DuckIt

C' mon on Dye!

DeRuyter making our D look average. Because our D-Line gets regular penetration, he leans on them heavily and is less inclined to call blitzes. That is the double-edged sword of having a stout DL, with a bend-but-don't-break play caller. Those teams that bring extra blockers are able to overwhelm our DL along with KT, buying their QB extra time to pick apart our secondary.

-After the 1st quarter, D-Line was dominant, with KT leading the charge. -Ryan Walk stepped up, replacing the injured center, Johnson, without missing a step. -The pass protection and blocking up front was better. I'm glad the coaches replaced Moore from the OL. -Franklin and Mcgee got more touches. -DeRutyer called more blitzes which made for one rough day at the office for DTR. -Travis Dye sets new FBS record with touchdowns on 4 consecutive carries. -DJ James had two key picks, one which secured the win. One of the announcers mentioned that it was DJ's first interception in his college career. Is that true?? -Charbonnet was held in check, with only 35 rushing yards. That was impressive, considering that he was probably the impact player we feared the most. -Despite the 2 picks, AB threw just shy of 300 yds. That is the most yards that he has thrown all season. -Playoff hopes are still alive

I can never credit MC for outcoaching any team, just by the way he has been mismanaging the final drive, on offense.

True but that goes both ways. UCLA had their fair share of turnovers. If you argue that the coaches shouldn't have called those passing plays on those downs, then did the coaches really put their team in a position to win or lose?

I hardly would call that outcoaching the other team. In terms of containing the run, yes, Oregon's D did a good job, but the Ducks did not win this game decisively. If these two teams were to meet again, it would still be a toss up. The Ducks got punched in the mouth early, and the defense looked unprepared and disorganized, on UCLA's first TD. Fortunately, the Ducks were able to settle in, after being down 14, and AB was able to find his groove, throwing the ball. I will say this though, the D-Line dominated in the trenches and wreaked havoc the rest of the game, pressuring the QB. I also saw more blitzing. Nevertheless, this was yet another nail-biter that went down to wire. Oregon's offense coughed up two interceptions on their last two possessions that led to UCLA, having one last shot to steal the game. The Ducks beat them, because the talent won out. With the best roster in the Pac 12 and more playmakers than the Bruins, the Ducks did what they were expected to do which was win. If you look at UCLA's recruiting class for the last three years, they had a grand total of 1 recruit, rated higher than .9221. Compared to Oregon's class average rating of .9236, UCLA's average rating, for their 2021 class, was .8754. So basically, this was a 4 star team, with some 5 stars sprinkled in, playing a 3 star team, with some 4 stars sprinkled in. From that perspective, UCLA played up to the Oregon's level. Of course, the Oregon faithful will argue that we have been playing down to our competition. No question, KT was the best player on the field again. Without him, we probably lose this game, because he impacted this game in so many ways. I could see that DTR was playing scared and threw the ball away early on a couple plays. He must have thought he heard footsteps and panicked, because there wasn't a defender within 5 yards of him. You know which player brought on that panic attack... Good ol' #5. Although, most QBs would probably wet themselves, with Sewell rushing them. Can you imagine if we had this seasoned KT, for Oregon's two trips, to the Natty? It's fun to think about him terrorizing Cardale Jones and Cam Newton, on the biggest stage.

I like McKinley and his leadership on the field, but I can't help but notice that his performance took a bit of hit. I don't expect him to make an interception every game, but he is basically being recognized for his accomplishments in the first three games. Four interceptions in three games is quite a feat. The stuff that doesn't show up on the stat sheets though is his integral role that he plays, in directing the secondary and shouting out plays.

