Coaching Leads Ducks to a Loss

[FishDuck Article]

Coaching is what defines a team. In 2010, Oregon’s coaching got them a spot in the BCS National Championship. In 2019, their offensive coaching was so poor that it made a potential NFL Hall of Fame QB look mediocre. And in 2023, at the midpoint of the season, Oregon’s coaching looks… suspect. It was the first possession of the second ...

 

Coaching Leads Ducks to a Loss

FISHDUCK.COM

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Coaching is what defines a team. In 2010, Oregon's coaching got them a spot in the BCS National Championship. In 2019, their offensive...

[Haywarduck]

Best writing yet, not that I agree with all of it, but well done.

 

For me the lack of execution factor was troubling. Some of that can be attributed to being in a hostile stadium, but if you are going for it on 4th down that is the time to win every matchup, and execute every move, didn't happen.

 

Bottomline Washington is a very good team which almost got beat at home against their rival. Their defense stepped up when it had to and our play calling and execution was suspect.

 

We won that game except when it was on the line. Going forward Oregon has to do better when everything matters. That is the trademark of a championship team, Heisman qb, elite coaching staff, and a defense with an edge to it, you make it happen. There is still lots of hope, but the program has to take another step up and forward, not there yet!

 

I also think many who criticize Lanning, players, and others within the program aren't giving the dawgs enough credit. They are a damn good team which challenged us, and stepped up when it mattered. Many of the predictions, mine included, were based on a lack of respect for the program up north. They deserved more respect, tough to say, but next time they deserve to be throttled!

[Log Haulin]

Coaching is a huge part of college football. Put it under a microscope and it's amazing what one will find. But you do that and you lose focus of the entirety of what you are looking at imo. 

 

Lets look at the firat example. "Oregons coaching got them a spot in the BCS National Championship". On the surface this looks like a great season. Super successful and the coach is the greatest.

 

What isn't mentioned is what happened in that game. Under a microscope you find Oregon unsuccessfully running between tackles over and over (coaching). You will also see Oregon not playing to the whistle with Dryer play (execution). You also find poor calls on the field. Oregon also lost that game on a field goal.

 

This is a rough loss. Fans look for ways to pacify themselves in different ways, me included. Expected and understandable. Lanning provided low hanging fruit fans can use to process and heal from a gut wrenching, disappointing loss. I have even heard him likened to Mariø. I disagree, but ok.

 

What we also had here was a young second year head coach that got his team to play at an elite championship level. On the road in an extreamly hostile stadium, Against one of the best teams in the country that absolutely hates him and his team. 

 

Should Oregon have won, I think so. But what I saw was a gritty top level performance that Oregon and it's fans should be extremely proud of. And that leaves me not looking for blame to roast the coach or a player. It leaves me in a state of "WOW, that was amazing."

 

So how can Oregon get better across the board. There were some coaching mistakes for sure. Would those mistakes have changed the outcome...maybe. but that discounts Huskies roll they played in the outcome. Huskies are a damn good team. I hate the Huskies but have to respect them from a talent level.

 

I find it curious how so many praise Lanning and Oregon as a whole for being innovative and forward thinking. But when there are bumps in the road they revert right back to "this is how it's done, this has always been how it's done". I hope Lanning ignores those folks.

 

One day again, Lanning will step outside the box and find success that will be praised and bring glory to Oregon Football. There will be no "I told you so", there will just be celebration with my fellow Duck brothers.

 

So as I said, fans will pacify in different ways. This is my way. Others have theirs. When I disagree I will state as much. Thats why this forum exists. Doesn't make any of us right or wrong. But it is a great platform to move forward.

 

Go Ducks

[1Ducker1]

This game is in the history books, hopefully the Ducks will rise up and learn from it. Next week its the Cougs. 

[Santa Rosa Duck]

Oregon under Coach Lanning is now 0-2 vs Washington. Shameful, both these games were lost due to poor coaching. Last year the trope was Coach Lanning is young and learning. How long is this learning curve? We have another rivalry game coming up November 24th. I am not sure Dan Lanning understands how important these two rivalry games are to the faithful. Next time Dan, take the points. Oregon State will come in with a chip on their shoulder and it appears they are better coached at game time. GO DUCKS!

