Jon Joseph

Back-to-back very bad outings by Wazzu. The offense fizzled in the Rose Bowl and Arizona simply mugged the Cougars in Pullman. But There Is No Easy Day in this conference in 2023. Do not let UW beat you twice. This will be a motivated Pac-2 team coming into Autzen. Ducks, favored -20 is a healthy spread against a team that was ranked 2 weeks ago.

Hats off to the Pac-12. The conference is going out with a bang and not a whimper. The Road to Las Vegas for the Pac-12 conference champ game is loaded with land mines for all of the contenders. To date, 2 teams, Washington (SIGH) and USC are undefeated in conference play. (Teams ranked using AP Poll Rankings after Week 7.) The rankings will change down the road. As an example, 25 UCLA may not hang in the top 25. Only 1 ranked team, USC on the road left to play, but Arizona in Tucson will be a tough out for the O-challenged Bruins. What a break for the Bruins missing both OREGON and Washington. With many ranked vs. ranked games left, it will be tough for the Pac-12 conference to finish with 6 top-25 teams. This is what happens when you play a 9-game conference slate in a deep conference with parity. By comparison, with an 8-game conference schedule, 4. FSU and 10. North Carolina misses one another in the regular season. And the B1G is a 3-team conference in 2023. Iowa is ranked (with a rank offense) but Penn State defeated Iowa 31 - 0. 5. Washington - 6-0/3-0 ASU Stanford At 18. USC 14. Utah At 12. Oregon State Washington State - This game should be rotten apples for the boys from Pullman. 3 ranked teams - 2 on the road ..................................................................................................................................... 18. USC - 6-1/4-0 - A bad loss in South Bend but a non-conference loss. 14. Utah - Can the SC D hold up against the Utes run game and can the Trojans offense bounce back? At Cal 5. Washington - This could be a shootout. At 9. OREGON - The Ducks with a big edge on D in this game. 25. UCLA 4 ranked teams - 1 on the road ......................................................................................................................... PAC-12 Teams with 1 Conference Loss. 9. OREGON - 5-1/2-1 Washington State At 14. Utah - Tough, tough road game but Utah will be coming off of a trip to LA. And since joining the Pac-12, Utah has not fared well in LA. Cal 18. USC - The Ducks 'should' win this game. At - ASU 12. Oregon State - Do you think the Beavers will be fired up? 3 ranked teams - 1 on the road. Oregon is the last Pac-12 team, led by Justin Herbert, to win in Salt Lake City. ........................................................................................................................ 14. UTAH - 5-1/2-1 At 18. USC 9. OREGON ASU At 5. Washington Arizona - With home games vs. Utah and Oregon State, a good Arizona team has a chance to play spoiler. Colorado - Prime Time in name only. 3 ranked teams - 2 on the road. ......................................................................................................................... 12. Oregon State - 6-1/3-1 BYE At Arizona At CU Stanford 5. Washington At 9. Oregon 2 ranked teams - 1 on the road. ................................................................................................................................... USC has 4 ranked teams left on the schedule but only 1 game, at OREGON, is on the road. Utah and Washington have 3 ranked teams left with 2 on the road. OREGON - has 3 ranked teams left with 1 on the road. Oregon State has 2 ranked games left but as of today, both are against top-10 teams with 1 on the road at OREGON. ............................................................................................................................... Based on the post-Week 7 AP Poll, I have to give the toughest finish to Utah. Yes, USC plays 4 ranked teams but only has to leave LA once for a tough game in Eugene. A close second to Washington. UW defeated Oregon State by 3 points last season and if the Beavers had kicked 2 chip-shot field goals instead of going for 2 TDs on 4th down ...? Salt Lake City is a tough place to win a game. But OREGON with USC and Oregon State coming to Eugene has the Autzen advantage. It should be a whale of a finish. How did this conference become a fish out of water? SIGH. Gazing into the crystal ball, I see a rematch between OREGON and UW on December 1st in Las Vegas. The perfect result would be a Ducks win with both teams finishing 12-1 and 2 Pac-12 teams being in Final 4 consideration with a 12-1 champ a final Final 4 lock.

