OhioDuck

Honestly Riley has won 0 NCs at Oklahoma, arguably just as much if not more of a blue blood than SC. I think SC is in better shape now with Riley than they were with Helton, but I'm not sold on him making them world beaters. But I do think it will help the PAC 12 for him to be there. From Oregon's point of view, California is still a ripe recruiting area, but the competition for Cali players just got tougher. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.

I think that's a good possibility. He has to learn to do a few things differently. Hire great assistants and give them the freedom to coach. Don't play afraid. To play with physicality, physically dominate, you have to be aggressive. Trust players to make plays. And a little trash talking in Miami is to be expected, but keep it a little under control.

AB showed flashes of having the potential to be very good. Problem is he was what, a 6th year senior. It was time for that potential to be realized. ironically he often looked best when the game got in panic mode. It is as if he was better when the game plan and the game management (Mario's offensive philosophy) went out the window for game circumstances. Then he just relaxed and let it fly. He was better then. I don't know what that means. Is FishDuck right that he doesn't see the field, doesn't make reads and panics in the pocket. Yes. Most of the time watching him was just more frustrating than I could stand. Then suddenly out of nowhere, he looked great. It was confusing. But I'm confused a lot these days.

I don't have a lot of mixed feelings. A coach builds a long term relationship with a player which goes both ways. I don't expect that relationship to change with a coaching change. So, I expect when MC goes to Miami some Oregon recruits are going to Miami too. I may not like it, but the relationships have been built over time. If Lanning or any of our other new coaches have relationships with players they recruited at former schools I expect the same thing. Fans of the other schools probably won't like that either.

His comments may have been ill advised, but he was asked a question and answered it honestly, if not tactfully. Don't know a lot about Alabama academics, but I'm pretty sure not many players choose Alabama for its great academics. I always remember the saying in Kentucky when I lived there in the 80's, "Thank God for Mississippi!" because Mississippi kept Kentucky from being last in everything. I'll give Alabama credit, I never heard, "Thank God for Alabama." in the same context. I do know of one person who got into academic trouble when he transferred from Alabama and a lot of his credit wouldn't transfer to the new school.

This may sound kind of weird, but when comparing them and having seen both play a good bit, I'll take Nix at his worst over Brown at his worst any time. That is to say, Bo has run into problems when he has tried to do too much, Brown was awful at times because he didn't try to do enough and the entire offense floundered at those times. We saw that AB could indeed throw the ball down field in the second half against OK, I wondered out loud where that had been all season. Maybe it was lack of confidence or just coaching discouraging it. I don't know, but as a fan it was frustrating. Bo could be the opposite, when he errs it tends to be in being a little reckless. I'll take a great talent that can be a little reckless any time. I'm looking forward to the competition, I think he'll be pressed by the young guys.

Yeah, strong arm, good release for a Soph. and he can do some damage with his legs too.

I'm one who loves him. He's a little off the wall sometimes, but usually very funny when he is. On this topic, I think he has a point.

This one's a bit shocking! Even if Verdell is coming back, Dye proved this year he can compete for reps with anyone. I could see him leaving to earn a pay check in the NFL, but transferring now is puzzling.

Bo has always had all the tools to be great. Greatness tends to come out in the right situation. Maybe this is his time and place. If not, there are a few young guys who will be there to prove it is their time and place. Let the competition begin! Right now Oregon potentially has three terrific QB's. That's an elite position to be in. There are a bunch of top programs out there that would love to have Oregon's QB room right now.

And Oregon is just so much prettier than Georgia or Texas! Looked pretty raw on high school tape, so I can see him not playing a lot right away. He has the physical skills to be really good though. If he doesn't get there on the D side, he just might be a good receiver too. That kind of athletic ability can't be taught.

Good news, a healthy Sean Dollars has a lot of potential to be a great player for Oregon! I expect to see this scenario play out a few times. Any time there is a coaching change, even one we fans like, it leaves players recruited by the old coach a little in limbo. They don't know what plans the new coach has for them, how they fit in. Often with a little re-assuring from the new coach they will be on board. We need to recognize it's a tough time for these young men. I'm happy for the ones who take a little time to see what's going to happen, even explore the portal a little and come back, rather than hit the portal and sign with someone else before they give the new coach a chance.

