Wrathis

I think you're 100% on point with this. The question on the table would be "is acquiring Oregon and Washington worth potentially losing Clemson, UNC, Florida State and Miami" and we all know the answer to that is a resounding "NO". You would have to have, in writing this time, a contract stating that with the GOR being renegotiated that all teams would stay in the ACC or have to pay egregious amounts of money to leave. We know the B1G doesn't honor their word and I'd have to believe the SEC would be willing to move heaven and earth to acquire Clemson and one of the other teams. No, at this point I'd like to stay in the PAC12 by adding SDSU and UNLV. Then try and get a new media contract with Amazon or Apple etc that distributes funding on a weighted scale based on athletic performance. Say something like Football accounts for 65%, Basketball is 25% and Baseball is 10%. That should push schools into prioritizing revenue sports and perhaps lift the performance of the conference as a whole. Colleges may be teaching parity in the classroom, but what I've seen them DO directly contradicts that. It's time to get real...

It's been my sincere hope that GK negotiates a deal with AppleTV, Prime Video or the like. I would immediately subscribe to something like that that carries the PAC/Oregon games. As far as Fox/ESPN is concerned, I couldn't care less about...

This I VERY much like...

Yeah, that hurt quite a bit...

Makes sense...You need your winners, but I'd posit that the losers are just as important (maybe even more so) so long as they have a LARGE television footprint. A team like UCLA isn't going to challenge your upper echelon teams but still has a viewership market large enough to bolster your big brands. I'm sure the Tuscaloosa market is tiny, but it doesn't matter so long as the Texas markets are tuned in to watch them stomp the Longhorns. It seems we're a major team, but still not on par with the Bluebloods and as such, we don't command the national viewership that a 'Bama, tOSU, Clemson, Oklahoma etc does. We also don't have a market footprint large enough to warrant being fodder for those contending teams. Of course, not only are we not fodder for them, we're a risk to them and that's why they don't want us in their conferences. It seems it's also why they don't want to share their piece of the pie with us. I could absolutely be wrong about this, but I've never viewed us in this light before. Uncle Phil has made us a national brand, but we're not a blue blood yet and the PNW doesn't represent a big enough piece of the media market pie to warrant someone taking the risk on adding us. That being said, USC may end up competing in the B1G but it's an acceptable risk b/c of their media footprint. I think that means that if UCLA is held out of the B1G by CA legislators, then that's a huge favor to us as they still command enough televisions in the LA market to keep advertisers happy and bolster our new media deal...

Truth is, I was highly interested in Nico, didn't care for Rashada and am personally thrilled to have a commitment from Moore. It's a known thing in the NFL for players to be in a "contract year" and that they typically perform better in that year. Once they get the guaranteed payday, their performance tends to decline until their next contract. Using that as a parallel, I feel like Rashada's performance tanked after his Miami deal at the Elite 11. We didn't get to see Nico (I believe he was in a volleyball tournament) and Dante went out and improved his position (along with several other young men). I'll be watching all of these young men this Fall to see how they fair and if they are taking steps forward or regressing after having earned their payday. If they continue to grind, work and improve (in relation to their peers), that will go a LONG way in speaking to the character of these young men and what their motivation is. That being said, I believe Mari is continuing to unwittingly do us favors, especially in this case by buying Rashada out from underneath us, lol. Simply put, I believe we have a real winner in Moore and what will end up being the cream of the crop...

I RELISH the idea of scheduling USC and UCLA (if they make it, otherwise I say we leave them homeless) and ruining their seasons EVERY OPPORTUNITY WE GET!

I end game raided during TBC, WotLK and Cata and the recruitment of high caliber players was absolutely maddening...especially once you got them in and geared and then they hit the transfer portal. Your analogy is SOLID!

I have to admit that while we (rightfully I believe) attribute our offensive woes to Mari, I'm half expecting him to allow TVD to let loose and have all of us eating crow. I don't know why I think this will happen (other than un/intended spite), but I just have this nagging feeling Miami will be better this year, and next year will challenge Clemson. Again, nothing but gut feeling, but for some reason I think it's gonna happen and it's gonna drive us all nutty lol

Wow, now this was a GREAT read! I could see this type of analysis being behind a paywall and that being justified! Thanks for the link and look forward to more information like this!

I was about to say exactly that...

However, we do know that Stars matter. Mr. FishDuck himself has posted numerous articles etc showing blue-chip rate and how that correlates to success on the field. If memory serves, 38% of 5*'s get drafted and as those stars drop, so does the rate at which they get drafted. Finding diamonds in the rough is great, but it's much more rare than garnering success from an already heralded athlete which is why recruiting matters and at least in part why so many of us watch it so intently...

Agreed that we are in trouble...although I'd say Baylor is essentially the Oregon of the B12: Solid in multiple sports. Kansas for basketball (and beating the 'horns in Texas now and again) and Oklahoma State is a solid program as well. It does make me sad though that a Pac/B12 merger couldn't happen, but if only for selfish reasons. Here's to hoping PK and GK have an ace up their sleeve, cause it's looking like we're gonna need it. Geaux Ducks!

