[Prediction Contest vs. Texas Tech for the Our Beloved Ducks Forum!]

Texas Tech

45 - 35

1 turnover

2 sacks

325 yards

[Lubbock Tx Weather Forecast]

On 9/7/2023 at 2:08 PM, Log Haulin said:

I think the endzones are north and south. Should be some shade on the west sideline being that late in the day. Not sure what side the visitor sideline is though.

This is true. Most of the west side will be in shade for the whole game but the east side will still be very hot for the first hour or so. Visiting team's sideline will be in the sun but after the first hour it will be fine. I don't expect weather to play a big factor in this game. I've never said this before but I kind of wish it were an afternoon game and Tech could really take advantage of the 100 degree weather.

[Lubbock Tx Weather Forecast]

On 9/5/2023 at 1:18 PM, Mic said:

That was nice to share that, thanks.

I want to win but I also want Oregon fans to come here and have a good time and nothing is more frustrating than missing kickoff because you're waiting in line to get in the stadium.

 

If anyone is traveling to Lubbock feel free to post any questions you may have and I'll do my best to help y'all have a good trip.

[Lubbock Tx Weather Forecast]

I expect the game will be hot for the first hour or so and then as the sun sets will cool off. If this were an afternoon game I would expect the heat to play a bigger factor but with a night game I doubt it will be a big deal.

 

FYI TO ANYONE ATTENDING THE GAME, we are doing some major stadium renovations and it will cause delays getting into the stadium, especially since it's the first game and the staff will need to work out the kinks. I suggest showing up at least 15 minutes prior to when you think you need to be there.

[Thoughts on Texas Tech]

Hard for me to be optimistic but I'll try. Fist of all I'm still very excited to see a great Oregon team come to town. The stadium atmosphere should be fantastic. The TTU team we saw in the first quarter of the Wyoming game is the team we thought we were getting but the other three quarters exposed a lot of problems. 

 

Last year Texas Tech was night and day better at home vs on the road and that trend could very well continue.

 

The Wyoming game felt to me like we got off to a 17-0 lead and at that point the players got lazy and stopped executing. Perhaps the problem was looking ahead to Oregon or perhaps it was that we felt entitled to win the game but either way Wyoming deserves a lot of credit for their grit.

 

I think Tech will correct some of their failings and we will see a more prepared team that is able to compete.

[What? Oregon Has One of CFB's EASIEST Schedules?]

PFF is the worst. Texas Tech will be a road game against a likely top 20 team. Then you have in conference pre-season top 20 matchups in Washington, Utah, USC, and Oregon St. By no means is that an easy schedule.

 

Meanwhile the SEC is playing an 8 game conference schedule and that conference is conspicuously missing from the list.

[Texas Tech - Don't Nap on this B-12 Sleeper]

On 6/25/2023 at 9:25 PM, AnotherOD said:

Shough has had his share of injuries since arriving at TT (not counting one game he was knocked out very, very early) has only played in 10 of 26 possible TT games in 2021 and 2022.

 

While it seems like he has been around college football forever, he has only attempted 10 or more passes in a game in his college career 16 times (for comparison Nix in the same number of career seasons has done it 47 times).

 

Of those 10 games, only 2 have been starts against power 5 opponents that finished the season with a winning record, and in those games had NCAA passing efficiency ratings were 78.9 and 117.0 (1-1).

 

While likely the default starter at TT, and while having overall a good winning percentage in games he has started and played significant snaps in (8-2), he really hasn't "wowed" too many TT fans over the last two years (if checking out fans opinions in a couple TT forums is a fair representation). He's a guy who brought a lot of optimism with him to TT, who seems to generally been the QB who just has been a tiny bit better on paper and gotten the nod. TT fans appear to be somewhat split on how much the injuries should be weighted in their QB debates.

 

On paper, Oregon would have to appear to have a pretty big advantage at QB.

 

One little bit I found interesting was that TS in his one starting season at Oregon (COVID year) was pretty solid with his legs, in 7 games rushing 66 times for 271 yards.

 

In his first 7 games at TT, he rushed 28 times for 19 yards. However, in his last 4 games where TT went 4-0, he (again) rushed 60 times for 264 yards (maybe his game opens up a bit when allowed more opportunities to run, rather than sit in the pocket?) Might be something to keep an eye on?

 

Shough was officially named the starter a couple of weeks ago over backup Behren Morton who many believe is an amazing talent. There was some controversy among the fans as to who should be the starter in 2023 prior to the bowl game against Ole Miss but Shough had his best game as a Red Raider and controlled the game from start to finish over a really good Ole Miss team. After that game the fan base really rallied around Shough and pretty much all agree he should be the starter. The thing that has made Shough good for Tech is is mental ability. He has done a great job of identifying what the defense is giving him and taking it. Kittley's offense gives the QB a lot of responsibility and requires a QB that can identify defenses and make adjustments. Shough did that extremely well last year in his limited time as the starter and I think he will be even better in year two in the offense.

 

Tech fans expect this to be a very competitive game and we believe we have a real chance to walk away with the victory and are excited to play a national brand like Oregon early in the season. I will be shocked if this isn't a top 25 matchup and I personally expect Tech to be ranked somewhere between 18-20.

[SDSU Gives Notice to Leave Mountain West Conference]

On 6/16/2023 at 3:58 PM, Charles Fischer said:

A paywall article today by Canzano was suggesting SDST to do this, since--the Mountain West would certainly take them back if things did not work out.

 

What was interesting is how the loss of the LA market was 5.7 million households, but the SMU (Dallas/Ft. Worth) and San Diego markets would fill in 4.1 million of that divot, which really helps.  The end result would be about a million more households than the Big-12, hence the confidence that the new Pac-12 media contract can meet or exceed the Big-12 contract.

