposed him in court, “It’s the way he looks, the way he speaks, the tone of his voice, and how comfortable he is in the court room. “It tends to put you at ease.” Kafoury, however, struck a different tone, at least early in the proceedings on Tuesday. He was abrasive with the potential jurors. He pressed a few for answers. It caused some to wonder what he might be thinking. Perhaps, Kafoury took a stronger opening stance because he smelled blood in the water. After all, the NCAA’s lead attorney began the day with a softer tone, apologizing to the plaintiffs numerous times. Be sure — there is a lot at stake here. Brenner and Poutasi feel wronged and want $125 million in justice. Taggart and Oderinde badly want this lawsuit behind them with as little financial and professional damage as possible. The university denies any wrongdoing and wants this gone without a substantial hit. The NCAA probably feels like it’s only here because it has deep pockets. Feels ripe for a settlement, doesn’t it? Except for the conflicting agendas of the defendants and their splintered attorneys, that is. I doubt the NCAA wants to absorb an eight-or-nine figure settlement on its own. Taggart and Oderinde won’t want to publicly acknowledge they acted irresponsibly. And UO doesn’t think it did anything wrong. The university won’t want to admit it didn’t properly care for its student athletes. In this, the plaintiff’s attorneys appear to have successfully divided the prey in the courtroom. Taggart is an interesting participant. There are lots of bad feelings about the manner in which he departed Eugene. Most have moved on, noting that his successor, Mario Cristobal, won multiple Pac-12 titles. Still, he’s a polarizing figure in this drama. The jury will be sworn in today. Opening statements will follow. This case has the potential for a massive ripple effect across college athletics. I suspect this lawsuit will be widely followed should it go the distance in the next three weeks. The way coaches instruct and the certification process for strength coaches is all in play in this case. Other universities will take notice of what happens. The NCAA may alter its workout policies. We’re told this is the offseason. It sure doesn’t feel like it in Eugene.

And I stated in the article that I will simply watch to see if the wins happen over the next three years...no declarations of an upcoming 'Natty....no predictions of glory this next season....nothing. "Just the wacko-wailings of a fan who wants to believe." And who wants to have fun watching the football program progress and discussing it with his Duck-Buddies.

Gotta love it!

Gotta have some fun!

Sorry, but I’m not gonna believe the conspiracies on this one. Instead, I believe the Flowe is a much bigger match-up with Coach Lanning then he is with the coaches at Miami.

Woah! There is some real talent there, and almost shouts the type of combo RB that runs and catches. A future Josh Huff?

It is quite relevant and thanks. You are always welcome with analyses of other Oregon commits.

Not Putin, but a new Oregon tennis player! (Oregon Athletics Press Release) EUGENE, Ore. – Head coach Nils Schyllander has announced the signing of Romanian standout Vlad Breazu to the Oregon men’s tennis team. Breazu will join the team next fall. Breazu ranked as high as No. 2 nationally in the Romanian U18 rankings last year and won the national championship in doubles. “We are beyond excited to welcome Vlad to the Duck family,” said Schyllander. “Vlad is an extremely hard worker and will fit in perfectly with our culture here at Oregon. He has had tremendous success over the past year, and we are thrilled to see what he can accomplish at the next level. Oregon just added some serious horsepower to an already talented team.” A native of Bucharest, Romania, Breazu has represented Romania in European championships and reached the fourth round of the U18 European junior championships last year. In doing so, he defeated the No. 11 ITF junior world ranked player and has a win over the No. 427 ranked player on the ATP world tour.

For more information about the stat he is referring to...the "Havoc Rate" see this article on FishDuck. (Created by you-know-who) Dan Lanning: "If you're good enough, you're old enough." - Footballscoop FOOTBALLSCOOP.COM Lanning talks about "havoc rate" for his defense and why time spent on campus won't be a defining factor in their playing time.

Nix's percentages will up because: (IMHO) 1) Dillingham, 2) Super-experienced, and 3) this ain't the SEC. Add 5-7 percentage points for playing in the Pac-12!

The only team with orange we can discuss....is your Clemson!

Don't care about stinkin' rodents!

It is only 30 seconds, but tell me it isn't funny!

I wish Baseball could stay in the polls despite losses! Oh well, we have to earn that respect, and we gradually will. Hubba-Hubba! Oregon State has become a top 25 Softball team? Whoa!

Wicked Green....welcome to the forum and DO post your thoughts often! And....love your handle! Could that be a good name for the new Oregon Defense?