Don't like the booing, then do your job! Everyone just assumes that booing was intended for AB, because it was followed with the chants for Ty. However, I believe that a number of those boos were directed squarely at Mario. It's his decision making that makes you question at times, is he even fit to be head coach? I believe both Mario and AB felt that they had something to prove and wanted to play the hero, fresh off the narrow victory against Cal and the booing. Yesterday, Mario tried to give the game away again, like he did with Stanford. Both AB's interceptions in the 4th quarter, were ill-advised throws, forced into double coverage. I know that it was AB who missed those throws and not Mario, but Mario never should have put AB in that situation. If Mario understood the situation, with his team being up 3 and only needing to eat up the clock, he would have told his team to run the ball. Instead, he pressured AB into another bad throw, when AB just threw an interception on the previous possession. Someone questioned, why didn't AB just throw the ball away? Well, how many times this season, do you recall him just throwing the ball out-of-bounds on purpose? I can't think of any offhand. He is desperately trying win the approval of the fans and possibly, the NFL scouts, by making a play on every down. He doesn't know how to lay down and live to fight another day. He would rather take a sack or force a bad pass, than throw the ball away. In that sense, both Mario's and AB's situational awareness SUCKS. I don't get Mario and his decisions to play or don't play the clock. They make no sense. When our offense is in rhythm and firing on all cylinders, with a comfortable lead, then Mario chooses to prematurely take his foot off the gas and go conservative, playing the clock, in the 3rd quarter. This not only takes our offense out of the rhythm, it tires out our defense and allows our opponent to catch up. Then, when the Ducks find themselves behind or with the game tightening and in need of a score, they can't generate it on command, because the offense, especially the QB, has gone cold. Whereas, when our offense is sputtering and our QB is struggling to throw the ball, Mario chooses to go aggressive rather than milk the clock, with the lead. In both the Stanford and UCLA game, the clock was our friend. We had the advantage, but Mario surrendered our advantage to give the other team, one last opportunity to either tie or win the game.

The Ducks playing up and down to their competition. The Ducks should treat every opponent like a top team and prepare for them with eager anticipation like every Gameday.

Those calls are so crucial in tight games. That avalanche of bad calls on Stanford's last drive, before the end of regulation, cost the Ducks that game. Although, the offense should have never put the defense in that position, with their backs against the wall. They should have ate more clock by running the ball and forcing Stanford to burn another timeout. Just the extra timeout alone killed us. Still, you can't deny that the refs were on a mission to hand the Ducks their first loss.

Chip Kelly is a gambling man. I told my friend while watching the game, "I bet you Chip goes for it." It was 4th down and 2 on UCLA's own 35 yard line. Although they did not fake the punt, I instantly had a flashback to the championship game against Auburn.

Mario could challenge at least one of them. He is too passive in these situations and just accepts the call on the field. In the first half, I forget if it was Hutson or Matavao who fumbled the ball backwards which was recovered by the Ducks but for a loss of yards. From the review, his knee was clearly down, but MC never bothered to challenge it or ask the officials to review the play. That play killed the drive. Whether it's the spot or play that should be challenged, there is one of these every game that the Ducks are getting screwed. The other team always snaps the ball, before Mario can scratch his arse. Don't we have someone up in the booth, responsible for watching and reviewing these plays that can advise Mario over the headset to challenge it? If there is a person, he has been sleeping at the wheel.

I didn't like the Oregon's odds, but I didn't say Oregon would lose. I said Mario would be outcoached, and defense would have to step up and win the game.

Removing Moore from the starting line-up was a good adjustment. He blew how many blocks the last game which led to a fumble by AB.

My guess is it's on Mario. Look at the Stanford game, no Moorhead to blame on 2nd and 18. With the game on the line, you guys shouldn't act surprised at Mario trying to hand the game over in the waning minutes. That's his M.O. His game clock management is getting worse.

They threw a bunch of screens to Franklin, McGee, and Hutson. So they made more of an effort in this game, to get the ball to their play makers in space.

That and our offense looks bad every week, struggling to win by 7pts. Today, we won by 3pts.

Their team has gotten progressively better. Can you say the same for the Ducks? Although, we got KT back! I like to see how Shroud plays with KT smothering him.

So do we root for Ohio State to win or lose? I think we want them to loose. Their fan base is so arrogant. They already jumped us in rank, despite loosing the head-to-head at home against Oregon.

The defense has been winning all these close games.

USC fans boards even acknowledged that Oregon is being picked on like USC used to. It's like Pac 12 is constantly trying to shoot down their best chance at making the playoffs or championship game, prior to the playoff era.

The penalties are piling up on D, extending UCLA's drive.

Yea, I caught that.

KT is a monster!

typical MC