Charles Fischer

Without Stewart...I don't think the result vs. Ohio State would have been any different with Bo. Besides, I think Gabriel actually throws a better long-ball than Bo, while Nix is better at audibles at the LOS.

As I wrote in the Pinned Post at the top of this page, when you are down 34-7....the other team knows you are going to pass. Too many running plays by Oregon burns clock and reduces the number of possessions you have in the second half, thus not enough time to come from behind. What is the highest priority? To me, it is to avoid what you see in the pictures in my post above. We can win without a QB who runs often. I believe a limited number of QB runs should be used; a QB Draw, a Zone Read, a Speed Double Option play, (as done against Beavis in Corvallis) and a scramble when nothing is open. Can't really do that when you are way down and have so many points to make up, IMHO. We can disagree. No big deal... Speed Double-Option

I think using the QB for runs as he did was an optimal blend. How many ruined seasons from injured QBs do we need? Bo Nix Justin Herbert Dennis Dixon

Me too. I will be for quite a while... It is all they got; hatred for us, because when Beavis thinks about his own team?

My Duck-Buddies, My impressions have been asked for of the game, and I will keep it brief because I believe most of this has been covered quite well by this community already. We lost for three primary reasons, IMHO. 1) We got the full attention and complete focus of the Ohio State coaching staff, and their team littered with 5-Stars. They came into Autzen full-of-themselves, knowing they would put "little Oregon" in their place. This time on New Years we got their full effort, especially on the coaching side. They out-schemed our defense with their passing game, plain-and-simple. They were awesome and nearly impossible to stop. Thus while I hate it, I salute it. That is what good coaching is about. 2) The hosing of the schedule and seeding cannot be overlooked. If Oregon had a warm-up game against a lower seed, then being ready for the Buckeyes would have come easier, not to mention how we should only been playing them only in the final game. Penn State's path is the one we should have had... 3) The player I've been talking about ALL SEASON, how our offense will take off by fully utilizing him was not able to play at all. Evan Stewart, the former 5-Star runs in the 4.30s and sending him long and stretching the defense was what was THE key to winning the first game. Without him playing, Ohio State was able to compress their coverage into the mid and short zones, and thus our receivers had difficulty getting open. It impacted our pass protection; during the season we saw how Gabriel got rid of the ball a fraction before getting hit a TON of times. But in the Rose Bowl, WRs were not getting open, thus he had to hold the ball longer and the highly regarded DTs of Ohio State were on a mission after the first game. Get Stewart downfield, and everything opens up. Ohio State scored 41; could we have scored 42? Of course, as we left 11 points on the field the first time and could/should have scored 43 at Autzen. (Two passed-up Field Goals, and an easy FG missed along with two missed PATs) With Stewart, staying up with the Buckeyes would have been possible, and with a game that was closer--the running game would have gone better. As it was, they knew we had to pass, thus the whole game was changed without Stewart, IMHO. The bottom line? Ohio State was a ton better on that day. Not at Autzen, and perhaps a game against them in the Championship with a sharp team with Stewart may have been different. It would suck to have an Ohio State-Penn State Final....you know, the "Oregon Beat Both Teams at Least Once" game. Below is an article I highly suggest for dedicated Ducks as we are... Ari Wasserman PASADENA, Calif. — In the wake of Oregon’s 41-21 blowout loss to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, Dan Lanning was asked a question about what he learned from the experience. It’s a reporter’s instinct to get immediate answers to serve the audience, and to find an explanation that contextualizes everything. People want to make sense of it all. How did that happen? Did the layoff make Oregon rusty? Did the Ducks get jobbed by a tournament with a seeding problem? What could Lanning have done better? What can he change in the offseason to make the Ducks’ goal of winning a national title more realistic than it was on that field an hour earlier? Lanning, grinning, knew what happened on that field. It wasn’t coaching malpractice, being rusty or some special game plan Ohio State cooked up. It wasn’t anything all that deep. So Lanning offered the most diplomatic explanation he could without coming across as bitter or throwing