I'd tie this into a Mach 10, Darkstar ad mirroring Top Gun: Maverick...something along the lines of Devon blowing out of the blocks, burning down the track and taking off over the first hurdle...and as he does so, he blows the hat/uniform right off of a track official. Then said official states that he's too fast and pulling the program. It could end with Devon in an office with said official and that official telling him his time is over, he's done. Devon casually turns around, says "maybe so sir, but not today" and walks out grabbing some of his Philadelphia Eagles gear on the way out the door.

Onward to Richard Young and Matayo Uiagalelei!!!

What are the chances we can get a Spencer background picture on the site?

I agree, this sucks...and I think we can agree that money is what is driving this change. I've felt helpless and powerless watching this happen. However, we aren't powerless. We do have a card to play, but it's tough in that it has to be played collectively as a society. That has proven to be difficult, if not impossible but it has happened recently on social issues. When corporate greed leads the way, society holds the real power to change that. Essentially what I'm getting at is this: we can change things by not buying the product. Saturday mornings in the Fall are for golf and afternoons are for college football. As a PAC12 fan, that also meant that Saturday evenings/nights are also for college football. I may well change my lifelong schedule this season...Saturday mornings may be for working in the garden, afternoons for golf and nights for the Ducks, and only the Ducks. By not tuning in to watch whatever other games are going on, they lose a set of eyeballs paying for their product. Granted, I'm just one man but given enough dissatisfaction, we can force a change. If enough people are willing to change their schedule to not view the 'extra' products they're producing, then the companies are forced to capitulate to the viewers demands. Is it a LONG shot? Absolutely. It's tough to get society to band together enough on something to demand change. However, at the end of the day that power is in our hands and we hold the ace. That being said, if the representation cited in the article concerning the wide ranging fans he spoke to is accurate, there may be enough of us to bring the networks to heel. I can't say what we'll all do as a whole, but what I can do is stick to my guns and know that I've used what was available at my disposal to affect change and inform the greedy networks that I'm not a fan of their product...

Horrible news He was one of my favorite Ducks starting with that "You've been Moss'd" catch against Auburn. I know this news set the Twitter world on fire last night as it was the #1 Trending News. I sure wish it had been for happier news

Nothing personal at all! I just didn't know if I had missed something or not, but I meant no disrespect! I didn't put together that you were talking about Noah instead of Flowe. My apologies

I'm confused...is this a joke that I'm missing? Flowe didn't play against Ohio State after breaking his foot in a 14 tackle debut against Fresno St. I'm gonna feel flat out silly if this was a joke and I'm the only chap that missed it :S

I'm with you on this if for no other reason than selfishness. Either way, I hope that we have people in place now that will help our players avoid the "McKinley" effect of jumping to the pros on bad advice and end up an undrafted free agent...granted, Flowe's pedigree is essentially that of Kayvon's (in that he was a known commodity), but he's missing that body of work...Here's to an injury free season and the decision to come back next year and have another!

Previously in a different thread, I asked what constituted a "blue-blood". I asked for opinions on how many losing seasons it takes, how many conference championships lost (or not even played for) or how many years one has to stay irrelevant to vacate that blue blood status. Nebraska lost it, Minnesota lost it, Georgia Tech lost it (if they ever had it). Next up should be USC, Notre Dame and Texas... In my humble opinion, all USC has done is precipitated their own fall. Competitively they were irrelevant in the PAC and things won't be any easier moving to the B1G. Here they had us, Fuskies, Utah and AZ State to contend with. Now they have tOSU, Penn St, Wisky, T.T.U.N and State. Sure they'll get more funding, but was that ever really what was holding them back the last 15 years? No, it wasn't and as such it won't fix the problems they're about to have either. No friends, all they've done is expedite their own fall to mediocrity. Granted, their vision clouded as it is by their own hubris, they won't even know they're irrelevant, but that's no different than it is now. Essentially they are who they are...the snobby kids who are wanted only b/c they have rich parents. On their own they offer little to no value and when we (hopefully) lock down a massive streaming contract, they'll be seen for what they are...an emperor with no clothes who abandoned their fiefdom to become a vassal in a foreign land.

I get it, and it could very well be a trap game. However, I find it highly unlikely as they follow this game with Samford, South Carolina and then Kent St. No, I think we are the highlight and won't at all be overlooked. They will be ready, prepared and expecting a fight. It's a top 25 matchup against their former Defensive Coordinator and in their own backyard. If anything, South Carolina sandwiched between Samford and Kent St would be the trap game for them to stumble at but rest assured, they'll be ready for us...and it's my expectation we'll be ready for them. I think the 17 points is fair and if we can keep it within 10, I'll consider that a win. That being said, I think we do have an outside chance to win this game but it will be done with X's and O's and taking risks (blitzing, downfield throws etc). If we try to match big on big and beat them at their own game, it's gonna be a loooooong afternoon. All that being said, Geaux Ducks and give em hell!!!

What a great read, thanks for sharing...

Just a heads up on this: they show $100 from their goal. This is by design to get you to donate $100 so you can feel like you helped them complete it. However, when you check it again you'll find that the goal has since moved up $100 so the next person feels the same way. Ask me how I know...