Tyner and Twins Top Talented List

As USC took it's victory lap for landing a bunch 5-star recruits, Oregon stuck it's foot out and face planted Tommy Trojan.

Rivals' Winners and Losers List explained it this way.

Winner: OREGON
The departure of Chip Kelly to the NFL sent the Oregon class into a shake-up, but when the faxes came in there was barely any damage done, outside of losing Dontre Wilson. The ability to protect five-star Thomas Tyner and four-star twins Tyree Robinson and Tyrell Robinson was a major victory for the remaining staff. That alone could have been considered a victory, but that was not all. Oregon flipped Rivals250 offensive lineman Cameron Hunt from California and followed by absolutely stealing Rivals250 defensive end Torrodney Prevot from USC. All told, the period after Kelly left may have been more active and productive than the time from the end of the regular season until the announcement was made.


Loser: USC The caveat with every negative to the USC class failure is the top-end success. USC signed more five-star players than any other program, landing five elite-level players. The problem is that it also saw a bevy of them de-commit. The Trojans lost five-star players Max Redfield, Jalen Ramsey and Eddie Vanderdoes, as well as four-star prospects Kylie Fitts, Torrodney Prevot and Jason Hatcher. They could not backfill with five-star Matthew Thomas and then failed in the attempt to land four-star defensive backs Priest Willis and Tahaan Goodman from UCLA as a package. After what looked like a class that many would call one of the best of all-time, it trickled down to a 12-man crew that wound up outside the top 10 nationally and limped to the finish with just four-star Quinton Powell coming aboard. Depth was an issue for USC this past season and, with a limited class like this, it could be again.  

Of all of Oregon's recruits, the primary focus was on only three: Thomas Tyner and and the twins, Tyree and Tyrell. Losing any of them from Chip Kelly's departure would have been disappointing.  

Tyner, you'll recall, is the Aloha High running back who ran for 644 yards and 10 TD's in just one game (No, really!). By the end of the season he had racked up about . . . oh I don't know . . . 87 touchdowns and 34,000 yards (No, not really, but practically might as well have.).  

Oregon's one casualty to Kelly's departure, RB Dontre Wilson out of Texas, is a loss to be sure in terms of talent. He chose to go to Ohio State after he said he felt Kelly's decision to go to the NFL was "wrong".  Ya OK, kid. Welcome to the world of "life isn't fair". Tyner had a different take on it when he said in an interview he was signing to be with Oregon, not Chip Kelly. What's more, Wilson might have seen an even bigger problem -- that of watching classmate Tyner get most of the carries.

I'll bet Dontre Wilson watched this on YouTube and said, "Ya . . . I'll get more love at Ohio State."


The Robinson twins are both four star recruits. Taken together, that's EIGHT STARS!!! They both did well on defense for their high school in San Diego, but at least one could also play receiver. Expect also to see them on the basketball court. And not just on it, but actually playing -- uniforms and everything.  

Speaking of receiver, the Union-Tribune reports the twins are bringing with them a friend, also from San Diego, four-star recruit Darren Carrington Jr. This guy has a tremendous vertical leap and sticky hands. Video of the three of them talking about "the O" here.

Darren Carrington (#7)


One part of this class that would make Vince Lombardi smile is the signing of FIVE offensive linemen. Helfrich isn't forgetting what makes good ball carriers great.

The one curious signee is that of a three star quarterback from Texas, Damion Hobbs. He looks great, but I hope he'll be happy as he likely redshirts, then sits behind current sophomore Marcus Mariota and two redshirt freshman including the highly talented Jake Rodriguez.

The QB position is logjammed with talent. Chris Harper saw that and went to Kansas State. Darron Thomas felt the pressure and left school early. And shortly after the Fiesta Bowl win, Bryan Bennett saw his play time at QB was limited at best and chose to leave instead of switching to another position.

I'm really surprised they even looked for a QB in this class. But Helfrich and Offensive coordinator Scott Frost liked Hobbs, and Hobbs wanted to come despite having offers from other great schools. So . . . all right . . . . good luck.

From the Oregonian, here is the main story, and here is a complete listing of Oregon's signees along with links to each of their profiles.

--KB     

It's Helfrich's Team Now

Note to Duck opponents for 2013: You know all those scouting reports and defensive schemes you had drawn up to load up the box and stop the running game? Oh you'll still need to hang on to those, but it just got harder -- to the point of being totally unfair.

