OceaniaDuck

I'm also hopeful that Bo will be OK to play in the game against Utah. However, I have my doubts or else this wouldn't be a topic of conversation right now. If TT is starting, maybe KD needs to tweak the offense to account for his lack of experience and play to his strengths, as well as emphasize ball security. Maybe more of an option type spread offense similar to what Chip Kelly did when Justin Roper was thrust into the starting QB role in the Ducks bowl game against South Florida back in 2007. The vast majority of plays will be rushing plays with just enough passing to keep the opposing D honest. Oregon was able to move the ball and score handily in that game. Of course, the D will have to step up to keep the game from going out of hand. But if the necessary tweaks are made to the offense if TT is starting, I'm confident the Ducks have a fighting chance to just pull out the win.

Wow, that is fairly significant. Maybe, just maybe there is a chance to hopefully convince both USC and UCLA to stay in the conference, especially with the new CFP format.

Having no backup at QB that is prepared to step in and play competently when the starting QB goes down has been the Ducks Achilles heel for as long as I can remember. I cringed whenever I saw Bo Nix being used constantly on QB keeper plays, and unfortunately our worst nightmare came true in the 4th quarter at a critical juncture in a close game. I was thinking to myself as I was watching the game that KD needs to limit using Nix on those types of plays as that increases his chance of being injured. I'm not sure what it is that the Ducks seem to always have no prepared backup QB to call on when needed. That's another vicious cycle that maybe DL can break as he makes his assessments when it comes to game planning and preparation. As for TT, I think his time at Oregon is done - maybe he just needs to enter the transfer portal and maybe a fresh start at another program may somehow rejuvenate the fire in that kid. Also time to give Jay Butterfield a look and see how he does in actual game situations. Also, hoping Bo Nix will be ok.

I hope PAC-12 does its darndest to at least keep UCLA in the conference and then add SDSU to replace USC. Barring USC changing its mind, that would be the best scenario IMHO. Again IMHO, SMU not a good fit for the PAC-12. But then again maybe I'm just too old and a staunch traditionalist lol.

Mike Leach certainly helped to make the conference...um, interesting lol. In all seriousness, Leach IMHO was a great hire by Wazzu considering how difficult it can be to recruit players there, and Leach is the consummate "do more with less" coach (other than Kyle Whittingham). His schemes certainly gave Wazzu a fighting chance to win games even against the big boys in and out of conference. I do miss his quips during interviews - very good HC IMO.

Of course, we want to reward good work and DL so far has been proving to be a good hire. I do agree that we need to see consistent results before we give a blank check to DL though. One school that comes to mind which IMHO is a good lesson to tread carefully is Notre Dame, when they struck out two times in a row with Tyrone Willingham and Charlie Weis. Both coaches initially started out very good and won all kinds of coaching accolades but ended up fizzling out very quickly after the contract extensions were signed and bonuses were given. Unfortunately, Oregon has been considered a stepping-stone in recent times but hopefully DL will end that cycle if he pans out to be a great HC. As an aside, in the case of Marc Helfrich, IMHO what did him in was his poor DC hires. Oregon's O under him was actually still pretty prolific but the Swiss-cheese D especially under Brady Hoke couldn't stop anybody. The D under Don Pellum before Hoke came along was meh, but that embarrassing collapse after halftime playing TCU in the 2016 Alamo Bowl after being up 31-0 should never have happened. If Helfrich had made better DC hires, I surmise he would've been the Ducks HC a little while longer if not up until now.

If I had to do anything with scheduling, I would always schedule a OOC cupcake gimme as the first game, then go ahead and schedule the defending national champs for the next game if you want. With a cupcake gimme, at least the team can get a chance to shake off the rust, examine perhaps where improvement is needed in execution and build confidence with a win. And I agree with many others, the "neutral" field concept with SEC teams is a joke. Sure, the game is not technically at a particular team's home venue, but I would prefer a home-and-home series or at least alternate between West and South "neutral" sites or no deal. I do agree that in order to be considered among the best, you have to play the best and win at least half those matchups. As much as it pains me to say it, I don't think it's an exaggeration to say the SEC is the best conference right now as in fairly recent history, the SEC champs have more often than not defeated champs from every other conference in the natties. PAC-12 teams can definitely be powerhouses as Pete Carroll had proved when he was HC at USC. He understood that you need to dominate the trenches and I think that's where many very good PAC-12 teams unfortunately can fall short.

My hope is that somehow UCLA stays in the PAC and the conference adds SDSU to replace USC. Optimally, I'd love USC to stay as well but according to some articles I read, USC is a done-deal with the B1G. To me, the other proposed schools such as SMU and UNLV just don't seem like a good fit with the PAC. I just wish the conference never hired Larry Scott as PAC-12 Commissioner as IMHO, he was the main catalyst that drove the conference into the ground.

Auburn is a toxic dumpster fire anyways. IMHO, Harsin was set up to fail from his first day on the job.

I'm going to go against the grain here and say that IMHO MC will eventually right the ship at The U. He probably doesn't have the right kind of roster that fits his brand of football - yes, it was boring lol but it did get us a Rose Bowl victory - patience will need to be a virtue for Miami fans unfortunately. On the bright side, MC did continue to establish the foundation of recruiting blue-chip players to Eugene that Taggart started and he did get it right when it came to upgrading Oregon's O-line. I think we need to cut the guy some slack lol.

