Mike West

35-13 2 2 260

I think you're right. We're taking things seriously. I think the main concern is do the players have the ability to turn on the juice when it's time to? Habits are stubborn things. Lots of bad habits so far. The funny thing is, all the contenders have had a least a bad quarter or two. They seem to look better at it than we do though.

As noted very well in the comments, OBD just don't look like top three material. Not one freshman is playing for OBD. There are several from the cream of the crop playing for the current top three Now that wouldn't be as much a concern if our starters were playing like Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Tennessee and Ohio State. They're not. We lack the intensity, and I'm not quite sure we would look that good if we did match their intensity. The Oregon State game was the best we've seen, and that was at 75% capacity. We looked more choppy in Pasadena, even when we're were running on all cylinders. I also believe Penn State is playing better football. What really gets me is players like Jeffery Bassa jaw jacking like he's been tearing it up. Frankly, Boetcher and Jackson are playing better. Mouthing off never wins titles. That tells me where this team is at. All huff and puff, but they can't blow the house down. They're not mentally willing to put the pieces together. Or they just don't believe they can. Or both. Whatever it is, they are not focused. They are not intense. They are not performing anywhere near what it takes to win a title. The wild thing about it is, I think they are a notch below the cream ability wise, but the coaches have them in position to play above their capabilities. Sometimes you have to get humiliated to realize there really is no tomorrow. I'm seeing a seven to ten points loss to Ohio State. I feel there will be enough mistakes to wake this team up. Make them realize thinking you can do it isn't the same as dedicating yourself to doing it. None of the teams they played, especially Boise State, should have been in the game after the first quarter. That lack of killer instinct is telling.

I thought the same thing at the time. I actually don't think it was intentional at all. He could have just laid Ferguson out, and he surely could have. Shrugging his shoulders at a former teammate is lame. Ferguson was clearly injured, and he walked away like it was nothing. The zoom replay is a better look. He clearly was trying to break the pass up. The one FishDuck posted looks more intentional.

USC is playoff material this very moment. They have a good chance of reaching the playoffs. They are pulling high level recruits. Yet we just flipped a four star OL from Tennessee (payback). Georgia has won the most recent Nattys, one from Alabama. Bama just lost the GOAT. Bama is still a top five recruiting powerhouse Texas and Tennessee are recruiting very well. Hasn't affected Georgia, Bama, or Ohio State. We are neck and neck with Ohio State for several recruits. Isn't stopping them one bit. UW and USC could go undefeated next year. It will not affect us anymore. We are damn near a recruiting Superpower. We're certainly top ten. UW and USC will not stop us. Would winning the Big Ten title help any of the three of us? Yep. Still won't stop Ohio State. Or OBD. We are a better program than USC and UW. We were when DeBoer was there. We were on par when Peterson was there. Oregon isn't ' that cute team out West' anymore.

Yes, The streak is nice. Fitting in fact. They get a taste of what it's like to "be average". That's poetic justice. They hate us now. Fear us in fact. And frankly, they got caught cheating. Or at least, like USC, they were told they weren't allowed to do what teams in the South have been doing 'our entire lives" ( I believe we're close in age). So I completely understand where you're coming from. It's nice giving them a dose of their own medicine. I realize I have a different mentality than most. I really want them to realize they're never going to dominate us again, not be the premier team on the West Coast again. It is nice seeing them suffer now though. And if we keep playing like we have the past two weeks, even if they play better than they've been playing, we will bury them like we have the past two decades. Ain't it cool?

Did you see the end of the game? Surreal. I'll tell you this, .never go to sleep on Georgia. No lead is safe. Yeah, DeBoer just proved he is no fluke, and he elevates his talent to the very best. No matter what people think of said talent.

What have I said about pass coverage? What ticks me off more than any unforced errors? Thirty yards of passing because the linebackers are looking at the QB while receivers run past them. Both instances, all the backer had to do is locate the receiver in his area of responsibility, and take away the QBs option by covering the damn target. Like I said, I will write this ONE HUNDRED TIMES this year!!! We will have the best damn pass defense correcting that one mistake. NUMBER ONE!!! Why did Boetcher intercept that pass? Because he went and covered the receiver. Just like I said.