How about, take the points along with these 2 fans!

6 Pac-12 teams are ranked after Week 7 but WSU, after being embarrassed at home by Arizona, is not among the 6. But Oregon does have playdates scheduled with 12. Oregon State, 14. Utah, and 18. USC. And, if Puddles flies to Las Vegas for a game on the 1st of December, the Pac-12 champ game will be against a ranked foe. I'm hoping for another shot at UW. UW gets Utah at home but plays USC in LA and at Oregon State. Oregon State looked like the 3rd best team in the Pac last night and is a very tough team to beat in Corvallis. In 2022, OR ST lost by 3 in Seattle because J Smith went for TDs on 4th down instead of kicking 2 chip shot FGs. Hmmmmmm? Chip's 'Win the Day in LA Team' is ranked 25. It has been many moons since a ranked UCLA team has defeated another ranked team away from home including last night in Corvallis. Even without WSU being ranked, Saturday's game is on ABC at 3:30 Eastern. Thank goodness for those of us on the Right Coast. It won't be the ABC varsity broadcast team of Chris Fowler and Herbie, but it will be on a network people can watch. With this game on ABC, I expect the game vs. Cal will be a 10:30 Eastern kickoff on Larry's Lost Network. I expect Oregon at ASU to be a 10:30 Eastern kickoff on ESPN or FS1. I think it's great that Oregon will have the chance to bounce back into the win column on ABC. As PA Duck, The Keystone poster, posted under WSU/Oregon articles, Oregon is now -18.5. The WSU O the last 2 weeks at UCLA, and home vs. Arizona, has been ill and nil. (Did the USC O catch the same cold?) USC is but -3.5 at home vs. the Utes. Last Saturday vs. Cal, Utah was indeed the Runnin' Utes. Oregon State is -7.5 on the road in Tucson. AZ arguably should have won in LA and destroyed WSU in Pullman. Hmmmmmmm? Go Ducks. Take the 1st step On The Road to Las Vegas.

Thanks, Steven. We needed this! Darken the day? It turns out that Comcast will be withholding over $70M overpaid to the Pac-12. And Larry Scott has not been cross-claimed against in the Wrongful Termination suit brought by 2 fired Pac-12 network execs.?

Week 7 AP Poll - I am pleasantly surprised that Oregon dropped only one spot. This shows respect for Oregon and this season's Pac-12. Pac-12 - 6/ ACC - 4/ B1G - 4 ('new B1G' - 8), B 12 - 2 and both are leaving town, and the SEC - 6 ('new SEC" - 8.) The B1G and the SEC with 16 of 25 teams putatively ranked in 2024 cement a world with a CFB Power 2. 2024 Playoff accounting for realignment, 5 champs + 7 at-large teams. 1. Georgia - SEC vs. 9. Texas at 8. Penn State 2. Michigan - B1G vs. 10. OREGON at 7. Oklahoma 3. FSU - ACC vs. 11. UNC at 6. Washington 4. Oregon State - MW vs. 12. Utah B12 at 5. Ohio State (Not joining the MW and staying with a Pac-2 could screw up the Beavers PO chances.) 5 B1G/ 3 SEC/ 2 ACC/ 1 B12/ 1 MW

GO DUCKS 15 - Kenny Rogers? I prefer the Beach Boys - Be True to Your School. Can't win a game if you don't tee it up. UW won yesterday by the 3-point home-field advantage.

