As the team continues to gel around new QB Marcus Mari-O-TAH this may be a good problem to have. A TON of playmakers.
Just in the last week I've seen articles about DAT not getting the ball enough. I've seen complaints that Colt Lyerla doesn't get the ball enough. Why did our starting running back only get 13 carries last week? I want to see more of this new Braylon Addison??? Marcus is so fast, shouldn't he carry the ball more? I want I want I want. Jake Fisher scored a TD! Should we give him a few carries????
Chip Kelly may have too many weapons this year. At some point, we will see them all. If you are a fan of one guy in particular this may be a long season.
Let's go down the list of a perfect game. FIRST THE RUN GAME -
Kenjon Barner - Starting running back, when LMJ left to play on Sunday's last year averaging over 30 carries per game people asked if Kenjon was ready for all that. My opinion he doesn't need to do what LMJ did.
Kenjon gets 25 touches per game. This may include a reception or two our of the backfield.
DAT - Shouldn't the Black Mamba get the ball every time? Maybe! I'd love to see that, wouldn't you? But no, unfortunately we cannot give him the ball each and every time.
DAT gets 15 runs per game. At the rate he racks up yards this would be about 300 yards per game and 3 td's. :)
Marcus Mariota - As much as I love the speed I see Chip putting the brakes on him a little. I would like to see 10 but I don't think he'll get there.
Marcus gets 7 runs per game.
Byron Marshall - Yes he is a true freshman. Yes we have Kenjon. But if Byron can progress the way he did from week 1 to week 3 we may see him. The redshirt is off, no need to keep that talent on the bench. With closed practices we don't get to see what he's doing behind the scenes so now we will have to wait.
Bryan Bennet - We saw him line up in the back field this past week? Will we see more? But we all like to see him run.
Bennett and Marshall could come in from time to time and give people a rest, picking up 8-10 carries per game.
With nothing accounted for Byron on a per game basis we are at 47 touches. The Ducks can get 80 plays a game and a 47 - 33 run to pass ratio wouldn't be to crazy. I think we're al a little more used to 55-25 run to pass ratio. So we may need 8 more touches.
Now - THE PASSING GAME
The Tight Ends - A young QB's best friend in a tight situation. I would not mind one bit if a TE ended up being our leading receiver this year.
Colt Lyerla - I think Colt is a hell of an athlete. Paulson was underused last year. It would be a shame if Colt didn't get in the ball park of 6 catches per game. I don't know if our scheme will make this happen, but it really should.
Pharaoh Brown - Only 2 catches so far this year. But I like what I see, a 21 and a 26 yard reception are 2 of the longest of the season.
Haven't even touched on Koa yet. We have a stable of TE's. I think the absolute best case scenario for us is if Colt can continue to impress and become THE #1 guy. How scary would our IZR and OZR be if we all of the sudden had 2 TE's in the game. :) TE's that are big, physical and can run down the field.
The WR's. I've been wanting 1 guy to bust out and become the guy, so far that hasn't happened. The good news is that Marcus hit 12 different players during his 21 completions this past week. All the guys seem pretty solid. If Colt and the TE's get 10 catches a game it really only leaves 15-23 receptions left in a game.
DAT - Yup, him again. I don't know that he'll get 15 runs AND 5-7 receptions per game, but I wouldn't put it past him. The best comment about DAT came early last year, may have been right before the LSU game, Chip Kelly basically said 'you cannot not give him the ball, he just does it over and over again'.
Braylon Addison - I have a friend from TX who continues to tell me to wait until Braylon hits his stride. He has proven to be a solid possession receiver, let's see what happens when he gets 100% comfortable out there and starts breaking some tackles. We heard a ton of rumors about him from the players coming out of the practices, I get excited every time he gets a shot waiting for that play that puts us on notice that he is here. 6 per game for Braylon.
Dwayne Stanford - 6 receptions so far this year. Hasn't cracked the starting lineup but his size has me paying attention. Who doesn't want a guy with 6 ft 5 in height hauling in 6 - 8 catches per game? If I had to bet on this, I'd say Braylon becomes another big play guy and Dwayne becomes a go to receiver this year. A guy you depend on to make a big catch in the back of the end zone.
