Mike West

I call the transfer portal Antonio Brown Syndrome... At least the kids aren't stupid enough to trash their former coaches and players.

Amen. What happens when (and I emphasize when-because TPTB are not budging) the PAC12 will no longer carry the sports that made it the Conference of Champions? Schools like Oregon, UCLA, USC and the Fuskies will survive because their brands can endure the fallout ( though UCLA is trying real hard to flameout). Maybe, but maybe these guys have seen the future they don't want to participate in and are opting out indirectly. Whatever the case may be, they sure perform like the football teams in the conference- nowhere near the caliber required to compete as champions.

And Scam Newton getting hit so hard you could hear it in Mars. But that's ok- he didn't fumble, his arm collapsed. That's an incomplete pass ( not to mention the other incomplete pass Cliff Harris had full control of). Sorry, no sack-fumble-TD ( No INT, and for your trouble they throw a TD after the INT). Too late, eSECspn beat us to the punch

Agreed. MM will succeed if he is out in position to use his skill set properly .. including avoiding injuries.

What I find very interesting is what NFL teams do with their players. That 2014 Natty game (in January 2015) revealed how MM would perform in the NFL. He is lethal when on the move, and with the right mix of pass plays from the pocket ( with the right set of TEs/WRs). He was more suited to take the Titans to the Super Bowl than the ceiling they have with Tannehill. The Raiders were the first team I've seen properly use MM. My only concern for him is injuries. MM hasn't had an OC for more than a year his entire career. That's pretty crazy.

Auburn scored in the very next play And that doesn't include the sack, fumble TD the refs didn't allow. That's 14 points right there. We were better than Auburn. The refs tremendously effected that game. They don't win without those calls. Point blank.

I see UGA by eight or nine at this point. Really depends on how loaded last year's bench was is in Athens. Ducks at least a seven point fav against BYU , 14-17 on EWU.

I'm sure you meant a 2 - 1 Oregon team. THEY WILL DOMINATE BOTH BYU AND EWU. There's no question both teams will struggle to score 20 plus. Is be impressed if they do quite frankly. Question marks and all, I expect a beat down, and I'd be seriously disappointed otherwise ( I told you guys, ride with Lemon-Lime Kool Aide Mike, we're awesome until proven differently ). Shock and awe baby!

Looks like Snoop Dog with a football...lol Hope he's just as talented for his sake. Nothing worse than being a dud after garnishing so much hype.

When Bama "graduates their stars", they simply reload. Same with Georgia, Clemson and UGA ( though last year was a bit different). What seems to be on our minds is the question of reload or reboot. Do we have enough talent to simply reload? Not an an elite level. Injuries left OBD down to walk ons in some cases, and third string players in others. And the eye test appears deceiving when it comes to the theft in Columbus. It also seems apparent motivation was a factor the last month of the season. So, "what kind of talent do we really have" is front and center on our minds. Uncertainty definitely breeds fear. That's why faith matters. We have a new coach. Untested, from the other side if the world, with a mix of players deemed unproven. This clearly stokes fear from afar. I get the tempered expectations in the face of these "facts". Everything is brand new. That can be a curse, or a cure. We just don't know. That's why I encourage you to follow Kool Aide Mike. After all, we can't lose till we lose, right?? Hopium and homerism. It works until it doesn't. That's my story and I'm sticking with it. Go Ducks.

I understand your sentiment when it comes to the Snake. But did MC really end things much better? In addition, no Snake, no MC. No narrative about recruiting top talent to Eugene. You don't have to give WT props, but it is pretty difficult to deny he catapulted OBD into a recruiting powerhouse. My opinion of course

Hmmm, I respectfully disagree that Mario proved Oregon was a recruiting destination. The SNAKE said it and proved it-twice ( until he, like MC took some of those recruits with him). Furthermore, there should be no doubt in anyone's mind that Taggert made a fool out of himself because he certainly would have reached the playoffs with a healthy Justin Herbert the year he coached and had he been astute enough to stay. Thus, in my mind, that FIFTY POINTS A GAME (which might as well been fifty thousand pounds a game compared to MC), with a pretty good defense to boot cost the Snake ANY opportunity to return to the P5 as a HC. It was obvious to anyone as ambitious as the Snake was, that he should have stayed in Eugene. Might I also remind you Helfrich had a playoff victory Chip does not have, as well a Natty appearance. Helfrich didn't sustain what Chip started, but he actually led the team to the Natty directly ( he personally motivated the defense to ramp up and play to their level of talent after that fiasco loss to Arizona). Helfrich stepped up, and he deserves credit for it. MC blew an opportunity the Snake would not have duplicated, and Helfrich did not commit: inheriting so much talent it was a crime he didn't lead OBD to the playoffs ( three times at that). We seem to judge MH and WT on personality more than their actual contributions to the program. Chip was (and still is to some degree) pretty damn arrogant ( I still like the guy, I think he's a football genius). So, while MC left the school stocked with talent, he had little choice but to leave because he certainly would have soiled his reputation had he stayed this year. I actually hope MC succeeds. I fear MC will crash and burn just like Taggart, because his ego was rewarded despite his B minus performance here in Eugene. (Rich Brooks left the program in great shape, Mike Belotti built on it, and Chip started a standard that designated that grade an automatic fail. Taggart is where he belongs, and we will have to wait in order to determine if MC can handle a power P5 program. I personally believe we have been very fortunate to be in the hunt for a title for so long, and I am very grateful for that- frustrations and all. It is difficult to win a National Championship. That is why the journey is just as important as the destination.

