mikethehiker

If we win out, I think we land in the #5 or #4 spot. There is still an interesting scenario where Ohio St., Indiana, and Oregon all finish 1-2-3. I believe Texas A&M will lose to Texas which will open the door for Alabama to beat Georgia again in the SEC title game. Then it becomes a beauty contest between Ole Miss and Oregon for the #4 spot unless.... Texas Tech trips up. Then Oregon and Ole Miss are fighting for the #3 spot. I don't see how a 2-loss Alabama climbs to #3 even with an SEC title.

The bottom line is if we lose to USC, they are getting a playoff spot before OBD. We may both still get in, but they would go first. This should be considered a must win.

It was really encouraging to see the Beast with 8 catches tonight. We need that level of production from our playmakers. Great night for Dante!

Oregon 24-3 2 turnovers 2 sacks 183 passing yards

I think this year's Ohio St. team is running a similar path to Georgia's repeat title in 2022. The offense may not be quite as explosive, but they haven't even broken a sweat this year. For that reason, I'd like to avoid their side of the bracket if at all possible. The problem I see is that if we win out, it's very likely that we climb to the #5 or #4 position behind OSU, Indiana, and the SEC champ. If we lose another game, we likely lose a home playoff game. However, the highest priority should be getting into the right rhythm at the right time and let the chips fall where they may. Someone else noted that this could be a 3rd consecutive weather hampered game for OBD. This is good practice, because this is a very likely scenario for a mid-December home playoff game.

My condolences to you and your family. Coming up on one year without our Rottie, Roxy. Still feels like she should be greeting us when we come in. 🥲

I do not put much stock into this due to the inclement weather the past two games, but interesting nonetheless. This was the Ducks lowest 2-game point total (39) in consecutive games since a 32-47 bowl loss to Oklahoma on 12/29/21 followed by the 3-49 loss to Georgia in the season opener on 9/3/22. We also combined for only 17 points in two non-consecutive Utah blowouts in ‘21. In the same season, you have to go back to 2019 in consecutive wins against Stanford (21-6 on 9/21/19) and Cal (17-7 on 10/5/19). I don’t miss Mario-ball one bit.

As much as I want to see us pound the football, we have got to get the ball into our best players’ hands. If DAK and Sadiq don’t have 15 catches between them, we’re letting defenses off too easy. We have to learn how to get the ball to our playmakers. The key to all of it is Dante’s ability to read the defense, audible out of bad plays, know where he wants to go with the ball, and adjust protections as needed. We will go as far as Dante can take us.

Ducks 31-13 2 turnovers 4 sacks 227 passing yards

Thank you, all!! I thought it would be fun to talk X's and O's as a change of pace on a bye week and I appreciate the thought provoking responses. I certainly don't understand everything the defense is doing out there or what the coaches are asking each player to do, but I want to learn more and avoid coming to sensational conclusions. Everything happens so fast and decisions have to be reflexive. Instincts are crucial not only as a matter of experience in the position, but experience playing with the guys next to you. Lastly, I still cannot believe that we are the #1 pass defense in college football! I hope this trend continues! Go Ducks!

Lastly, Play 8 is 12:32 in the 4th quarter, 1st and 10 at the Oregon 47. This run stop is brought you by our awesome defensive line, specifically, Bear Alexander. We are used to seeing this a lot this year, but unfortunately, if our DLine do not beat block and get the back early, we tend to give up a lot of yards. I hope this is Ok. I love to look at X’s and O’s and I know I’m not as knowledgeable as many of you. What are your thoughts or observations?

Play 7 is 2:57 in the 3rd quarter, 3rd and 5 at the Wisconsin 10, very next play. This time it looks like Boettcher is on a run blitz. He’s way ahead of the lineman looking to block him and does a great job attacking the ball side of the ball carrier forcing a fumble.

Play 6 is 3:31 in the 3rd quarter, 2nd and 5 at the Wisconsin 10. I believe it’s Devon Jackson this time doing a very nice job of beating the block and filling the gap at the line of scrimmage for a very nice tackle.

Play 5 is 11:52 in the 3rd quarter, 2nd and 15 at the Wisconsin 31. Tight end #88 for Wisconsin crashes down on our defensive end and then kicks out our linebacker to open a perfect hole for a play that didn’t look like it was designed to go that direction. Thieneman again to the rescue and a massive gain of 18 yards.

Play 4 is 0:50 in the 2nd quarter, 3rd and 5 at the Wisconsin 38. We have a chance to get the ball back with a stop and a timeout, but Wisconsin gets a great push up front and our linebackers again are easily blocked downfield by linemen. Run goes for 6 yards and a first down.