[Bearlybalanced]

Coach Dan Lanning:  'The middle 8!!!!'  'it's all about the middle 8'

 

Also Coach Dan Lanning (during the middle 8, NOT turning a gifted INT into points): 'uhhh, we're aggressiveeeeee ((terrible decisions & play-calls)) hahahhoa'

 

 

 it's just young hubris.  having just managed to make it out alive of my own YH life-inflection... I don't fault him.. but I hope his turn is quicker than my own20+ years of EXTREME hubris.

Edited October 15, 2023 by Bearlybalanced

[DUCKED]

On 10/15/2023 at 7:59 AM, Log Haulin said:

Coaching is a huge part of college football. Put it under a microscope and it's amazing what one will find. But you do that and you lose focus of the entirety of what you are looking at imo. 

 

Lets look at the firat example. "Oregons coaching got them a spot in the BCS National Championship". On the surface this looks like a great season. Super successful and the coach is the greatest.

 

What isn't mentioned is what happened in that game. Under a microscope you find Oregon unsuccessfully running between tackles over and over (coaching). You will also see Oregon not playing to the whistle with Dryer play (execution). You also find poor calls on the field. Oregon also lost that game on a field goal.

 

This is a rough loss. Fans look for ways to pacify themselves in different ways, me included. Expected and understandable. Lanning provided low hanging fruit fans can use to process and heal from a gut wrenching, disappointing loss. I have even heard him likened to Mariø. I disagree, but ok.

 

What we also had here was a young second year head coach that got his team to play at an elite championship level. On the road in an extreamly hostile stadium, Against one of the best teams in the country that absolutely hates him and his team. 

 

Should Oregon have won, I think so. But what I saw was a gritty top level performance that Oregon and it's fans should be extremely proud of. And that leaves me not looking for blame to roast the coach or a player. It leaves me in a state of "WOW, that was amazing."

 

So how can Oregon get better across the board. There were some coaching mistakes for sure. Would those mistakes have changed the outcome...maybe. but that discounts Huskies roll they played in the outcome. Huskies are a damn good team. I hate the Huskies but have to respect them from a talent level.

 

I find it curious how so many praise Lanning and Oregon as a whole for being innovative and forward thinking. But when there are bumps in the road they revert right back to "this is how it's done, this has always been how it's done". I hope Lanning ignores those folks.

 

One day again, Lanning will step outside the box and find success that will be praised and bring glory to Oregon Football. There will be no "I told you so", there will just be celebration with my fellow Duck brothers.

 

So as I said, fans will pacify in different ways. This is my way. Others have theirs. When I disagree I will state as much. Thats why this forum exists. Doesn't make any of us right or wrong. But it is a great platform to move forward.

 

Go Ducks

Excellent take…..you make many great points.

 

But, while Lanning is unquestionably a great recruiter, the jury is out on his coaching chops. With a few more gut wrenching games under his belt, I suspect his game management skills will improve. I’m still shocked that he made the exact same mistake against the Huskies two years in a row.

 

I think the future looks bright for the Ducks under Lanning. He’s going to get better. Will he be the same coach in year five that he is today? I certainly hope not.

[Annie]

While I was disappointed at some of DL’s decisions, as I  think about it, different ones might not necessarily have led to a win, as WA may have done something different in response.

[HappyToBeADuck]

Thanks Ryan for your thoughts and recap of the coaching decisions made by DL and staff in yesterdays exciting game.

 

It goes without saying that within the excitement a heavy dose of emotional distress was presribed for Duck fans by DL and staff.

 

But let me be clear that as a Duck fan, i am proud of how they played yesterday. And going forward, this talented team is capable of winning out. And perhaps a rematch with the huskies.

 

My take, may not be suitable for OBDF members still suffering emotionally from a defeat snatched from the jaws of victory. It's long, boring and not suitable for a hangover.....

 

IMHO, no players are to blame for the outcome of this game. This is all on the coaching staff. But not based on a few decisions that we get to second guess.........

 

The Ducks didnt lose this game because of DL gambling and taking chances. Ryan, you are correct, we should have put 60 points on the dogs. Well at least 40! Why didn't the Ducks score 40?

 

I am not sure the game plan that Stein used would allow the O to put up 40. In a previous post i was confident the dogs would score between 35 and 42 points. Even with a great defensive effort......so Stein should have made adjustments to that fact.

 

As a Duck If anyone had told me that with 5 minutes left to play in the game, with the lead, that the ball would be in Bo's hand, behind that great Oline, coupled with great RB's, well I would have been estatic.....

 

In spite of a weak game plan on both sides of the ball. This overall game plan is where i put the blame.

