After beating weaker opponents to go 4-0, the Ducks now face what could be their toughest game of the year at Penn State. Some keys: Defense As we painfully remember, Oregon’s defense was far from championship caliber in their final two games last season, the Rose Bowl and B1G Championship Game. Ohio State did anything they wanted offensively against the ...

Time to Wipe Out the White Out

There should be a ton of momentum swings (both ways) have to respond to the punches every single time. Go Ducks!!! Get me to Saturday

Darren, thank you for the article! This Duck fan agrees that the Duck D needs to play much better (as a unit) than they did in the BIG Title Game and the Rose Bowl.

Of course that was last years unit! This White Out game affords this years D unit their opportunity to make a big statement!

This may be an unfair statement and OBDF members please don't take this wrong because I think DL is great and we are fortunate to have him. However, I am still waiting for that real statement game by a DL defense on the biggest stage!

This could be the game? PSU does not have a vaunted passing attack and the secondary has the pieces to force PSU offense to be one dimensional. Put 8 in the box, mix up your sets and schemes and get PSU in 3rd and long. The Ducks have 2 fire eating EDGE rushers that should be sack happy by games end.

If the D does not dominate then the game may very well be a shootout. Thus it falls to the O Line and Dante Moore. Give Dante protection and I expect the Ducks highly talented skill players to overwhelm the PSU Defense. Dante has spent his football life preparing for big games on the biggest stage! This is a big game.......

Special teams may help decide this game. No mistakes are a must. However, the Ducks must play clean, crisp and aggressive in all 3 phases to stamp out the white out.

I feel confident the Ducks can win this game.

Go Ducks......

Good gosh Darren....what a great title!

The more I watch analysis videos of this game...the less I am sold on Allar, the 'Lion QB. Pack the box and make him perform, and while they will get some explosion pass plays--it will not be enough to outscore Our Beloved Ducks, IMHO.

The tactic would not work against Ohio State, or Indiana...but it could against Penn State. Our offense has to be sharp!

Thank you, Darren. Your article hit all the key (not all the Keystone State keys, I hope) notes for a win in Beaver Stadium.

Blue Chip Roster teams are a different animal, no doubt. In this case, a group of Nittany Lions, desperate for a significant victory, from the head coach on down. Shutting down Wisconsin in Madison last season on the road and playing in the 8th straight game against Big Ten opponents in front of a raucous crowd was noteworthy. However, was there a single player on that Badgers roster who would have started for OBD?

Saturday is a Prove It game for both teams. Dan et al know that the Rose Bowl performance earned a solid 'F.' As you noted, a Prove It game for Dante Moore.

Dante in today's world of CFB is a different animal. How many young players, two seasons removed from high school, would have chosen to sit behind an experienced QB and learn for a season? Not many.

I don't believe there is a D in CFB that can shut down the OBD and PSU offenses. I watched Georgia's D lit up in Knoxville, Tennessee. Georgia, behind gutsy QB play, fought back, got the break it needed when a walk-off FG was missed, and the Dawgs escaped, as Kirby Smart admitted, with a lucky victory. Lucky or not, A W is a W. It's hard to win football games, especially on the road.

OBD's schedule to date has been perfect for breaking in a new starter, at QB and 17 other positions. 18 new starters and OBD is 4-0. This is great coaching that is so easy to take for granted when your team has a significant roster advantage over the opponents.

It's Blue Chip vs. Blue Chip. IMO, this game will come down to TOs, the same thing that happened last December in Indianapolis. I like our QB compared to their QB. I see OBD winning the turnover battle and winning a close game with at least 60 + cumulative points scored.

Thanks again, Darren.

Green Out the White Out! The grass is damn green in Eugene; it will not be whitewashed! 😍

I like our chances much better on defense without TE Tyler Warren on the other side. It really wreaks havoc on a defense when you have to pay so much attention to one player AND you don't have the personnel to neutralize him.

Hopefully, no more double teams, bracket coverage, or otherwise leaning the defense towards that player. Just let the boys pin their ears back and play.

I know they have other great skill players, but I like our backend much better this year.

Offensively, play calls have to get in quickly and our offense should presume they will not be able to hear a word. I wonder if we might sneak in a little more no-huddle and two-minute. Why give the crowd another 40 seconds to ramp up before every play?

Neither team has had to play deep into a 4th quarter. So wear the defense out and don't let them substitute. Let's flip the script and outrush them.

And please, if you have a chance to take your first 3 points on the road in a big game and hostile environment - KICK THE FIELD GOAL! I don't care what the score is. Put points on the board. (Only exception to this is down 4+ with under 2 minutes to play).

All the pressure is on Penn St. Stay ahead of the chains. Stay ahead on the scoreboard. If they don't win this with their upcoming trip to Columbus looming, they are staring at a road playoff game.

IMO for Dante, it will be extremely important to get him going early. A successful first possession with a TD will go a long way towards calming any nerves associated with 100k opposing fans yelling at you.

