OregonDucks

Oregon has made Texas a priority going back to the Chip Kelly era (e.g., LMJ, Daron Thomas) and Dan Lanning and staff are certainly in contention for top high school players in the state. Scheduling OOC games near or in Texas is not about impressing recruits, it's about making it convenient for family and friends to attend a game and being talked about locally.

I like this approach but would add Oregon State as a permanent OOC opponent (if they ever get over Oregon leaving for the B1G) and focus on teams in key recruiting areas (e.g., Texas, Bay Area, Arizona) with lower level opponents (e.g., MWC, Sun Belt, C-USA, AAC). With the expanded playoffs and the B1G scheduling, Oregon does not need to schedule elite teams OOC. We'll play them in the post-season, if we are good enough. Hopefully, Oregon never has to travel to the Palouse again...

Oregon's defense might be better this year than the 2019 defense, even if the stats don't show it because they are playing against more elite QBs and offenses this season... I hope that your gutsy season prediction comes true THIS YEAR! [Oregon's scoring defense is currently ranked #6 at 11.8 ppg]

Oregon's defense was ranked #9 in points allowed per game (16.5 ppg). Interestingly, first year defensive coordinator, Dan Lanning's Georgia defense was ranked #1 that year (12.6 ppg). Dan Lanning knows a thing or two about great defenses... 2019 College Football Team Defense | College Football at Sports-Reference.com WWW.SPORTS-REFERENCE.COM Check out the 2019 College Football Team Defense and more about College Football at Sports-Reference.com

Although it may be down a bit this year, the SEC will remain the top conference until someone can knock them off. At the end of the day, national championships are what counts and the SEC has dominated in that department. Ohio State, Clemson and Florida State have been the only teams that have been able to go toe-to-toe with the SEC's top teams. As a Duck fan, I'm hoping that Dan Lanning can get Oregon into that group on a regular basis (perhaps as soon as this year!). If the B1G wants to compete with the SEC for championships, they should do everything they can to add Clemson and Florida State when the ACC implodes.

I've seen enough to put USC in the Pac-12 second tear with WSU and Oregon State. Washington and Oregon are clearly the best, most complete teams in the Pac-12. Saturday is going to a HUGE showdown and perhaps a preview of the Pac-12 Championship Game!

I hope that Oregon got that $8M buyout upfront...

Mario NEVER takes responsibility and that is why he will never improve. He's ALWAYS pointing the finger at someone else (e.g., assistant coaches, players), instead of looking in the mirror. As an Oregon fan, I am so glad that Miami took him off our hands! Wonder if the Miami fans will finally listen now...

Honestly, I was pretty dejected when Oregon lost to BOTH Washington and Oregon State to finish the regular season with Bo's injury, some head scratching coaching decisions and a porous defense. The team did finish on a positive note with a last minute, thrilling, come from behind victory against North Carolina in the Holiday Bowl. I give credit to Dan Lanning and his staff for attacking our team's weaknesses in the offseason and, so far, learning when to be aggressive. The team appears to be much improved from last year (especially the defense) and I'm excited to see how they manage this brutal home stretch.

Careful wearing green or yellow up in Seattle, especially alone. I have heard many horror stories... Have a fun and safe trip. GO DUCKS!!!

+1 (and the East coast). IIRC, Dan Lanning said in an interview that moving to the B1G will help with Oregon's national recruiting. Oregon has been scheduling future home-and-home series with teams in or near Texas (e.g., Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Baylor) to maintain that pipeline. Hope that continues with the move to the B1G.

Is it different from the head-scratching Pac-12 scheduling? We don't play in Los Angeles this year and the last time Oregon played in LA was October 21, 2021!!! Despite that, we have recruited Southern California pretty well over the past few years. So well, in fact, that USC was hoping to leave Oregon behind... At least with the move to the B1G, Oregon will maintain a regular presence in the Southern California market.