BJ Kelley - All that speed, another guy I'd love to break out. I still believe our offense sees a level even the most homerish of Duck fans can't dream of if we can stretch the field. A true deep threat that picks up 40 yard (in the air) receptions 2-3 times a game. BJ could and should be that guy.
So here's the problem. If DAT, Braylon and Dwayne pull down 6 each and BJ gets 2 that = 20 receptions. At 10 from the TE's and we're already over my low estimate of 25 passes a game. Only 3 passes away from the high estimate. And we still have a ton of great guys to talk about.
I mean no disrespect by choosing 2 true frosh and a RS frosh over this next list of guys. If Lowe, Hawk and Dungy get 18 while the others get scraps and we are winning I'm still a happy happy Duck fan. These guys have shown me in the 1st 3 games that they do deserve some time and that they can be quality possession receivers. I see them more taking 'turns', sharing 5 catches per game, rotating games of who has the hot hand.
This still leaves Vaughn. I feel bad to be so excited about some of our new guys because last year we were all drooling over Vaughn. Another guy who could absolutely become the guy to make big plays and be a go to guy. I feel a bit dirty listing him 7th. 7th!
Our WR corp has 7 guys who could become go to guys. I don't mind the committee approach but I would like a superstar to emerge. 7 solid guys who can block downfield. Add to that DAT and a freak athlete that is Colt Lyerla and we could be scary. I say could be only because I don't have the full faith in our passing game just yet. This Arizona match up and every week could prove me wrong.
It may be optimistic but I 100% believe we can match last years ground production AND add a 300+ yard passing threat to every game.
One last time - THIS is a GREAT problem to have.
Please feel free to leave any comment you'd like.
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Monday, September 17, 2012
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Week 3 - The Recap
Got to see a lot this week, a good game to evaluate some things.
I wanted to see the passing game, specifically some deep balls. We got to see several receptions over 20 yards in the air. Mario-TAH completed 21 of 28 for 308 and 4 TD's. The interception was pretty ugly but overall he did well. Pharoah Brown dropped a 20+ yarded right up the middle, the throw may have been a bit high but we need those catches. I thought maybe there were 1-2 other drops. So a good day for Marcus. 12 different receivers caught balls! Addison continues to improve, I thought Vaughn looked pretty good and Lowe did well also.
DAT! What can you say about him? More like what can't you say? It will be nice to get into non-cupcake area to see what he does with 15 touches a game.
I wanted to see our D in complete shutdown mode. Great job D! 77 plays and only 177 yards. 2.5 yards a carry. That is what we need to do to these teams. If you look at what Stanford's D did last night you'll see what we need to do in our big games. Our D line needs to dominate the line against Stanford, USC, WA and AZ. With the talent we have at the 1st 2 levels on D I want to get away from the "bend but don't break" mentality. Stanford showed what to do to Barkely, hit him over and over. Our D line is capable of those same results.
Go Byron Marshall. He had a none flashy workman like game against Arky State. Yesterday he looked great. Big gains, showed speed and the ability to find the hole. He still has some room to grow, but I liked what I saw.
What didn't I like?
Penalties. Not only penalties, dumb drive continuing penalties on D. Several 15 yarders on 3rd down.
Special teams. UGH. Over the years we've had some big changes in games on special teams. The LSU game??? Fumbles on punt and kick returns have been a thorn in our side. Just field the kick and do what you do. Catching the ball by flying in there with 7 defenders within 3 yards is not bravery.
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I wanted to see the passing game, specifically some deep balls. We got to see several receptions over 20 yards in the air. Mario-TAH completed 21 of 28 for 308 and 4 TD's. The interception was pretty ugly but overall he did well. Pharoah Brown dropped a 20+ yarded right up the middle, the throw may have been a bit high but we need those catches. I thought maybe there were 1-2 other drops. So a good day for Marcus. 12 different receivers caught balls! Addison continues to improve, I thought Vaughn looked pretty good and Lowe did well also.
DAT! What can you say about him? More like what can't you say? It will be nice to get into non-cupcake area to see what he does with 15 touches a game.
