Haywarduck

In a conference full of high performing offenses Oregon can't afford to pause, or step back in the redevelopment of the O in Oregon Program. It is nice to know Lanning has moved forward with rebuilding a once proud offensive machine. I have a feeling Oregon's offense will, again, need to carry the program. Hopefully the defense will be much improved, but our Offense scoring and giving the defense an edge will be critical to a successful season. We will be repeatedly playing teams with high powered offenses, and we will need to be able to match or exceed that fire power. It is nice to read Stein may be up to the task. The question will be which receivers will win the opportunity to play catch and run. The other huge question is can Stein develop the next qb, and have them ready to take over when needed. All of the offense hinges on Nix, unless Stein is equally skilled at qb development. What is scary is we have a guy who was an assistant high school coach in 2019. He was promoted to Co-offensive coordinator last season. He is now the OC at Oregon. We have realized the lack of experience Lanning brought, well we need to understand Stein will be learning on the job too. He may be a miracle-maker, but it is a miracle he is the OC of one of the top programs too. I am more reserved than you Charles. I think we may see some growing pains, but it will be exciting, and maybe, just maybe, a miracle season is in front of us.

I'm just afraid if we don't know when we can expect the program to fully become Lannings we might.....

Awesome input by NJ on the transition #'s, along with the notable point by Pitt on the Lanning players need to be in charge of the locker room, and importantly the training, weight room. They also need to be the leaders on the field. I think this parallels Charles exceptional point on 2024 hopefully being the time we see the culture of a Lanning program. I also like Charles point on when the players reach mastery of the Lanning defense. We didn't even reach proficiency last season, and mastery takes repetition of proficiency. You need to have ability to do the task, do it repeatedly, and then you start to see something special. Much like driving down a road the first time, you don't see the wildlife, or really much detail. After a few times you see the wildlife, you actually can not unsee the eagle's nest, and start seeing the activity around it. Last seasons defense never saw the detail, and bringing guys who already understand those details is critical. I would say we are a year behind on defense, and special teams. I am actually still extremely excited about this Lanning program. I think being realistic on what that will look like and when it might look that way is critical. Lanning did the best he could last year, is the good way to look at it, but there is greatness ahead! The formula is just beginning to bring out the emotions which are ahead.

Last season was the first of Lanning's tenure. I would argue it wasn't fully Lanning's program, and won't be for a while. While it is his responsibility to get all he can out of the program, it isn't his vision yet. At what point will we see what a Lanning led program can bring? I would say as his players hit the field with his mentality, and culture. That may not happen this season or even next. We definitely didn't see it on defense, nor special teams. It was even incomplete on offense. The start of the Lanning era is more like the start of the Casanova, or Brooks eras than anything we have seen recently. The program has been fairly successful, but I would say it was adrift. We have all new coaches, the defense is in a complete overhaul, the offense is moving back to what is was, hopefully. I also think the special teams is in a transformation mode. Most importantly the culture Lanning is building is just starting to bear fruit. Instead of the leadership I hoped to see developed within the amazing talent on defense, we saw transfers, and an infusion of young talent and transfers in. I would argue we are still in the infancy of a Lanning defense. On offense the culture is still tenuous with a senior transfer qb. Maybe Nix can leave a legacy of how it is done, and that will infect the rest, but the depth isn't there, yet. On special teams we also don't have the mentality Lanning wants to see. I think this is good news. The future is bright, but still in the distance, and we need to stay patient. We have a rebuild, not a reload going on.

Agree with the sentiment from others, but it would be nice if this could be part of a civil discussion. The problem, or it isn't a problem, we don't discuss these situations even though it is ripe for just that. As Charles has stated, if you have to mention any of the trigger words, it isn't worthy of hitting submit.

Let's hope this provides this young man even more fuel to prove he can live up to his dreams he had coming out of high school. Most of these transfers have bigger dreams than have been achieved. These kind of bumps in the road can either push them down, or be a pivot point to making the tough choices needed to become great. Make yourself great Traeshon. You got tripped up, get up, brush yourself off, and run better routes going forward.

Ok, that makes sense now.

Hate to break it to you, but most Pac-10 football teams take charter flights already. As far as the remote practice facilities in the midwest, those will be built right after the Hurricanes finish their on campus stadium. I do agree the traffic in LA is a nightmare.

Another note is for the Pac-? to sign a very short-term deal unless it is very competitive. With the coaches and qb's the Pac has we are going to be a draw. Win games, get accolades and the eyeballs will come. I get worrying about the $'s and contracts, but we have to take care of game day, and wins. Fortunately many schools are positioned well this season and probably next. What I want to see from George is an 8 game conference schedule. We are at a disadvantage with our scheduling now. Get another non conference game late in the season so the teams can stay fresh. At this point I want to see something out of George, anything.

Analyst type role, great hire.

What do I want for the Ducks... Otherwise there doesn't seem to be too many good answers.

And who grew up just down the road from Williams Nwaneri, anyone, anyone?

