Mike West

I sure hope you're right my friend. You're usually on point, and I'm hoping we replace some top performers with top performers.

No offense. I sure hope you're wrong.

Lots going on. A former 5 star recruit at A&M spelled out their issue: they did not get millions (he even tweeted that). College football is too complex for all but the very ready to step into. Especially at QB. Even Dabo Sweeney has recognized this. Loyalty? It matters. So does being championship level for the blue bloods. DL inherited a challenge of major proportions. Lack of talent and depth. So he has to get some depth, while developing talent. TT is clearly not at an elite enough level, and frankly I don't believe in such a thing as a 5 Star QB anymore. You have it or you don't, and there really aren't many Justin Herbert caliber players anywhere in the country. Can you grow into that? Yes. Not as a freshman however as Dante Moore found out quickly. I believe FishDuck pointed out we lack experience on defense now (think talented players like Birch, and not enough Five Star Caliber talent on defense at any level to be considered as good as Georgia and the like- but we do have good talent). I believe the ACC and the Big12 are the conferences the four and "five" star QBs should go. They will shine enough to get nabbed quickly. In fact, that's how I would recruit right now, and I'd be brutally honest about it. Ninety percent of 4+ Star QBs will not start at a blue blood right now and perform at an elite level. Those two conferences are the "new college football". If you're awesome enough, you'll know in a month. If not, prepare to sit. That's reality. And kids should be told that- especially QBs. And I mean NFL ready. Not College ready. Which makes NIL and Portal strategy very interesting right now because kids don't want to hear that (and maybe being blunt is too much, but they SHOULD know). DL is pretty damn good, and I believe he will navigate this well. Remember 10-2 is the target. That's playoff bound. Which means you must win the games you're supposed to win, and look to steal one from elite level teams with enough media steam they nearly always get in. Right now that's tOSU, UM and Penn State. Again, I believe DL knows what he is doing, so we should be in the mix for everybody and another great year like 2023.

Glad you're willing to be the rock of Gibraltar on the stormiest of nights. While I don't stand with you, I share your sentiment. My first thought was he'll barely get touched, but man that's a risk. I hope the gameplan is score 28 by half, and the swan song blares into halftime. Certainly the subs will want to put their signature on the win as well. You get what you think about my friend. So let's think good tidings and play to win, not to avoid injury. All should be well. Time to make 2024's opening statement with some of 24's crew. With a little help from their friends.

So, ESECPN did it again. Along with Fox, destroyed the PAC12( with major help from the conference Presidents). Slotted a very undeserving ( but capable) Alabama into the CFP. Scheduled OBD with Liberty. The matchup is a great expose' for TT and the reserves. Horrible matchup for a NY6 bowl. Goes to show we will have to actually win a Natty before we'll be considered as a legitimate title contender. On to the BiG. I hope we shred em all and get a rematch with UW to show how much the PAC12 was disregarded.

We all felt it all week. There was a good possibility we would lose. And it wasn't because we would choke. A better team, actually a more complete team, defeated us twice. So, No, I don't feel in any way we were deceived, or the coaches pulled our chains. The force is powerful within us, but we are not Jedi yet. Darth Vader just cut off our arm. But the force is still with us. Never forget that. Will OBD ever win a Natty? I don't know. What I do want is what we saw all year: growing into being what it takes to win a Natty. That's why I can accept a loss like this. We aren't deep enough to win physically. We still fought back, after playing horribly. And though I disagreed with the strategy I saw last night, that coaching staff STILL got this team back in the game from a horrible start to the degree we forced them to take the game from us. That is a team I will always support. I understand the feelings though. It has been a roller coaster ride, playing these Fuskies. Not to mention the sheer surprise by most of us that we really looked good this year. Natty good. That's why it hurts so much...far away, so close.

It does tell the story actually. And I believe you were on track with your initial assessment. This matchup requires inserting explosive plays on every drive, not just when you have to. We weren't aggressive enough. Especially after the first drive when Nix came out too hyped. They can't stop our WRs any more than we can stop theirs. We didn't go after their secondary enough. We didn't force them out of their overall scheme until we had to. The sense of urgency to force them to take away our deep pass game wasn't there, not enough in my opinion. Sometimes you just have to draw up an explosive strategy on the fly, and keep it until they stop it. We did the same thing to USC. The difference between USC and UW is UW has more talent. But we ripped USC immediately. Then let off the gas. Can't do that to those type of teams (with explosive offenses). For all Washington's dominance, they sure couldn't salt the game could they. They had to play sixty full minutes- despite being in virtually complete control of the game. We can turn a game around in one play. Nobody but nobody can prevent that- and I'm saying the entire group of elite teams. I believe you will find out just how elite Washington is. And maybe you'll feel a bit better knowing we learned you can't turn off the jets just because you're escaping the stratosphere.