This link to the Oregonian takes you to Mark Helfrich's first hire of his coaching era: Matt Lubick, son of Colorado State coaching legend Sonny Lubick, was named this year's top receivers coach in the nation by footballscoop.com and is considered a great recruiter as well.  Helfrich named him "Passing Game Coordinator" and Receivers Coach.
____________________________________
Helfrich is the Godfather
A release from Oregon:

EUGENE -- University of Oregon defensive back James Scales has been dismissed from the Ducks' football team for a violation of team rules, head coach Mark Helfrich announced.

The redshirt sophomore from Greensboro, N.C., appeared in 10 games over the past two seasons and recorded 12 tackles.

I was talking to others about Helfrich coming off as a really nice guy, a new guy, a young guy. How is he going to handle the first time one of his players tests him? Is he going to do that classic mistake of trying to be everyone's friend until he gets burned and is forced to toughen up?

I'm thinking of when Al Pacino became the new Godfather, how he had to (ahem) "tie up loose ends".

It's almost customary that when the new guy comes to power, whether its next in line in the Corleone or the Kim Jong family, somebody needs to get whacked. Bullets must fly, missles must be tested to create a cornerstone of strength for the new establishment.

We don't get to know the details behind Scales infractions or dismissal. But the result was very public. It was the shot heard around Duck Nation reporting the new sheriff in town. Helfrich sent the message. He's in charge.

_________________________________________
Yes Virginia, there IS a Santa Claus!!
Finally we got some cooperation from a legitimate team east of the Rockies. Oregon will travel to Virginia September 7th instead of Nevada according to this article. This will give Oregon Tennessee AND Virginia this season. That should please the BCS computers.


______________________________________
"Hello Kenjon, Joey Harrington here.
I'm just calling to give you some advice . . .
RUN!  RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!"

In the following article from the Detroit Free Press, look who likes Kenjon Barner
Lions have the need for speed at running back
Oregon's Barner could help fill void

The Detroit Lions: Where good careers go to die. 

_______________________________________________________
Leading the League in BASKETBALL!!
And ranked #10 in the nation, Oregon is undefeated in the Pac-12 including sweeps in L.A. and over the Arizona schools at home. At the risk of jinxing them, they're playing fantastic ball right now. Here is an R-G write-up of their win over Washington. Next they travel to the Bay area with a Wednesday, 8 pm tipoff against Stanford.

Carlos Emory dunks on the Cougs.
Why are these Ducks so good?

E.J. Singler models for you as he drains a three.
Gotta be the shoes . . . . .  and the socks.

--KB



A Helfrich of a pick.

BREAKING NEWS: Chip Kelly changed his mind again. He wants to come back to Oregon.

Ya, not really. But given recent events, I can't shake the idea of a slight chance for
such falteral.

But alas, we have the most anti-climatic surprise in Duck history -- Mark Helfrich is the new head coach at Oregon. Year-old breaking news. Still I am happy for how this turned out.

A year ago when Kelly almost went to Tampa Bay, I wrote the post Don't Let Oregon Football Leave with Kelly. I was hoping Oregon would get smart to prepare for this moment. I was pleading for AD Rob Mullins to declare this Oregon football and not Kelly football and work to keep the recipe here after the chef leaves. Today, with the major assistants staying and Helfrich at the controls, it couldn't have worked out much better.

First thoughts about Helfrich are he is funny and bright.  He seems to have a real passion for this job being an Oregon native.

Cool fact: He graduated from Marshfield High in Coos Bay -- the same school as Steve Prefontaine.  That's got to be a good omen as long as he stays away from hairpin turns up around Rhododendron Park.

The following is the text from a write-up in USA TODAY.

Analysis: Oregon's Helfrich reaches pinnacle,
but wobbling not allowed
George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports

EUGENE, Ore. – Like the past several days, the Willamette Valley was shrouded Sunday in dense fog. From the stadium club at Autzen Stadium, the football field below was barely discernible. But inside, as he introduced Mark Helfrich as head coach, Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens hailed a "clear vision" for the future, and forecast that Chip Kelly's successor would take Oregon football "to even greater heights." And when his turn came, Helfrich said all the right things, starting with this:

"Coaching at Oregon is the pinnacle for me."

In promoting their offensive coordinator, the Ducks hope to preserve the unique culture of an emerging power, while at the same time adding appreciation for the program's place in the state's cultural fabric. They expect – and this is the sticky part – the same results.