Williams Nwaneri is an Edge from Lees Summit, MO. 247SPORTS.COM summary

Navy Seals have a similar motto, the only easy day was yesterday. If you want to be elite you need to have a core philosophy which many can't keep. As the article states it comes down to trust within the team, but also a willingness, and desire to do what others won't do. It will be interesting to see if Lanning is building a program which aspires to do great things, and is prepared to make the sacrifices which are necessary. I think it comes down to recruiting the individuals who have that trait. How many of these guys have the fortitude to make it through something like a Seal training? Do we have enough guys to drive the group to the heights off effort and commitment needed to win it all, we will see.

Don't let him see, smell, or sense there might be a set of keys to a nicer car, or he is gone, morel like it. Look up the word loyalty, and the antonyms, and there is a picture of Taggart, also a list of words describing him.

If so Lanning owes Holden an apology and a mea culpa. It will be interesting to see how it is handled.

Last I heard Larry Scott was going to sell a 10% stake in the Pac-12 network for $500 million, what happened!

One item I would like to see change is aggressive, successful back-up qb play late in the game. I agree Nix is critical to a successful season, but a back-up qb is also critical for this season and next. You also didn't mention the 5* transfer Burch as an answer to our pass rush. With only 3.5 sacks last year you might be right to not mention him. First critical to our season is back-up qb development. We need Stein to bring out the best in Ty, and the rest of the group. Austin Novasad switched to Oregon late because he believed in Stein. Maybe, just maybe Stein can also help Ty. It would be nice to see a breakthrough with both, and a back-up battle begin for next season. I'm not holding my breath on Burch, but this is his last chance to live up to his potential. It is also Lanning and Tosh's opportunity to help a transfer reach his potential. The Nix fix has done wonders for the program. Can the Burch fix our pass rush problem and help create a pipeline of defensive transfers who want a second chance, like Nix has, I am sure, done at qb. Finishing is a great subject Alex, and I am glad you brought it up, well done. This will be a huge part of the success of the program next season. At qb it will also be critical for next season. Who will bring it on D is also up in the air. Leadership on D, on the field, is something I want to see more of, and maybe it will come for the renewed energy of Burch?

Wow, once again Fishduck has the answers. The Pac-12 payed Lavish Larry how much, and Fishduck wisdom is free!

I always liked the saying the reason there are so many problems is those with the answers are cutting hair and driving taxis. I think the same can be said of the issues with college sports, those with the answers are on Fishduck. We can all agree those without the answers have been in charge for way too long in the Pac-?.

They want to move to the west coast, so they can stay on the west coast. Somebody who is attracted to a nicer climate, and being away from home don't want to go back 3-4 times to play where they could have in the first place. They want the adventure of being away from home, and the continual travel won't be attractive. Everything is used in recruiting, and this will undoubtedly be used, and will be a factor in transfers too.

Too many unknowns for us to really have an informed opinion, and maybe Coach Lanning too. The problem is if Lanning didn't have enough info to make his decision. Right now it is just a bad look for everyone involved. I'm glad Lanning has established he has zero tolerance for any monkey business. The problem there may have been zero going on. You also want to be a coach who has the players backs.

Seems happy now, good for him. Fortunately, or unfortunately these kids are allowed many mulligans and the story isn't over, that I am sure of. Not sure if everyone has read Steve Kerr's comments on AAU basketball. This mentality seems to be invading all areas of college sports. We are creating players, seldom are we creating teammates, young men who are part of something greater than themselves. “Even if today’s players are incredibly gifted, they grow up in a basketball environment that can only be called counterproductive. AAU basketball has replaced high school ball as the dominant form of development in the teen years. I coached my son’s AAU team for three years; it’s a genuinely weird subculture. Like everywhere else, you have good coaches and bad coaches, or strong programs and weak ones, but what troubled me was how much winning is devalued in the AAU structure. Teams play game after game after game, sometimes winning or losing four times in one day. Very rarely do teams ever hold a practice. Some programs fly in top players from out of state for a single weekend to join their team. Certain players play for one team in the morning and another one in the afternoon. If mom and dad aren’t happy with their son’s playing time, they switch club teams and stick him on a different one the following week. The process of growing as a team basketball player — learning how to become part of a whole, how to fit into something bigger than oneself — becomes completely lost within the AAU fabric.”

May seem petty the change I put in, but I don't think the teams are going to enjoy the travel the athletics departments have signed them up for. The AD's, on the other hand, are all about the money they will get. My take is we have no idea what the college football world will look like in one, two or five years, but once again the student athletes are the pawns. They may think they are winning, but most schools are just after the money. Side note, who was the first Alabama player to sign an NIL deal? You guessed it, or maybe not, Traeshon Holden. A little known fact.

I imagine Traeshon was on a short leash when he arrived. Coaches know what they are getting, and that they are often giving somebody a second chance. Not all players are Gonzo types who just want a place to win and push up their draft stock. I give Lanning kudos for being decisive, and setting a tone. This is something we haven't seen outwardly, but I imagine he is all business once the recruiting is over. As has been mentioned, the derecruitment process is on. Players may want to play, but there isn't a lot of play while getting ready.