Week 7 SP+ Rankings - 1. Michigan 2. Ohio State 3. Georgia 4. Washington 5. Texas 6. OREGON 7. Oklahoma 8. Penn State 9. Alabama. 10. Notre Dame SP+ Week 7 Rankings Based on Success Against Schedule 1. Penn State 2. Oklahoma 3. Michigan 4. Ohio State 5. Washington 6. Florida State 7. Georgia 8. UNC 9. OREGON 10. Texas SP+ Week 7 Ranking of Teams Oregon has Defeated to Date - Portland State - NR Hawaii - 109 Texas Tech - 33 Colorado - 78 Stanford - 100 (Does this include Stanford's 2nd half in Boulder?) SP+ Week 7 Rankings of Future Ducks Opponents - Washington State -34 - I am happy that Oregon is playing ASU and not Arizona. AZ 44/ Wazzu 6. 516 yards of O for AZ. 234 yards of O for Wazzu. A wounded Cougar is on its way to Autzen. Utah - 24 Cal - 73 ASU - 90 USC - 14 (?) - No offense, but didn't you once have an offense? Train Wreck in South Bend for the D (no surprise,) Special Teams, and the offense. 3 Caleb Williams interceptions equal so long Heisman. Oregon State - 19 - The Beavers looked great last night against UCLA. Moore will likely be a great CFB QB but as of now, is not ready for the big time. A whole lot of meat is left on this bone.

I see no bad news in getting a rematch against UW at a neutral site.

Charles, great take. My problem is not with the 4th down attempt from near mid-field. My problem is having James and not Bucky, carrying the ball on 3rd and 2.

Coming into the game Oregon was 8 for 10 when going for it on 4th down. This no doubt influenced DL's decision-making. My biggest beef with the coaching? Before going for it on 4th down from mid-field with UW out of TOs, why on 3rd and 2 did Bucky not get the handoff instead of James? Bucky is far better at creating his own run lanes and in yards after contact. And in general, I think there was more opportunity, especially with Oregon rushing for 204 yards for Bird Bomb throws. OK, Danno, that's 2. Kirby, no one deeper than the deepest on Tua's championship game walk-off TD throw, And the ridiculous Justin Field's fake punt attempt.

Oregon - 204 yards rushing Oregon - 9 minutes plus time of possession advantage Oregon - +126 more yards than UW Oregon - 2nd Half - Bo Nix 21-26. Finished with 337 yards more than Penix's 302. But Penix did throw 4 TD passes. And you take a loss? I'm not here to nitpick Dan Lanning. 0-3 on 4th downs but you make the last one with UW out of TOs and it's game over. And what would have been a goal-line stand for the ages goes by the boards. My main beef. On the play before the 4th down incompletion, James was stuffed. Why wasn't Bucky Irving in the game for this play? No disrespect for James, but Bucky is far better at making something out of nothing. Keep the faith. No letdown and Oregon will be playing UW in Las Vegas on 12/1 for the conference title. Week 7 SP+ ranking

Thanks for the comment. But lethargic? I did not see this. I saw the Ducks overcome woeful field position early on. 6 point deficit at the end of the 1st Q. 4 at the end of the half. 11 points down, I thought that we would see the rerun of the game at Texas Tech. I saw 2 very good teams going toe to toe from the get-go. I saw GUTS on display when Oregon held UW out of the end zone in the 4th Q. I thought that the game was won. However, you do not give the Heisman favorite the ball on your side of the field late in the 4th Q. This was as good and as violent a game that I have watched in the last 5 seasons including watching ball played in the SEC. This was guts-out smash-mouth football and if Oregon does not suffer a hangover we will see these 2 play again in 2023.

Mike, there is no one on this board who I respect more than you. Dan Lanning will be a great coach. But hubris-like calls have cost the Ducks in the last 2 seasons. Vs. UW. Kirby Smart made some of the same kinds of calls before Kirby got it. Do not when on the road, leave points on the board. And especially when you have an all-world QB on the ropes, dinged up, punt the football. I was surprised at how well the UW OL played. I was also surprised at how the Oregon D on the right side was out of position and could not hold the edge. Onward and upward. Beat UW in Las Vegas. A number of the throws that Penix made today were special. But the Ducks did beat him down and had him hurt in the 4th Q. You simply cannot, although I appreciate the gutsy (kind of) calls, not kick chip shot FGs, and you CANNOT go for it in your end on 4th down late in the 4th Q. I agree that the DB messed up late. But he did not have to be in a position to mess up. Lanning will learn but to me, this was a 2022 bad coaching decision redux.

