DrJacksPlaidPants

There are a few posters on here who started calling for Mario’s head after the Arizona, Stanford and Cal games. That number grew exponentially after the first Utah game. Some saw that the big recruits were just average players being coached by below average coaches. Others thought he could right the ship. I was one of those. I said it took Dabo 9 seasons to win a championship and that Mario needed more time. However, after the conference championship game when the rumors of him leaving started then everybody’s light clicked on. This guy was leaving all along and gave a half hearted coaching effort due to him having one foot out the door. So, if you’re having trouble understanding why he became a bum then just watch the Utah games. His ineptitude was obvious and no amount of talented recruits could overcome it. Add the fact that Thibadeaux and him supposedly got into a shouting match at halftime where they were trading insults. It’s obvious that the players knew what was going on before the fans did.

Mario is a great recruiter. If he could learn the CEO aspect of his job then he would be right up there with the great ones. This means hiring great coordinators and coaches and letting them do their jobs. It also means striking a fine balance between schmoozing boosters and also telling them to back off. He is in desperate need of great facilities, but they need to come with no strings attached. These will all be big challenges for him. He had been known to meddle in the offensive scheme which killed creativity and innovation. He never had to deal with difficult boosters. Phil Knight was around long before him and knew the needs of the program. He also never had to worry about facilities. He had world class facilities in a several acre plot on the north side of the Willamette. These don’t even include the new indoor practice field that’s being built to replace the Moshofsky. Mario can only preach so long to these new recruits about how he, Armstead and Perryman didn’t need nice facilities or new equipment to win championships. Kids these days aren’t programmed like that. They want it all and they want it now.

AB was sacked 20 times this year. However, eight of those came against Utah. His line was more experienced, so either those sacks were caused by him holding the ball too long or Nix is in for another beat down.

I may be way off, but I feel like Robbie Ashford would be the biggest loss if he transferred. Not TT or JB. He’s the best runner, he’s big at 6’4” 225 and he has the best arm. He arguably had the best Spring out of all the other guys earlier this year if you read the reports. Nix may never see the field if Ashford has another good Spring.

Any QB who transfers because they want to avoid a competition or because they believe they’re the rightful heir to the position doesn’t belong on this team. I’m not excited about Nix, but I want a guy who embraces the competition.

He’s the college version of Dak Prescott. Some days he can’t miss. Other days it seems his only purpose in life is to give the ball to the other team.

It’s been a given that this is McKinley’s last season. He’s a first day pick.

People think it’s a money game, but bowl games always put programs in the red. It’s more of a reward for the players. They get to hang out on the River Walk, get some swag and play football. It doesn’t do anything for the future as they will be practicing a system that is no longer used.

I always figured this would be his final season. I think he has what it takes. Oregon DB’s have fared pretty well. He’s also a good KO return guy, so he has a lot of value.

That’s recruiting. I Can’t blame Mario. He built those relationships and has the time invested in those players. That said, he had better produce fairly quickly because he is being funded by “new money” boosters. These guys aren’t old heads like PK. They pulled together a ton of money in a short amount of time. They’re not just starting out with new uniforms and a branding change. They’re all in. They want it all now. Unlike PK who started slow and eventually built up the infrastructure while keeping the nucleus of coaches around. The history of Oregon’s football program is like a spring fed river. They bubbled to the surface with PK’s help and have maintained a steady flow ever since. Miami is expecting a deluge of rain to get their river flowing. They want a quick return on their investment. They’re paying Mario a lot of money to make that flood happen. However, the worst thing that could’ve happened for him happened when Dabo had a down year. Clemson is now perceived as vulnerable, so if Mario isn’t at least an ACC champion in two seasons then he’ll be on a short leash. He’ll definitely be fired after 3 seasons with no conference championship and Clemson isn’t going away.

