Nevada Dawg

I never liked MC as a coach from the first game I watched when he went on a forth and 2 late from somewhere around mid-field, got stuffed, and the opponent (maybe Stanford?), moved the ball a bit and kicked a last minute. field goal to win. Why he didn't punt the ball for a sure win was beyond me. I was really incensed by Mario not having the Ducks more game ready against Utah for either game last year. I understand that much of Utah's squad returned this year. Having said that, I can almost guarantee that this year's Utah game will bear faint resemblance to last year, not only because the Ducks have an experienced and far superior QB now, but also because Lanning will have them ready to play the damn football game in a way that Cristobal never could. Yeah, Cristobal did you a big favor by leaving and you made the most of it by hiring DL. Congrats!

I'm with Debbie Duck: It is an undefeated UCLA or bust for the PAC-12 this year as far as playoffs go. My prediction: Bust after the Ducks throttle the Bruins tomorrow. Lanning, of course, wants to win em all, but he'll take a first year trip to the Rose Bowl as a sign of a stupendous first year (as well he might).

I think Corso, if he comes, dons the Duck Head. I know he loves the mascot.

Oregon: Improving USC: Overrated (and I thought that prior to USC's losing to Utah

Yeah for us as well, though it may not matter ifno one beats Tennessee.

I think it was in my first post on OBD that I said that you were going to love Lanning while also cautioning against heaping unrealistic expectations on a first-year coach and his staff. I expected miscues on his part and we may see some yet this year. But quite frankly, things are going better so far than I had anticipated. I think what I am seeing here, based on team play and statements from some players, is the establishment of a new culture that players are buying into. A culture based on sound fundamentals will lead down the road to a team chemistry in which the older players will encourage the younger ones to buy in and to work hard to get better every day. If I am right, I expect really good things to happen for the Ducks in the coming years and a level of excitement in Eugene that is something to behold. Rest assured that I will be rooting along with you!

The biggest problem with being in the B1G is that the state with the abundance of high school talent is Ohio and Ohio State "owns" it recruiting-wise. That being the case, they will continue to dominate the B1G. A 12-team playoff field means that Oregon in the PAC-whatever will reach the playoffs more often but...3 out of every 4 seasons seems to be excessive to me.

That is a very good point Kurt and you are probably right. But it certainly would be impossible to to exclude an undefeated PAC-12 champion. I actually think that Bama will have their hands full with Tennessee IF...IF Bryce Young is unable to go on Saturday.

Yes I think so. Bama has been a bit uninspiring this year and could easily have lost two games already. Those things make a difference when there are many potential deserving teams.

In my view, the Ducks have looked very good since week one. I could actually see them running he table but will not be shocked if they don't. UCLA and Utah look legit to me and SC could loom in a title game. If I had to guess, I'd bet that the Ducks end up in a New Year's 6 bowl. Someone in this conference is going to have to be ranked a lot higher to make the playoffs. One of the teams is going to have to become dominant for that to happen I think.

Herbie has had some astoundingly bad picks this year--maybe he is compensating for Corso's absence on Gameday.

If what was said about Robbie today, that he never saw the field in a game for Oregon, is correct, we should recognize that experientially, he is now playing in his 4th or 5th college game. Hopefully the kid will grow up fast and have a good career at Auburn. The potential is there but the SEC wars are a rough baptism for anyone as inexperienced as Ronnie Ashford.

If I may play devil's advocate for a moment, it is possible that Ty's deer-in-the-headlights look is simply due to a lack of meaningful reps in practice with the first-team offense ,and he may never develop if he never gets these reps. Had you seen Justin Fields on the field as a freshman at Georgia, he looked, and was, totally lost trying to run the GA offense. It was a great decision for him to go to Ohio State as the Bucknuts ran an offense tailored to Justin's skill set and he probably had little chance of unseating a less talented but solid college QB as a sophomore or even a junior. Now Justin is in Chicago trying to run a Bears offense that is not well suited to his skill set and he is again struggling. But he got the big pro contract and may develop yet into a star. A change of scenery might be good for Ty, particularly if Nix returns. I don't know how Dillingham operates, but if Ty's skill set does not suit the OC (do we know what that skill set is?) he may not get a real chance to win the starter's job and should probably transfer. If he leaves, good luck to the young man.