his very talented and special team under the bus. “It’s tough when you play a team that doesn’t have a lot of weaknesses,” Lanning said in response to the question. “They’ve got strengths.” Here’s the simple translation: Ohio State had too many good players all over the field. It had more good players than Oregon had across the board. If you’re an Oregon fan feeling down right now, that’s certainly reasonable. The Ducks are loaded, they went through the regular season having not lost a game — beating Ohio State along the way — and captured the Big Ten title. They were the favorite entering the College Football Playoff to win it all. The Ducks got blown out in their first game and failed to reach the CFP semifinals. Those emotions are raw. They are real. But here’s the good news: Oregon is ahead of schedule. Lanning is doing all the right things. And in a few years, the Ducks will be the class of the sport if talent trends — both with how Oregon acquires players and how the sport’s talent is flattening out — continue. Oregon, for sure, is going to be playing in high-leverage games like the Rose Bowl for the years to come. Take solace in that. Why? Because this Ohio State team may be the last of a dying breed. This Ohio State team, playing at peak levels like it is right now, is akin to 2019 LSU, 2020 Alabama or either of the subsequent Georgia national champions. We’ve been saying it all year, but Ohio State returned a veteran team with players who should be in the NFL right now. Sure, Ohio State spent a lot of money in NIL — just like Oregon — but the Buckeyes also returned players like Jack Sawyer, J.T. Tuimoloau (DTs) and Denzel Burke, all of whom could have been on NFL rosters right now. These are pre-NIL era recruits combined with a portal luxuries like quarterback Will Howard, safety Caleb Downs and running back Quinshon Judkins. Also add into the equation that Jeremiah Smith may be the best freshman receiver in the history of college football, and it’s a problem. We lost sight of who Ohio State was because the Buckeyes were playing poorly, which is part of the reason Ryan Day has come under fire. As we analyzed the Rose Bowl — using Oregon’s regular-season win over the Buckeyes as a reference — we forgot that pure talent, when playing optimally, is nearly impossible to beat. Ohio State didn’t start playing optimally until the postseason. So maybe it’s bad luck Oregon, as the No. 1 overall seed in the CFP, had to play the Buckeyes right out of the gate. Maybe Oregon would have won the national title had it avoided Ohio State and the Buckeyes would have gotten beaten by someone else on a bad day. But on good days, Ohio State isn’t losing to anyone this season. What Ohio State has isn’t typical. Not even Georgia or Alabama had it this year. Maybe Ohio State won’t ever have it again. But it still does right now. Which brings us back to Lanning and Oregon. This is year No. 3 for Lanning, and though he’s done a remarkable job with these Ducks, it’s not rational to expect they’d have completely erased the talent gap this Ohio State team still possess. Oregon has been a menace in the portal and in recruiting. The Ducks have brought in players like Dillon Gabriel, Evan Stewart, Tez Johnson and so many others. Oregon is building a juggernaut. It is becoming the closest thing imaginable to a modern-day super team. In the 13 classes between 2010-22, Oregon’s average finish in the team recruiting rankings was No. 17 overall. In the 2024 cycle, Lanning signed the No. 3 overall class, the first top-three class for Oregon in the modern history of recruiting. The portal is still going to be working. Things are great. Lanning is still a young coach. It took Jim Harbaugh more than 10 years as a head coach to win his first national title. It took Nick Saban a decade. Kirby Smart needed six seasons. Dabo Swinney took eight. Ryan Day still hasn’t won one after five years at Ohio State. We want instant gratification, but winning a national title is so damn hard, and Saban’s unparalleled success has blinded many of us to that. This sport is about chances. Keep building and knocking on that door and eventually it will break through. Lanning is the guy. He’s the best young coach in college football and there’s nobody I’d rather hire from the young coaching ranks to lead my powerhouse. It’s painful right now, Oregon fans. I know it hurts. But your day is coming. Just watch.

"Hint to Fishduck: It would be good to read more analysis of this, if anyone can tolerate studying a decisive defeat." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I Need More Healing Time...

In the post-game show...the analysts stated that there will be good teams in the B1G...with losing conference records at the end of the year because of how tough this league is. Whew!