Know a guy who played at Alabama, then transferred to a school with much higher academic standards. Ended up transferring from the second because he didn't have enough credits to meet his class requirements because many of the Alabama classes were not accepted because they didn't meet the standards of the new school. Ended up playing D2 in the end. KT was smart to go to a place that set him up for a bright future, football or not.

Great article Joshua. I see a lot to this but also think that Haywarduck has a good point about putting a great product on the field. The great products of the past are the reason I am an Oregon fan today (and I think you are the same Joshua). Of course Cristobal made a lot of recruiting progress at Oregon, but I think that the teams he had on the field may have been the reason he didn't get over the hump with some 5 * guys that ended up at places like Georgia, Alabama and Ohio State. Great recruiters are made even better when players are excited to play the kind of football they coach. There is no reason Oregon can't have top 5 classes, maybe not every year, but often. Some argue, that USC has a better chance at that because, well it's in LA and who wants to go to Eugene. Well let me make that argument this way, who wants to go to Athens, Tuscaloosa or Columbus, Ohio? The program and the kind of football we play along with the hard work of the coaches recruiting will bring the players. Lanning seems to have put together a staff full of great recruiters, now put a great product on the field and see what happens. I'm very optimistic.

Sounds like he's not real sure about a decision either way. I'm sure coaches have been talking with him. He may stay yet. I can see wanting to check things out if Dye and/or Verdell are staying. With Cardwell also in the mix, seeing the field may be hard. Yeah, this might be a sign one or both of those guys are staying. Hope he stays. I know the portal is tempting when you're not sure where you are going to fit in yet, but whether this year or next he has the potential to be a star.

Congratulations Coach Lanning. Take some time to celebrate with those guys, then welcome to Oregon.

Right now, Georgia's DBs looking pretty good.

Have a hard time rooting for Alabama. Just say a young man from the high school where I grew up was not treated well by people in the program. Saban was not the problem, fans/supporters of the program were. So, I'd be all in for Georgia anyway, with Lanning coming to Oregon, even more! Go Bull Dogs, then welcome to Coach Lanning and a new exciting era for Oregon football.

I'm not going with all the hand wringing. You want to be the best, you have to play the best. Oregon can lose at GA and still make the playoffs. If Ohio St. hadn't lost to that team up north and won the Big 10 they would have been in after losing to Oregon the first game. BTW, a lot of folks were questioning the OSU game before we played it and won. I would rather have a home and home, but that's not happening now. Go out and play the best schedule you can, wherever you can get the games, prove yourself and you will start getting home and homes.

They are certainly losing some good players, can they now turn around and bring some good ones in. I think the portal is going to be a fickle resource for many programs and players.

I think Oregon fans have a different perspective on this than a lot of people. East Coast folks (I have been living on the east coast and mid west) just see Oregon winning a bunch of games under MC. Oregon fans see his upside of being a great recruiter and relating so well with his players, but we have also seen his down sides of not so exciting, unimaginative offense, mediocre game prep, and sometimes poor in game management. Lanning is in some respects an unknown. He hasn't been a head coach. Oregon is a big stage for a new head coach, so there are questions. I had them myself, but he has come in and changed the culture before he's even moved in, hit homerun after homerun in hiring a staff and shown he speaks the right words, but also listens. So, I understand someone not rating this an A+ hire, but let's see what they are saying in two years. I think this will prove to be one of, if not the, best hire this year or over many years.

Thanks, great article. I am a good example of those all across the country fans who became Oregon football fans because the Duck were simply SO exciting to watch. I lived in Portland for just a little over two years and actually rooted for the team in Corvallis (had alumni friends with lots of extra tickets, and it was the short Erikson era there), but the Duck's style of play won me over and I haven't faltered since. I'm so excited about the staff that Lanning is putting together, but like you hope for a return to the kind of offensive philosophy that defined Oregon football for so long. Play fast, play with speed, game plan for chunk plays running and passing and have a lot of fun while working hard at it! Add this to Lanning's defense and the sky's the limit for Oregon football.