Nevada Dawg

I think the 3/4 placements above reflect the suppositions that Utah will win the Big-12 and FSU the ACC and, hence will enjoy a Bye week. Yet even with a bye, both these teams will be extremely vulnerable IMHO in the coming second round matchups. But what do I know? As we have not had a 12-team playoff with Bye teams, maybe the Bye is more advantageous than I think it is. The biggest advantage I can see at this point is giving the Bye teams an extra week to get more fully healthy for the games to come. I don't want to sound like Cryin Day here, but I sure wish there had been a week between the last regular season game and the SEC championship game last December. Both Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey played for Georgia, valiantly limping around all over the field doing their best to help their team, but they were far from themselves that day. At the end of a tough season time to heal could be tremendously important to a team's fortunes. Sorry to get off track here from the point of the thread. Just free associating in the late evening I guess.

My father-in-law, who was a big Dallas Cowboy fan, had an interesting take on Neon. I used to call him the world's biggest hot dog. He liked that characterization and coined a new nickname for him: Mustard. Interestingly, all his many friends knew of whom he spoke when first hearing Dad's characterization for the first time, and they started using it themselves.

Yeah I am cautious about making any firm predictions for my Dawgs given their regular season schedule with three really tough SEC road games Bama, Texas, and Ole Miss, a neutral site with Clemson and Jon's anticipated playoff schedule should they successfully navigate the regular season. But if the teams with the deepest rosters are advantaged (they are IMO), the Dawgs are about as well-positioned in this regard as anyone.

But where do you get your beer and hot dogs? (Sorry for the facetious comment but I just couldn't help myself as I sit here sipping a bourbon)

Well I am not in the habit of calling out my dumb predictions, but I blew it on this game. Not only were the Chiefs able to run effectively enough to keep the Ravens off balance, but the Ravens patrons are all over OC Monken for giving up early on the run game when he had the best running offense in the AFC. Sometimes games just don't go as you had expected. On the other hand, I did call at the half the turn around shown by in the second half by the Niners, I texted my fervent Niners fans at the half that I remembered as an 11-year old a game when the Niners were ahead of the Lions 24-7 at the half and managed to lose the game, thus keeping them out of the NFL Championship game. Perhaps they could flip the script 67 years later and give some payback to those dreaded cats. TBH I was skeptical and Coach Shanahan is known for blowing Super Bowls, once as OC in Atlanta in 2017, and again a few years back as HC of these same Niners. But damned if the script didn't get flipped almost exactly from the 1957 game. Now a couple of these friends think that I am somewhat of a profound football sage and I'm certainly not going them think otherwise.

Gotta go with the Ravens and that defense. The Baltimore LBs will take away the Chiefs' running game and all-world LB Roquan Smith will not allow Mahomes to wander too long looking for receivers if Ro is in spy mode. Also, two-time Natty winner OC Todd Monken has rejuvenated that Raven offense (and Lamar Jackson) since coming over from Georgia this season. I suspected that would happen and, more importantly, so did Harbaugh.

Yes and I can assure you that the SEC has taken unbelievable heat from Georgia partisans for scheduling a Texas home game the week of the Grand Prix. Dawg fans travel very well, not that there was any risk of taking over the Longhorns' place like they did at Notre Dame in 2017. But now, many fewer will go I suspect and are likely to be driving in from Waco or San Antonio where they cam possibly get rooms at a more reasonable rate.

I would definitely say that OSU is the toughest opponent. They probably just set a record for NIL spending in a single year, almost as if they were saying to Michigan don't expect to beat us again in the foreseeable future. Plus Harbaugh just flew the coop with much of the coaching staff in tow I've been told, so it is unclear how much of Michigan's existing roster will still be there after the Spring portal season. OSU also has a very experienced returning roster, kind of like Michigan last year. They will be a tough out for anyone in 2024 I believe, not that It can't be done. But I do expect them to win the B1G. They are loaded my fellow Duck fans. They have to break in a new QB and that can be tough. But when was the last time they had substandard QB play (although I don't think the guy this year will be 5-Star freshman Julian Sayin).

