Desert Duck

Holy crapoly, Charles! And I thought that I was THE guy dipping into the proverbial kool-aid a bit too much I actually love your prediction. In my mind, if they come out playing like they did against Utah or Colorado, I think that Bo will be riding the pines for the entire fourth quarter, as TT gets some more quality minutes. Meaning, your 70 points is entirely possible. If the USC defense has not had some miraculous "Come to Hey-Zues" moment since the new D coach was announced, there is no question that 70 points is possible. And the likelihood of the USC D doing some sort of a 180 in six days, seems ridiculously low. My only hesitation is that I keep reminding myself that these guys do have the weapons to pull off a big surprise. Regardless, I'm going with Oregon 55 - USC 31.

And I'm not confident that this Williams comment from last season aged very well.

Your entire take is spot on. But I absolutely LOL'd at this line. And I'm right in there with your score prediction.

I certainly don't mind seeing some tears after the game on the field... while on the way into the locker room. But this Williams moment took things to an entirely different, and frankly, bizarre level that I've never seen before. If I'm an NFL GM, when looking at the entire Willimas package, I'm more than seriously questioning whether I burn a 1st round pick on this guy. Obviously, the talent & skill set he possesses is generational, but that's just half the battle.

There's no question that more than just the loss of the game played into this phenomenally gifted, Heisman winner, Beast of a QB, leaping over the railing and into his mommy's lap (not just her arms) for a total breakdown moment. My best guess is that the other primary factors are a lifetime of being told that you are the best at everything and can basically do no wrong -- and that he has lovely fingernails.

The right thing would have been for Mrs. Williams to smack her son upside the head, and tell him to take his weak, whiney, sauce into the locker room... along with his lovely fingernails.

Wish I could join you guys. I was actually this close to a last minute business trip to Portland tomorrow... which would have, naturally, required me to also go to the game on Saturday. But unfortunately, I just found out that it's not going to happen. However, I'll be carrying my weight, albeit lighter weight, for us down here in the desert next week in Tempe.

Well done, NJDuck. I hope you and your family have a wonderful time!

Nah... don't do that. It still sucks. I was just glad to read SI's glass-half-full perspective.

I still hate the late start time, but SI made a great point about it that I had not thought about before: "... with the 7:30 pm PT kickoff time that was announced for Oregon vs. USC, but a late kick will allow the staff to host even more elite talent, particularly from the South or the East Coast." In addition to smacking the Trojans back down to So Cal, we may likely see some more amazing commitments this weekend. https://www.si.com/college/oregon/recruiting/oregon-preparing-for-massive-recruiting-weekend-vs-usc

Exactly. Why not follow the ASM -- Alabama Scheduling Model -- which has served them incredibly well over the years.

Oregon 54 - USC 32

I can't blame Colin for bolting the Portland market for ESPN and the big leagues.

A Concussion, aka. Brain Damage, is a scary thing. I know that we all hope he has a full recovery with no long-term or lingering impact.

Great... around 65% of the country will be heading to bed by the time we kickoff.

So... I have no issues with a stud athlete after a heartbreak loss --- or when they suddenly wake up and realize that their team pretty much sucks and is very likely destined for the infamous "Weed Eater Poulan Bowl," breaking down in tears. I get it, although I'd kind of prefer if they saved it for the locker room. And I was relieved to hear that Caleb's dog did not travel with the team. In 6th grade, I even remember some of us crying with our parent(s) on the sideline after a tough loss. But for me, and I'm just speaking for myself here, to have a 20 year old dude jump into his mommy's arms in the stands and have a breakdown kind of moment on national tv, is a bit over-the-top, and causes me to at least question his ability to control his emotions during a critical game time moment. And while it may never be an issue for him, if I am an NFL GM, it would still give me cause for pause.

I'm with you on the 3 yard wide receiver screen play. I pucker up every time I see one coming.

I think that's my favorite part.

It might have been more efficient if Riley had just fired himself.

Wow... I had not even thought about that. Wouldn't that have been a tragedy if we were under the old, and stupid, Larry Scott system.

In the new FBS, anything is possible... so why not.

You're right as a lot of Oregon fans wanted Wilcox. I'm so thankful that he didn't want the job.

No offense at all intended, I'm curious as to what 'step up' you would like to see from Bo? Given that he is completing 78% of his passes, has 25 passing TDs, 5 rushing TDs, only 2 INTs on the season, and at QB rating of 180.1 --- which is higher than Penix (174.6) & Williams (175.9). Plus his team leadership skills are clearly amazing.

You called that one. I just saw the press release that Riley fired him. So that will be interesting to see how the Trojans respond.

There's a lot of wisdom in your approach. I like it! It was a bizarre game. I had a prior commitment and was only able to watch the second half live. I glanced at the score with 5 minutes to go in the second and we are only up 21-13. By the time I got in front of the TV for the start of the second half, we were somehow up 35 to 13. Then to start the second half, I'm there just in time to watch Cal march 75 yards for a touchdown through our defense that momentarily look like Swiss cheese. And then apparently our Ducks said, "that's enough of that," and went on to dismantle Cal by 44 (against a line that was 24). And the blowout was with Bo only playing slightly more than three quarters. It was great to see Thompson get some really decent quality minutes out there. Not to mention, our Defense was actually nails again giving up only 12 points.