I thought that Leach would be a joke in the SEC when his hiring was announced. Yet I was wrong. His teams have consistently been competitive and I actually view my Dawgs visit to Starkvegas in November to be their number 1 possibility for a "trap" game. His spread offense has been a challenge for some SEC defensive coordinators. The first time the DAWGS played MSU, the game became a bit of a shootout. In his first start, J.T. Daniels had to throw for more than 400 yards to subdue the SEC's other bulldogs. Yet I can see the sentiment on this tread toward Leach. Some of his antics and comments are a bit bizarre.

Ohio State is essentially the Clemson of the B1G. This is perhaps the most overrated conference in America and it is even worse for basketball than for football. Charles's statement in comment 7 above about Oregon remaining in the PAC-12 re expansion of the playoffs is right on in my humble opinion.

I throughly enjoyed the Oregon-WSU game and thought as I watched that the Cougs had deserved to be ranked. The proposition that they may determine who wins this conference is perfectly reasonable to me. Having said that, the comeback win by the Ducks was an important accomplishment for getting them by a potential spoiler that other contenders may not so successfully navigate. Oh, and I smiled when I watched the experienced Bo Nix calmly direct the Oregon offense in crunch time. He is not going to be a Heisman candidate but he has the moxie to direct his team when the chips are down, as in the rapidly expiring 4th Quarter in Pullman. I suspect that this is one reason Lanning is apparently sold on Nix for the 2022 season.

I wrote a post to the MC thread and it disappeared when I tried to post it. Part of what I said congrats to all my Duck friends for the team's statement game against a very good BYU team. I knew the team would bounce back and hope that some of the Lanning doubters out there are feeling a heck of a lot better about his hiring. Treat him right and he'll make you proud in the years ahead. As for the Dawgs, I knew that the offense was going to be potent but I am a bit surprised about how well the defense has played, especially the young secondary. Can they run the table? I think that injuries (or the lack thereof and perhaps Alabama) will have a lot to say about that. Also the SEC East division has improved greatly in the past year so who knows. But I do love what I've seen thus far.

Ga Southern beats Nebraska 45-42.

My take: I think it is a solid team but may be a tad inconsistent at times. Next week should say a lot about competitive balance. BYU is good and locked in a donnybrook 20-20 with #9 Baylor. I expect the Ducks to win at Autzen however. As for Georgia, the focus on offense was fuzzy today and, as a result, they settled for four field goals that should have been touchdowns had they had the same focus they had against the Ducks last week. Bennet was just a bit off throwing the ball all day. He seems at his best when he is challenged and Samford did not provide much of that. By the way, Georgia played a ton of people in the second half. Thirteen or fourteen people caught passes from three different OBs. Coach Hatcher of Sanford gave Kirby his first coaching opportunity I believe, and Smart had no interest in running up he score on him or his kids.

My understanding from closely following Georgia recruiting is that this year is subpar for top offensive line recruits and pretty darn good for defensive line prospects. I am no expert, but this is what i am hearing, and not just from the Georgia people.

The last paragraph above is very insightful in my opinion. Also: answer to the question has Noah regressed--No. I think that Georgia OC Todd Monken was probably scheming away from Noah all game. It wouldn't be very smart on his part to go directly at the other team's best defender. Noah will become that beast again, I can almost guarantee it.

Yeah, except they were Big-12 refs.

My second attempt: the first vanished into cyberspace. I stopped by this evening expecting a thread of this type and expecting some discouragement. In my humble opinion, the last sentence of Mic's post is what is needed at this point. CDL is young and all young, inexperienced HCs make mistakes, Saban, Smart, Dabo Swinney, all of them. In his first year, Kirby Smart blew a homecoming game, to Vanderbilt no less, by poor in-game decisions in the 4th Quarter. I had cautioned, all this talking season against setting unrealistic expectations for this coaching staff. I certainly have no right to tell you what to think. But, I am very high on CDL I am also of the opinion that you'll likely much feel better about "what your coach is made of" after he has learned from early mistakes, and recruited a couple more excellent classes building the kind of roster that can consistently compete with the elite programs of college football. Sorry if I sound too preachy, but that's my opinion and I'm sticking with it. Go Ducks!

Yeah, kinda true, but I think that Kirby is correct if Lanning and Lupoi do a lot better job of defending heavy use of tight ends than MC did last year against Utah and Stanford. USC is a paper tiger this year in my opinion but will be tough in the years to come.

I've said all along that I expected this game to be a spirited contest and that I might even place a (small) bet for the Ducks to cover the spread. And I look forward to watching Duck games and pulling hard for them, particularly against the Bruins and Trojans. I do this because I grew up out West and was a big PCC, PAC 8, 10, and 12 fan and hate that the conference has been weakened for the love of money.