 

While caring for my sweet wife the last 2 weeks I got to watch alot of sports talk shows, listen to blogs, view highlights, etc. This last week much of the talk was about the premier match up between the Ducks and huskies.

 

Repeatedly, those with knowledge said that a husky victory hinged on stuffing the run in obvious situations, not letting Bo beat you with his smarts and legs. Pressure Bo and make Bo beat you while scrambling to pass. Bo is not completing 80% of his passes when out of the pocket.

 

Bo's success comes from great play calls and audibles that keep the opponents off balance. Their advice was to stack the box, stuff the run and flush Bo out to the side with the least receivers.

 

Why run straight up the middle on critical 3rd and 4th downs with 8 defenders in the box? I thought Mario's playbook left town with him?

 

The overall offensive game plan was solid but play calls in critical situations were predictable. Thats on the coaches. They made it easy for a great husky team to pull out a victory!

 

These analysts also discussed how the Husky offense takes the edge away from defensive units. They use a running set, then shift so that a player can be in position to seal the edge player. As well as put a man in motion for added blocking.

 

The edge rusher sees the ball carrier coming his way. He has his hands tied with a 330 pound tackle, too. But he then gets sealed by the wide receiver. The lead blocker blocks the cornerback and the running back turms the corner for 8 to 10 yards.

 

They run this play early and often. Why? As the defenders start to creep up and adjust to stop this play, Penix just finds the isolated receiver and drops a dime for a long pass or TD.

 

I viewed numerous versions of the play so there is no way it wasnt on the game film for the staff to view.

 

I cannot blame any Duck defender who gets beat, one on one by a future NFL WR. Especially with Penix dropping dimes. They did a great job in overall coverage or the huskies would have put up 60.

 

Many posters here and on other sites are complaining that the Duck safeties were late or out of position. Maybe...but its difficult to blame them until you see the game film. Offensive formations are designed to deceive the D players. I am not comfortable criticizing when I Only see 2 or 3 of the 22 players on the field. Just not fair to the players..

 

Make no mistake this husky team is a legitimate CFP contender. Yet we had victory in our hands

 

Our awesome players, with 5 minutes left had silenced the rabid husky fan base. 4 minutes, 3 minutes to go, more silence! As the ABC cameras scanned the stands we viewed distraught, distressed and saddened husky fans. 

 

They knew they were going to lose this game.

 

DL's decision to go for it on 4th and 3 was the right call. The preceding play calls were predictable and forced the 4 down situation. Better play calls coach, please.....

 

Stein had nothing in his playbook? Nothing creative? Nothing that the huskies hadn't seen? GEEZ!

 

Turning the ball over on downs at midfield was better than punting. Why? An extra 40 yards may or may not have stopped Penix. I would just be second guessing....

 

A 90 yard drive would have chewed clock and maybe not given Bo a chance to win or tie the game.

 

What did the Ducks in was predictable play calling that the huskies were counting on.....

 

The loss is on the coaching staffs game plan and play calling. Not on Cam's foot. 

 

We proved we can play on the road against a CFP caliber team. Let's make that rematch happen...

 

Go Ducks......

[Jon Joseph]

Oregon - 204 yards rushing

 

Oregon - 9 minutes plus time of possession advantage

 

Oregon - +126 more yards than UW

 

Oregon - 2nd Half - Bo Nix 21-26. Finished with 337 yards more than Penix's 302. But Penix did throw 4 TD passes. 

 

And you take a loss?

 

I'm not here to nitpick Dan Lanning. 0-3 on 4th downs but you make the last one with UW out of TOs and it's game over. And what would have been a goal-line stand for the ages goes by the boards.

 

My main beef. On the play before the 4th down incompletion, James was stuffed. Why wasn't Bucky Irving in the game for this play? No disrespect for James, but Bucky is far better at making something out of nothing.

 

Keep the faith. No letdown and Oregon will be playing UW in Las Vegas on 12/1 for the conference title.

 

Week 7 SP+ ranking

 

Edited October 15, 2023 by Jon Joseph

[PittDuck]

And had OBD converted on one of the fourth downs, Lanning would have been a wizard.  Had they converted on 2 of them, Dan would have been a hero, and hat OBD converted in all 3, he’d be hailed as BBDL!

 

While I too, am upset with the final score, I realize it is still a game, played by kids and nobody is perfect. 
 

I would still rather have DL in charge, rather than MC, WT, or MH running things.  I think Lanning will do great things at Oregon, but perfection won’t be one of them.