I don’t mind him coaching in the playoffs. He earned the opportunity to get a championship. After all, that’s why the game is played. Oregon will be there when he’s done. He could only do so much. He’s not from the West Coast and probably didn’t have any prior contact with these kids. It’s impossible to build a relationship in 3 days. He’s going to have to hit the portal and rebuild this team from scratch. There are going to be a lot of guys transferring after the bowl game. Likely a couple more WR’s just because BMac is leaving. Dye also sounded like he won’t be back which I’m OK with. This won’t be a popular opinion, but I’m kind of done with Mario’s old backfield. We needs some dudes back there. I hope Benson stays because he and Cardwell could do some damage.

He had to have been looking elsewhere after the Utah games. Losing his main recruiter didn’t help, but Arizona is also doing a good job building a new roster. I saw that they had 13 transfers signed.

He’s not making QB changes. Let’s hope we get good AB for this game.

He had a lot of talent, but was held out of a game for his attitude. He probably blew up at Mario for lack of touches. Ducks will miss his talent for sure, but I think there is good talent behind him. Maybe that McMillan kid will choose Oregon over Arizona now that a starting spot opened up.

Just a little FYI. Justin Herbert was Honorable Mention All-Pac 12 his Senior year. That’s it. He won NFL ROY the following season and is the only NFL QB to throw for 30 TD’s in his first 2 seasons. He also has the record for most completions during his first two seasons. Furthermore, he only needs one game of 3+ TD’s to tie Marino’s record and he has 4 games left. So, if you’re not too worried about Mario squandering Van Dyke’s talents then you need to prepare yourself for some real disappointment next season. My hope is that the Cowboys will have a high enough draft pick in 2 years so they can get Van Dyke. His arm will be nice and fresh.

What is his coaching experience? Is he coaching in college now? Does he have his degree? What will the Oregon community’s reaction be knowing that he was once arrested for domestic abuse? I don’t mean to be the Debbie Downer, but these are things that the administration will want to know.

If Mario was a resident of Oregon for 2021 doesn’t he owe Oregon state taxes on that $9M?

It sounds like he may be considered for DC. He was co-DC at Bama, but I don’t think he did too well. Saban got rid of him after 44-16. I heard he wasn’t a great play caller.

Joey Harrington explained the Blue Blood remark. He said that the term means “from royal birth”. He said Oregon was built and had to work to get on the level of everybody else who had their foundations built decades ago (Norte Dame, Oklahoma, USC, etc).

I’m listening to the guys now. They’re giving good explanations for the letter. They just wanted to make sure that the next guys cares about the program and not just a job to elevate their future endeavors. They’re not at all happy that the letter leaked. They all said it was meant just for Mullens’ eyes only.

Good Tweet from Geoff Schwartz.

Now that “The Letter” has come out, the reasons behind Wilcox turning down Oregon are becoming more clear. Mullens bowed to pressure (once again) to hire a certain person for the job. Wilcox likely found out about the letter and, while he was probably flattered, he knew that he wasn’t the right person for the job. He also likely felt that his detractors would hold it over his head that he got the job only because his buddies lobbied for it. I kind of feel bad for him because this is probably something he didn’t ask for. Warning: This is another Canzano piece. https://www.oregonlive.com/sports/john_canzano/2021/12/canzano-ex-oregon-ducks-greats-wrote-letter-to-ad-rob-mullens-worried-about-programs-lost-identity.html

I give the hire a C only because there are very few Guys out there who I consider A hires. Those are the guys like Saban and Dabo. The B hires are the guys with experience who have had success but no national championship. B hires could also be guys who have taken bad teams out of the cellar (see Jonathan Smith). I consider a C hire to be unproven, but with great potential. Also, guys who have been in a bad situation could be C hires as well. Manny Diaz would fall into this category. D hires are guys who have been given great situations but couldn’t get it done. F hires are the ones with zero integrity who will get you put on probation. Remember, this is just my opinion. I could be swayed through convincing arguments.

But Wilcox was offered the job and he turned it down. I can’t say whether he would’ve succeeded or failed because. Canzano infers that he may not have wanted into the pressure cooker that Oregon football has become. I can’t say I blame him. It’s a lot of pressure coming back to your alma mater.

I wonder if he will go after Cyrus Moss. He already visited USC and he’s going to Miami today. It seems that Mario had ulterior motives when he visited him after the PAC championship game.