Well, I'll always root for both USC and UW because it helps OBD. And I do believe its fear, because in my mind, I want the challenge of them being as good as us. Because I relish the thought of stabbing them in the heart when we take a game from them. And there's nothing like inflicting pain in a program that used to own us, and now we own them. My hate is directed to rising to the challenge of being awesome against awesome, and burying the programs formally known as great. I want their best, not their worst. Because I want them to know their best is never good enough. I'm willing to risk loss in order to be GREAT. I don't want wimpy. I don't want their fan base to cry about why we're better than them like they have the past few years. I want to stick a dagger into their very best to show them they can't beat the best on the field - where it matter the most.

What have I said about pass coverage? What ticks me off more than any unforced errors? Thirty yards of passing because the linebackers are looking at the QB while receivers run past them. Both instances, all the backer had to do is locate the receiver in his area of responsibility, and take away the QBs option by covering the damn target. Like I said, I will write this ONE HUNDRED TIMES this year!!! We will have the best damn pass defense correcting that one mistake. NUMBER ONE!!!

42-17 OBD 1 TO 3 sacks 285 Passing Yards

Yeah, I'll NEVER forgive those arrogant fusky fans from the 70s, 80s and early 90s. I went to UW my first two years of school. I LOVE that campus. But I still hate those fans. So I despise them myself. No amount of quality education will erase the disdain I have for those days when Fusky fans rubbed our mediocrity in our faces. Now they tremble at the thought of Oregon. Poetic Justice at its greatest.

Who cares about hating the Fuskies. A UW win helps long term. I always look at the big picture. And I'll say it until my cold dead hands can't type anymore: Very good UW and USC teams- and in fact elite status- is the best thing that can happen to OBD. Because we're positioned to STILL BE BETTER. I'm not ever going to fear teams like last year's UW or Pete Carroll's version of USC. We are developing better teams than both. It's all in the players now- they have the best tools EVER.

Boy, I sure hope the College Football leaders nip these issues in the bud, AND maintain some semblance of the game they grew so well (until they made it oh so clear they were totally exploiting the players). Reggie Bush...suing the PAC12 and USC? Are you kidding me? They guy skirted the rules to set up his parents ( and himself)! Now he wants compensation because he "had to take that route". While I agree the NCAA and the school limited his financial opportunities, how do you rear-ends his situation, the. come up with a formula for the average player? They signed contracts after all. What a mess. When is a contract a contract? In other words, when will the courts enforce the contracts people sign? How is it just that people can sue to weasel out of their contracts? This goes on in the NFL all the time. In my opinion, if you want market value for your services every so often, sign shorter duration contracts. Or sign better contracts with incentive clauses. Worse, the NFL owners can't "collude" to restrict those negotiating ploys ( and some NFL owners are so stupid, they bid up the price for certain players- which in my opinion exposes just how much they STILL exploit the players). I don't want 45 premier college teams mimicking that financial arrangement. I loathe watching the NFL, until the semi finals for that very reason. Seeing a player I've never heard of sign a $200M contract ( all the power to him actually), while seeing another player get mad because his ego tells him he's better (bolstered by the fact he's been to the Superbowl and three AFC title games) infuriates me. This UNLV kid is another unknown, already milking the system instead of suing the collective. Worse, the public doesn't get to see the details of the contract- to determine what is just or unjust. We already know kids are using the portal as leverage, and it is only going to get worse. All so mostly anonymous kids that looked great at their local, mostly ordinary high school. I'm all for setting the players up so they get rewarded for what really is a dangerous sport. And if the colleges do this right, some kids will set up the next five to ten years for themselves, even if they never go to the NFL. Heck I'm ok with players playing up to seven years now. What a way to stick it to the NFL for preying on kids' hopes and dreams knowing less than 5% of them will never sign an NFL contract. Of course, setting up that kind of arrangement has to be carefully crafted, as agents and family members already blow up these kids' minds towards illusions of grandeur ( look at the Sanders kids- especially the defensive back- he's a marginal talent at best, and might not make an NFL team). Look at this UNLV kid. Bad career move in my mind. Sue the damn collective. Expose the game some, so players and families ( and CFB fans) get a grip on how the game is being played.