[Solar]

Thank you. The most worrisome statement from DL after the game is he thought they had the perfect play for each of those 3 failed conversions.

 

I do feel like Stein's playbook is incomplete for 2-5 yards conversions.

 

When the other team loads the box all the way to the edges, you need to have quick options to get the ball behind the box. A quick seam route to a TE in combo with a drag route by the slot receiver.

 

Also slants to a WR put wide is a much higher percentage throw than a slot receiver running to the sideline.

 

Play action RPO when the line clogs in front of the RB at the mesh.

 

 

[Canvasback]

HappyToBeADuck, great post!

 

Quote

The loss is on the coaching staffs game plan and play calling. Not on Cam's foot. 

 

Although I question DL's decision to forego the field goals, I think the OC's play calling was equally, if not more, instrumental in the outcome of the game. Their DC out-coached our OC most of the game. Stein is young and inexperienced at this level. Hopefully he will learn from this and DL will learn that there's a time to be aggressive, and a time to be conservative. And even if Cam would have made the field goal, that would only have gotten us to OT. No guarantees we would have won.

 

I'm glad DL is our coach and I'll stick with him. I think the verdict is still out on Stein.

Edited October 15, 2023 by Canvasback

[Jon Joseph]

Week 7 SP+ Rankings -

 

1. Michigan

2. Ohio State

3. Georgia

4. Washington

5. Texas

 

6. OREGON

 

7. Oklahoma

8. Penn State

9. Alabama.

10. Notre Dame

 

SP+ Week 7 Rankings Based on Success Against Schedule

 

1. Penn State

2. Oklahoma

3. Michigan

4. Ohio State

5. Washington

6. Florida State

7. Georgia

8. UNC

 

9. OREGON

 

10. Texas

 

SP+ Week 7 Ranking of Teams Oregon has Defeated to Date -

 

Portland State - NR

 

Hawaii - 109

 

Texas Tech - 33

 

Colorado - 78

 

Stanford - 100 (Does this include Stanford's 2nd half in Boulder?)

 

SP+ Week 7 Rankings of Future Ducks Opponents -

 

Washington State -34 - I am happy that Oregon is playing ASU and not Arizona. AZ 44/ Wazzu 6. 516 yards of O for AZ. 234 yards of O for Wazzu. A wounded Cougar is on its way to Autzen.

 

Utah - 24

 

Cal - 73

 

ASU - 90

 

USC - 14 (?) - No offense, but didn't you once have an offense? Train Wreck in South Bend for the D (no surprise,) Special Teams, and the offense. 3 Caleb Williams interceptions equal so long Heisman.

 

Oregon State - 19 - The Beavers looked great last night against UCLA. Moore will likely be a great CFB QB but as of now, is not ready for the big time. 

 

A whole lot of meat is left on this bone.

 

 

[Log Haulin]

On 10/15/2023 at 9:52 AM, Jon Joseph said:

Week 7 SP+ Rankings -

 

1. Michigan

2. Ohio State

3. Georgia

4. Washington

5. Texas

 

6. OREGON

 

7. Oklahoma

8. Penn State

9. Alabama.

10. Notre Dame

 

SP+ Week 7 Rankings Based on Success Against Schedule

 

1. Penn State

2. Oklahoma

3. Michigan

4. Ohio State

5. Washington

6. Florida State

7. Georgia

8. UNC

 

9. OREGON

 

10. Texas

 

SP+ Week 7 Ranking of Teams Oregon has Defeated to Date -

 

Portland State - NR

 

Hawaii - 109

 

Texas Tech - 33

 

Colorado - 78

 

Stanford - 100 (Does this include Stanford's 2nd half in Boulder?)

 

SP+ Week 7 Rankings of Future Ducks Opponents -

 

Washington State -34 - I am happy that Oregon is playing ASU and not Arizona. AZ 44/ Wazzu 6. 516 yards of O for AZ. 234 yards of O for Wazzu. A wounded Cougar is on its way to Autzen.

 

Utah - 24

 

Cal - 73

 

ASU - 90

 

USC - 14 (?) - No offense, but didn't you once have an offense? Train Wreck in South Bend for the D (no surprise,) Special Teams, and the offense. 3 Caleb Williams interceptions equal so long Heisman.

 

Oregon State - 19 - The Beavers looked great last night against UCLA. Moore will likely be a great CFB QB but as of now, is not ready for the big time. 

