Haywarduck

It is a failed air intake, and became hot air vent. There is a message in there somewhere.

One would think maybe Mario would be open to this. He can't think he is a psychologist as well as a coach. I know OSU under Riley had a guy come in as kind of a sports psychologist from Bend. He was part-time, but worked with the team. Many teams have a somebody come in from time to time. Even bringing in 'The Rock' to fire up the team would be a start. This would be a very shrewd step and needed, in my opinion.

Seems like Rassmussen was the last big we had who was a force inside. He was also healthy the whole time, hopefully we will see more that with this crew.

Speaks to the concept of teaching, coaching isn't about being right, but for getting others to accept your right, adapt to it being their new right. I didn't misspell 'your right,' because everyone has their right, and the trick is to get others to buy into your way of thinking, and then the whole group. This is where creating a culture with processes and systems is so important. This is also much more manageable within small groups. Our second dog was easy to train, he learned from our first. The concerning item is how Pittman left, was he alone in his dissension? You can't have players undermining or not onboard. While Altman does an amazing job of this with new student athletes ever year, on the scale of a football team it is a gargantuan task. It takes a massive personality which I believe Mario has, and Helfrich didn't. Altman definitely has the perfect personality, and is at the elite level in this aspect. I see this loud and clear from the sideline every game, he is a rock, and yet a consistent river on messaging.

I would also ask which learning, success curve do we think is reality?

I also wonder if Chip or Slick have a different opinion on their ceiling in Eugene after leaving. Sometimes people look at their location as a hinderance, much like Scot Frost did. I don't think Cristobal does, he is just keeping his head down and working his plan. Hopefully that plan is a working document, but I have a feeling the theme will stay the same. I am ok with that. To clarify I don't think there is a ceiling in Eugene. If you look for one you will find it, but Cristobal isn't looking for excuses, hopefully just the right doors for answers.

His ceiling in Eugene is his learning curve, end of story.

For the visual learners,

Great article, but I don't even remember what happened last week!

I saw a quick clip on Tom Brady saying the difference between winning and losing was between his thumb and index finger, and they were close. Often times we aren't in the weight room, locker room or huddle and don't know what little change is needed. The truth is few do, but from my experience it comes from compounded knowledge and effort. The problem with trying to gain compound knowledge and effort is change disrupts that process. The difference between winning and losing is something gained over time. It is a process where the ability is built, not just ordained. There are certainly leaders who can make a team better. LSU had that with their qb, and the team got behind him. Many teams have that when magic happens, a qb who everyone believes in, but we don't have that, it almost seemed like it could happen, but no. The other winning difference is the Saban difference, but that takes lots of money and luck. The Oregon way is to build that compound knowledge with coaches and then support like no other. Part of that, in my opinion, is the fanbase. A fanbase which helps is a critical fanbase. We have to ponder what could, would and should be better. Compound knowledge doesn't develop in a vacuum. Knowledge and effort do happen in a supportive environment. I hope Autzen, is again, the most supportive environment west of the Mississippi, because we need to beat the beavs. Just some thoughts about why Oregon is a special place to coach, and play, and maybe how to keep it that way.

Mel Tucker is worth $9 million like Rivian is worth $100 billion. Those who pay high prices for future production, get little in return.

The Game, simple and maybe some kids would take offense for taking what they call play and turning it into something so serious, but I think we call it THE GAME! When people talk about what game is being played this weekend they can say 'The Game,' and then it's 'Oh The Game.' 'You mean that game, no THE GAME,' it could be kind of fun!

Last time we lost to the beavs at Autzen was the year we couldn't recover from our loss of Dennis Dixon, as we spiraled out of control. That game was lost in overtime and we have never lost at home again to the rodents. The question is, are we in the same type of spiral? Are the injuries and limited abilities of the offense going to send us into the same kind of spiral? I hope not! Will Sewell and Thibs on defense along with AB on offense right the ship, say no to any more losses? Stay tuned! That is why we watch and ponder.

If you consider how well we have done with AB, a limited passer, it is astounding how well we have competed. Like many have said he didn't do that well before he transferred, and he was exactly as he was advertised. Most just want to complain about how limited the passing has been, how inaccurate AB is. Maybe what we should do is appreciate how amazing Moorhead and Cristobal have been with a limited passer? How many coaches can turn a qb who has AB's limited abilities into a #3 ranked team that beat tosu at the shoe? I mean really, give a coach a Heisman QB and an NFL receiver and he can win the National Title. Then his assistants almost all get hired away and a couple years later he is without a job. When you have all the pieces it looks easy. When you don't have the pieces is when the real magic happens. We should appreciate what we have done with our limitations and injuries. Just wait until we have the elite qb, NFL type receivers and no, or limited injuries. Don't go hitting the fan transfer portal, sign up for the #fireCristobal tag just yet. Appreciate and be grateful!

That wasn't sarcasm, that was flattery, respect, approval for something seldom seen on OBD, wait, that is sarcasm, sorry. Agree we have to be very careful about sarcasm, as shade toward anyone's point of view, as all are welcome! Differing views may be questioned, but I enjoy all views as they enlighten me, and I enjoy seeing things differently. That is the essence of OBD, which is something seldom seen and approved!

