Our turn to make a statement!

Last week College Game Day rolled into Clemson and Florida State took full advantage of that situation. To say they made a statement is an understatement. They put everyone on notice that they are legit. They dominated every aspect of the game from start to finish. They played their biggest game on the biggest stage.

This week, its our turn. Game Day is rolling into Eugene and we have a ranked opponent on the biggest stage. The Ducks have been no stranger to playing big games on a big stage. A trip to Michigan put everyone on notice that Dennis Dixon and his Ducks were for real. Many Duck fans recall that game as one of the best wins in program history.

In 2010 Oregon became an AP #1 team for the first time ever. UCLA was in town on that weekend and we dominated start to finish. The game is also significant because despite the #1 AP we were slighted by the BCS and ranked #2 behind Oklahoma. That game ended 60-13 (UCLA scoring a TD with under 2 minutes in the 4th QTR still using their starters against our back ups). As usual the Ducks were known for their offense but on that night our defense held UCLA 2.8 yards per carry. 290 yards on 70 plays. Darron completed 22 passes for 308 yards while the ground game racked up 270 yards on 40 carries.

This is the kind of show we need to put on for the Game Day audience this weekend. Complete and total domination. The kind of show we put on in the 1st half against Arizona State last year, 6 touchdowns in just over 15 minutes before Chip took the foot off the gas pedal. We are capable of putting up points quick. We need a great performance on both sides of the ball. A signature win that puts the Washington game to shame. Fast and furious pace on offense putting up full game numbers by midway through the 2nd QTR. A defense that puts Hundley on the run from bell to bell. Scoring on offense, defense and special teams.

Marcus Mariota completing each of his 1st 15 passes for over 300 yards.



DeAnthony Thomas getting well over 100 yards on just a handful of carries.




A game that quite simply makes every person watching say "whoa".

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HUCK the Fuskies!!!

It is that time of year. This year, I'm nervous. We ARE the better team, we shouldn't have too much trouble with the Fuskies but we've been starting slow this year and that worries me a little. Letting the mighty Volenteers or the Buffaloes jump out a TD or even two is fine, being behind a little to a team you are leaps and bounds better than is fairly easy to overcome. But the Fuskies are a pretty game opponent. Much improved over years past and just itching to reverse the last 9 years of misery. The crowd will also be crazy if they jump up early. This is the longest win streak for either side and we know it. So much talk from the fans about the National Championship game and Alabama.....Let's do our job on Saturday, then the next and the next. If we do that the National Championship will be here soon enough. The team seems squarely focused on the task at hand despite the distraction of Colt Lyerla.

I'm fairly disappointed in the outcome of Colt's tenure with the school. Obviously I don't "KNOW" what is going on but there just seems to be a need for someone older and wiser to step into his life and have a long talk with him. I absolutely LOVE watching Colt play. Love watching him block, catch, run and holy crap do I love to see him stiff arm. I hope he straightens out whatever needs straightening out, gets to the NFL and tears it up. Whoever he plays for and where ever he goes I will be a fan of the player that is Colt Lyerla. And that's all I have to say about that!

On to the Fuskies!

We can't sputter around at the start of this game. I also haven't heard a final word on DAT. Would love to have him but ultimately he needs to get better and if he can't go he shouldn't.

Marcus Mariota - I'm looking for a solid game start to finish. Marcus is playing well this year. He completion % is down but I think he's making some wise 'throw the ball away' decisions. The second De'Anthony went down I felt like he had somewhat of a red light when it comes to running the ball. A couple of early runs could provide a couple extra inches for Byron and Tyner to break some big ones.

Byron Marshall and Thomas Tyner - Last year Byron ran better. Plain and simple. He ran with aggression and a little bit of a chip on his shoulder. That has been missing this year and I want it back. If DAT is out he will carry the load and against a better team like Washington he can't be indecisive in the hole. He had a couple of very good patience runs against Colorado, but when he just needs get up in there he's a tad behind. Thomas on the other hand is lightning out there. He's been running a ton up the middle I wish they would create 4-5 plays with the sole intention of getting him the ball on the edge, the same way they did with DAT his freshman year. Remember the Jet Sweep in the Rose Bowl? Something like that!