Oregon will be fine in the B1G. One thing that everyone needs to keep in mind, is that it's a different college football era. Teams no longer have to get through the season with one or fewer loses, with the expanded playoffs. Heck, a team with 3 losses could find themselves in the playoffs some years. I don't like that the expanded playoffs will devalue the regular season but that's the reality. Phunteratc -- Oregon lost to some of the most elite college football programs OOC (e.g., Georgia, Ohio State, LSU, Auburn x2) but, in my opinion, it was due to the talent gap on the offensive and defensive lines, and depth. Christobal and now Lanning have really improved those position groups and built depth through recruiting, as others have pointed out. And Lanning and Tosh have the defense heading in the right direction. Oregon should be one of the top teams in the B1G due to our recruiting and coaching. GatOrlando -- Love your posts. It's great to have your perspective. No, Ohio State and Michigan would do well in any conference; however, they would not have an easier time if they joined the Pac-12. Like most conferences, the middle to bottom of the B1G is not all that impressive. Those programs will also have a harder regular season schedule now that some combination of USC, Oregon, Washington and UCLA will be on the schedule annually. I'm curious to see how B1G and SEC teams will adjust their OOC schedule, given the more difficult conference schedules and expanded playoffs.

Got it. That makes sense. A few years ago, an Oregon player left early to enter the NFL draft, only to not be selected by any team. Some then mentioned that it would make sense for these borderline players with eligibility remaining, who are considering leaving early, to sit down with an advisor (perhaps someone who has played in the League to discuss what’s best for the player and his family) so that they are not just taking the word of an agent (who likely doesn’t have the best interest of the player in mind). Not sure if this has happened but I’m sure there are a number of Duck football alumni, with NFL experience, who would be willing to talk.

Like Joey Harrington said, we'll know a lot more about this team after the Washington game. This team certainly has the talent and experience to compete for a National Championship, including an experienced and Heisman candidate QB. I respectfully disagree with some of the juniors you listed with NFL potential. Tweeners have not done well in the NFL with some notable exceptions. Even LMJ or DAT, as talented as they were, didn't find much success at the next level. Hopefully some of those juniors come back, enjoy the college experience and get degrees/NIL. It'll be interesting to see what Lanning and staff decide to do with the transfer portal next year.

Texas and Oklahoma's offenses look good. Entertaining game, thus far.

I would have preferred that Oregon played the other Pac-4 schools every season but at least it looks like Oregon will play Washington and at least one of the LA schools annually (I believe that there is at least 1 year when we play all 3).

LOL. Didn’t they have all off-season? Little late now to fix that D…

While I agree that the transfer/portal rules need to change, there is some benefit to programs that recruit players who they can develop and learn your culture and system. Plug holes with the transfer portal but always look to recruit and develop your own talent, first. I’m not sure that USC and Washington are built for the long term since they gave prioritized the portal over high school recruiting.

I’m hoping that Oregon’s balanced offense and improved defense will be the difference maker down the stretch. However, I also think that we’ll need to let Bo use his legs more against some of the elite PAC-12 teams, ala Justin Herbert in the Rose Bowl game. This is one of the most brutal stretches that I can remember for Oregon football. If Oregon can get by with one loss or fewer, we should make the college football playoffs!

I would have to believe that this will increase the odds of College GameDay, as I'm sure that ESPN would prefer to advertise for a game on its sister network ABC. And, if I am reading this correctly, Washington has never won a game when hosting ESPN College GameDay (0-2) with one of the losses coming to Oregon 10 years ago (45-24). The other loss came to USC, when Washington was ranked #4. Let's repeat history!!! College GameDay: Locations, all-time appearances, most times hosting WWW.NCAA.COM ESPN's College GameDay pre-game show goes to a different location every week to preview the week's college football action. Find the complete list of locations, schools, appearances and fun facts here.

USC will be a "black out."

I started to believe during the spring game. You could tell that the secondary was covering better, players were flying around and making tackles. Glad that it has continued into the season and we have seen our defensive line step up (including some freshman studs) and be able to apply pressure with a four man rush. We are not going to shut down Washington and USC but I'm anxious to see how well the defensive units perform on those games. Oregon is unlikely to face better offenses in college football this season, even if they make it to the playoffs. Dan, Tosh, and the defensive coaches deserve props. I'm excited about the future and what our program can become with an elite defense.

Those are great! I hope that we wear those uni's during the Washington game or the Civil War.

Lanning, Tosh and company continue to out recruit USC, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. “Why would you want to go to USC, they don’t play defense? Come to Oregon and you can compete for championships and be a first round selection like Gonzo, Kayvon, etc.”