Nice piece, Darren... love the fire in the title! 🔥

I’ll echo what some others have said: defense is going to be the key. If our D comes out ready to clog lanes, force third downs, and not let PSU get comfortable, we’ve got a real shot. But the offense can’t just show up... the line has to win early, and Dante Moore needs clean pockets.

One idea: mix in a few quick hitters and misdirections early to loosen up their edge set. Let’s get the crowd off balance, then hit ‘em when they overcommit.

If the Ducks handle turnovers, stay disciplined in all three phases, and manage the tempo, I think we green out the white out. Go Ducks! 🦆

Our freshman, and RS freshman corners come from Maryland, and thus a benefit of being in the Big-10 and being able to tell their parents about the games at Penn State, Rutgers, Northwestern, etc. that they can easily travel to instead of coming to Eugene.

And now...this game is a step up for these newbie corners, and I believe they will acquit themselves well. (Penn State wanted Finney bad)

Brandon Finney Jr.

5 hours ago, NYDuck said:

There should be a ton of momentum swings (both ways) have to respond to the punches every single time. Go Ducks!!! Get me to Saturday

Yep, could be a roller coaster ride.

3 hours ago, Charles Fischer said:

Good gosh Darren....what a great title!

The more I watch analysis videos of this game...the less I am sold on Allar, the 'Lion QB. Pack the box and make him perform, and while they will get some explosion pass plays--it will not be enough to outscore Our Beloved Ducks, IMHO.

The tactic would not work against Ohio State, or Indiana...but it could against Penn State. Our offense has to be sharp!

And no all-world tight end this year! Will be exciting.

3 hours ago, Jon Joseph said:

Thank you, Darren. Your article hit all the key (not all the Keystone State keys, I hope) notes for a win in Beaver Stadium.

Blue Chip Roster teams are a different animal, no doubt. In this case, a group of Nittany Lions, desperate for a significant victory, from the head coach on down. Shutting down Wisconsin in Madison last season on the road and playing in the 8th straight game against Big Ten opponents in front of a raucous crowd was noteworthy. However, was there a single player on that Badgers roster who would have started for OBD?

Saturday is a Prove It game for both teams. Dan et al know that the Rose Bowl performance earned a solid 'F.' As you noted, a Prove It game for Dante Moore.

Dante in today's world of CFB is a different animal. How many young players, two seasons removed from high school, would have chosen to sit behind an experienced QB and learn for a season? Not many.

I don't believe there is a D in CFB that can shut down the OBD and PSU offenses. I watched Georgia's D lit up in Knoxville, Tennessee. Georgia, behind gutsy QB play, fought back, got the break it needed when a walk-off FG was missed, and the Dawgs escaped, as Kirby Smart admitted, with a lucky victory. Lucky or not, A W is a W. It's hard to win football games, especially on the road.

OBD's schedule to date has been perfect for breaking in a new starter, at QB and 17 other positions. 18 new starters and OBD is 4-0. This is great coaching that is so easy to take for granted when your team has a significant roster advantage over the opponents.

It's Blue Chip vs. Blue Chip. IMO, this game will come down to TOs, the same thing that happened last December in Indianapolis. I like our QB compared to their QB. I see OBD winning the turnover battle and winning a close game with at least 60 + cumulative points scored.

Thanks again, Darren.

Green Out the White Out! The grass is damn green in Eugene; it will not be whitewashed! 😍

Agree, our qb over theirs. Ours has a much higher ceiling, but theirs does have experience. We'll see!

56 minutes ago, Krsmqn said:

Nice piece, Darren... love the fire in the title! 🔥

I’ll echo what some others have said: defense is going to be the key. If our D comes out ready to clog lanes, force third downs, and not let PSU get comfortable, we’ve got a real shot. But the offense can’t just show up... the line has to win early, and Dante Moore needs clean pockets.

One idea: mix in a few quick hitters and misdirections early to loosen up their edge set. Let’s get the crowd off balance, then hit ‘em when they overcommit.

If the Ducks handle turnovers, stay disciplined in all three phases, and manage the tempo, I think we green out the white out. Go Ducks! 🦆

Good points. We'll find out who the Ducks' true gamers are on Saturday.

46 minutes ago, Charles Fischer said:

Our freshman, and RS freshman corners come from Maryland, and thus a benefit of being in the Big-10 and being able to tell their parents about the games at Penn State, Rutgers, Northwestern, etc. that they can easily travel to instead of coming to Eugene.

And now...this game is a step up for these newbie corners, and I believe they will acquit themselves well. (Penn State wanted Finney bad)

Brandon Finney Jr.

For sure, joining B1G made the Ducks' national recruiting even stronger. Good point.

Good take Darren. It’s good to remember that this is the first real test for both teams.

Big time away games where the home crowd wears their emotions on their cuff can work to the away team’s advantage if they can keep it close through three quarters. If they do, it begins to sew the seeds of doubt, and all that panicked urgency washing over home team coaches and players alike can make some funny things happen.