In comes Johnny Mundt! Also Pharoah Brown! Next man up. Oregon has a tradition of turning out GREAT TE's. We also have a tradition of underutilizing them. It is so crazy because we have a ton of weapons, so I fully understand that quite often there are just not enough plays to go around. On 3rd downs I feel like the Mundt/Brown in the middle of the field should be a pretty go to move. Both those guys create a mismatch on nearly every linebacker in the country.

I think I'll get exactly what I want to see out of the wide recievers. What a consistent year they've been having. Perfect? Nope. But their effort is ridiculous. The downfield blocking is such an asset. Huff's play last week dragging people around...are you kidding me? Braylon has been making huge plays and guys like Keanon and Hawk are just solid players. We've had some penalties and some drops this year but I'm very proud of that group.

The end of this game being close or a blowout is in the defenses hands this week. Our offense is going to score, a lot. This is the 1st big test of the defense. Washington has a pretty damn good running back, a solid QB and probably the best TE in the country. (a few days ago I would have said 2nd best) Our D line and LB crew need to keep the running game shut down like they have all year. When you look at the average yards per carry against our D this year it is easy to see how great they are playing. Realize that this is a step up in competition, to hold the Fuskies to 3-4 yards a carry would send a huge message. Sankey carried the ball 27 times for 125 yards against Stanford's defense. 4.6 yards per carry. I'd love to see our guys hold him to 4 or less. Sankey did have 1 run for 30 yards to 26 times they held him very good. Price threw all over Stanford, 33 of 48 and 350 yards. I think our defensive backfield can do much better than that, and pick him off more than 1 time!

Jump out on them like last year and I think we coast fairly easy to a 55-24 win on the road. A nice day for a GameDay crowd! Let them jump on us int he first 5 minutes and I think it could be a back and forth long hard fight.

Since I'm an optimistic kind of guy I'm sticking with the 55 - 24. I don't know if my heart can take a close game. :)

Predictions -

Marcus throws for over 300 yards and runs for over 100.

Oregon scores over 50 for the 6th straight game!

Byron makes a HUGE play. I'm talking busted tackles and end zone. One that makes everyones top 10 plays of the week.

The defense stands tall and plays a little shut down D against Bishop Sankey and the Washington run game.


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Oregon VS Cal

Cal is rolling into Autzen with a 1-2 record, a pretty solid passing game and not much else to brag about. This will be a good test of our defensive backfield and I believe Ifo and the boys will be ready for the task.

Offensively we should see another track meet, Cal gave up 37 and 44 to Portland State and Northwestern. Yikes! I look for DAT to have plenty of space to show off that world class speed. Byron Marshall and Marcus Mariota should also have NO trouble running the ball in this game.

As a side note I'm still not sold on Byron's running right now. Better against TN than he did out in VA, but he has got to make a decision and hit the hole. I really want to see Thomas Tyner get 4-5 meaningful touches with the 1st string. Hopefully light a fire under Byron. I think Byron is great, solid freshman year but I just don't think he's running at the top of his game right now.

I really don't want to hear anything about Colt. Other than we throw to him as often as we threw to Mundt last week. Colt had a rough week in VA and then out last week, then Jason Quick decided to send a tweet about Colt 'obviously' not having the flu. He's defended that by saying he is a journalist. A tweet with absolutely no fact behind it was journalism. pfft. Here's my journalism - Suck It Jason Quick. Suck it long and suck it hard!

Maybe Helfrich should try a jumbo package with Colt in the backfield and both Mundt and Brown in a double TE set. Why not? May be a good set up for 4th and short in big games. :) With all 3 being viable passing options as well. If the D loads the box we shift and spread everyone out, still have Colt in the backfield. My mind is going crazy with options in a setup like that.