I believe there is one component missing in all of this. This is going to be an unpopular take. I believe the reason Washington looked so lethargic after we played them is they focused on their running game more. They actually looked decent running the ball against us ( my opinion) the first time we played them. I believe they realized they would need to run more effectively period. In order to win the Natty, they're going to have to run the ball well. They already have an elite passing offense. They will be tough to stop. Because now, you have to stop their running game. If you didn't notice it, they closed out the game running and passing effectively. We couldn't focus ( based on the formations we used in my opinion) on both very effectively. They correctly assessed, after our first game that they would need more balance in order to close out against us, AND the rest of the elite teams capable of winning the Natty. They looked out of sync the rest of the season because there were tinkering with their play mix. We are the same type of team. But we focus so much on balance that it takes a quarter for us to unleash our awesome downfield passing game (that's not our true focus). They made absolutely sure we would have to pass well on early downs if we wanted to win. It took Stein a quarter to find the right mix of plays to do that. Then he turned off the spigot at the beginning of the fourth quarter. That was a mistake. The same thing happened on the drive we decided to go for it ( on 4th down) in Seattle. In reality, we should have focused on scoring, not controlling the ball till the end ( which is what they expected us to do). There is no ball control strategy against an explosive offense like theirs and ours. The goal must be score TDs on every drive you can, with a heavy dose of explosive plays. Same with playing Georgia. You need to be extremely agressive. Especially when you have the personell, like we have. Washington is going to surprise people in the playoffs. People are going to assume the best defenses are going to shut them down. That's not going to happen. Even Georgia is going to have to decide how they're going to slow down both the run and the pass because the Fuskies showed they can handle a physical defense. I say a 5 man front is required to slow them down now ( five guys on the line of scrimmage that is, not five down lineman). In any event, there isn't a secondary that can contain Washington now that McMillan is back. We learned that the hard way. It will be interesting to see if Nix plays in the Bowl Game. It would be a great opportunity for TT to determine just how much work he has ahead of him if Nix doesn't. I don't believe TT has the freestyle ability Nix has. That is absolutely necessary in Will Stein's offense ) by the way I doubt Nix was given that choice this game based on the way it looked- Nix didn't audible much last night). Our future is bright everyone. Lots to self assess. I believe we have the right staff to do so. If they pay attention to us ( really laugh out loud folks. But know this, we have an astute forum here).

Great takes guys. Our future is bright. Win ten and you're always in the playoffs. Winning a title is going to take having an NFL caliber QB. Somebody mentioned one of the best things a Four or Five Star QB can do now is start and dominate in a lower conference. That's what Cam Ward did. I believe the ACC and Big 12 is the place potential four and five star QBs should go. Otherwise, you better be the real deal- and I mean absolutely Tua, Justin Herbert, and Peyton Manning material. Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud are other examples. Teams will not win a title unless they have a clutch QB. That should be obvious after last night. Without No Nix, we get run out of the building last night. I also believe too many defenses set up formations that can't beat a team like Washington this year, Alabama the year Tua played AND the year they lost to Georgia ( an injured elite WR going down changed the outcome of that game- and Georgia's vaunted defense was NOT stopping Bama before that). Explaining why is too detailed for this forum, and frankly requires writing a book about- having talked to Fishduck for years about shutting down Chip's early version- the back and forth really convinced me I could earn a doctorate if I write that book (lol). Anyways, we will consistently make the playoffs. Winning a title requires several variables that are difficult to control. But the days of the SEC dominating college football are over. Which means we have a solid chance to win a title if and only if we get NFL caliber QB play.

Guys, I could see all 22 players all game. The defense got beat because the formations they played Lent to mismatches. You could actually see some of that in the highlights. For instance, as I said last night, on third and goal at the two yard line, up 4, we lined up in a 5-2 I believe. They had 8 on the line of scrimmage. That is a natural mismatch. Before the play began I pointed that out and said Washington would easily score. Every time they ran outside, the side they ran to had a mismatch because we were stacking the other side of the formation ( the side with their TE). I didn't have a problem lining up on their TE side, I had a problem with the formation. Oregon State did the same thing but under center. The formation we used against Oregon State was what I - Mike West would do. I would have forced them to pass, go zone, and used the blitz packages that worked so well all year. I also believe the coaches were so worried about pass defense, they didn't respect their running game ( which the Fuskies actually focused more on after they played us- they correctly assessed they would need it against us- we miscalculated what they were going to do). Furthermore, it was obvious we couldn't press the WRs at the line of scrimmage, nor keep up with them down the field. That required immediate trashing of our game plan versus their scheme. I thought the CBs would play better, but with McMillan back, it was a clear mismatch. I (again this is just me, but I don't believe in a game plan that goes further than the first quarter, I believe you play " streetball- call what you are playing against". That's what those 287 plays in your playbook is for). When we trashed the game plan on offense, we scored. We only did that once in the fourth quarter on defense, and they called a fade route inside the ten yard line( we had the perfect formation to defend the run and pass on that play, then went back to a pass oriented formation they exploited). It was frustrating to watch. I believe the reason Lanning stuck to his guns is because everything worked all year- and worse, we lost by three both games. So I'm not sure strategy will change. I'm a firm believer you play to the tempo and flow of the game and adjust as you go. That calls for calling the first quarter based on what you believe will happen in the game, and call the rest of the game according to how the game flows. Coaches rarely do that. Ironically, Vince Lombardi's "Gentleman, this is a football" comes to mind for me. He taught fundamentals. Repeat the same play till you perfect it. I agree with the fundamentals part. Yet I believe you take what they give you, and you take away what they succeed at. For me, that requires knowing football beyond your own strategy and philosophy of the game. There's obviously more to it than that and that would require a ten thousand word essay no one would read. Overall, I'm disappointed, but I'm proud of this team. They didn't play well and they still only lost by three- and yes for me- the game was how it ended- it wasn't simply they dominated- we just didn't respect the conditions on the ground and still played well enough to lose by three.

