Babyjesus615

27 points scored 30 points allowed (UCLA and Bowl game loss will skew this number high)

27 points scored 30 points allowed (Beavs and UCLA will skew this high)

If you were watching the Skype interview with Jim Moorhead this week it was clear he was defending Anthony Brown and his production or lack thereof. Mostly alot of coach-talk. But if you heard what I heard in his defense of Brown, he mentioned something quite concerning but painfully obvious. The offense in 2021 is averaging approximately what it did in 2019. This is not good. This is a sign, maybe even an admission of sorts, that Cristobal has not been allowing the talent he has recruited to develop the way a top tier team should. How is this not the case? How is a team with MUCH MORE talent than the 2019 team consistently underperforming with better coaching on both sides of the ball? The 2019 team succeeded in spite of abysmal play calling ar the hands of Arroyo (look how well he's currently doing). This was a team that had hit rock bottom together in 2016 and probably didn't even need coaches in the end to do what they did as seniors. So is Moorhead starting to air some frustrations with his boss? Is he saying something that we have all seen? Or is he defending how low scoring, uninspiring football can still be successful?

10-4 Losses at Utah, Pac 12 Championship Game, and Alamo Bowl (because the team will have injuries, burned out) I agree that we could see Moorehead depart at the end of this season. There are so many HC openings even right now. It would be an absolute disaster if Cristobal chose to promote Jim "Toy Pistol" Mastro to OC. For all his stubbornness I believe Cristobal would fly the job open just like last time. He seems willing to learn; although at a painfully slow pace. By the team an offensive coordinator convinces him to coach with the adaptability of Nick Saban we may be playing football against Klingons. So it would be great for him to hire another coordinator with more experience than him. Also, I feel like even without marquee HC openings, Moorhead's patience with Cristobal's level of influence on the offense will only last so long. He knows he is one of the top offense minds in college football. Why put up with a head coach telling you not to implement certain things that you know work well? He could even leave for another OC job where he's given creative freedom to implement his design.

If Joe Moorhead was allowed to actually run his offense I could see him at Oregon for years (or at least through a natty run). High paying position, not in charge of the whole game, gets to coach QBs. But if Cristobal doesn't loosen his grip, and soon, Joe may feel he has more freedom to implement his plan offensively as an HC somewhere else.

Exactly what they did against LSU with a QB that was suspect in the passing game. If there is a game AB gets hurt and stays out it'll be this one.

Oregon has had to rely on the D to bail them out of a good portion of games this year as the offense is regularly stalling out drives that should end in a TD. This can't be lost on opposing coaches and I can think of one in particular who has got to be eyeing this. Next week's match-up could very well see a return to the fast moving, high flying days of old for Chip Kelly; except as a tool against Oregon rather than for Oregon. It was painfully obvious against Ohio State that the Oregon D struggles against tempo; and even Stanford employed it successfully. Could we see a return of the blur, or some form of it in order for Chip Kelly to pull a win at home with Gameday in town?

The team is down, the fan base is down, nearly every sports news outlet has brought up the issues at quarterback. Something, no doubt, has to change. The signs are obvious that Brown is not the answer. CJ Verdell is out for the season and Oregon needs to find a way to stretch opposing defenses to take the load off the run game. Cristobal is surely feeling the heat from the fan base to take a hard look at his options in the quarterback room. But the real thought that may keep him up at night isn't 50,000 fans chanting for Thompson at halftime, it could be the threat that the transfer portal presents after making a change with only one loss. The decision to switch from Brown carries real implications not only for the quarterback room, but for the rest of the positions on the team. Young, teenage players in this Era of guys wanting to put just enough tape together for the League may give pause and ask themselves, "if I have a couple down games will I be replaced? Will I have a chance to regain my position with this much depth?" These thoughts have to at least factor somewhat into the decision for or against replacing Brown. His stats are mediocre, he clearly has a low ceiling. He is not the guy to lead Oregon to a successful post season. So what Cristobal now has on his hands is a genuine, bonified catch-22. Does he continue with Brown and risk further letdown in the win column and alienation of the fanbase? Or does he make the change and accept the possible defections that come when coaches show their willingness "demote" perceived key players?

Hmmm I think the better question is, will recruits and current Oregon players start taking another look at the Beavs if they keep playing like they're playing and the coaching at home continues like it is? Which team is doing more with the talent given to them?

This is exactly what I was getting at in an earlier post about Cristobal establishing an offensive identity before he claims he has a "system" because he has neither. The identity of this offense will convey to potential recruits what their role will be on the team. This dink and dunk, short to medium yardage stuff doesn't require an elite receiving corps. You can do this with average tight ends and average receivers. Let's hope these guys don't start seeing more NFL potential in the school to the north because those receivers at least get to run down the field for more than 15 yards.

