DUCati855

This list makes me wonder if Pac12 has great O-lines or just really bad pass rushers.

Garrett Riley would be my number one choice. I'm just not sure he would be interested. I have been hesitant to mention Mark Helfrich (as Legion did). Many cringe at the idea. But, he is likely the ONLY ex head coach capable of taking back seat to someone as young as Coach Lanning. His only downside is his lack of recruiting hustle. The whole staff would need to teach him a new level of recruiting. He is likely the ONLY OC we could get that won't jump ship in a year or two.

I never said our OC had to be young. I said I'm NOT hoping for a well established mentor. The majority of the play callers you mention are HC's not OC's. No one said finding the right OC would be easy. It shouldn't be. Oregon hired Dan Lanning to lead this team. He does not need someone looking over his shoulder and criticizing his decisions. He is smart enough to learn from his own mistakes. I don't care how old the OC is. I just want one that is not predictable and definitely not one that wants to play a father figure to our head coach. I feel most that have HC'ing experience would have a difficult time having a significantly younger man as their boss.

I'm with you. I'm not one hoping for a well established mentor. That screams boring and predictable to me. I do not want my Ducks to be either of those things.

This is a very interesting idea. I need to ponder on it for awhile. Thanks for posting it.

I have been seeing statements like this quite often over the last couple weeks. I feel the need to remind everyone that even our GREAT MARCUS did not play as true freshman. Thinking Donte will is a HUGE assumption. Our last true freshman quarterback was Justin and he didn't play his freshman year until several games into the season. Ty has not proved himself ready. Donte has not proved anything at all. From this I conclude. YES, we need a seasoned QB. Hopefully (but, doubtfully) Bo. To the portal we go.

Yes, and Jimbo bought the number 1 class last year. Money doesn't buy a team. Money buys players. There's a HUGE difference.

Great read David. I too believe we have a great RB room and coach in Locklyn. I also think the next OC will use them more than Dilly did towards the end of this season. I loved Dilly through the first eight games this season. But, I firmly believe that both Dillingham and Nix got caught up in the Heisman talk. Once Bo and the Heisman were mentioned in the same sentence the offense (to me) became Bo centric. I feel they both desperately wanted that trophy on their resume and this ultimately lead to the horrible end to the season. My personally hope is to see another young brilliant mind behind the wheel of the Oregon offense. A mind that is better at putting on blinders to the outside world and solely focus on his current job and his entire offense.

I hope I'm wrong. But, I don't see Bo grading out that well at the combine. He feels more like an early 3 round pick to me. Love seeing two Ducks mentioned for the first round though.

We all knew this was coming. I say GOOD FOR YOU JAY!! I will always consider him a Duck even if he never got a chance to be a Duck. I hope the absolute best for him.

To go along with what DrJacksPlaidPants stated. Dan Lanning is doing EXACTLY what he should be doing. Finishing up and finalizing recruiting, talking to and retaining the current payers, looking for a new OC, and hopefully a new Special Teams coach. He has a TON on his plate currently. He definitely should not be focusing on us fans.

Typically true. Except last Saturday. I had business meetings both before and after the game. Needless to say. My 5 o'clock meeting didn't go to well.

I'm with Charles. Go do your thing. Most of us will be fans... watching our Ducks.

I second this... He pretty much nails all the articles. Much appreciated.

Agreed, the truth is if Bo hadn't got hurt against Washington, Oregon likely wins both games on pure offensive output. While that's amazing it might have been a barrier to real improvement. The result in the playoff wouldn't have been pretty when facing top defenses that also have top offenses. I loved going to games this year but if we want to win a championship it's absolutely time to get SERIOUS about playing defense. Have to agree with both of you. I have been saying this most of the year. We would have been COMPLETELY humiliated in the playoffs. The Rose Bowl would have been our best outcome. Granted I thought we would be playing Michigan. Now I'm hoping for the Holiday Bowl... what a difference 7 points can make!

I have read much from both of you (DazeNconfused and HappyToBeADuck) and respect both of your opinions. I must say on this one... I have to agree with HappyToBeADuck. Dan Lanning in his first year was impressive to me. He took a VERY young group of men, made them a team, and put them in position to be within 7 point of the CFP. His decision making was great 99% of the time. If the last two losses happened to Utah and UCLA everyone would be 100% fine with it. But, since it happened to our two rivals many have their pitchforks out. Like it or not, I feel all Duck fans need to admit that THE HUSKIES AND THE BEAVERS ARE ON THE RISE. They are not the same teams we kicked around for the last 20 years. We must accept that. Once we do we will recognize these loses do not look nearly as bad. We lost to Washington because Bo got hurt and Ty made a bad read on fourth down. Yes, I wish DL would have put Bo in. But, seeing Bo hobble around for two weeks tells me he likely doesn't make that play either. If you want to blame one play for the OSU game... blame Bo for keeping the ball and trying to hobble for the first down. He should have handed that ball off to the RB with the open right side. But, (IMO) that game did not come down to one play. That game came down to the defense. A defense that had its best 6 quarters of the year in a row and then let it go to their YOUNG, BIG, HEADS and collapsed. That is youth. That is culture. That is not bad in game decision by DL. Should it be addressed? Of course! Will it be? DL has proven all year that it will be. I for one want another exciting OC that is willing to take chances.

Exactly. Life changing money in your home town. How often does that come? He had to take it. It may not be the ideal time... and I think he knows that. But, you have to look out for your (and your family's) future. I'm happy and grateful for him.

Willie Taggart is available... sorry, I couldn't resist! Ha!

Dan Lanning finished his first regular season 9-3. Most of us predicted a 9-3 record. Unfortunately, two of those losses came to teams that we feel deep distain for. Teams we counted on winning. What we need to remember is we lost those games by a total of 7 points. We also must remember the teams we beat. BYU, Utah, UCLA, and a gritty WSU. As much as this hurts, even knowing we will all be dealing with delusional husky and beaver fans for a full year, I still feel this team is on the rise. The next couple years are going to be a blast to watch. I'm still very proud to be a Duck fan.

I agree with that. I was specifically talking about recruits following Dilly to ASU. I do not really see that being an issue in this recruiting cycle. I feel Dilly will need to prove himself at ASU in order to steal recruits from more established programs like USC,UO, UU, or UW.

ASU will never have the same draw as USC.

Possibly some. But, I do not picture any ELETE players wanting to go to a complete rebuild like ASU.

The Special Teams were a huge reason for this loss. Not only the fumbled punt. But, Hudson's two errors on kick returns left us with very long fields. If we're replacing one coordinator... we may as well replace our special teams coordinator as well.

DLs gambles just made for a miserable week for most of us. All the closet Beaver fans will now let their voices be heard. Thanks coach Dan.

Noah was shocked Bo kept that ball. Bad read by Bo. That being said. Coach should have punted that ball.