noDucknewby

I generally disregard anything coming from Dennis Dodd. He never has anything positive to say about the Pac-12.

If we are 1-loss conference champ, the odds are we'll go to the CFP. The Georgia loss just took away our margin for error. Clearly that loss, as horrific as it was, doesn't skew the CFP committee that much. We are the second highest 1-loss team and Tennessee has beaten Alabama and LSU. Why is UCLA, a 1-loss team whose only loss is to Oregon not ranked in the top-ten? (well maybe after the new standings come out)? Their OOC schedule was complete and total garbage. SOS still matters. I"m glad we play teams like Georgia, but we need home and home series, not one-offs on their turf. I just can't wait for the CFP expansion so a 2-loss conference champion can still get in.

I'm going with Occam's razor here, he doesn't look ready to run the offense because he isn't. Will he be ready next year is the question. Nothing I'm seeing leads me to believe that is the case. Hope I'm wrong though, I would love to see a real QB competition between TT, Butters and Moore next year.

I'm superstitious, I don't want to see all the talk about DL leaving turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. Sure we've heard this all before, but as far as I'm concerned we take him at his word and make him feel welcome.

Seems contrary to GK's timeline, but DP is pretty legit so I'd give this some credence. After all the B12 moves we've seen lately, I think it's important for the P12 to show some forward movement. This be patient, we're all sticking together stance loses validity the longer it drags on. Best case for the Pac-12, UCLA stays and we keep the LA market plus add San Diego. That could give us a decent shot at good TV deal.

Yeah seemed suspicious despite the SI tag. Sounds like wishful thinking from a fan-boy site.

One game at a time, take care of our business and good things will happen.

Pains me to root for the Domers, but Clemson is toast.

Yes, I think this is the crux of the biscuit. After being leveraged by Taggart and snubbed by MC, loyalty will certainly be rewarded. The more successful DL becomes, the more offers he's going to get, that's just the nature of the business. That said no one's making a serious run at Saban or Smart or Whittingham for that matter, so if DL continues to say "pass, not interested" he could indeed be our guy.

Not all that far-fetched IMHO. The networks love blue bloods and to think they don't have a huge influence is just naive.

I think we all crave a return to the continuity we had during the Brooks/Bellotti years, but I'm not sure that's realistic given the ridiculous amount of money being thrown around. Yeah it sucks to have the national perception of Oregon being a "stepping stone" program and what we're really looking for is the best fit for Oregon, a combination of recruting, on-the-field performance and loyalty to the program. Granted that's a bit of a tall order, but I feel if we find that person then money won't be an issue because Mullens and Phil will probably come up with it. Is Lanning that guy? So far he seems to check all the boxes, but we all remember MC's "kicking and screaming" comments. A potential problem I see is that Mullens generally takes a graded, progressive approach to rewarding coaches financially. That could potentially make us vulnerable if a desperate school from the B1G or SEC comes in and waves $10 million/10 years at him. Are we willing to match? Good example with Mel Tucker, they may wind up buying him out soon.

Yeah that. Let them worry about ticket revenues, it's the TV money that counts and I agree that the LA schools rarely sell out, especially UCLA. It's embarassing when they have to block out sections with team graphics and the TV cameras are afraid to pan out.

Yep the old "eye test" which is code for whomever the powers that be want. I hope I'm wrong, but the Pac-12 is screwed unless TCU loses. Let's assume Clemson wins out, they aren't playing a ranked team the rest of the year. Either tOSU or Michigan goes undefeated, there's no real serious challenger outside of those two (yeah maybe Illinois, but not likely IMHO). If we have three undefeated conference champs (B12, ACC and B1G) they have to go and you know damn well the SEC champ is going unless maybe they have two losses (which I also think is unlikely). On our end we have to have a 12-1 champ that wins in impressive fashion. Sure there's a chance, but it's unlikely we control our own destiny.

Agree LSU way too high. No way they should be ranked over UCLA. Tennessee/Georgia huge this week, but I doubt we move up either way especially if Georgia loses there's no way we leap frog them after our ugly loss.

Never ever ever ever ever pulling for the Fuskies. Go Little Bro!

Three tough games to finish the regular season, two at home, all winnable and all losable. Then maybe the conference championship game against USC or UCLA. Plenty of season still left, it's crunch time. We have no margin for error to reach the playoff and even if we win out we would still probably need a little help. It's looking like there may be several 1-loss teams when the dust settles.

Bill Walton loves the Pac-12 and the west coast. Yes his diatribes are sometimes rambling and esoteric, but he is a real gem both athletically and culturally. I'm not sure his opinion changes anything, but you've got to give him credit for trying.

Too bad it didn't work out for him, I wouldn't think his situation was bad enough to make him quit the team mid-season, but I don't know the details so i don't judge. I was hoping the new transfer window rules would eliminate or reduce mid-season departures, but so far that doesn't seem to be the case.

Harsin was just a bad fit from day one, never did understand the hire. I wouldn't be surprised to see him land at ASU or maybe even Colorado.

Oh yeah it's a ridiculous system alright. Imagine this scenario: 1. Tennessee beats Georgia next weekend and wins the SEC East. Georgia then runs the table and finishes 11-1. 2. A 1-loss Alabama beats Tennessee in the SEC Championship game. 3. Either tOSU or Michigan goes undefeated as conference champ. The other finishes 11-1. 4. Oregon or USC runs the table so we have a 1-loss Pac-12 champ. 5. Clemson goes undefeated winning the ACC. 6. TCU goes undefeated and wins the Big-12. OK that's a lot of ifs, and pretty unlikely to happen but in this scenario you would have to seed the 3 unbeaten conference teams and the SEC champs Alabama. That leaves Tennessee out even though they went 1-1 with Alabama and beat Georgia. Defending national champ Georgia at 11-1 is out. The 1-loss Pac-12 champ is out. A 1-loss Big-10 runner up is out. What a mess. The expanded playoff can't happen soon enough.

The Cal game on the road had all the makings of a letdown game after a huge home win against UCLA. I'm not surprised at all that we were a little flat, but Cal games are always ugly. They have a solid defense, so even when their offense stinks (which it usually does), they manage to keep it close. Sure we didn't play our best game, but it was a 3-score road win against a team we historically struggle with. Progress is rarely linear. I would expect us to beat Colorado handily, the we come back to Autzen and the November stretch that will define our season. I guess we'll see soon enough, but I think we see continued improvement (especially on defense).

Boo hoo Lincoln Riley and welcome to the Pac-12, at least for now. Complaining about the refs here is like complaining about the wind on the coast. That said, every Pac-12 team has been the victim of an officiating blunder at one time or another, some costing the team a win (Ducks/Stanford 2021). Agree with JC, just fix it. We need full-time, professional refs. Pay them well and hold them accountable. It just blows me away that with all the TV and NIL money flowing freely we don't funnel a few extra bucks into the officiating.

In short, no. The defending national champs from the SEC will get a pass for pretty much any one loss with or without an SEC championship. Remember Alabama not even winning their division and still going to the CFP as a 1-loss team? For Georgia, undefeated they're in, one loss they're in, two losses they're out. Whatever Oregon does from here on out is irrelevant.