I wanted to see our D in complete shutdown mode. Great job D! 77 plays and only 177 yards. 2.5 yards a carry. That is what we need to do to these teams. If you look at what Stanford's D did last night you'll see what we need to do in our big games. Our D line needs to dominate the line against Stanford, USC, WA and AZ. With the talent we have at the 1st 2 levels on D I want to get away from the "bend but don't break" mentality. Stanford showed what to do to Barkely, hit him over and over. Our D line is capable of those same results.
Go Byron Marshall. He had a none flashy workman like game against Arky State. Yesterday he looked great. Big gains, showed speed and the ability to find the hole. He still has some room to grow, but I liked what I saw.
What didn't I like?
Penalties. Not only penalties, dumb drive continuing penalties on D. Several 15 yarders on 3rd down.
Special teams. UGH. Over the years we've had some big changes in games on special teams. The LSU game??? Fumbles on punt and kick returns have been a thorn in our side. Just field the kick and do what you do. Catching the ball by flying in there with 7 defenders within 3 yards is not bravery.
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Thursday, September 13, 2012
Week 3 - TN Tech
Another week another home game another cup cake. What can we learn this week?
1 - This is going to be an exaggeration but I still think our biggest question lies at receiver, other than DAT. So here's what I'd like to see.
5 pass plays over 15 yards all to Addison.
Then 5 over 15 to Kelley.
Then to Vaughn.
Stanford, Lowe, Hawk, Dungy.
You get the point here. I need to see a deep passing game. Chip, I gotta have it.
2 - I know Chip doesn't like to put numbers down for touches but can we make it a point to get the ball in Colt's hands more? I truly felt like Paulson was under used last year. I'm not saying 25 times or anything, but 5? 7? As the O sputtered in the 2nd Half last week I think we could have gone to Colt some. 4 touches for Colt in 2 games.
On a side note here, this is a good problem to have. We have so many playmakers it will be impossible to get them all the touches they need. KB - 25 touches. DAT - 15-20. Colt - 5-7. Marcus - 10. I'm already at 60 touches or so and we haven't even hit the WR's.
3 - On the defensive side of the ball I'd like to take a cue from our little brother. Was OSU not inspired last week against Wisky? They completely shut them down. We're playing a cupcake, can't we do the same? They have a UT Vol transfer at WR who can test our corners. Good experience for those young guys.
4 - Looking for the D-line and LB's to step up their game to assist in the process of missing Boyett. What a shame he got injured. As a fan of the game I LOVED watching him play. So I'd like to see a few sacks and a few negative run plays, I want us to blow up their line.
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1 - This is going to be an exaggeration but I still think our biggest question lies at receiver, other than DAT. So here's what I'd like to see.
5 pass plays over 15 yards all to Addison.
Then 5 over 15 to Kelley.
Then to Vaughn.
Stanford, Lowe, Hawk, Dungy.
You get the point here. I need to see a deep passing game. Chip, I gotta have it.
2 - I know Chip doesn't like to put numbers down for touches but can we make it a point to get the ball in Colt's hands more? I truly felt like Paulson was under used last year. I'm not saying 25 times or anything, but 5? 7? As the O sputtered in the 2nd Half last week I think we could have gone to Colt some. 4 touches for Colt in 2 games.
On a side note here, this is a good problem to have. We have so many playmakers it will be impossible to get them all the touches they need. KB - 25 touches. DAT - 15-20. Colt - 5-7. Marcus - 10. I'm already at 60 touches or so and we haven't even hit the WR's.
3 - On the defensive side of the ball I'd like to take a cue from our little brother. Was OSU not inspired last week against Wisky? They completely shut them down. We're playing a cupcake, can't we do the same? They have a UT Vol transfer at WR who can test our corners. Good experience for those young guys.
4 - Looking for the D-line and LB's to step up their game to assist in the process of missing Boyett. What a shame he got injured. As a fan of the game I LOVED watching him play. So I'd like to see a few sacks and a few negative run plays, I want us to blow up their line.
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Saturday, September 8, 2012
Recap - Fresno State
In a word? Eck. This is why you play tune up games.
