Jon Joseph

Great observation, but I could not disagree more. Saban at Bama figured it out in year 2. At LSU Saban figured it out it out in year 2. Like you, I hope we see more cohesion down the road from Mario's squad in 2021? A flashback to what we already witnessed in week 2 in Columbus? Was that an aberration? The same guys who won on the road in Columbus are the same guys who played Fresno, Stony Brook and Arizona. How do all of these 'young guys' 'get it' in week two and not 'get it' in weeks 1, 3 and 4? And they 'got it' in Columbus missing a guy who may be the top draft pick in the 2022 draft? The D was porous vs Ohio State in the back end but Oregon won both LOS. Why? Because of desire, guts and want to. Because on O. the OC was engaged and involved. Where sans the Buckeyes is the effort? Why will the effort necessarily improve as the season progresses? Why not ball out now? Like the team balled out in Columbus. This is about attitude and want to. It is not about the youth of the roster. If the roster played like it did vs AZ in Columbus? Wildcats are blown out in the 1st half. The coach needs time to get experience? The players who the coach recruited balled out on the road at then #3 Ohio State are too inexperienced to ball out now? I'm sorry but I don't 'get it.' YET, Oregon is 4-0. Maybe this is a team like the FSU team that went undefeated in the weak ACC before Marcus et al blew the Seminoles socks off in the Rose Bowl?

FYI - To date, Stanford QB McKee, has completed 68% of his throws without an interception. Ducks need Mr. T to lead the assault on this guy. Stanford plays a ball control O. A style of O that can put up pints vs a bend-don't-break D.

A+. Thanks Utah. UCLA manhandled Stanford at the LOS. Ducks should do the same. Stanford was only in the game because of the same DB break downs that the Bruins showed vs Fresno.

In the booth it's Stanford alum all over again. Over/Under on when they 1st start dissing on the Ducks?

Good info. Thanks Charles. Makes me feel better about taking the Ducks -7.5.

Ankle injuries are so dicey. So easy to tweak on the field of play. Sure hope KT is good to go. Possibly the biggest CFB difference maker on D?

Cool! Thank you. I for one need all the help I can get!

David, sorry for the rant. Your takes are always well written and enjoyable. But I do see some irony here. When Mario was 1st elevated to HC, fans argued that he was 'young;' inexperienced as a HC. At the P5 level, this was true. Now, Mario is in year 3 and most of the guys on the roster are his guys. Is it a young roster holding the team back; or, is the way in which the team is coached during the week and on game days? If the culture you have instilled does not equate to guys being ready to play on game day, have you instilled the proper culture?

Great take David, thanks. I have a few problems with the 'youth issue' and ipso facto thinking Oregon will necessarily improve in 2022. One, I saw this team play in Columbus, Ohio versus the #3 ranked team in the country. tOSU gained a lot of yards but as Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said post-game, the Buckeyes were never in the game. Ohio State was dominated on both LOS. Two, I saw the way the team played vs USC in 2020 in the Pac-12 Champ game. I also saw many games where the team appeared not to give a whip. Three, I saw a team that should have gone to the Playoff under the leadership of 1st round draft pick and NFL rookie of the year, inexplicably lose at ASU. Then after keeping the Beavers in the game, the Ducks blew out favored Utah in the Pac-12 champ game. 4th, the youth of the team does not mitigate the abysmal play calling against a Wildcats team that should have trailed Oregon something like 35-0 before the 1st half. In other words since Mario arrived, I've seen this movie before. Why in 2022 will a switch all of sudden be flipped? Why in 2022 will the Ducks be ready to ball out in every single game and stop playing down to the level of the opponent? This inconsistency is on the guys making the big bucks, The Coaches. The inconsistent play we have seen over three seasons is not aberrant because of youth, it is systemic based upon the coaching the players are (not) receiving. I am more willing to forgive youth when a young player who is trying his best makes an error of commission. What I am seeing from this Ducks team from the HC on down is a team-wide error of omission. A continuing failure not to play hard and play smart from the opening whistle until game's end. I see players going through the motions. Where is the will to dominate your opponent? If a team doesn't have the will, it can take an L versus any team it plays. I note that Alabama had to replace over a dozen starters chosen in the 2021 NFL draft. Bama is not infallible, could have lost at UF, but the team despite the youth of the roster balls out in every game. And the team overcomes injury to great players. I see unfocused, disinterested play falling on the coaching staff. After 3 years of watching 'THIS,' I am not willing to write it off on the age of the roster.

Great take + great YTD conference rankings. However, and I certainly do not wish to diss the Ducks this weekend I'd have ASU above Stanford? Stanford destroyed SC, but so did the Beavers. Stanford won at Vandy but it was a struggle. ASU shot itself in the foot in Provo. 4 false starts on what could have been the late game winning drive! I think we learn a whole lot about the Bruins and the Sun Devils this weekend? UCLA is -3.5. But I will not be surprised, especially if DTR is not 100%, if ASU wins this game? Nationwide, whole lot of shakin' goin' on this weekend. My top 5 today all in: 1.Bama 2. UGA 3. Arkansas 4. Florida 5. Mississippi 2 of the above 5 have to take an L on Saturday. I have the Ducks, off 1 big road win and 3 scuffles at 6. But because Clemson is ranked and Texas is not, the Ducks and not the Hogs, is the only team with 2 Ws vs the AP top 25. Man, if SC doesn't win at CU Saturday, will anyone want the job?