Marcus will do fine in this game, the Ducks will do fine in this game. What I really want to see out of him is a steady start. Crisp from the 1st snap. He's been a tad off early in games.

We're a couple games in and Ifo, Avery, Terrance and Brian have been relatively quiet this season as far as picks are concerned. To me this means we're due!!! Due for a pick 6 or two.

Cal put up 34 points on OH ST. It will be interesting to see what we hold them to. I'd like to see 100% (or near) shut down of their run game, some solid pressure from our D line and forcing some turnovers in this game.


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Oregon VS ...... Tennessee

This is the week! If the Ducks were to fall, I may have to jump of a bridge or something.

Here's what my staff did to my office...

Seems as thought a ton of people are picking the Ducks by 25-35 points. For some reason I feel like it is going to be a little closer than that. I HOPE I'm wrong. But here we go.

OREGON DUCKS 45 TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS 24

A 3 touchdown game is what I'm calling. Conservative compared to virtually every pick I've seen.


The run game - Last week DAT saw a great deal of success on the outside. I think he can do that virtually anytime he wants. Where we struggled was up the middle. Byron Marshall also had a very rough game. I look for him to rebound with a much better performance but still have a tough time up the middle. If he does have any kind of repeat of last week I do believe Tyner will see some action early. He ran 4 plays and it was mop up duty late, but the burst and concise decision making was extremely apparent. How do you keep that kid off the field? I wouldn't mind seeing him and just giving him a swing pass or 2, maybe a jet sweep, just to get him in some open space and letting him make a play.
This is an odd prediction because Western KY averaged 5 yards a carry. 5 yards a carry. Western KY. If they can average 5 we should be able to do much better with our speed and athletes. So I may be way off on this. I hope I am.

Since I'm predicting a slow down (by Duck standards) in the run game this means Marcus Mariota will have to pick up that slack. If this game stays tight for the 1st half we will need to pass more. Marcus has had a ton of success running the ball in the 1st two games. Now lets see him flex that throwing arm. Couple of deep balls will open up the run game and keep them honest as well. Tennessee's defensive backs have seen great success in the 1st two weeks against sub par competition. I think Marcus lights them up!

Colt had a rough week last week dropping 3 passes. I've been told that he had a broken finger. Look for him to have a bit of a chip on his shoulder and make the most of each touch this week. I want them to hook him up early to get him back into this game.

Braylon Addison continues to make plays. Let's give him the ball a few more times. So many weapons to choose from. Since we led the whole way against Virginia we didn't see a ton of passes. Huff, Lowe, Hawk... I want to see Marcus toss the ball around and get these receivers involved.

Defensively I'd like to see more turnovers. Greedy I know, but lets get 10 or so. :) Ok, maybe 3. Ifo and Mitchell have been relatively quiet this year. If we get up a score or two Tennessee will need to throw. Last week the majority of the completions were underneath to the TE's for moderate gains, but it kept the chains moving. The LB's need to keep an eye on that, if I saw it you know Tennessee did.

This is a big, strong and talented offensive line. It will be a good test for our D-line this week. We should see what kind of defensive line we're going to have for teams like Stanford, UCLA and Washington. Look for the boys in the trenches to show their stuff this week.

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DUCKS DOMINATE!!