In a week where already Oregon State knocked off #13 Wisconsin, ULM knocked of #8 Arkansas and UCLA knocks off #16 Nebraska.... I'm happy that we played pretty rough but were never at a where we were in jeopardy of loosing.
Ducks - 42 Bulldogs - 25
The 1st half looked pretty good. 35-6 and in complete control of the game. The "my Ducks can never be stopped" side of me couldn't believe we had to actually punt but hey, no matter how good you are you are not going to score every time. Well, we do play TN Tech next week so maybe.
DAT - WOW, another day for him. 11 touches and 128 yards. I wonder if he was nicked up a little because he was a little absent in the 2nd half.
KB - Solid game, believe it or not my favorite run was a short game on a 3rd down and 1. Kenjon was popped pretty good in the hole, kept his feed moving and fell forward. He did have the 1st down already, but that is the tough running I was missing. I still want him to break a few more arm tackles.
Colt - Another good run after catch, too many penalties.
Marcus - Another week and another way to pronounce his name. Super Mario looked a little more human this week. Every pass looked picture perfect in week 1. Rougher time this week. He's young and has some growing. How about that play inside our own 10 yard line flinging it out to Addison? Nice. He seemed to be rattled just a bit by the pressure so I'd expect our opponents to send some blitz packages early from now on.
Wide Receivers - Still a concern of mine. I have nothing against DAT, but I don't think he should lead the team in receiving. Huff went down with a left leg injury. Mario-TAH used 9 different receivers to complete his 19 passes, great to spread the ball around, but again I would love to have a go to guy. Specifically one to stretch the field. Colt's 22 yard reception was the longest, and that was a short throw with a run. I need to see someone catching a couple of 35 yard strikes on a post, post corner or deep cross route. Only 3 passes completed over 10 yards today.
Defense - I thought the D looked good today. We got our sacks, the run D was strong. 34 carries for 131 yards for Fresno State, 47 of them came on a fake punt and 1 nice run by Rouse. Take 2 plays out and you have 32 carries for 84 yards. NICE! Still a little concerned about the amount of short passes we are letting get through. But those short passes are better than long ones any day. John Boyett was out today, he's the leader on that defensive unit. To play that well without your leader is pretty solid in my book.
Didn't get to see Byron Marshall today, game was in hand but not a blowout that you want to start throwing your reserves in. That was a little dissapointing but I can live with it. We WTD!
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In a week where already Oregon State knocked off #13 Wisconsin, ULM knocked of #8 Arkansas and UCLA knocks off #16 Nebraska.... I'm happy that we played pretty rough but were never at a where we were in jeopardy of loosing.
Ducks - 42 Bulldogs - 25
The 1st half looked pretty good. 35-6 and in complete control of the game. The "my Ducks can never be stopped" side of me couldn't believe we had to actually punt but hey, no matter how good you are you are not going to score every time. Well, we do play TN Tech next week so maybe.
DAT - WOW, another day for him. 11 touches and 128 yards. I wonder if he was nicked up a little because he was a little absent in the 2nd half.
KB - Solid game, believe it or not my favorite run was a short game on a 3rd down and 1. Kenjon was popped pretty good in the hole, kept his feed moving and fell forward. He did have the 1st down already, but that is the tough running I was missing. I still want him to break a few more arm tackles.
Colt - Another good run after catch, too many penalties.
Marcus - Another week and another way to pronounce his name. Super Mario looked a little more human this week. Every pass looked picture perfect in week 1. Rougher time this week. He's young and has some growing. How about that play inside our own 10 yard line flinging it out to Addison? Nice. He seemed to be rattled just a bit by the pressure so I'd expect our opponents to send some blitz packages early from now on.
Wide Receivers - Still a concern of mine. I have nothing against DAT, but I don't think he should lead the team in receiving. Huff went down with a left leg injury. Mario-TAH used 9 different receivers to complete his 19 passes, great to spread the ball around, but again I would love to have a go to guy. Specifically one to stretch the field. Colt's 22 yard reception was the longest, and that was a short throw with a run. I need to see someone catching a couple of 35 yard strikes on a post, post corner or deep cross route. Only 3 passes completed over 10 yards today.