I have been following some of the gab coming out of the Alabama boards and the commentary on the Georgia board Talk'n Dawgs about astounding missteps by DeBoer in Tuscaloosa. I am floored by what I heard about 5-Star QB Julian Sayin's transfer to Ohio State. Here's the story: The word is that Sayin and his family thought it best to stay at Bama after the retirement of Sabin. After all, DeBoer had had a good run with Penix and the Sayin family thought that a good sign for Julian's development. Yet multiple sources are reporting that Sayin wasn't encouraged to stay, in fact insinuating that Julian's future may be better served elsewhere. This is the guy that won the elite 11 competition for QBs in the fall over the other 10 highest rated QBs in the 2024 class. Sayin and his family wanted to stay at Bama multiple sources have reported but that the Deboer staff suggested his talents might fit better elsewhere. The reason, so the word is that Sayin didn't fit the physical size profile that the new staff likes in its QBs. This is unbelievable if true. Sayin is bigger than Heisman winner Brice Young at Alabama and a host of other very notable college QBs in recent years. Even if I had had the new staff's bias against Sayin's "size profile," I think I'd have kept him around at least through Spring practice to check out his moxie. Instead,they practically run off one of the top recruits in the nation for what I consider a misguided reason. Having said this, I must admit that former Georgia OC Todd Monken also passed on Sayin for the 24 class before jumping to the Baltimore Ravens. Why I don't know, but I suspect he liked future commit (and eventual flip) Dylan Railoa better.TBH.

This should also almost go without saying, but if we have a first timer in 2024, ideally it will be Lanning, and all the sweeter if the title win is over Cryin Day.

I really like ex-Alabama QB Greg McElroy and his podcast Always College Football. The man lives the sport and is very knowledgeable. If you haven't ever listened, I invite you to do so, especially during the Spring when he dissects the major teams' strengths and weakness and starts making season predictions. But...I heard one of his recent podcasts today in which he did something he doesn't ordinarily do: Wear his crimson tinted glasses, I bring it up now because it is relevant to is thread. He argues, not at all convincingly from my perspective, why Kalen DeBoer was about the perfect coaching hire at Alabama. His argument centers around the fact that DeBoer has been amazingly successful everywhere. Yet he ignores, IMHO, his unfamiliarity with that region of the country and how things work there. He may pull it together and make me look foolish for posting this piece, but he's likely to take some real hits in the process. At this point, color me skeptical about this hire.

I still remember the day I heard of Bo's transfer to Oregon and sent Charles a clip of his highlights at Auburn. My message to y'all was if I was right and Bo had his helmet on straight, you are going to like this guy. I figured that if Dan Lanning wanted him as is QB he would succeed admirably in Eugene. Now my predictions, with a few notable exemptions, usually have some merit. But after 49-3 at the Benz in Atlanta, I suspected to hear some flack on Bo. And I wasn't wrong as several of you were expressing some doubts about Bo and Dan Lanning. I remember jumping on the forum urging patience and caution about being too critical--several times that first week, saying that Rome wasn't built in a day and expressing the belief that ultimately you would feel much more positive about your QB, your Coach, and the direction in which your program was moving. Seeing the way that Duck partisans feel about Bo, Lanning, and the Duck program now, I feel good about my earlier predictions. Hey fellow Duck fans, here's my latest prediction: The best is yet to come!

I am told that DeBoer's biggest mistake was not immediately offering Alabama assistant coach Travaris Robinson the Defensive Coordinator's job upon landing in Tuscaloosa. Trob was immensely popular with the Tide players and noting his availability, Kirby Smart immediately snapped him up. This was a real donnybrook. After Trob accepted the Georgia job, Deboer suddenly offered the full DC position at Bama (he was only offered co-DC duties in Athens, Robinson went back to Bama, listened intently to Deboer's vision, and returned to Athens to take up residence, turning down the Bama offer. This is already having consequences in Tuscaloosa. Several of Bama's younger players, and very talented ones at that, have jumped into the portal, and some are strongly considering the Dawgs at this point. Saban's retirement is probably the major impetus for this, but Trob's association with Georgia is a strong pull for at least 2-3 portal entries to Athens. Nothing has happened yet, so we'll see how important the coaching connection proves to be. My first impression is that DeBoer is making some of the same mistakes Brian Harsin did upon moving from Boise St. To Auburn. Harsin brought his entire staff with him as has DeBoer. None of these guys have much knowledge of the SEC or in-roads with the high school coaches in the region, nor do they have much in the way of recruiting chops in the Southeast. This lack of familiarity and knowledge killed Harsin who insisted this stuff wasn't all that important. It was, and there were many around the Auburn program who wanted to "cut bait" with the man after one year. I know DeBoer is a very good football coach, but he'd better wise up lest he suffer the same fate as Harsin. And Bama partisans, if anything, may be less patient than Auburn's. Which brings me back to Trob who knows the South well and is a superstar recruiter. The list of guys he recruited to Tuscaloosa looks like it could be a group of future candidates down the road for the college football Hall of Fame. Not getting this guy to stay in town was, in my opinion, Deboer's biggest flub thus far and a real boon for Kirby Smart. The man has his work cut out for him and I wish him well.