Helfrich, a personable 39-year-old native Oregonian, tossed shout-outs to small towns like Coos Bay and Heppner. When he described his goals, he sounded like his former boss: The Ducks "would attack in all phases; we'll embrace innovation."

He has been endorsed by bright football minds, including Kelly and Tony Dungy. Dan Hawkins, the former head coach at Colorado and Boise State, predicted Helfrich, who was his offensive coordinator at Colorado, "will be extremely successful." He called Helfrich, a former small-college quarterback who has a biology degree and speaks fluent German, "the full package … a rare find." [Biology and German. I can't wait to see the four squared posters they hold up to call plays in the Helfrich era.]

"He's a strong football coach who has a lot of humanity and a lot of intelligence," Hawkins said. "He could be anything, really, because of how smart he is and the kind of personality he has and how he cares about people."

Helfrich chose coaching. [Reminds me of something Mike Shanahan once said when he was coach of the Denver Broncos about one of his players, Bill Musgrave, a one-time Rhodes Scholar candidate.

Shanahan said of Musgrave, "He said he wants to go into coaching. I thought he was smarter than that."]

Oregon is his pinnacle. But as he takes over, Oregon is at the pinnacle – or at least, much closer than it ever has been. For years a nonfactor in college football, the program began to grow under Rich Brooks, kept building under Mike Bellotti – and then soared in four years under Kelly: 46-7, three conference championships, four consecutive BCS bowls, an appearance in a BCS national championship game. Suddenly, Oregon is a national power.

The Ducks will be ranked near the top of preseason polls next fall. But as Kelly departs, the question is: Can their unprecedented run continue under Helfrich?

"I think he'll be able to keep it going and enhance it," Hawkins said.

Helfrich said he would probably be "99.2 percent … in lockstep" with what Kelly would have done. "I won't wear a visor," he joked. "I'll eat more vegetables." But he also promised to try to soothe any disgruntled factions of fans, saying "We're gonna do our best to make everybody feel involved."

Kelly didn't do that. His way was insular and isolated. But if it occasionally rubbed people the wrong way, it worked – which is why Helfrich said not much will change in how the program operates. The countercultural Ducks will probably continue to practice in the mornings, almost exclusively indoors, with the accompaniment of loud music with a catchy beat. They'll continue to mix and match those flashy, fashion-forward uniforms, and to run the same style of spread option offense at something approaching warp speed.

The essential elements will remain the same. But in promoting Helfrich, the program becomes a Petri dish.

Amazingly, Helfrich is the third consecutive offensive coordinator promoted to head coach by Oregon. But will Helfrich get results like Bellotti and Kelly, who both took foundations and built more? Or like Boise State, where Dirk Koetter begat Hawkins who begat Chris Petersen?

Or could he be more like, say, West Virginia's Bill Stewart or Miami's Larry Coker or Washington State's Bill Doba – handpicked nice guys who didn't live up to their predecessors' success levels? [I was recently chatting with Ken Goe, who asked to remain anonymous, and together we came up with a few more names to this list: Jim Lambright at Washington. And on the basketball side Jim Anderson with OSU. And who can forget Dick Harter's assistant Jim Haney?

"Obviously, the expectations for this program are at a different place than they were four years ago," [ And even more obviously the lesson is to never promote an assistant named Jim.] Mullens said. "I don't think anyone is going to lower the expectations because of a coaching change. That does make it a challenge."

And it makes replacing Kelly a risk, regardless. Although Mullens said he interviewed five candidates and received interest from several others, the school had planned to promote Helfrich for almost a year. When Kelly briefly took the Tampa Bay Buccaneers job shortly before national signing day in 2012, Helfrich was the quick, but clear choice. Kelly's return for the 2012 season only delayed Helfrich's promotion to his pinnacle.

"I'm honored to be the caretaker of Oregon football," he said – but he seems to understand: Caretaking is not by a long shot easier than building.

"We have all of this incredible infrastructure of stuff," Helfrich said. "Whether it's a belief (system), the players, the facilities, the university. Then at the same time, there's the expectation about the results. Sure, that's different than going to a place where they're 0-12 in the previous year, where you win four games and they build a statue. [Seriously? The Huskies built a statue of Steve Sarkisian?!?!?]

"I think maybe it's a harder challenge."

The challenge would be the same with any new coach. Despite Helfrich's credentials, it's hard to see what happens next. But on a foggy January afternoon, the new hire sounded good.