Agreed. But now--I am happier in the B1G, as with the way everything is changing--you need to be in one of the Super-Conferences or you get left behind. I love our exposure, and again--the time zone thing is REAL, and was working against the Pac-12, big-time. If we went with the Apple deal...streaming only? NOBODY would be watching us. Heck the Pig-2 would get more coverage on the CW than Pac-12 streaming would bring, IMHO. It worked out the best for us... The Pig-2 can play by themselves...

What I did not know until the end is that Maryland had already lost at Washington on this road trip, so it's too bad that the Huskies are going to be tough for us, but great that the B1G opponents don't just concentrate on preparation for Oregon. We needed that!

A win in the GREY Uniforms?

To be clear, the revenue comes to them from the Rose Bowl no matter who is playing in it. It is a contract with the Pac-12 for this and next year remaining. I forgot about this, and the stealing never stops...

The good news? At this forum... No Trolls Allowed! (You will never have to read their crap) They get zapped in the Registration process before they can post! (And I'm a sicko who likes zapping them....like the two today)

Damn. You called that right…Bastards. Thieving Beavs.

True enough, as we have been’dissed in the past, and this time given too much respect? Cool.

No. 2? Are they crazy? That ranking is not based on analysis, but on hyperbole. Apparently they did not read my article a month ago of how between graduating seniors and those departing for the NFL, we will lose 19 out of 22 starters. We are looking to add 10 new starters from the portal, so that means a big chunk of the team is going to be highly inexperienced. A high ranking at this point is more wishful than proven. This is truly a case of getting out over our skis as we need to see how things settle up by the end of fall camp, IMHO.

Final Stats are below... StatBroadcast Live Stat Feed STATS.STATBROADCAST.COM

I did not know we were after a portal wide receiver transfer, but since they do not know the status of Evan Stewart yet--it makes sense to have at least one receiver with experience on the field next year. He strikes me as a Traeshon Holden type, that could blossom here with more PT. Florida State Transfer WR Malik Benson Down to Three Schools WWW.ON3.COM Former Florida State Seminoles wide receiver Malik Benson is down to three schools and Oregon is one of his finalists.

Those Russian Bastards won't leave us alone, as they try to penetrate the Registration system I have on a regular basis. Just last night I had THREE attacks from Russia, of Spammers who want to penetrate and post hundreds of Spam posts, and in some cases--take over the site. Spammers from around the world are also trying, and even some here in the US, and boy these people are relentless. If I did not have my manual system of having to approve them--I am quite sure we would have had some nasty messes to clean up. THANK YOU to those who have donated, as your money was spent to create the technology by our Web Developer to keep our GREEN REFUGE safe. Trolls Thwarted... We have had a number of Trolls who attempted to sign up, and when I call them to "confirm" their information? I get crickets, with no return call. Another actually answered his phone, and after I identified myself he responded with...."oh,...you have a wrong number." Right. I could tell by his hesitation, and tone of voice that he was BUSTED. This extra work is a hassle, but it actually saves time for me overall instead of later deleting their posts, arguing with them about their posts, banning them, etc. I am not going to report this stuff all the time, but I wanted you to know that I am working to make sure our Duck Pond remains CLEAN. The posts written after our loss the last couple of days have had some superb analysis and writing. I so appreciate all of you, and it makes want to do what it takes to preserve this safe set of sites for the long-term. Final 2024 Numbers of the Two Sites We had over 300,000 unique readers between the two sites for 2024, and even if you are on the forum a couple of times a day--you are only counted once for the entire year as a unique reader. I figure between 'bots crawling the sites, and accidental hits--I can safety tell people that we serve over a quarter-million unique readers a year! This is great for volunteers to know that their time spent impacts thousands of readers, and for those who donate--you are helping Oregon fans around the world. (We had readers from over 50 countries in 2024) Charles

While I would like this rumor to be true as an explanation for the first half, the fact that with all the players, all the coaches, and all the support personnel of the team has not said anything in interviews, (and all their social media) about it, and thus makes me wonder. I understand how Lanning may have told everyone to not report it, as he as a coach does not want diminish the victory of the opposing team. (He would not like that offered by the opposition when he wins) Like jrw, we need more sources, more confirmation.

Reserve kicker...