Defense - I thought the D looked good today. We got our sacks, the run D was strong. 34 carries for 131 yards for Fresno State, 47 of them came on a fake punt and 1 nice run by Rouse. Take 2 plays out and you have 32 carries for 84 yards. NICE! Still a little concerned about the amount of short passes we are letting get through. But those short passes are better than long ones any day. John Boyett was out today, he's the leader on that defensive unit. To play that well without your leader is pretty solid in my book.
Didn't get to see Byron Marshall today, game was in hand but not a blowout that you want to start throwing your reserves in. That was a little dissapointing but I can live with it. We WTD!
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This Week = Fresno State
Fresno State should provide a bigger challenge than Arky State did, but this still wont be a big challenge. This is another game we should be able to control from start to finish and on both sides of the ball. Many of the things I'm looking for this week are similar to last week.
If you didn't see the high points from last week, take 12 minutes and check out the new look. Courtesy of MadMike over at Oregon Duck Soup. http://winesfamily.blogspot.com/
#1 - I got to see Mario-TAH run the option a little. We will get to see more of that but now I'm looking for a couple of good deep balls. I LOVED what I saw last week out of the quick passing game, crossing routes and swing passes. We stretch the ball sideline to sideline as good if not better than anyone in the country. I'd still like to see more stretching of the field.
#2 - Defensively I want a sack or two. Arky State has a decent QB and a couple of WR's who are excellent athletes. Their short passing attack kept us on our toes all day. It was more so after we were up 50 points but if they can do it USC can do it, and better. I'd like to see some growth out of the defense this week, specifically the D lines ability to not just pressure the QB, but to get to him, knock him down and sack him. When we play USC our day will get better as Barkley's jersey gets dirtier.
#3 - I am a Kenjon Barner fan, no doubt about it. But I would like to see a nice long run. But....9 carries for 66 yards...that's pretty solid right? 7.3 yards a carry? Right? Yes, that is very good and this may sound snobbish of me but we were playing Arky State. This season I'm thinking in terms of what we can do against USC. 7.3 yards a carry may only be 3 yards vs USC. I don't need 80 yards and a TD every time, but I'd like to see some big runs with solid yards after contact. Three of Barner's carries were 11, 17 and 18. He had a no gain, a 2 yarder and a couple of 4 yarders. For comparrison's sake DAT had 3 carries for 64 yards.
#4 - I want to see more of Byron Marshall. He got 24 carries in mop up duty and had a couple of plays where I saw glimpses of flash. He's a true freshman playing on a top 4 team. Good start with a ton of improvement. I think this week will provide a good look at his learning curve.
#5 - Loved what I saw out of the WR's last week. For this entire off season I've been saying "who will step up"? Looks like maybe a couple guys did. DAT is going to be coming out of the backfield in our Tazer position and he's just brilliant. Lowe and Kelley had a few catches. Huff, Hawkins and Vaughn, Stanford. Mario-TAH chucked that ball to everyone on the team, Bennet kept it going. While this is great, I'd like to see 1 guy become THE guy. 3rd down and we go to ______. I'm talking about an all Pac-12 guy who gets wiffs of being a top round draft choice. A go to guy.
#6 - I want to see Colt get the ball more. I don't have any questions about him, just dayum, did you see him running over people and moving piles???? I want to see more of that because it is fun.
So, there is what I'll be looking for tonight when I watch the game on line because Direct TV and the Pac-12 haven't come to an agreement. Jerks!
If you didn't see the high points from last week, take 12 minutes and check out the new look. Courtesy of MadMike over at Oregon Duck Soup. http://winesfamily.blogspot.com/
#2 - Defensively I want a sack or two. Arky State has a decent QB and a couple of WR's who are excellent athletes. Their short passing attack kept us on our toes all day. It was more so after we were up 50 points but if they can do it USC can do it, and better. I'd like to see some growth out of the defense this week, specifically the D lines ability to not just pressure the QB, but to get to him, knock him down and sack him. When we play USC our day will get better as Barkley's jersey gets dirtier.