Charles, good call. But as an old-school guy, you do not leave 6 points on the field when you are a dog (sorry) on the road. And you PUNT! Yeah, Cam missed it. But Oregon should have never put Cam in this position. Great Game! Don't let this game bleed into the WSU game. These 2 teams are odds on to meet in Vegas.

I'm predicting a Ducked-up Fusky. 😁

Good thing you don't live in South Carolina. You can marry your 1st cousin but you can't smoke dope.

Good! I'd be nervous if this peripatetic bozo went the other way. I guess I will have to, reluctantly, watch Gameday tomorrow. A show that has turned into a parody of itself. Bring back David Pollock!

I am not happy about the Ducks playing down the road at Boise and Utah State. But compared to the below OOC schedules vs. the P4 and 1 G5, Oregon State, I'll take the Ducks future OOC schedule. OREGON - 24 TX Tech, 25 OK State, 26 at OK St, 27 at Baylor, 28 Baylor. This is more than enough. Michigan - 24 vs.Texas, 25 at Oklahoma, 26 vs Oklahoma, 27 at Texas. Wow! Ohio State - 25 Texas, 26 at Texas, 27 Alabama, 28 at Alabama (and 2030 at Georgia.) Come On Man! Purdue - 24 Notre Dame, at Oregon State, 25 at Notre Dame, 26 Wake Forest, Notre Dame. 27 at Notre Dame, Duke Minnesota - 24 at UNC, 25 at UNC, 26 at Cal, Mississippi State, 27 at Mississippi State and Cal Nebraska - 24 CU, 25 Tennessee, 27 at Tennessee UCLA - 24 at LSU, 25 Georgia, 26 at Georgia, 27 Auburn, 28 at Auburn Hogs get slaughtered and Ducks get fed. Puddles has enough on the plate playing a B1G schedule. Let's play SEC teams in the Playoff.

OREGON B1G Schedule Through 2028 - The Full Monty By B1G Opponent Illinois - 24 - H/ 26 A / 28 A - 3 1/2 Indiana - 25 - H/ 26 - A/ 28 H - 3 2/1 Iowa - 25 A/ 27 H/ 2 - 1/1 Maryland - 24 H/ 27 A/ - 2 - 1/1 Michigan - 24 A/ 26 H/ 27 A - 3 1/2 Michigan - OOC - 24 Texas/ 25 at Oklahoma/ 26 Oklahoma/ 27 at Texas WOW! Michigan State - 24 H/ 26 A/ 28 H - 3 2/1 Nebraska - 26 H/ 27 A - 2 1/1 NW - 25 A/ 26 H/ 27 A - 3 1/2 Ohio State - 24 H/ 26 A/ 27 H - 3 2/1 Ohio State OOC - 24 No P5/ 25 H Texas/ 26 A Texas/ 27 H Alabama/ 26 A Alabama - Double WOW! Penn State - 25 A/ 27 H/ 28 A - 3 1/2 Penn State has a cupcake OOC schedule through 2028 - only P5 games are 24 at W. VA and 27 Home vs. Syracuse. IMO, Smart OOC scheduling. Purdue - 24 A/ 27 H - 2 1/1 Rutgers - 25 A/ 28 H - 2 1/1 UCLA - 24 A/26 H/ 27 A27 A - 3 1/2 USC - 25 H/ 26 A/ 28 H - 3 2/1 UW - 24, 26, and 28 H/ 25 and 27 A - 5 3/2

Predictably disgusting. Like picking up after a walk with a Husky.

Chas, ten miles? With a walk like that I'd have to hit my cariologist who I have on speed dial and forget (kind of) about the game. I'd have a nurse in ER tell me the score. And awaken or hopefully join Puddles in the sky?

May I humbly suggest cider with something 100 proof poured in and a few beers on the side? After all, in 2024 Oregon is joining a conference of Boiler Makers.

You married a good woman!

Kirk, where are the pins and needles and the bad Husky juju?