Duck1984

Hasn’t get-paid-to-play-here always existed? Why is it a problem now that it is out in the open and players can negotiate freely?

As a former high school receiver, I can attest to the difficulty in catching high spinning footballs thrown by a tall QB with MLB fastball velocity. After an easy one spun through my hands on the first series of our first game, David Norrie grabbed me by the face mask in the huddle, looked me in the eyes and said “that’s the only drop you get chief.” David went on to QB a UCLA team to a PAC 10 championship and a Rose Bowl berth. I don’t recall dropping another catchable pass that season.

Ashford may have been the most athletic QB we had. Wish him well.

Fill the socks?

Mostly agree Mike. A missing element in the QB + Defense = Win equation is the Coach. The Coach shapes the identity, schemes the team to be greater than the sum of the individuals, and leads the players to care more for each other than themselves. The 2010 Ducks team may have been the best in history. Darron Thomas was not an elite QB. The D was not Gang Green level. But it was clear that players played for each other. The 2021 Ducks didn’t have lineman that sprinted downfield to make extra blocks, recover fumbles, or be the first to get to the running back or receiver to pick them up. I watched Travis Dye bust runs past lineman and get laid out. Lineman near him turned their backs and walked to the line. Either Travis is the worst teammate ever, or the other players don’t care about anything they won’t be graded on. Caring about being a member of the Duck family is what the Alumni players were talking about in their letter prior to Lanning’s hire. I hope he understands how much harder the team will be to beat if they care more about the team than themselves.

Dye Harder

It felt like a tale of two offensive halfs. The first half felt all Christobal. Safe. Lots of short passes to the flat, to the sidelines, and across the puddle. AB proved again that he can’t throw catchable passes. The second half felt all Morehead. Explosion. Lots of downfield looks. AB proved that he can throw 50/50 balls. Some were caught for big scores. Safe doesn’t cut it anymore. Looking forward to the Lanning era.

Got a chance to talk team culture with a player last summer on a golf course. He described it as a split between a small insiders club, a core gang, and a lot of unattached outsiders. He felt the coaches attended to the insiders, supported the gang, and mostly ignored the detached. There was not a feeling of family for all in his mind. I hope Lanning builds the team into a family that wants to play for each other rather than for themselves.

Started the season with a defense like Gang Green. Ending with gangrene.

Please Covid test during halftime. The Ducks look sick.

AB can’t remember to put his mouthpiece in, much less than make a read.

Things are becoming both clearer and hazy for me.

Holding calls require the defender to react to the hold. Our guys are just stopping now.

Robbie Ashford for safety? He played centerfield and knows not to let the ball get over his head.

They can’t hear my boo for the QB play can they?

Since Troy may have earned the “Never Say Dye” tag, can we award Travis the “Dye Harder” moniker?

I sat next to a fine young Duck fan from North Carolina at the Pac12 mugging in Las Vegas. When asked his love for the Ducks, he explained he started as an NC and Russell Wilson fan. Then Russ portaled to Wisconsin and gained a lot of national attention. When Oregon beat Russ and Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, he became a lifelong Duck. His dream of attending Oregon after high school was scuttled by his mother’s lack of resources to cover out of state tuition. He has since graduated, begun a successful business career, and travels to Duck games when they play outside of the Pac12 footprint. The loss to the Utes was painful, but didn’t deter the love for the Ducks. He is planning his first trip to Autzen in the Fall of 2022. The vanquisher of an enemy appears to gain future loyalty.

Dye has the heart of a giant. He has already earned my vote as one of the great running backs in Oregon history.

I worked out with the football team in the winter of 1981, mostly because my roommate was a scholarship lineman living in an apartment near Hayward and the workouts were at Autzen. I had a car. He didn’t. Coach Z worked out goals for each player. Mine was to not get hurt. I noticed the D backs spent a lot of time curling barbells in front of mirrors trying to fill the sleeves. Never thought that made much sense. Not sorry to see the stache guy with a mantra of “fill the sleeves” move on to a beach team. Looking forward to having a football guy help players get stronger for health, safety, and football reasons.

I’ve felt this forever, but with the current Duck passing game, there is little hope of our QB seeing receivers except in the huddle. And we don’t huddle anymore.

OU 33-10, 2, 1, 123

Does anybody believe things have changed so much that we will see the Ducks play loose on offense? Or that things have improved enough that we will play tight on defense? The strengths of the remaining team are on the O-line and in the backfield. Our QB is a runner. Unless our young receivers become great downfield blockers, the Ducks may have trouble scoring. A major weakness is our secondary. We will get beat if we press on defense, which leaves slants and underneath crossing routes open. We will likely see continued soft coverage and prevent D. A winning game plan is to run to control the clock, and play prevent D outside the 10 yard line. This game may not be as fun to watch as I would like, but I will watch anyway.

Chip typically avoids revealing player health issues. He must believe it gives him some advantage.

I wouldn’t bet day old bread on the Ducks to win. That said, I hope they make some great plays to keep it interesting to watch.

Great summary Darren. School collects some cash. Coaches going to other teams get one more check from Oregon. Playing a bowl game makes financial sense for the school and ex-coaches. I’m not sure what motivates players. Game trinkets and trash? Playing time for freshmen, third stringers, and walk-ons? Last chance to play for sixth year seniors that are not likely to play beyond college? How about a returning starter that could lose an offseason with an injury in a meaningless game? What motivates him? I will watch this game like an impending train wreck, looking for heroes. Can we adopt a one game motto of “Save the Day?”