3 hours ago, tee duke said:

Our Defense got a lot of help by their QB's incompletions.

In fairness to our defense on this... They got into the TT QBs head big time. Early pick from Finny and the. A bunch of tipped passes and some sacks coming from the pass rush really sped up his internal clock.

So yeah a lot of incompletions because the ball was out too early and off target. I think quite a few of those throws were also predetermined in that he was going to pass there because that's the play and Oregon blew it up.

5 hours ago, DrJacksPlaidPants said:

Tech’s defense reminded me of Indiana’s defense . Fortunately, their offense reminded me of Oklahoma State’s offense.

I think Tech has a better front for stopping the run though. Our yards per carry were better against Indiana I believe.

Both hace fantastic pass rush off the edges though.

Oregon is going to have to be physical in the rush game against Indiana to give Moore some time to operate.

Beating Indiana away from Autzen will be a higher degree of difficulty.

Tech's billionaire booster

"Reached shortly after the loss, Texas Tech booster Cody Campbell, the financial architect of this made-for-championships roster, told USA TODAY Sports of the 2026 season, "We will double down."

Under 100 yards rushing and a win for the first time in two seasons.

OBD rushed for a net of 64 yards rushing, with sacks against Dante bringing down the net number.

I finally had an opportunity to rewatch the second half and below are my observations:

1. Oregon's defense was obviously dominant. The telecast said it was Oregon's first bowl shutout since the early 1900's Rose Bowl against Penn (1917?). Someone on a podcast said that there are 8+ dudes on Oregon's starting defense who will likely be playing on Sundays and that to win a national championship, we might need to rely on our defense and have our offense manage the game/avoid mistakes. This is the complete opposite of what we've done in past national championship games but is what Coach Lanning has been building towards since he got to Oregon.

2. Dante Moore managed the game well and avoided mistakes (note: the interception was on 4th down and we would have turned the ball over anyway - perhaps he could have shown more patience). He needs to improve his field vision, as he is missing seeing open receivers down the field (e.g., Sadiq had two steps on the defender on a post route on 4th down and it would have been a TD, if Dante could have hit him but for some reason he hesitated/didn't see him).

3. I'm not sure what was up with Oregon's play calling, especially in the second half. Why continue to try to pound the ball between the tackles, when Texas Tech was consistently stopping us for 2 yards? Why continue to call designed QB runs when the first two were stuffed, putting Dante at risk? I would bet that 80% of Oregon's running yards against Texas Tech were to the outside. You have to maintain some balance/threat to run up the middle (perhaps a draw?) but it seemed like we went to inside runs too frequently. I also don't understand why Coach Stein doesn't have WR bubble screen counters or is willing to move the pocket, especially when Dante throws very well on the move. A former Oregon OC (Helfrich?) would fake the bubble screen, with a QB pump fake, and then have the WR run a go route, when defenders were playing aggressive against the play. Not Coach Stein's best game and I hope he gets dialed in before the next game, like Tosh did in the Orange Bowl (as Oregon will need all 3 phases firing against Indiana to win).

4. I understand that Coach Lanning wants to be aggressive but I did not understand the decision to go for it on 4th down at midfield. I believe that Oregon was up 13-0, at the time, and it was clear that: (a) Oregon's defense was dominating Texas Tech's offense and (b) Texas Tech's defense was more than capable of stopping Oregon's offense on a short yardage situation as they had multiple times in the game. In that situation, we should have punted the ball and tried to pin Texas Tech's offense deep in their territory. People will point to "advanced statistics" but those stats are against all teams/defenses, not against a top 10 defense with one, if not the best front sevens in college football who stopped you multiple times in that game already.

5. Brandon Finney, Jr. is an elite cornerback and he is a true freshman. The second interception was an NFL cornerback type of play - recognizing that the receiver that you are covering is not the primary receiver, handing him off to another defender in the area and then dropping back to make a jumping interception in the end zone on someone else's responsibility who was beat - outstanding! Finney also came up in run support and stuffed a RB for a short gain. He is going to be a first round NFL selection and the best corner to have ever played at Oregon. Can you imaging how good he will be in 2 years if Brandon continues to work?!

6. With Ohio State and Georgia loosing this playoff feels wide open. I know that Indiana has an incredible team and Oregon will need to play it's A game but if they can get by the Hoosiers...