Charles Fischer Administrator No. 1 Share Posted October 24, 2023 I've seen a lot of people being critical of Will Stein over the last three days concerning his game-plan and attack versus Washington State. For those who missed my article on Saturday--the WSU defense sold out last year to stop the running attack of Oregon, and it worked for three quarters. Why did the Cougars do that last year? Oregon's receivers were still unproven at that time, thus it made sense to over-commit in the box to stop the rush, and make Oregon beat them through the air...and fortunately the Ducks narrowly came through last year. I believe Coach Stein anticipated a similar game-plan this year from Washington State, since it almost worked last year. I know I was expecting it, thus my article below. But the Cougars came out with a more balanced defense because they now respected Troy Franklin and the TE/Receiver corps, thus it made sense for Oregon to run at them when we could have hat-on-hat in the box. So while Stein guessed wrong on the game-plan, give him credit for not even waiting until halftime to make an adjustment; he made it immediately in the early second quarter. You have to take what the defense gives you and not do a Mario-pound-his-head-into-line when the box is stacked, or throw long when the defense has dual safeties back. (This is why our long-ball has declined) Stein is not perfect, as true of us all, but I glad he is flexible and will pivot quickly to a new game-strategy. Ultimately you want a balanced offense, and I personally do not believe we can ground-and-pound the Utes on Saturday. They are stout inside, probably the most rugged on the D-Line since Texas Tech. You need a balanced offense as the Ducks finished with on this last Saturday, IMHO. Oregon Rushing Yards: 248 Oregon Passing Yards: 293 Keys to the WSU Game That FishDuck is Watching For... FISHDUCK.COM The Cougars of Washington State have a good team that has beaten both Wisconsin and Oregon State, but as a season progresses–teams figure out weaknesses from… 2 6 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OregonDucks No. 2 Share Posted October 25, 2023 (edited) I’m a big believer in attacking an opponent’s weaknesses until they prove that they can stop you. Strength against weakness = recipe for success. Edited October 25, 2023 by OregonDucks 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