Yep.

I'm not sold on Jackson Arnold yet. He has more ability than Howard. But he hasn't shown the performance skills Howard demonstrated at KSU. I'm not much of a fan of Freshman or Sophomore QBs starting for P4 teams. You literally have to show me you are as good as a Heisman caliber QB those first two years - and I'm talking about performance, not ability. Now if you perform better than the guy ahead of you ( Arnold didn't and still hasn't), THEN YOU CAN START FOR ME. USC is playoff caliber with a guy that waited four years to start. Tennessee and Texas have Juniors that are top shelf performers that sat behind top shelf performers. I'll let you leave if you feel you're great. Most especially if I have a DG or Will Howard as my QB. If you aren't leading TD drives in practices and scrimmages every day, and I mean multiple TD drives, you are riding pine on my team. Potential would not get me either fired, or sitting at home on conference championship day. I can't go for that ( no, no ...no can do). I get what you're saying. But Oklahoma and KSU went all in, and busted. They're both out of the playoffs.

Glad you posted this. I didn't think about today's game, but I sure have been thinking OU made a serious mistake forcing DG out. Goes to show the NIL/ Portal issue is very serious for budding playoff prospects. Too many kids are a legend in their own head.

Nice Preview Jon! I agree, that Miami's win in Gainesville is overrated ( A&M revealed how hollow UF is, and ND blew up A&M's playoff hopes). There will have to be some upsets, as the SEC could sneak in FIVE teams if they win the games they're supposed to. Clemson beats Miami IMHO, but depending on what happens in the B1G, Miami could notch a playoff berth. Oregon AND Penn State have to go 11-1 to assure themselves a spot. USC has to beat Michigan and/or Penn State to nab a berth ( they should beat ND, but who knows). North Carolina was in good shape till they lost QB Johnson. The SEC is very deep. I suspect there will be controversy on who plays in Atlanta for their crown. Four of them have a real shot at going 11-1. That 10-2 team will have an argument for playoff inclusion, as this conference is truly deep. It looks like the regular season still matters. I didn't see that coming. For the good of the game, I actually hope the P2 offer that 14 team playoff with two guaranteed spots to the ACC and the Big 12 ( and no G5 for unless they defeat a ranked team or two). That format, as ugly as it seemed when it was offered, just might be the only difference between CFB and the NFL ( especially if the P2 are stupid enough to go their own way). This is actually going to be a thrilling year!

Charles, The first thing I in thought about was the sequential plays. I can spot three that might work, but I'm just a hack. I certainly hope Stein is working those sequential plays in practice, and keeps them under wraps until Ohio State comes to town. We'll have to see. The Buckeye LBs are pretty darn good in pass coverage, so anything to keep the off balance would disrupt their very effective pass defense. Great article. You observed something I didn't catch. Not even sure those plays were part of of the first two games Did you catch anything else from last week?

I don't think that's a bad deal. If he plays to his potential, and scouts believe he will eventually start in the NFL, that means his performance will be top shelf. In addition, the talent behind him ( talk about great depth) will get to play that much sooner. We have massive QB talent right now. Best to develop DM to NFL caliber this year, so he performs next year. It's clear Stein gets the most out of his QBs. And if Stein stays...whew. I hope DL is scouring for OC talent just in case

Looking forward to your analysis FishDuck.

I like how the defense responded to an obvious getting chewed out. Damn near perfection. That is the standard. They don't have to be perfect, but the effort to be perfect matters. We didn't see that effort in the first half on defense. Very good performance today. A solid B+ ( on a scale from F to A+). So much to clean up. Because we're playing to get ready for the playoffs. Every game is practice getting ready for the playoffs. Grade them tough, love them up to superiority. All criticism is in respect to prepare for the elite teams. No intent to denigrate the players. It's all about rising to elite status every game.

Naw, That was strictly poor performance last week. The line met the standard this week. Boise State isn't capable of stopping OBD when they play like this. This is what the nation expected out of OBD.

Not much comments on other games now that OBD are playing. LOL