#3 - I am a Kenjon Barner fan, no doubt about it. But I would like to see a nice long run. But....9 carries for 66 yards...that's pretty solid right? 7.3 yards a carry? Right? Yes, that is very good and this may sound snobbish of me but we were playing Arky State. This season I'm thinking in terms of what we can do against USC. 7.3 yards a carry may only be 3 yards vs USC. I don't need 80 yards and a TD every time, but I'd like to see some big runs with solid yards after contact. Three of Barner's carries were 11, 17 and 18. He had a no gain, a 2 yarder and a couple of 4 yarders. For comparrison's sake DAT had 3 carries for 64 yards.
#4 - I want to see more of Byron Marshall. He got 24 carries in mop up duty and had a couple of plays where I saw glimpses of flash. He's a true freshman playing on a top 4 team. Good start with a ton of improvement. I think this week will provide a good look at his learning curve.
#5 - Loved what I saw out of the WR's last week. For this entire off season I've been saying "who will step up"? Looks like maybe a couple guys did. DAT is going to be coming out of the backfield in our Tazer position and he's just brilliant. Lowe and Kelley had a few catches. Huff, Hawkins and Vaughn, Stanford. Mario-TAH chucked that ball to everyone on the team, Bennet kept it going. While this is great, I'd like to see 1 guy become THE guy. 3rd down and we go to ______. I'm talking about an all Pac-12 guy who gets wiffs of being a top round draft choice. A go to guy.
#6 - I want to see Colt get the ball more. I don't have any questions about him, just dayum, did you see him running over people and moving piles???? I want to see more of that because it is fun.
So, there is what I'll be looking for tonight when I watch the game on line because Direct TV and the Pac-12 haven't come to an agreement. Jerks!
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Week 1 - The Recap
Whew, what a great 1st 20 minutes. 7 drives, 7 TD's in an average of 1 minute 23 seconds. 50-3 when we started rotating in the 2nd string early in the 2nd Quarter. WOW! I certainly got some of the things I wanted and I'll have to wait a few more weeks to see some of the others.
Here's what I saw -
1 - I said I wanted to see a blow out. Just based purely on the score we did let Arky State come back into the game. But I was extremely happy with those 1st 20 minutes. The offense was working on all cylinders. I find it hard to believe that there was ever a battle between Mariota and Bennett. 2 of Bryan's 1st 4 passes were quite a bit off the mark, which may not be such a big deal in a 1st game of the season if it weren't for the fact that Marcus's passes were all about as perfect as you can throw.
2 - I wanted to see how Marcus ran the read option. I thought he did great. If you remove the sack from his stats he ran the ball 4 times for 33 yards. I was more impressed with a scramble where he directed Josh Huff and tossed the ball to him with defenders in his face. He looked like a man among boys. Very impressive performance.
3 - Colt did get into the action. He had a play where he grabbed a catch and it took virtually everyone on that defense to take him down. He's just a kid and as he gets better he could be huge. They are already talking about him being an NFL prospect in his 1st game as a true sophomore.
4 - I wanted to see a breakout WR. Obviously DAT will be a threat every time he touches the ball. And he will be playing some out of that TZR positions. Kind of funny to see the 2 deep chart and see him not listed as a starter. But you are not going keep that kid off the field. 7 touches last night ended in 3 td's. Outside of DAT I don't know that I got a breakout player. But Josh Huff looked great to me. Last year he wasn't himself fighting through injuries. I though Lowe and Kelley played well. Over the next few weeks we'll have to continue watching Addison who in my opinion looked primed to break 1 but just never did. I thought Dwayne Stanford looked good in mop up action.
And my #5 request - Wanted to see a complete shut down by our defense. I have some mixed feelings about this and I need to see more. Here are 2 things to keep in mind before I go into this.
1 - We were playing Arky State. 2 - Our offense plays so fast that our D has to defend more plays so stats can be a bit deceiving when talking D.
In the 1st half I certainly got a shut down, they looked great. The overall performance was fantastic. Here's where I get a little nervous.....
