The Kamikaze Kid

UO 49-17, 3, 5, 325

That one play pretty much summed up the game. The Ducks came to play and the Dawgs came to compete. Hopefully now they know the difference.

The Ducks could very easily be a legit top 10 team this year that needs just a couple more weeks to have the new system installed and techniques and details understood. I'm not going to underestimate the overwhelming challenge the team had in week one. A top 10 fighter still would have been knocked out in the first round against Mike Tyson. I could see them work things out next week, have just enough to get by BYU, then build momentum for a strong finish.

I think it was the perfect time to play them. Before they’ve had a chance to jell as a unit. The problem was that is was also the worst time for this team to be playing them. Before they even really know the playbook and have jelled as a unit.

Oregon walk in to the absolute perfect storm. Every advantage the Ducks would have had against any other team were turned to disadvantages by Georgia. Lanning's super confusing mint defense? Georgia's offense has seen it everyday in practice for years run by the best D in the modern era. They could have told our own guys when they were lined up out of position. Wonder boy Lanning himself having to go up against the very coach he learned from. You know that is only going to spell bad news. Wonder boy II coach Dillingham and his state of the art offensive concepts going up against the best D in the modern era. And how many times was the ball ever in the hands of a Duck who's played significant minutes for this team before? It was a very steep learning curve for Ducks while going up against the National Champs looking to repeat. The outcome was probably closer to reality than we wanted to believe before the game. Hopefully, Lanning is still the real deal, processes the autopsy of the game, understands his team better and moves them forward the way we all hope.

I think the first thing that needs to be evaluated is how much was Georgia and how much was Oregon. The defense trying to impersonate the D that Georgia's offense sees every day had a huge disadvantage from the jump. That has to be factored in. Oregon's skill players on offense are all so new, they still need name tags to tell who's who. Again, way over matched by UGA's lethal defense. I see this as more of an agonizing initiation ritual than a face plant. I'll hold off judgement until we see the adjustments.

Ducks get blown out by Utah twice and we never see a backup QB. Ducks down 31-3 against OU and again, no backup QB. Ducks down by over forty yesterday and still no backup QB. Three different coaches facing blowouts and none put in a backup QB. Something is telling me that maybe we don't have a backup QB. I've never seen this by any team at any level. I can see the defensive system still needing work and improving. I can see an offense still looking for the alpha dogs to rise to the top meeting an UGA D that just does what it does. What I can't see is the Ducks having zero confidence in putting a backup QB in the game in obviously warranted situations by three different coaches. That to me is the reddest flag I saw.

Good analysis. I'm sure the Ducks will be a top ten caliber team by the end of the season. Being a top three team right out of the gate is a large ask. My first goal would be to look like you deserve to be on the field with UGA. Mario's epic fail times two against Utah can't happen. Next goal would be to make the game competitive. Is UGA worried about losing in the fourth quarter? Achieve this goal and they shouldn't drop much in the polls after the game and could bounce back nicely with a win against BYU. Third goal, win the dang game! Achieve this goal and the Ducks will drive the college football narrative all season long!

Back in the day, UCLA jumped out to a 7-0 lead. Oregon's offense continued to sputter on the next drive and faced fourth and 14 from around their own 25. What does Helfrich do? Fake punt. Oregon gains 65 yards, scores a TD on the next play and the route is on. If UO botches that play, Helfrich may have been fired on the spot. Right call? Lucky call? I refer to the flow chart above for the answer.

UGA 24 UO 16, 2, 4, 224

Welcome aboard RednBlack4Life! UGA sprouted a northwest fan base last December. Congrats on the national championship.

Punt on first down. Pin them back on the one to start the game!

With all of their crazy color combos, just wearing green in a big game feels like a victory in itself.

If Mario were still the coach, getting shut out would have been not only possible but probable. I can only wonder what Lanning has thought to himself after watching tape of that bizarrely predictable offense.

Huskies and Huskers should play each other in the Pepperridge Farm Bowl because no one else remembers or cares about their ancient pasts.

Failure is having a team you can no longer root for. I’d say Mario’s teams that barely won on the scoreboard but felt like loses to the eyes were a failure. Conversely the Brooks teams that gave it their all, you could root for know matter the outcome. Just putting a team on the field that competes week in week out is a success to me.

If you want the bridge walk experience as scene on tv, park by the U of O not by the stadium. From there, just follow the flow of the crowd.

Unlike those false dawgs up north (properly referred to as fuskies), most old school Duck fans remember our lean and almost there years all too well. Our bandwagon fans can be as annoying as any other schools but clawing your way up from the bottom creates a humbling appreciation for success. I’d say this is why we generally have appreciation for Utah’s climb to the top as well as UGA’s conquest of Bama. Glad our two schools have created a coast to coast connection via Coach Lanning.

MCDawg: Dissing your own team is great bulletin board material for your own team!

I think Lanning far more than any of us truly understands what we’re going up against in a week. Just think of how many coaches meetings he’s been in with coach Smart. How many times he’s seen a master mind coach take the smallest scrap of information and build a winning game plan from it. I think because the Ducks have been the most mismanaged powerhouse team in the country the last few years, they are also the most unknown team. I see Lanning using this to his advantage.

Once in the BIG, I don’t expect SC to put up 40+ scores. I see them running into the same problem UO had with Stanford. How many times did we see the tree run for four yards, four yards three yards, rinse and repeat down the field. Drives lasting five to six minutes a pop. They just joined the Stanford conference and Buckeye can do that and still throw for 350+. Ironically, SC would be more suited to dominate the Big 12. Reality doesn’t sell newspapers in La La land.

Yes. It’s their championship trophy until someone takes it away!

Sounds like Lanning may have more plans of creating chaotic havoc with positionles players Having thought about that for a minute, I’d like to pose a question to our new Dawg friends more familiar with the coach. What would you expect Lanning to alter in the defensive scheme from what UGA runs?

I can only think of two school fan bases in the country that could go 4-8, fire their coach and claim they’re ready for the Natty the next year. And they both reside at opposite ends of the I 5.

Woundedknees, you , me and Pepperidge Farm remember!