I wish Montana, Aikman, Marino, and Jim Kelly could still play. I wish Staubach, Bradshaw, Griese, and Unitas could still play. I would have loved to see Otto Graham play. Legends are never unwelcome in my book. And frankly, Tom Brady is better than all but a handful of players this very second. The newbies are good...very good. But they're not Jedi Warriors yet Skywalker. Long live Tom Brady. He definitely still has it. As usual, he needs blazing speed at WR, because he still gets them the ball. For once, I like watching Darth Vader anihilating Padawans. That's my kind of villain ( if you haven't figured it out yet, I'm not fond of many young bucks coming up these days...they're arrogant, disrespectful, and don't show love for the game). Long live the era that instilled fan worship of football. Tom Brady is a throwback to those dudes.

A fun quote of mine when I see an upset like that:. CAN YOU SAY MONEY LINE!!!!!!!!! If you would have bet OBD to win that day, you would have won 12 times the amount you bet.

Nothing ticks me off more than entitled athletes. Especially an unproven commodity. The NBA and NFL players are bad enough. They talk about the game being a business, but more than enough of them are broke when they retire. What a joke. The guys that really earn their paychecks are the men and women that entertain us while we watch the games ( like Joe Buck and Troy Aikman for example). At some point, college football fans are going to say "enough". Attendance has been falling the past three years, and inflation is going to treat it's ugly head in earnest this fall. Interesting times. Where's Jon Joseph and his point spread picks when you need them?

I love your takes my resident national expert. It's going to be an interesting year. I like my Kool Aide apple, lemon or lime though lol. Let's hope we don't have to spike it much.

I can barely remain a gentleman after reading that.

This year's schedule is manageable. We are more talented than everyone but Georgia. Every other game is ours to lose. And I'd say that even if we faced both Utah and BYU at their place. Call me Kool Aide Mike. I'm not afraid of this schedule. Or the coaching ( really, really take a look at how Lanning put so much pressure on QB Young that he looked like QB Bennet in the first Bama- UGA matchup). We have hypersonic speed at WR. The best front seven in the PAC12, the best TEs in the conference, the most talented secondary ( just very green). We have a QB that's faced far better defenses than even Utah put us through last year. We have the best OL in the conference. There is so much talent on this team that it would take Mario Cristobal to ruin our shot at a conference title ( though he did ruin three playoff berths). I just don't have time to show what I see in an analysis article. But I see it. I get all the angrier because I truly grasp the degree Mario Cristobal blew three playoff berths. People think of the flaws on offense. I see just as much on defense. Lanning is playing Rope a Dope. His defense should be stellar this year.

Without looking at other posts initially, I am emphatically opposed to starting Jamal Hill and Steve Stephens. To be as diplomatic as I can, they are extremely incapable of covering elite talent, and thus a serious liability to the team. If you like burnt toast, those two should be on your menu. Again, in trying to be kind, but I've seen both five to ten yards behind WRs on their way to scoring TDs on a very routine basis. If you want to win the conference, those two must ride pine. I've seen a tiny sample of Dillingham at Memphis, FSU, and with Bo Nix. I'm pleased so far. Yes, he does set his game plan to the strengths of his starters. What he gives Thompson in the Spring Game will tell me if TT is truly elite, or bought(cough , cough- to get access to those elite camps) his stature. I happen to believe TT is talented, but was reduced to mincemeat in MC's "I don't know how to use a QB" offense. Nix concerns me in one area- consistently tearing defenses up. If Nix starts consistently living up to his five star billing, then he can even beat UGA (a tall task, but when he is on his game he is a serious playmaker). Hill and Stephens will ruin any title chances-they really are that bad. I believe the talent on offense is good enough to do some damage. Will they execute? I don't know. I subscribe to the Bill Walsh (49er offense) philosophy. Script the first ten to fifteen plays to see what the defense wants to do, then anihilate their plan. In other words, football is a game of setting opponents up to fail. Let them pick their poison, then give them an overdose that is considered criminal. Finally, I think coach Lanning got a look at how you can develop an inferior QB into a better winner than even his thoroughbred (hopefully he looks at things as developing the best of all three QBs so they carve up any defense they face).