 

A whole lot of meat is left on this bone.

 

 

College Football Rankings: Predicting the AP Poll Top 25 after Washington outlasts Oregon in a Top 10 showdown

WWW.ON3.COM

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[OregonDucks]

"It was the first possession of the second half, and Bo Nix threw a check-down to a receiver. Not abnormal by any stretch. The issue? It was 3rd and 12, and Oregon was down 22-18."

 

Isn't that what QBs are taught to do, if the downfield receivers are covered?  I do not remember how much time Bo had on this particular play, perhaps he could have extended the play with his legs, but what would people have said, if he forced a throw downfield that was intercepted?

 

I agree that the calls on 4th and short were terrible.  If you are going to throw for it, you better have a great play design to get someone wide open.  Chip Kelly was successful going for it on 4th down due to play design and execution.  We saw neither yesterday.

[Haywarduck]

I suppose the big question is which football decision will be looked at by the coaches and questioned?

 

It is amazing to see fans point out so many flaws in a game plan which almost beat a higher rated team on their field.

 

In the end it will be the coaches looking at the game and deciding not just which players need to improve, but which coaching decision or progression of calls could be improved.

 

It won't take much to shift the outcome and although many on here have great ideas it is the ideas these coaches come up with which will matter. 

 

I guess the only thing I haven't heard answered was why did so many Ducks slip on the turf yesterday. If a conspiracy theory could be cooked up that is one that had me curious as I watched our Ducks battle.

 

Blaming coaches, refs, opposing players dirty plays seems trivial to a really good conspiracy theory in this era of conspiracy theories. 

[Duckdude]

Thanks, Ryan!  Excellent insights…….I agree with you 100%.  Lanning is paid $7 million a year to WIN….and, not to be foolhardy!  The time is NOW to “get with it”!

[DuckFan33]

On 10/15/2023 at 8:28 AM, Santa Rosa Duck said:

Oregon under Coach Lanning is now 0-2 vs Washington. Shameful, both these games were lost due to poor coaching. Last year the trope was Coach Lanning is young and learning. How long is this learning curve? We have another rivalry game coming up November 24th. I am not sure Dan Lanning understands how important these two rivalry games are to the faithful. Next time Dan, take the points. Oregon State will come in with a chip on their shoulder and it appears they are better coached at game time. GO DUCKS!

Even though the coaching decisions were suspect, a  lot of this loss comes from lack of execution at crucial times.  If some of those crucial plays were executed correctly, we wouldn't be lamenting right now.  Also,  what's up with Camden Lewis...multiple kickoffs out of bounds and missing field goals after being rock solid for the first 4 games?

[Jon Sousa]

My three most hated words in sports: Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda. 

 

Yes. We woulda, coulda, shoulda won that game.

 

The only times I disagreed with DL on the calls where the two chip shot field goals that he decided not to take.

 

BUT... if we went into the half with touchdown instead of a field goal, everyone would have been praising his faith in this players. It was a calculated risk, and he took it. Who am I to second guess the guy we all think is the one who will lead this team to playoffs and to a national championship???

 

I totally agreed with the call to go for it instead of punting in the last three minutes of the game. Two reasons:

1) Making it on 4th down would have iced the game. We would have won. 

2) Putting UW back inside the 15 would not have changed the eventual outcome. Penix would have thrown two long passes and they would have scored the touchdown anyway... AND they would have burned more clock having to go the extra 30-40 yards. We would not have had time to come back and score.

 

Dan Lanning and the other coached didn't play a single snap... not on offence or on defense. The called a good game, and for the most part, the players executed very well. I have no complaints.

 

Going into halftime, I felt confident that the Ducks would win the second half... mostly because we were rotating in fresh bodies on the D-line and they didn't have as many bodies to rotate in on the O-line. We got to Penix and hit him good in the second half. He was really hurting late in the 4th quarter. 

 

We did win the second half but by only 1 point. I was suspecting it would be by more than a touchdown.

 

Let's beat them in the final PAC-12 Championship Game!

[Cacker Guy]

On 10/15/2023 at 9:01 AM, HappyToBeADuck said:

 

DL's decision to go for it on 4th and 3 was the right call. The preceding play calls were predictable and forced the 4 down situation. Better play calls coach, please.....

 

Stein had nothing in his playbook? Nothing creative? Nothing that the huskies hadn't seen? GEEZ!

This.  Same with the 4th down play call just before halftime.  Great take, Happy.