Did they run the offense by committee at Alabama? If not, why is it more important to do it here at Oregon?

Its a Bye week, I say hold a scrimmage. Have the first team offense with Brown go up against the first team defense. Give the defense time to rest. Then have the first team offense with Thompson and also Franklin and Thornton go up against the first team D. Take the stats and go off that. Gonna be a home game so Thompson (when he wins the job) will have a great environment to start his career.

What Cristobal needs to establish first and foremost is an offensive identity. Establish an Identity that you can then create your "system" to fit in. This Oregon team has had zero identity since he took over. Cristobal claims it is physicality with tempo (see introductory new conference). It is neither of those. If he wants big road graders at the front with bruising backs to pound the rock to eventually open up the pass game then he needs to go ask Nick Saban what he USED to do at Alabama. If he wants to win championships then he needs to go ask Saban what he DOES at Alabama today. He needs to realize modern college football is a constantly changing game that requires constantly changing mindsets. If he really wants to establish power with tempo then he really, honestly needs to leave the state of Oregon in the offseason and go hang around Bryant-Denny stadium; but more importantly give full control of the offense to his OC and let him do his thing until it is obvious what Oregon football is on offense. That will then be his system, and it will obvious how it fits into the offensive identity and also convey to potential recruits how they will be utilized in the game.

If Joe Moorhead is healthy enough to call plays against Cal then he needs the bring out Thompson and both freshman receivers. He has been playing with them consistently on the 2nd team. He clearly is comfortable throwing to Ferguson and Matavao. His passing ability will allow the run game to take its lumps while it sorts itself out. But the sheer threat his vertical playmaking ability presents will at least keep Cal from stuffing the box to prevent the run. Even with rookie mistakes I see him learning on the fly quick (was said of him during spring and fall camp) and producing well in the pass game.

James Franklin HC, Jonathan Smith OC, Dan Lanning DC Than being said, I think Cristobal should be the HC. I do believe he needs to realize that the fanbase and the donors (one in particular) are expecting him to ascend to the top of the College Football mountain. To do this he is going to have to swallow a very uncomfortably sized pill and let both Jim Mastro and Alex Mirabal go. These are two coaches who were decent hires at the time because of the rebuild but I don't believe will ever help a team achieve national championship capability. Mastro's running backs have not developed into either bruisers or shifty, DAT style backs. Sure Travis Dye can get on the outside and avoid tackles but at no where near the ability of an NFL style all purpose back. McGee remains to be seen. Mirabal has done absolutely nothing with the talent he's be handed at offensive line. The fact that both he and Cristobal have control over it means neither is qualified to DEVELOP (key word there) these players and coach them up. Sure Cristobal is an "offensive line nut" but that doesn't mean he or Mirabal are the most qualified to run the position. He needs to do himself a favor and hire a position coach that can develop/coach up the line and for gods-sake please stop it with these rotations on the line. Settle on a starting 5, give them reps until they can do it blind, and then do the same on the 2nd team!

It seems to me that Cristobal preaches this competition mentality all spring and fall. However this is leaving very little time for actual reps for the projected starters. He is spending so much time DETERMINING who his starting line-up should be that he isn't giving these guys the valuable time needed to become, 1) Cohesive and 2) let the game slow down. Fall camp is for allowing competitions at positions to play out but on a high level team there should never be so many positions coming down to the last week or game one week to announce. Everyday that goes by with a position listed as "OR" is one more day a starter doesn't get his 1st team reps. These guys should be getting hundreds of reps per week. Chip Kelly even claimed that number to be in the thousands...

I was hopeful this was a problem that was remedied by the replacement of Arroyo. And historically speaking, Joe Moorhead has been a developer of quarterbacks (at least to fit into his system). But now what we are seeing are two quarterbacks in a row (Shough, Brown) who are failing miserably as operators of an RPO offense. Those reads that Brown was missing at Stanford were abysmal. So with a season and a half (2020 Covid Season) worth of install, it stands to reason the starter should have a firm grasp of this type of offense. Granted an RPO offense puts a lot on the QB but it also allows a QB to play to his strengths when necessary and now it is showing that Brown doesn't really have ANY strengths outside of being calm behind center. Passable scramble ability, mediocre middle yardage throws, and non-existent deep ball threat. You have to believe that Cristobal sees what we see. So the question that I would like to see answered is; is Cristobal so stubborn and unwilling to have the uncomfortable conversation with Brown or does he truly not view Thompson or Butterfield or Ashford for that matter as viable options even with their proven arm talent?