The more I think about it, the tosu game was the pistol plunge moment for the season. We saw entrenchment by the Ducks and innovation by the nuts. When Cristobal beat the dawgs, with the pistol plunge, it set our scheme back until we recently saw it dropped. The tosu game set our qb development back. The good news is AB's impact should be short term. While I am grateful for the warrior effort he has given the program, his limitations have been obvious, but we couldn't change after the win. Good news, the future looks bright, but expect a bumpy ride with little game experience at the qb position. Another shift from AB's ability to the next qb's ability will be exciting. It is what we all want, as was getting rid of the pistol plunge.

Completely agree, and my perfect scenario was we lose to tosu and then beat them at the end of the season. I think losing to us might have even been the best thing to happen to tosu too. Success too early is seldom a good thing. The injuries have been very impactful, but having a team peak the second game of the year isn't a good thing. I mean what was the upside after beating tosu? The only upside was making the playoffs or the season was a failure, and we have what we have now. Just like next season, we really should lose to Georgia, and then maybe build as the season goes on. What if we beat Georgia?

The sky is falling, as a longterm fan, I have heard this before. These same fans probably think Rich Brooks was a lousy coach too. The script almost every program out there uses is well known, but not really appreciated. Lose a game, or a few or maybe too many and fire the coach. Then bring in a completely knew team of coaches and watch them lose too many games and fire them, repeat until you hire a Nic Saban. The other script, not used too often is hire a good coach, support him and let him grow into the position. Let the assistants put in their systems and processes. Let the players get used to those systems and processes. You then have the new student athletes get better at those same systems and process. All the coaches begin to work in unison and you have this synergy created. You know what happens then, you begin to really win. You might even get a Chip Kelly into this synergy and think he is a superstar because he doesn't understand how hard it was to build. You just might get lucky and let a program build through the second script, but just maybe. You have to have a fanbase which is appreciative of the process, and just maybe it will happen. I say maybe because it isn't easy, nor a pretty process. Believe me there were plenty who wanted Brooks fired. There were also plenty of critics of his and Bellotti's weaknesses, part of the process. What wasn't a healthy part of the process was a continual fire the coach when they tripped or took a misstep. That is part of the process we all go through, even when you make too much money. I mean really, who hasn't made mistakes, messed up on their way to where they are?

My great fear is Mario's wife Jessica and their two sons, will tire of the fair weather fans. The weather is the least of my worries. How a person can live in the south, humidity and heat, is beyond me.

This is my quote, "Cristobal and all his weaknesses is our coach, end of story." and that is about as negative as I got. I never said “Now, if Jonathan would all of a sudden think he would look better in green and yellow than Halloween colors, that would be great.” chips in Haywarduck. Agree with what you are saying, but we have to get the quotes correct.

He was legendary at Oregon, and what a hometown story. What is amazing is seeing NFL receivers drop his passes, just too quick, too hard. He also just kills the DB's because they still can't believe he is going to make the passes he does. I am not going to go down the Cristobal didn't use Herbert right. He held him back, kept him healthy, and won a lot of games. Most are right, if he had the receivers we have on the bench now when he was a freshman, they could have created an amazing passing game. He had one receiver who he could count on, one. Fortunately we have the receivers and qb's developing to create what we all want. All we need is the patience, but that isn't easy.

I am cautiously optimistic next year, the caution comes from our schedule. This year needs to end well and I am cautiously optimistic there too. We have a home game, but the team needs to rally. The big fear is the beavs beat us with Thibs and Sewell playing all out. What will be the magic DeRuyter throws at them? Agree the ceiling gets raised with the ball gets thrown, with the receivers who can catch, and run. Right now we are a limited team, and the opposing coordinators are figuring out to limit those limitations.

It does get down to how do we really solve all the simple questions. My favorite line is we can't solve all the questions in this world because, those who can, are either cutting hair or driving taxis. I suppose it comes down to there are no easy questions, just simple solutions for those who have never tried to solve a problem in a group situation.

I think it is a strength and a weakness. We are seeing Cristobal's loyalty and what can perceived as difficulty making tough decisions. One he shows loyalty often. He is the first on the field when a player gets injured. He sticks with student athletes when they make mistakes. The problem I see is sometimes when players make mistakes you have to make tough choices, much like tough love. When our players shot at pedestrians he gave, what I would say is a minimum penalty. When Pittman was acting up and out he gave him a huge amount of lenience. Same with AB and his mistakes and inabilities. I think we need Mario to be a stronger leader, someone who can give this team more tough love. There will be the Camden Lewis's who develop with the Cristobal way, but we need to see more tough choices. Pull AB at times and give back-ups a chance. When a player screws up pull them and let them think about it for a while. Accountability is a positive in just about every situation. I am not sure there is enough accountability, and it might be affecting the mentality on the field and off.

This is where my head just spins. Last week fans are almost worried we won't be able to compete with MSU's crazy salary for their messiah. This week Cristobal is the problem, again. Cristobal and all his weaknesses is our coach, end of story. He is progressing, worthy of criticism, but we don't need to go directly to 'get somebody else,' not going to happen. I get the angst, but this is a longterm project, and we have front row seats. If we need to step away, let's do that, but I, for one, don't want to see more discussion on replacing Cristobal.