While the D line played very well I really wanted to see a few sacks, not that sacks are everything. It's just that USC's O-line will be MUCH better, we were supposed to see Jordan wrecking QB's. Side note - Alpin looked very good out there. Great job by him keeping his head up and making the offense work in the 2nd half. I was also a little concerned in the secondary. Alpin was able to dink and dunk all night, completing 29 passes for over 300 yards. I am reminded of the nightmare in Autzen last year when USC did the same thing. The difference is USC's WR's will be much better athletically than Arky State's.
WOW, what a 1st 20 minutes or so, just WOW. I may be nit picking the D here, that 1st half was impressive. The line got penetration so saying "no sacks" may be a bit much. But if Alpin and Arky State can execute a ton of 7 yard passes, so can USC. We should have a couple more blow outs, when we get into Pac play we should get some stiffer competition and have a better idea of where we are at.
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Here's what I saw -
1 - I said I wanted to see a blow out. Just based purely on the score we did let Arky State come back into the game. But I was extremely happy with those 1st 20 minutes. The offense was working on all cylinders. I find it hard to believe that there was ever a battle between Mariota and Bennett. 2 of Bryan's 1st 4 passes were quite a bit off the mark, which may not be such a big deal in a 1st game of the season if it weren't for the fact that Marcus's passes were all about as perfect as you can throw.
2 - I wanted to see how Marcus ran the read option. I thought he did great. If you remove the sack from his stats he ran the ball 4 times for 33 yards. I was more impressed with a scramble where he directed Josh Huff and tossed the ball to him with defenders in his face. He looked like a man among boys. Very impressive performance.
3 - Colt did get into the action. He had a play where he grabbed a catch and it took virtually everyone on that defense to take him down. He's just a kid and as he gets better he could be huge. They are already talking about him being an NFL prospect in his 1st game as a true sophomore.
4 - I wanted to see a breakout WR. Obviously DAT will be a threat every time he touches the ball. And he will be playing some out of that TZR positions. Kind of funny to see the 2 deep chart and see him not listed as a starter. But you are not going keep that kid off the field. 7 touches last night ended in 3 td's. Outside of DAT I don't know that I got a breakout player. But Josh Huff looked great to me. Last year he wasn't himself fighting through injuries. I though Lowe and Kelley played well. Over the next few weeks we'll have to continue watching Addison who in my opinion looked primed to break 1 but just never did. I thought Dwayne Stanford looked good in mop up action.
And my #5 request - Wanted to see a complete shut down by our defense. I have some mixed feelings about this and I need to see more. Here are 2 things to keep in mind before I go into this.
1 - We were playing Arky State. 2 - Our offense plays so fast that our D has to defend more plays so stats can be a bit deceiving when talking D.
In the 1st half I certainly got a shut down, they looked great. The overall performance was fantastic. Here's where I get a little nervous.....
While the D line played very well I really wanted to see a few sacks, not that sacks are everything. It's just that USC's O-line will be MUCH better, we were supposed to see Jordan wrecking QB's. Side note - Alpin looked very good out there. Great job by him keeping his head up and making the offense work in the 2nd half. I was also a little concerned in the secondary. Alpin was able to dink and dunk all night, completing 29 passes for over 300 yards. I am reminded of the nightmare in Autzen last year when USC did the same thing. The difference is USC's WR's will be much better athletically than Arky State's.
WOW, what a 1st 20 minutes or so, just WOW. I may be nit picking the D here, that 1st half was impressive. The line got penetration so saying "no sacks" may be a bit much. But if Alpin and Arky State can execute a ton of 7 yard passes, so can USC. We should have a couple more blow outs, when we get into Pac play we should get some stiffer competition and have a better idea of where we are at.
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Saturday, September 1, 2012
Week 1 - Oregon Ducks vs Arkansas State Red Wolves
The football season is FINALLY upon us. I'm sitting here on a Saturday morning in SEC country watching Georgia struggle a little with Buffalo. Before the game they talked about high expectations and winning the SEC's weaker division. Georgia is a team that in my opinion has been overrated the last 5 years or so. They seem to pop up in the Top 10 at the beginning of the year and they lose some games they shouldn't.
I start with that to say that the Ducks also have high expectations. As game day has drawn closer I've seen comments go from "Oregon should mop the floor with cupcake Arky St." to "This game will be closer than people think."