Probably should go to sleep, have a 9 hour drive in the morning. BUT I CAN'T. Still pumped up from seeing my boys live for the 1st time since the TN game a few years ago. Who won that again????
Anyway, what a game. I swear I am spoiled rotten, I am thinking we are not playing well. We WON 59-10 against a team that knocked off a top 20 and I'm wanting more. Sheeesh!
I predicted 56-17. We got an extra FG and didn't give up a garbage TD at the end of the game. I'd say that was a solid prediction.
Marcus ran for 100+ with a nice 71 yard TD run and DAT went over 150 (124 yards rush with 3 TD's/28 rec yards) as well. Marshall fell quite a bit short. Tyner looked phenomenal on 4 carries late.
I still think our passing game has a ways to go. Last year we relied on it against CAL, that will happen again. Colt! UGH. I begged for more touches for Colt and he drops 3 passes. 3!
(Sunday update - I have since learned that Colt has a broken finger. That would explain the drops. Here's hoping for a quick and complete recovery so that I can continue to beg for 8 touches per game)

Marshall also dropped one right in his hands. Marcus was 14 for 28. Yeah he got 199 yards 2 TD's. But I'd like to see a better completion %, even without the drops. There seemed to be 2 guys open on every pass play, he didn't always go to the open guy.
A word about Byron Marshall. I really like the kid. I thought he looked very good last year and I did NOT jump on the Tyner for president band wagon. Today though, whew. Tyner impressed when Byron was off. The difference was huge. Byron is pussy footing through the hole and not looking very decisive. Tyner was in during mop up duty late in the game but he made 1 cut and GONE! Gone gone gone!
A word about our DEFENSE. GREAT FRICKEN GAME. Virginia had the ball for almost 40 minutes and ran 86 plays. Total yards = 298 and 10 points.
They ran the ball 39 times for 124 yards. The top 4 runs went for 45, 10, 10 and 9. Take those 4 biggest plays out and you have 35 rushes for 50 yards.
Jake McGee for Virginia had a solid day. He had me yelling "cover the TE" on every 3rd down. We are going to face some very good TE's when we get to conference play, need to find someone or some way to cover those guys. Seemed like he had 10 catches. He and the other TE combined for 12 catches yards. From my perspective each one was for a 1st down. If Washington's Austin Seferian Jenkins is eligible and sober he could have a big game.
DAT looks great to me when we run him outside. I'm still not convinced he's an every down inside zone read running back. I'm not saying he should never go in there. But why not get him in space. Still seems stubborn. (of course he rushed 11 times for 124 yards, sooooo, what the hell do I know.) If DAT does nothing but prove me wrong over and over again..... I'm OK with that! I'm a humble guy, I will be happy to admit I was wrong as they lift the trophy at the end of the year.
125 - 13 this year. GREAT START. Let's keep it going next week!
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Oregon Ducks VS Virginia Hoos

Been in VA for a few days now, having a great time out in the Massenutten Ski Resort. Riley is having a blast...

Here she is on the ski lift on the way back down the mountain.





Not sure if I ever heard Virginia called the Hoos before this weekend but that seems to be what they call themselves so there you have it.

Last week was a glorified scrimmage, no way we were going to be slowed down by Nichols. In Virginia we face an upcoming and hungry team who just knocked off a top 20 team. This is a trap game if we don't bring our A game. Or at least a B. You go out flat and turn the ball over we may find more than we want. Having said that, we'd have to play pretty bad for that to happen.

So let's see what I want to see tomorrow live.......

Oregon 56 Virginia 17

I think we roll again. The offense looks better against VA than we did against Nichols. Marcus sharpens up the misses he had and the receivers clean up their drops. We see more than the vanilla offense than we did against Nichols.

I think we have a solid chance of having 3 X 100 yard rushers again. That would be 2 weeks in a row to have something that has never happened happen. huh? Yeah.

Release the BEAST! I NEED Colt Lyerla to get the ball this week, more than mop up duty late. He needs a reception in the 1st QTR. No reason he doesn't touch the ball 6-7 times a game. The crappy thing for him is he's usually the change of pace guy. Since we don't often need a change of pace he doesn't get much action. As much talk as DAT gets, Colt NEEDS the ball. He's too good to let him just block. Couple of quick hits up the middle a game. Keep the backers honest.