Even this forum recognizes AB's limitations. Yet in the second half of the Alamo Bowl, he threw fade routes to backups for TDs against Oklahoma's starters. What does that tell you? It tells me the coaches spent less time solving the challenges the offense had than trying to run the offense they wanted. It tells me people look at limitations rather than finding solutions. AB has a strong arm, he isn't accurate on a consistent basis, but he constantly led early scoring drives. What almost always happened after that was the coaches expanded the playbook in ways that didn't match his skills. But we saw at the end of the year a skill NONE of us thought he had ( despite it being clear he had a strong enough arm). AB won ten games messing up things. Imagine what he would do with a little help from his coaches. Georgia won a Natty with a QB that resembles the kind of skills AB has. Neither QB is good enough to take over a game. That means it is the coach's responsibility to take over the game. AB performed to the level he was given. Not to the level he was capable of growing into. And yes, if you start WRs that don't possess separation skills, you better design that offense to maximize THEIR skills. That clearly didn't happen last year. Anybody think we don't beat Utah last year with our frosh WRs after watching tOSU scorch their secondary ( and the way we torched OU's DBs)? Players will play to the level you coach them. Which means we don't have many elite coaches in college football.

That's because they threw in the seams and mostly to TEs. The LB coverage was so horrid that you didn't even need WRs to convert third downs.

He'd still dominate today. Kids don't play basketball today, they play playground ball. I would love to be able to see the prime NBA eras (there are two- the late sixties till the early seventies, and the Magic/Bird years till the Thomas/ Jordan years). Those players would chew up any other era like the US Olympic teams obliterated the world. Walton would thunder dunk on ANY current forward or center- and he's half as athletic. He'd simply post up, back em up, and shove the ball down the net. I don't even bother watching the garbage posing as basketball today, I can't watch because the women - who aren't as fast,strong or coordinated- are better basketball players. It's disgusting to watch the men after seeing the women ( and I wish they were as athletic because THEY WOULD BEAT THE MEN EASILY). Walton dominated an ultra dominant UCLA squad. No way the NBA stops a healthy Bill Walton.

My only disagreement to this very good statement is the Ducks had two shots at pulling away and truly stun the college football world. MC blew it. But what else is new. That game opened my eyes to how much talent MC had really acquired. It isn't as deep or talented as UGA, but last year's team should have annihilated the conference and reached the playoffs. Can't wait to see what Lanning does with this group.

I actually think the DL is strong enough to handle those three ( remember it was totally decimated by the time they got to Utah). Remember, they stopped a pretty good OSU run game. UGA will be the biggest challenge, thus a devastating LB crew will help there ( not really concerned with BYU even though they get all 11 back- they just won't be effective against our healthy defense). This is where Lanning and his strategy will assist. He needs to get pressure on the QB to disrupt effective passing teams ( UGA is better than people realize). Again, the Spring Game will explain what we can expect strategically, even if they don't show much ( they will show how they're going to use specific players- which is what I'm looking for). What bothered me most about MC last year was the defense was capable of stopping everybody they played. All 12 of them. He let teams hang around when he should've tightened the noose. This defense should be world class this year, even with an "average" defensive line. Again, time will tell, but from what I saw last year, this unit can be a wrecking crew ( they held tOSU to SEVEN first half points- some of that was frosh QB Stroud, most of it was very good defense).

Here's my take of the QB room. I'll start by saying this is more hunch based on film I've seen of all three QBs. Butterfield is the more accurate of the three (most especially the deep ball). I think he struggles with the short to mid range game. Overall, I believe over the course of a game, he provides the most accuracy- but he isn't efficient enough to start. Thompson throws the most effective deep ball. He really struggles with the middle of the field ( accuracy and reading defenses). He would kill the deep game with last year's freshman group. I also believe he is not efficient enough yet to start. Nix has struggled throwing deep. But he is amazing at " grinding down the field". He has enough arm strength to throw deep, he just isn't effective enough at it. His weaknesses is consistency. But he also faced coordinators that were effective at adjusting mid game. Nix also provided the most versatility when it comes to mixing up plays. He is a very effective runner. He fits with an RPO type offense very well. Nix is a more complete QB( thanks MC and crew). If I'm Dan Lanning, I'm having my training coach ( who is the only coach that can work with the team in the off-season) develop all three players to the max. I'd especially get Nix some serious muscle memory with the speedsters. I'd give Thompson some massive midrange looks until he is seriously effective at it ( late summer and fall he can work on his deep game). Since Butterfield is the least mobile, I'd work on developing his entire game until he is awesome as a pass only threat. We're going to lose Butterfield or Thompson. So I'd promise to fully develop their game all year if they promise to stay the entire year. We've seen what injuries do, so depth and development of this group is critical. By the way, I'd go with scoring as quickly as possible in order to get both Butterfield and Thompson plenty of game reps. That means Nix absolutely needs to develop his deep game ( we saw what AB did with the speedsters, so it's a matter of figuring timing for Nix- he has to throw the ball at the right time to complete those deep balls ). I do believe Lanning wants to score lots of points. His staff has six months to figure out out.