We have a young team and a few question marks. A QB that has never taken a snap and is just a Freshman. A WR corp that seems like it should have a breakout but hasn't. A TE phenom who seems to have some troubles. We don't know what, just that he's had some "things to take care of." A secondary who started as freshman and have a year under their belt now. Another pair of freshman (Arik Armstead, Byron Marshall) who could prove to be the future of the program on O and D.
3 straight Pac titles and 3 straight BCS bowl games place the Ducks in the top tier of college football. Being there is one thing, staying is another.
Here's what I want to see today.
1 - I do want to see a blow out. If we want to be an elite program we need to not slip up when playing these lower rated teams. I don't care if they have a few studs who may make some plays, but we should be able to handle this team.
2 - I want to see how Marcus runs the read option plays. The spring game was great, but we really didn't run our offense, plus it was touch football on the QB. I don't think Marcus needs to carry 25 times for 100 yards or anything. But I always felt like Darron should have kept the ball 4-6 more times than he did.
3 - I want to see Marcus throw to the TE's a bit. Lyerla, Brown, Koa - all young guys, I want to see what they are made of. A TE with great hands and no fear of a crossing route can make a young QB feel very comfortable.
4 - I want to see 1 of our WR's really step up and become a go to guy that people fear. As good as Jeff Maehl was and as much as we all loved him and his work ethic he was not a #1 draft pick that struck fear in the hearts of Defenses. That is what I want.
5 - This one is key. There has been a lot of talk about our defense. I want them to really shut down Arky ST. I don't want them to score in the 1st half of this game. If we rotate a bunch in the 4th QTR and they score some that is not a big deal. I want to see our D shut this team down, completely.
Not sure at this point whether this will go my way, we do have plenty of time with soft opponents and home games to get everything to gel. But we have some questions and I'm hoping they are answered quickly. I don't wan to waltz down to USC in November still wondering who will step up and WR and whether or not our TE position will be consistent.
My Prediction - Ducks 66 - Red Wolves - 13
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I start with that to say that the Ducks also have high expectations. As game day has drawn closer I've seen comments go from "Oregon should mop the floor with cupcake Arky St." to "This game will be closer than people think."
We have a young team and a few question marks. A QB that has never taken a snap and is just a Freshman. A WR corp that seems like it should have a breakout but hasn't. A TE phenom who seems to have some troubles. We don't know what, just that he's had some "things to take care of." A secondary who started as freshman and have a year under their belt now. Another pair of freshman (Arik Armstead, Byron Marshall) who could prove to be the future of the program on O and D.
3 straight Pac titles and 3 straight BCS bowl games place the Ducks in the top tier of college football. Being there is one thing, staying is another.
Here's what I want to see today.
1 - I do want to see a blow out. If we want to be an elite program we need to not slip up when playing these lower rated teams. I don't care if they have a few studs who may make some plays, but we should be able to handle this team.
2 - I want to see how Marcus runs the read option plays. The spring game was great, but we really didn't run our offense, plus it was touch football on the QB. I don't think Marcus needs to carry 25 times for 100 yards or anything. But I always felt like Darron should have kept the ball 4-6 more times than he did.
3 - I want to see Marcus throw to the TE's a bit. Lyerla, Brown, Koa - all young guys, I want to see what they are made of. A TE with great hands and no fear of a crossing route can make a young QB feel very comfortable.
4 - I want to see 1 of our WR's really step up and become a go to guy that people fear. As good as Jeff Maehl was and as much as we all loved him and his work ethic he was not a #1 draft pick that struck fear in the hearts of Defenses. That is what I want.
5 - This one is key. There has been a lot of talk about our defense. I want them to really shut down Arky ST. I don't want them to score in the 1st half of this game. If we rotate a bunch in the 4th QTR and they score some that is not a big deal. I want to see our D shut this team down, completely.
Not sure at this point whether this will go my way, we do have plenty of time with soft opponents and home games to get everything to gel. But we have some questions and I'm hoping they are answered quickly. I don't wan to waltz down to USC in November still wondering who will step up and WR and whether or not our TE position will be consistent.
My Prediction - Ducks 66 - Red Wolves - 13
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
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