Last week it seemed they went to prove that DAT could run between the tackles. He did well. And, I'm fine with them doing it. I would like to see us get him in space a few times. Jet sweep. Screen. Motion him out to the tazer slot. Something. I feel like running him up the middle 20 times is a little stubborn. Sure, let him be the every down back. But get him in some space from time to time.

Looking for a big game out of a receiver this week. My pick is Braylon Addison. Huff will get a couple but I think this is the year Braylon breaks out.

Predictions -

Ifo - 1 Pick
Lokombo - 1 turnover
Marcus - 250+ yards passing AND 100+ rushing
DAT - 150+ Rushing
Marshall - 100+ yards rushing
TEAM - 400+ yards rushing
Defense - 5 sacks
Taylor Hart - Gets 2 of those sacks
Addison - 100+ receiving yards


I think we roll again. I've enjoyed my time in VA and I wish them well. But I think we get this thing really rolling tomorrow afternoon.

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Ducks fly 66-3 over Nicholls!

Whew - great game. Admittedly I want our team to win by 100 points and not give up a yard, despite my lofty expectations we still did really good.

Let's take a look at my predictions.
80 -10 :) Reality - 66-3 Not too bad.
DAT with the 1st TD TRUE!
DAT with 2 TD's on 7 touches in the 1st. 2 TD's on 12 touches (in the 1st, I think?)
3 rushers over 100 yards! TRUE
35 points in the 1st. We had 24.
Ifo with a pick six. He did not.
Total rushing yards 400+. We got 500!
Passing yards 300+. We got 272. close.
Zero for Nicholls in the 1st half. They got 3.
Under 20 yards rushing in the 1st half. They passed that. (total of 87 yards on 37 carries for 2.4 ypc. Not too shabby D.


I feel like despite my crazy predictions we did get some of them. Of course we were supposed to beat Nicholls. We're supposed to not only beat them but CRUSH them. We did.

Defensively they ran 87 plays and only accounted for 343 ttl yards. Offensively we ran 71 plays for a record 772 yards.

And, the gas pedal most certainly was not pressed to the fullest ability.

I enjoyed the game, it is quite a switch to see the way Helf manages a game vs Chip. In this game I believe Chip would have gone FULL speed, racking up my predicted 35 points in the 1st and put Marcus on the bench midway through the 2nd. Chip would have unleashed the full arsenal. This game seemed like it was treated like a scrimmage. The play book was pretty vanilla and we seemed to be at a moderate speed. Not that there is anything wrong with that. I'm hoping to see warp speed next week when I get to see my Ducks 1st hand for the 1st time since the Tenn game a few years back.

I love our defense and I think it can continue to get better. Those guys on the line are MONSTERS. Armstead, Buckner, Hart, Washington... and on and on. GREAT job pushing people around. I LOVE Taylor Hart's motor. The kid just keeps coming. I believe Armstead will be a dominant force as his development continues. I can't wait.

Our offense rolled like it should. I was kind of hoping for a 99 yard run or pass when they pinned us deep on 2 occasions. :) Oh well. I was a little surprised we didn't have a 50-60 + yard play. Sure, we had 4 that were in the 40's. I just expected a really long one.

We got a heavy dose of DAT running in the middle. I still get a little nervous about that when the competition gets better. But he just keeps going. Marshall is fast, but clearly not DAT, LMJ or KB fast. I want to see him with a higher caliber of competition.

Can I just say that kid from Nicholls, Marcus Washington, he's a stud. What a great game he had.

On the negative side I would say I'm quite surprised that Marcus seemed a tad jittery. I was expecting darn near 90-100% completion against this team. Last year he was 18-22 in the opener against Arky State. 12 for 21 was a shock. I think he'll get back into form and be fine.

Again, seemed like we were pretty vanilla today. Can't wait to see more of the playbook and seen the progress of Marcus, DAT. We ran the ball 45 times and passed 26 times. When you are up by 63 you really can't make the case for airing it out more. Maybe in the next 2 weeks we'll see some more of that.

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