 

Media Market Numbers:

Big-12:  15.1 million after all are on-board.

Pac-12: 16.5 million after SDST and SMU join us.

B1G:     33.9 after the LA schools join them

Although I think the PAC would boost the SMU brand and it would gain market share it really doesn't carry the DFW market. Having lived there I'd say the pecking order is probably UT, TTU, A&M, TCU, OU, Baylor, SMU, Oklahoma St.

I do however think it would be a good thing for teams like Oregon to be able to tell recruits in Texas that they will play a game there most years. But it won't be a big boost for TV viewership.

[Canzano: Pac-12 Teams Agree on "Grant of Rights"]

On 6/8/2023 at 5:36 AM, WoadBlue said:

Swaim is a more outrageous, and at times more nasty, version of Dennis Dodd in that he too is all about the Big 12 and will spread any and all crap that he thinks might be useful to the Big 12. 

That's not really fair to Dodd. Swaim just makes stuff up and is nothing more than an internet troll. Dodd is a real reporter with real sources. Granted he primarily covers Big12 country and his sources have a slant in that direction but he is sourced. Swaim is a hack and most fans of the Big12 teams know it.

[Hate It, New Rumor re AZ and CU Leaving]

On 6/5/2023 at 7:32 PM, Jon Joseph said:

Great thoughts. But again I have to question where the money is coming from.

 

Yarmack's piggy bank is not that fat.

Yeah idk that’s the question. I’m not saying they will or won’t lure CO away. Just saying why they would be attractive to the Big12. 
it’s all gonna come down to the dollars and visibility that GK negotiates. Right now the Big12 has secured a deal for good money and that’s what makes it attractive. 

[Hate It, New Rumor re AZ and CU Leaving]

On 6/5/2023 at 4:50 PM, Jon Joseph said:

Great post. But CU is about to get a Prime lift-off. 

 

1st game at TCU and 2nd game vs Nebraska are scheduled for prime-time TV.

 

I hope the Buffs game at Oregon will receive national attention and I am close to certain that SC at CU will be a prime-time broadcast.

Arizona and CU are attractive on their own without ASU or Utah but I'll admit I think they want the set of 4. The mountain time zone is complimentary to the Big12's current teams and would help them fill late night slots. Plus both football teams seem to be on the way up and Arizona basketball is elite.

 

Can the ACC woo anybody? Seems to me they are in a stale mate where adding any teams would require a new grant of rights to be signed. If they have to scrap the old grant of rights to sign a new one they will lose FSU, Miami, etc.

[Hate It, New Rumor re AZ and CU Leaving]

As someone who follows Big12 media and knows who to believe and who to disregard, I'm here to tell you to ignore anything Swaim says. He just makes stuff up for clicks sometimes they turn out to be true but not because he actually knows something or has a real source.

[Pac-12 Media Rights: How to Interpret a Recent Series of Public Comments by Campus Officials]

On 5/26/2023 at 12:52 PM, Wrathis said:

Not sure who all is making the game come September, but my girlfriend and I just got our tickets. Section 18, Row 2.  Hopefully you're a good representative of the fan base as I've already been told to expect to get hit with tortillas and all manner of taunts/gestures.  I believe the advise was "if you're up big, leave before the game ends bc it's gonna be a tough walk out of there."  Truth is, I wanted my first Duck game to be in Autzen, but I couldn't pass up this opportunity   Cheers!

It's a rowdy fanbase but no worse than others (everyone has their idiots). We have a tradition of throwing tortillas in the air at kickoff and some fans (not most) think it's funny to throw the tortillas at opposing fans. In Section 18 you may get hit just because you are in the lower section and they'll be coming down but at least they are soft and don't hurt.

 

The game day atmosphere should be great for this game and I think you'll have a lot of fun. 99% of fans will be respectful regardless of the game circumstances and I hope your experience is positive.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions about Lubbock or Texas Tech and I'd be happy to answer them.

 

[Pac-12 Media Rights: How to Interpret a Recent Series of Public Comments by Campus Officials]

Hey guys, TTU fan here that has read this blog for a long time because I enjoy cheering for Oregon as my PAC team. I thought I'd chip in on this conversation and say that anything Swaim says you can throw out the window. That guy just makes stuff up that sounds semi reasonable that he thinks people want to hear. It's all click bait.

The Berry Tramel story was more interesting because he's a guy who mostly covers OU but is pretty respected as a regional/Big12 journalist. And he's stayed out of the realignment stories until now.

Anyway looking forward to playing y'all this year and will be cheering for the Ducks in all but one game.

[Oregon vs Texas Tech, 2023 & 2024]

On 7/8/2022 at 12:27 PM, Bearlybalanced said:

I'm actually strongly considering driving over next year to Lubbock from AZ..  is that..  even advisable?   Thanks for your help!

Lubbock can be fun for a day or two but it's not a great destination for an extended stay. But the game day atmosphere is excellent and a lot of fun.

As far as driving goes I'd say it depends on where in Arizona you're coming from and what route you're taking. Santa Fe is a really fun place that has good hiking, cool art scene, and is close to the mountains. Most of southern and eastern NM are desert ranch lands and there isn't much to see there, the exception being Ruidoso which has good hiking in the mountains and I hear a good golf course.

[Oregon vs Texas Tech, 2023 & 2024]

I'm really looking forward to this matchup and the wife and I plan on traveling to the 2024 game in Eugene and spending a week or so in the area.

 

Any advise on where we need to go and what we need to do while there? We're up for anything but we love hiking and going to the local restaurants, coffee shops, and attractions.

[That's It!! Join the SEC!]

I think the most likely scenario is Oregon ends up in the Big12. Obviously this isn't as good as the SEC or BIG but it's honestly a better position than the PAC has been for the last decade. At the football will be fun and competative.