It's formation related. They're choosing to yield one gap at the LOS.

Mike West rule number one:. NEVER RUN A REGULAR DEFENSIVE FORMATION AT YOUR OWN ONE YARD LINE. EVER.

This Stadium is awesome. How bout that for Duck commentary?

Defense is going to have to scrap man to man. I'm in the building and nobody is covering all. Time to go zone, and also scrap the 3-3-5. Not a good game plan on defense from what I've been looking at.

They don't look very physical at present

OBD look a little off

I used to think that way. Until I saw Utah give Penn State all it could handle (till Cameron Rising got injured). They were good enough to give Michigan and Ohio State fits last year. And nobody expected a Mario Cristobal led Oregon team to beat Ohio State in Columbus. Sometimes it's a matchup deal. Ohio State sure surprised Georgia last year (as I suspect any team with a high caliber QB to do in the SEC). I'm quite confident the best coaches (and there are about twenty) can tango with the elite in a one off. I believe the playoffs are going to surprise people the next couple of years. Clearly I believe the SEC has been overrated a few years (even OBD ran in Georgia well. Had Nix had elite WRs, that's a horse race of a game-their secondary rarely gets exposed- and I think that's because the conference has average QBs).

The only thing I disagree with is the four playoff teams really have been the best. After COVID the balance started to change. Now, as in 21';22' and this year, the top 8 teams are fairly close with #s 1&2 separated from the rest. This year there are 8 solid teams with little separation. I think rankings will continue, and eventually the conference title games go away. That will create some mismatches in my opinion, but unless a team focuses on winning ten every year, they will not be good enough to be in the playoffs, much less win the Natty.

Oregon 35-23 1 1 335 yards passing

I'm nervous too. The Fuskies have a matchup advantage here. They, like Georgia (whom I believe is the hardest puzzle to solve), set up the Secondary so well they get guys open often. I believe the Corners (OBD) get beat here and there, but not to the degree they did before. Washington likes to Gondor TDs from their own 40, the opponent's 40 and the opponent's 20. That is their major tell. I believe that will be defended much better Friday. Fingers crossed!!!

I'm going to make two unpopular statements here related to this. First of all, I don't believe this number is high. For all intense purposes, the"mistaken fourth down calls" were a result of not executing. The final score should have been 46-29 had Nix taken his trying and gone through his progressions ( first time) and taken his time on the second throw to Franklin at the two ( he scored if he catches it). I realize everybody in the solar system disagrees. That's fine with me. Execution was the problem. And as we have witnessed, the offense and the defense have spent the rest of the season on better execution. Penalties, and once again, the Safeties are going to be the difference in this game. If I see a Safety look at the QB instead of take away his choices I'm going to go nuclear. I may be able to attend this game, so " The Sun of All Fears" may be in play lol.

Oregon 45-17 2 2 350

I feel it too. But it doesn't diminish from the fact this team has killer instinct, and shows poise as good as Chip's Natty team. My worry is the same issue I brought up before the Fusky Fiasco: I'm not sure the Safeties are good enough to shut down the best passing offenses. I've seen improvement. I've seen better adjustments than I've ever seen before. What bugs me the most is our Safeties get caught flat footed because they stare down the QB instead of taking away his options. Looking at the quarterback is like a kid in the candy store: you forget what you're doing. You freeze because all the candy looks so good. You reach for the snicker bar forgetting you came for the payday. OBD have an Achilles Heel. I still think they pay the Fuskies back. And I actually believe they are as good as every elite team out there. It comes down to inches at this point. I hope I never see an interception turn into the completion before we give up the go ahead score type play again. But I have my doubts. Even though we haven't seen many fiascos like that play since, I know how good these elite coaches are.

Oh I so hope you are correct. I'm just worried a Bama UGA game like the Tua stunner plus Michigan Ohio State playing a thriller just monkey wrenches the whole deal. Any repeat of the battle in Seattle from those four, without a couple of flat out dominating wins by OBD gives the committee justification to foster rematches not including OBD and UW. Fingers crossed!!!!!