Clearly, Helfrich isn't going to "Jim Haney" this and try to change the Ducks. I am not worried about the play calling. I believe we'll see the same spread. Plus I believe any Duck fan would throw rocks and garbage onto the field if Helfrich ever attempted to start huddling again.

My only concern is the months before opening kickoff. What will practices be like? Clearly one of the reasons Kelly was so successful during games was the incredible intensity of practices and prep starting in the Spring. I hope Helfrich is as dogged about staying at that level where Kelly boasted that nobody prepared faster or harder than his team.

So here we are. The wondering. The waiting. The not knowing. And September is a long way away. It's like seeing a big present under the tree and it's only December 20th. Just one of the things I love about college football.

Meanwhile, back in DC. . . .
It's nice to see Oregon State representin' at the Presidential Inauguration.

Football coach Mike Riley sang
"America the Beautiful" just before
Obama took the oath.

And wearing the colors, First Bro-in-Law and Bball coach
Craig Robinson totally photobombs this shot of the president.
" '-tsup Corvallis? Great seat, eh?"

--KB

He's leaving. He's staying. He's leaving...OUCH. My neck hurts.

Chip Kelly: Coach of the Eagles. Are you sure this time, Chip?

I've just been rummaging through files and the trashcan looking for whatever I was going to say about Kelly leaving the Ducks two weeks ago.  I tossed it aside when I heard he was staying.

That's been the problem for all of us Duck fans. This news gave us double whiplash.

For two or three months, we had everyone telling us that Kelly was sure to be gone after the Fiesta Bowl. No way he's staying. The NFL will be calling for him. Get ready for it.

And so we did. When the Duck players doused him with Gatorade in Arizona, we knew it was the end of an era.

"Thanks for everything, Coach. Good luck. Don't worry about us. We'll be fine."

And then . . . . . "What? You're STAYING?!?!?!  Well . . . . OK then.  That's uhh. . . Great!  WONDERFUL!!!"

He had to forgive us if we hesitated at the news. But we had just spent all that time mentally preparing ourselves for his leaving. We were getting used to the idea, even steeling ourselves to the task of getting on without him.  It's like he lived in our house, and we had already converted his bedroom into a library/office.

"But that's no problem, Coach. We're glad you're staying!  We'll just take these bookshelves down and return them to Ikea. Hopefully they'll take them back after we've already assembled them and thrown away the boxes. But no matter coach. Your room is just like it was. It's like you had never left . . . which you didn't.  Welcome . . . . again, sort of."

And then, "What's that . . . . . You're LEAVING?!?!?!  Well . . . . OK then. . . . . . . Good luck . . .  again."

And now we have to call Ikea and see if we can buy back those bookshelves at the same price because they went off sale last week.

OK. Let's pull this spidery story apart leg by leg:

Chip said he was staying. When and why did he change his mind?

John Canzano wrote in today's column:
 It was interesting in the days after he apparently walked away from the Eagles and Browns on Jan. 6 that we never heard this from Kelly himself. No public statement, no interviews, no votes of confidence. In the end, this is how he liked it, a situation left as ambiguous as fourth and three from midfield.

Kelly went for it. Were you really surprised?

I noticed the same thing; perhaps we all did. We never saw Kelly's face again after he informed Oregon he was staying. Oh sure, he was busy recruiting. But no statement. He never closed the door. His 'No' to Philly wasn't final. Perhaps he went back to work with the Ducks while his agent kept the line open with the Eagles.

I don't think he actually changed his mind. He just kept an open mind.

 Did Chip Kelly BETRAY Oregon?
 No. He gave Oregon his all, and his all was more than Duck fans had ever been given before. What's more, this is life in big time sports. Successful coaches are loyal to their organizations until a better opportunity comes along. And organizations are loyal to their coaches until the loss column count is too high.

How will he do in the NFL at Philadelphia?
 Everyone is all over the board on this. But my money is on Kelly to succeed. I want him to succeed, not for Philly, but for the game of football.

Since his four years as head coach at Oregon, the entire landscape of college football had changed. This past season, Oregon's first four opponents -- Arkansas State, Tennessee Tech, Fresno State and Arizona -- all operated with some variation of spread option and/or no huddle. Ark. State's coach Gus Malzahn led them to win their conference and bowl game before going back to Auburn to be their head coach.