Talk about playing with fire in 2021? Bearcats, tarnish the Golden Domers!

Please, lend me a step ladder. What a great pick up by Kelly! Thought? With the CFB transfer portal so much in play should Mario consult with Dana Altman? Fun to have football and both CBB teams cookin'.

Verdell and Dye are not chopped liver, far from it. But McSorley had an all world RB lining up behind him. JM had lots of tools to work with and he also had free access to the tool box.

Get your popcorn, IPAs, remotes and VCRs ready! Rankings from Week 4 AP Poll Friday - #4 Iowa at 4-0 Maryland - I'm down with Mary +4 Saturday - Alabama #1 vs Ole Miss #12 - Fool that I am I have Ole Miss +15.5 - bit of bummer that this game kicks off on CBS at the same time, 3:30 eastern, that Ducks game kicks off on ABC Georgia #2 vs Arkansas #8 Oregon #3 at NR old foe and nemesis, Stanford. - I'm down with the Ducks -7.5 Penn St #5 vs Indiana OK #6 at K ST Cincinnati #7 at #9 Notre Dame - Bearcats head to South Bend -1.5. Cincy's outside PO shot is riding on this game. Florida #10 at undefeated Kentucky UCLA #20 vs ASU #34 - will the south be decided here? Beavers vs UW - Beavs went from +4 to -2.5 - Come on Rodents!

Turn it over against the #3 team in the country and no trust vs Fresno, the Sea Wolves and AZ? 1Ducker1 you could be right; but does THIS make the least bit of sense?

CBS Tom Fernelli - Lock of the Week Pick Oregon 34 - Stanford 21 Hope this pick by Fernelli turns out to be sweet and not smelly?

I could not agree more with your analysis. It is SO puzzling.

David, but the QB is good enough to run more than the RBs? The OL that looked all world in Columbus can't get in synch? Other than for at Ohio State, in your opinion, has the play calling in 2021 been up to par? There are lots of young guys playing well coast to coast. If he can't coach up Brown, how about coach up one of the talented QBs on the roster? Obviously, he couldn't coach up Shough. Before he broke his collarbone last Saturday, Shough was playing well for Texas Tech. Shough regressed in 2020 and it looks like we are seeing the same from Brown? I don't have any idea what the scheme on O is? Whatever it is, the O certainly is not playing in synch. I do not in any manner mean to denigrate your excellent response. But the man is being paid over $1M a year. The O was inconsistent last season and now, with spring and fall practice is still inconsistent. Is the guy trying? I see nothing to suggest that a year of maturity for the players is going to improve JM as a coach? Again, this may not be all on JM? Is he being allowed to run the O and call the plays that he wants to call?

David, the schedule but for at Oregon, sets up perfectly for the Beavers. Except for at Ducks, the tough games are in Resar and the 'easier' games are on the road. Hope I am not taking too much away from the delicious beat down of SC?

Yes, lean on the RBs instead of leaning on the QB in the run game. The Furd run D is not that good. UCLA smash mouthed the Cardinal. Oregon should and can do the same.

When running RPO plays the QB and RB has to make the right decision. Keep the ball or hand off at the mesh point? I don't think Mario and Moorhead are meshing? Moorhead was fired up to go against old foe Ohio State and called an outstanding game. He perfectly game planned for the Bucks D. In the post-game presser after the AZ game, after the O woefully underachieved, Moorhead was blaze. He seemed to be completely disinterested and disengaged. Not the least bit troubled over the junk he put out on the field. No responsibility taken for running a good but not great running QB more often than his RBs. Is something amiss between Mario and JM? This is not what I expected from JM. This is not the O he ran and Penn St. This is not how he coached up McSorley who improved in every outing under JM's instruction. In the two years he has been in Eugene, we saw Shough regress during the season and it appears that we are now seeing the same with Brown? Is Mario micro-managing JM and the O? Is the step down from being an HC in the SEC to being a coordinator in the Pac-12 a step that JM cannot gracefully take? Of course, I am not inside the program so these are my guesses and certainly not what I know. However, I do know with certainty, something is not clicking.

Great take David! Before the current targeting mess, refs called personal fouls for improper hits when warranted. Asking refs to make the same kind of decision regarding ejection, especially with reply reviewing the call, is not too big an ask for the refs. When a ball carrier drops his head at the point of tackle, and helmet to helmet is incidental, no kid should be kicked out of a game. Cincinnati at Indiana. Incidental contact with the QB led to the Hoosiers best guy on D being thrown out and completely changed the calculus and outcome of the game. The rule is being reviewed but I expect no change before the 2022 season.

Beavs win. Why? John Smith calling plays and not the dysfunctional UW OC, Donovan. And Chance Nolan is the better QB with better weapons.

38 - 24 OREGON - Cover that -7.5 men. 2 (more if Mr T plays; even more if he is close to full speed, 3, 175 UCLA smash mouthed the Cardinal last Saturday. Stanford's run D is not up to Stanford standards. The only reason Stanford was in the game vs the Bruins was due to UCLA's back end, fire drill pass D. The same D that gave up 2 late TD drives to Fresno State.