Good luck on this one. Ducks could use a shut-down corner. Is there any positive feedback stemming from his visit? If so after visiting a rival, that may portend very well for the decision.

So can I David, and for all the reasons mentioned above by spartan 2785. What's more, as a former close rival and occasional pain in the Ducks tailfeathers, he would give us Duck fans one more reason to despise the fuskies.

Two observations today re. Lanning (and the decision to stay in Eugene): Guys on the Dawgnation Daily podcast also see Lanning as having an immediate impact on the B1G next year and expect the Ducks to become a powerhouse in that league (I concur) Former Tide QB Greg McElroy, who is well connected to the Bama program confirmed that DL was contacted first in their coaching search and backed off for two reasons, Lanning's interest in finishing the job he had started in Eugene AND the fact that his buyout for leaving was 20 million dollars. But I think the first of those reasons was the more important in my mind.

The Nick Saban I knew some 50 years ago as a player and college student in my class was actually a quiet, humble, and reflective guy who would not inject himself into another's business unless his advice and council was solicited. Whether he is anything close to that guy after 7 national titles and achieving the designation as GOAT of college football coaches is another matter, but we psychologists know that fundamental aspects of ''core personality don't change radically over the years for most people. Thus, I suspect that Saban would meet with the new coach, impress upon him that this program was now his to run, and stress that he would not be expressing any opinions unless they were requested. Still, it will be hard for the new guy not to think about who he is replacing and not have this knowledge affect him in some way. Quite frankly, I wouldn't want to be that guy, but if I were, you can bet that I would soak up every bit of knowledge that I could from the guy.

The biggest issue on Stewart I'm told, one that caused the Dawgs not to pursue him, was his self-admitted mental issues. I have absolutely no idea what these issues are, but I certainly hope he can pull himself together and start to play somewhere close to his potential for the Ducks. Sorry to be a bit of a Debbie Downer here, but one should not always rely on high school recruiting rankings as a predictor of success for a third-year college player.

As i said last night, this reputed move to Tuscaloosa made no sense to me for several reasoons. Later, I lesrned of 20 million reasons to add to my meager list---the buyout. Lanning's story about staying in Eugene was the lead story on the Dawgnation daily platform this morning. Dawg fans generally admire the man and follow his career closely.

DL can certainly be impulsive at times. Hopefully, this is not one of them. If it were three years from now and Oregon had won a natty, one might argue (and I am not one of those ones) that Dan might jump at the chance to go to Tuscaloosa, which ain't all that cool a town. Making the jump at this point would be a serious error in judgment IMHO. I have the feeling that Kirby Smart knew that the Saban retirement was coming at the SEC Championship game. When the two men met at midfield after the game, Kirby allegedly said something like You have been a great coach Nick (note the past tense), and Saban allegedly replied I'm too old for this sh-t. My Bama buddy tells me that Saban has been very critical of the NIL culture and having to re-recruit his roster and coaching staff every year. And who can blame him. It is really much easier these days to be a Pro coach than a College head man.

It is great to see the Ducks so high on the pecking order. Always better to be noticed than overlooked. But, as I have said many times, ratings are largely meaningless except for seeding purposes at the end of the season. What goes on between the lines is what matters and always will be.

Charles, I went through a divorce from a wonderful and talented woman some 35+ years ago. We just grew apart and, thankfully, had no children to complicate matters. We remained friends, babysat each others' dogs for many years, and drifted apart once she'd gone into academic administration and landed high powered jobs elsewhere. She is a University President today and is busy as hell, so we don't have much direct contact any more. Maybe that will change a bit as she is 10 years my junior and is creeping up on retirement age. All this is, of course, tangential to your case, but I just want to add that, though things may be a bit (or a lot) unsettled at this juncture, it will all even out over time. And the great work you do on the forum will keep you focused on OBD and help to retain some consistency and sanity in the months ahead. Best of luck my friend.

Bo has already put up so much film in the last 6 years that the pro scouts know what he is about. Having said this, he can still improve his draft stock a bit in the Senior Bowl by playing with poise and displaying his leadership skills. Good luck young man. The move to Eugene will probably pay dividends come draft day in April.

Great retention. Go Ducks!

I am not sure how my post just above got posted to this thread. I meant it to go to Charles' thread about rooting for the Huskies. Sorry fricken I somehow screwed up.