While it is over-used, the culture from the previous coach is different, and the players have stated as such. And it matters... Good article David!

“Lanning-Lethal”

OK, maybe a little silly, but for Oregon fans--we gotta love it.

You gotta admit--he has great feet, good speed and while his arm is not like Herbert...his passes very catchable and yet accurate. He can do the Zone-Read too! (There is blah-blah at the beginning, so go to 3:05 to start the highlights, although the first game sucks.)

NEW YORK – Nyara Sabally was selected with the fifth overall pick by the New York Liberty in Monday’s WNBA Draft, becoming the fourth Oregon player in the last three years to be selected in the first round of the draft. Sabally will join Sabrina Ionescu on the Liberty, as the two will reunite after being teammates during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons with the Ducks. All of Oregon’s four first-round picks have come since 2020, a number that is the most of any school in the country. Sabally joins Ionescu, her sister Satou Sabally and Ruthy Hebard as Ducks to be taken in the first round, while she becomes the 12th Oregon player to be selected all-time and the third in the top five. “It feels amazing,” Sabally told ESPN’s Holly Rowe after being picked. “This has been a dream ever since I can remember – sharing the court with Satou. Playing against her is going to be a lot of fun and I can’t wait.” The Berlin, Germany, native averaged 14.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game during her two years on the floor as a Duck while shooting 53.6 percent from the field. Sabally finished her career with 12 double-doubles and scored in double figures in 38 of her 47 career games. She spent four years with the program, but missed each of her first two seasons due to injury. Sabally earned All-Pac-12 honors for the second straight year in 2021-22 after leading the team and finishing sixth in the conference in scoring, averaging 15.4 PPG. She also led the Ducks and ended the season third in the Pac-12 in rebounding, averaging 7.8 per game while finishing fifth in the league in field goal percentage, shooting 52.7 percent. A CoSIDA Academic All-District selection, Sabally turned up her production down the stretch, leading the Pac-12 in rebounding from Feb. 6 on with 9.3 per game. She also posted four of her eight double-doubles on the year in the last five games and averaged 18.6 PPG, 11.0 RPG and 3.6 BPG over the final five games. Sabally’s turned in seven 20-point games, highlighted by a career-high 31 against Belmont in the NCAA Tournament to match a UO tournament record.

EUGENE, Ore. — Pinch hitter Tyler Ganus broke a 6-6 tie with a bases-loaded single scoring Jacob Walsh to give Oregon a 7-6 series-clinching win over Ball State on Sunday at PK Park. Ganus drove the ball over the third baseman’s head landing just inside the left-field line giving Oregon its third walk-off win of the season. How It Happened: The Ducks (21-11) jumped out to an early lead scoring three runs in the bottom of the second inning. Anthony Hall started the rally with a single to left field, stole second and moved to third on a Josiah Cromwick base hit before scoring on a wild pitch. Cromwick came around to score on a Gavin Grant single after Sam Novitske walked and moved to third, escaping a hot box, and allowing Grant to move to second. Tanner Smith made it 3-0, driving in Novitske with a RBI ground out. Ball State (18-12) rallied to the lead with a four-run fifth inning, but Oregon responded with a run of its own in the bottom of the fifth to tie the game. Oregon opened the inning with back-to-back-to-back hits, but Colby Shade was thrown out at home trying to score on a Jacob Walsh single to left. The Ducks got the tying run when the next hitter, Josh Kasevich grounded out to second scoring Brennan Milone. The Ducks added single runs in the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings to build a two-run lead. Grant gave Oregon the lead in the sixth with a solo home run over the right-field wall. Oregon made it 6-4 with an unearned run in the seventh when Kasevich scored on a Cardinals’ throwing error. Ball State tied the game in the top of the eight with back-to-back solo home runs, setting up Ganus’ heroics. Series Notes: Smith led Oregon in the four-game series batting .429 (6-for-14) with a home run, four RBI and four runs scored … He also walked five times finishing with a .579 on-base percentage … Oregon hit six home runs to run its season total to 51, five shy of the school record … The Ducks homered in all four games, running their home run streak to seven games, the second most in school history behind the 17-game streak the Ducks set earlier this season … Grant’s home run was his fifth of the season, giving Oregon five players with five-or-more home runs … The Ducks stole 10 bases in the four-game series. On Deck: Oregon returns to Pac-12 Conference play Thursday at Washington.