Mic

Didn't we see many of these counter screens not work against Stanford? Yeah, when they did they were pretty nifty like when Cota raced to the end zone, but when they didn't they often went for no yards or negative yards. If a good defensive unit prepares well for this scheme it would seem prudent to me to prepare a trap for them where they're made to think another one is coming and WHAMMO! the ball goes an entirely different direction to another player.. See Coach Leach on this one.

Exactly why I liked him. Now, he's speaking hurtfully (perhaps) to a few who might be sensitive to speech like this but he gets his point across - albeit in a coarse manner. The 'fat little girlfriends' speech was his attempt to get players to focus on football instead of flattery (and biology). Good luck with that.

Lanning's mind moves in more than just one direction. Perhaps, for Cristobal, the box is the whole picture and he sees little outside it.

While I'd luv to see a 30 point win, I think that unlikely. Highly unlikely. If I'm a Wildcat this alone would fire me up to play my heart out. A 10 point win will be nice. With a 70 pt O/U the gaming houses are expecting a shootout with Oregon -13. We'll see.

Oregon has got to do better than 110th in the FBS (out of 132 teams). Good for James getting his shot at it. The competition for the role is always a good thing. Imagine how tough the Ducks would be to beat if they had a consistently good punter who could maintain a 44 yard average? I wonder: do good HS punters turn their back on teams like Oregon because our team disdain's many 4th downs and opts to go for it instead?

No mention of the problem with penalties. To his defense he wasn't asked by the reporters about it.

For some reason I am unable to open this article. My laptop doesn't like it, I guess.

Not sure Charles what you mean by "Stoney-Brooking it" nor the verb that Drew Heikes coined for it. (btw, these are my favorite unis - the lemon yellow w/green numbers and the chrome wings on the helmet - for what it's worth).

Yep. It's easy to forget that little fact. Young men with more than just football on their minds - or maybe it's why they play football in the first place going all the way back to middle school and High school.

What's the purpose of the knee-less pants, to help the players run faster? Over a century and 1/4 and there's no longer the need to protect the knees? Hmm.

Not really a fan, but they chose them. I kinda worry about knee burns on the carpet, tho. The shorts seem ill-advised to me.

I liked Mike Leach. Except when the Ducks were playing his team in Pullman. I liked his candid zaniness. His irrelevant humor and his general disdain of the press media. But he could be garrulous at times and I think he liked to pull the media's strings to get attention and to let them know he didn't much care for them. It got old after awhile.

I don't think Lanning will let this team get complacent. Heck, they have absolutely nothing to get complacent about. If they look like they are starting to go into stall-mode he should just remind them of that 49-3 'education' they got in Atlanta.

Short answer: No. Long answer: No, not very much.

Agreed. I gotta think being an O.C. for just a very short time period does not exactly qualify one for H.C. duties, Dilly hasn't been at Oregon long enough to create that kinda of track record, imo. Lanning did it quickly, but then Georgia had the best Defense in the country for two straight years running. Oregon hasn't had the best anything yet for two straight years, let alone the best Offense. Dilly needs more time to prove himself, I think. But what do I know, really?

In all honesty, probably someone who most of us have never heard of or know very little about. However, some clues do present themselves such as: 1) which Offensive minds has Dan Lanning's path crossed in his rather brief time (since he's only 36) in this league? 2) of those few, which ones are currently NOT and O.C and would see the move as a promotion? and 3) Of those even fewer, which ones are probably in their 30's or at most 40's? Isay the last because it would seem very awkward for a 36 yr-old HC bossing around a 55-60 yr-old coach with more experience than Dan Lanning's been around. Just my 2 cents worth.

If Hawaii isn't on the radar of just about every school (save Stanford and Yale) then that's on them. There are an awful lot of talented, big and ferocious players coming out of Hawaii and American Samoa. Oregon has it dialed in and I hope they keep it that way.

Given this analysis, I guess we start penciling in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and Clemson. Unless the quirky 'Football Gods' have their say. Lord, I certainly hope they do!

Odd how the 'Football Gods' pick some players out for injury problems like McCormick and Flowe. Then you think of guys like Tom Brady who have played all those years of HS, College and Pro ball without ever suffering a career or even season-ending injury. At least, not a serious injury like McCormick's had to deal with.

DaniD... I see the spell-check demon's getting you as well: Nixon? Lowe? ((dam_ed spell check)... I sure hope Lanning & staff don't rely on the sp-ckr when drawing up plans and plays!! Happens to all of us.

More likely some heavy lifting (politicking) by the various AD's and certain 'esteemed' members of the Press. Bo left Auburn. He probably made more enemies with that move than we'll ever know.

This is a much more realistic goal for the Ducks. Heck, even finishing 8-4 wouldn't be a 'bust' of a year, imo. I'm hoping for 10-2 and even that won't be easy but quite remarkable if it happens.

You make a good point, but there's still enough of the season left to correct the things that need correcting. And enough of the season left for a lot of things, good and bad, to happen. I think an expectation of making the Playoffs in Lanning's 1st year are unrealistic, as nice as that would be.

Oh no. Oregon (I hope!) doesn't ever get snubbed by the Playoff committee because I don't think it will be another 49-3 drubbing, no matter who O plays. This team is vastly improved since week one and playoff teams get noticed by recruits across the country. Did you see what Missouri managed to do with Georgia? And I think Oregon would match up well against this Missouri team. If O is good enough to make the Playoffs, they will be good enough to give a good account of themselves.

Oh, I think they're getting better and better with that. Lanning, if he's half the coach we hope he is, has got to have them focused game-to-game looking forward. This is a different team than the one that flew down to Atlanta and got the cold water thrown in their face.