WiseKwacker

Wow, the never-ending hatred for Canzano is pretty evident among many Duck fans. While he's not my favorite sports reporter, I appreciate the fact that he's out there digging for information to share. In the first place, I appreciate learning about this letter being sent by the ex-Duck players to Mullins. So, was Canzano "irresponsible" for putting out the story, or would he--as a journalist--be "irresponsible" if he didn't? I would submit that the latter is the case. So, did Canzano make up the existence of this letter? If not, how did he learn of it? Did he break into Rob Mullins' office to steal it? Did one of the ex-players share a copy with him? Did someone in the U of O athletic department share it with him? Whatever the case, if you're angry that this information came to light, shouldn't you blame the person who shared the information with Canzano, the JOURNALIST. Canzano is just doing what he's paid to do. And, after reading Canzano's article, I think James Crepea's follow-up article about the ex-players' reactions adds some clarity. I have no idea what Joey Harrington knew or had heard about the coaching search at the time he wrote that letter. Clearly, the letter was sent before some of the interviews were conducted and before any job offers were made. Did Wilcox learn about the letter at any point before he turned down Mullins' job offer? If so, did it's existence actually turn him off for some reason? We'll likely never know the details. I can live with that. What matters now is that we've got Lanning. I'm excited to see what this guy will do. And, at this point, I'm envisioning that the program will improve in EVERY area next season. As a matter of fact, I'm going on record predicting that we go undefeated next year. By the way, where is the "natty" being held in 2023? Are tickets available yet?

That was a good read, Charles. It's fun--at this point--to speculate on where we think we'll see improvements or maybe some slippage from the MC regime to the DL era. With Lanning as a first-time head coach, it's all just speculation at this point. One area where I would argue with the point you made is in the area of special teams. Yes, Camden Lewis overcame his first-year "yips" and began to fulfill his potential. And, yes, Tom Snee developed into an adequate punter. However, the return and coverage units really took a downturn in the Bobby Williams era. I think there's nowhere to go but up in this area. I had to laugh at your "rating" of game management and adjustments. At this point, we have no idea how Lanning will do in this area, since he's never been in the head coach position to make those decisions. On the other hand, as you point out, he just can't be any worse...we hope. Finally, I'm hopeful Lanning will actually be an upgrade on culture and PR. Apparently, Mario's sincerity consistently won over recruits. Maybe that's what it takes to bring today's kids into the fold. I certainly don't know from personal experience. However, I think we began to see some cracks in that "culture" over the past two years. And, when it comes to PR, Mario's no-nonsense "sincerity" began to wear on me over time. I mean, has the guy EVER said something even mildly funny? There's only one Pete Carroll, but I'd like to see some positive, happy emotion on the sideline from my coach once in awhile. Thanks, again, Charles, for giving us needy Duck faithful a place to ponder and pontificate.

Don Read, baby! 20-19 coaching up the PSU Vikings before leading the "kids" of Oregon. (Maybe not D-1, but he had a winning record--barely--as a college coach.)

I'm not here to pile on Moorhead, but I have to say that I've been disappointed with the offense of this "genius." It is very frustrating to see other teams move the ball down the field consistently and relentlessly against the Duck defense (nothing to do with Moorhead, of course) using quick slant passes over the middle of the field (Utah, WSU and others), and then to see the Ducks' offense fail to use that same strategy--particularly when faced with an opponent's effective pass rush. And, with a roster stocked with numerous outstanding--or potentially outstanding--tight ends, and frequently playing two of them at a time, fail to use them consistently as receivers in the 5-10 yard range. Puzzling to me to say the least. On the positive side of things, I think Moorhead was a marked improvement over Arroyo. So, there's that...

Once you hear it, you're sold. Henceforth, it shall be known as the "Platypus Punch-Out." You're welcome.

Sadly..."No Natty." (hiccup)

FishDuck, Just getting caught up on this forum after an extensive week of cleaning the house before hosting Thanksgiving dinner. Whew! Glad that's done for the year... Loved your take. And, just wanna say that, on this day of "thanks," I like to look at the posts like the one you reference and say to myself, "Man, I'm thankful I don't know THAT Duck fan..."

I guess the trend in college football now is to act immediately when a season spirals downward. In the cases of USC and LSU, I can MAYBE understand it. For TCU, though, you'd think Patterson deserved the grace of letting him finish the season as head coach and then giving him the chance to "retire" once the season ends. What was TCU football before he got there? Even with the ugly scene after the SMU game, this just seems wrong to me.