Agree with others that Thompson did not look impressive in the times he was put under center. Sad to say, I think the kid has all but given up and probably would benefit from a fresh start with another program that fits his skill set. I do agree with SmithRiverDuck that we need to keep Butterfield from being tempted to enter the transfer portal as well. Oregon used to to have a knack for developing QB's and that seems like a lost art now - remember when Mariota was starter from his freshman year with the Ducks and actually did pretty well in his first year? For all intents and purposes, Bo is gone after this season and like another poster had stated, we need to pray hard that Dante Moore is the real deal. Additionally, Oregon's Achilles heel has always been a lack of quality depth at QB. Once the starting QB goes down, it's a foregone conclusion that so goes the rest of the season. I remember when Dennis Dixon went down when the Ducks were purportedly in line to play in the natty, and then when Vernon Adams went down in the 2015 Alamo Bowl which resulted in that embarrassing collapse after being up 31-0 at halftime that allowed TCU to win the game in overtime. Anyways, back to TT, I think the kid doesn't want to be here anymore and we shouldn't force him to stay where he probably doesn't want to be.

I doubt DL will be interested in the Auburn job - that place is a toxic dumpster fire. Unfortunately, if DL ends up eventually taking Oregon to the CFP or even winning a Natty here, blue-blood programs that have openings I surmise will come knocking at his door - that's just the nature of the beast. If Georgia or 'Bama come calling, it's a foregone conclusion that DL will be done at Oregon lol.

I'm rooting for both of them in a shootout as I have one of the QB's on my FF roster lol. I'll be happy either way whoever wins although in one of the earlier posts, I do agree Mariota does need the W more at this point in his career.

IMHO, I think the Ducks and the remaining PAC teams are better off staying together as there will be more of a shot to make the CFP when the new format kicks in as compared to the chances in a crowded B1G conference.

Let USC go to the B1G and risk turning into another "Nebraska". I think it's worth it for the PAC to try to keep UCLA and add SDSU if USC does indeed go forward to bolt from the conference. I think the PAC will survive in that scenario. Who knows, maybe eventually USC may ask to be readmitted in the future if it turns out that things are not what they hoped.

I think San Diego State would be a good addition for the PAC. Additionally, IMHO, SDSU is also the best fit for the conference compared to the other proposed schools. Of course, the optimal outcome is both USC and UCLA changing their minds and opting to stay in the PAC-12. However, if the PAC-12 can somehow keep UCLA in the conference and add SDSU, I think the PAC has a very good chance of surviving and even thriving. Let USC go to the B1G if that's what they want - who knows, the Trojans football team may end up becoming Nebraska 2.0.

Was rooting for 'Zona to somehow pull off an upset on the USC Traitors but unfortunately too little, too late. The Wildcats actually did better than I thought they would though, as I was expecting a blowout. If USC somehow makes it to the CFP, they will get blown out with that crappy defense. Hoping for UCLA to throttle them in their annual matchup and redeem ol' Chip somewhat.

There are plenty of very good skill players out West - the main problem is a dearth of O and D linemen, probably more so D linemen that are big AND fast like you find on many SEC teams. I'm sure DL knows this and will recruit accordingly. Before him, Pete Carroll totally understood that you have to control the trenches on both sides of the ball which I would say is a primary reason why USC was as dominant as it was most times while he was HC. Heck, they even beat highly ranked Auburn teams (at the time) twice in a home and home and thoroughly destroyed Arkansas twice as well, which can be a decent SEC team at times. IMHO, if PAC-12 teams can recruit linemen like those that play in the SEC, the upper tier conference teams especially would be much more competitive/dominant in their OOC games. I'm going to go against the grain and despite what many say about HC Cristobal, at least he got it right about upgrading Oregon's O-line. That said, in both teams' current states, if Oregon and Georgia were to play each other again, IMHO Oregon would be more competitive, but unfortunately would still fall short, 34-19 as Georgia is a team that is at a whole different level than practically every D-1 team save 'Bama and maybe Tennessee.

There is still an outside shot to keep UCLA in the conference according to several articles by Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury News. If the PAC-12 loses USC which IMHO is already a done deal but succeeds in keeping UCLA, I think somehow the conference will survive. IMHO, San Diego State joining the conference to replace USC will help to soften the blow a little bit and still make the PAC-12 an attractive option for top-tier California recruits.

I would've rooted for USC in normal circumstances, but given they are traitors, it's a no-brainer for me - I want Utah to win. I also hope Lincoln Riley gets exposed as the all-offense no defense HC he really is and they fall flat when they join the B1G. If Utah loses and the Ducks make it to the PAC-12 championship game, I hope USC also makes it so our beloved Ducks can destroy them. Even if Oregon wins out it doesn't matter what USC does because everyone will only remember the 49-3 Georgia massacre at the beginning of the season. So no CFP for any PAC-12 team this year as the perception will still be that we are a weak conference.

UCLA definitely played the CK brand of offense that we all expect. Going a little bit off-topic, I hope UCLA stays in the PAC-12 and maybe San Diego St brought in to replace the departing USC. I think USC already hell-bent on going to the B1G and nothing will change their minds at this point.

If you were talking to me after that massacre by Georgia, I would've said "heck no!" lol. But reflecting after that initial utter disappointment, Bo is actually the best QB on the roster to lead the Ducks until his successor can be developed. On a related note, I just hope the current coaches put a stop to this rent-a-QB baloney and develop QB's from the ground up like the Ducks used to do.

Yes, MC's offensive scheme may have been boring to watch, but let's give the guy credit for showing that blue-chip talent can indeed be recruited to Eugene. And he did get it right at least when it came to beefing up the O-line. Just imagine if CK had the O-line we do now when he was still HC for the Ducks. It wouldn't be a stretch IMHO to say that we would have a BCS trophy - or two - sitting on the shelf. I'll admit that I was very skeptical when Taggart and then Cristobal were talking about recruiting 5-star talent to play for the U of O - I was still in the school of "let's hire a HC that can do more with less". Lol.