In the Pac-12, ASU and UCLA joined 'Zona in switching away from the traditional pro set for a more Oregonesque style or pace. After the season, Cal fired Tedford and hired a spread guy.

Texas A&M took the concept and, with their Heisman QB, made Oklahoma look absolutely Stoopid in the Cotton Bowl.

No, Kelly didn't invent these offensive elements, but no one has blended them better. And more importantly, no one has changed the pace or conditioning demands of practice like Kelly.

In the pros, Denver and San Francisco have experimented with it. New England's Belichick regularly consulted with Chip Kelly. Now Philadelphia has said, "Ya, we get it." and gone straight to the source.

My dream is this. One day in the not too distant future, I'll be watching a football game with a young child who will ask me,

"Great Grandpa Killer Bee, what is that team doing?"

And I'll say, "Well I'll be. I haven't seen that in years. I believe they're in a huddle!"

"What's a huddle, Great Grandpa Killer Bee."

I would begin the story, "Well, way back in the insane 20th century, cars burned only gas because nobody believed oil was killing the planet. Health care coverage was completely controlled by private stock holders. And you could buy military assault rifles at Wal-Mart."

"HA HA HA HA . . . . People sure were stupid dumbasses back then, weren't they Great Grandpa Killer Bee?"

"Yes, but do you know what was even stupider?  Football teams did this thing called a 'huddle'. The team would gather together for about 30 seconds while the clock ticked and decide on just one play; and the quarterback wasn't allowed to change the play after the ball was snapped."

"That must have been painful to watch, Great Grandpa Killer Bee."

"Well not really, because we didn't know any better. Then one day in 2008 came two great men. One became Coach of Oregon, and the other became President."

(Hee hee. I'll take this minute to let some of you wipe the tobacco spit off your screen.  I promise from here I'll just stick to Duck football.)

Will Mark Helfrich become Oregon's next coach? Should he?
Yes and yes. From his press conference, it appears that AD Rob Mullens is being careful to follow all the selection and hiring rules, but he is following them as fast as he can. Kelly told Mullens he was leaving in the morning. By lunch time, Oregon had a 'help wanted' ad out.

Job search requirement #1?  Check.



I have to feel for Mullens. What if he woke up Wednesday
morning with the thought, "Maybe today will be a slow easy day."
And before he was even at the office, he got a call and saw Kelly's
name on his cell phone, and he just knew . . . .
"Awwwww CRAP."


The hurry is that new recruit signing day is just weeks away. And some oral commits who were solid just 48 hours ago are now wavering. They need to be shown consistency and stability. Oregon needs to show them that little has changed. Kelly isn't Oregon. Oregon is Oregon. And everyone else is staying.

Regarding Helfrich, everybody likes him. He's been at Oregon during Kelly's entire tenure. He doesn't want to change things. In a Ted Miller story at ESPN, Chip Kelly is quoted as saying about Helfrich.
"He's really smart, really intelligent," Kelly said at Fiesta Bowl media day when asked why he made Helfrich his first offensive coordinator. "He brought a different perspective to our staff, because he had a different background. He wasn't a spread guy. I wanted to bring someone in who wasn't going to tell us what we already knew."

A non-spread guy, a former QB and QB coach who knew about passing offenses, and he just spent four years in Oregon's successful spread system. Who else would you want? Dare he balance the number of pass plays to runs but keep the total production high?!?

I can only think of two other people on the planet worth considering. Gus Malzhan, but he just went back to Auburn; and Nick Aliotti.

I know a lot of people dislike Aliotti, and I don't get that. I'll put his tenacity and work ethic up against any other coach. And no other assistant coordinator in the country has seen it all like he has.

Nevertheless, I think Helfrich is the next coach.

BREAKING NEWS: At the time of this writing, the story broke that USC coach Lame Kiffin asked Aliotti if he was interested in their defensive coordinator position. 

Aliotti replied:
\/
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What about Oregon's future in general?
Back during the first time we thought Chip was gone, before we knew he was going to stay at Oregon when he really wasn't, Aaron Fentress absolutely nailed it in this Oregonian story:
Finally, life at Oregon after Kelly would be just fine if he indeed leaves. Don't forget:

Kelly didn't build Oregon's facilities.

Kelly didn't invent or bring the spread-option offense to Oregon.

Kelly didn't invent the no-huddle.

Kelly, as head coach, didn't recruit the vast majority of the players responsible for the team's four-year run of success.

Kelly didn't hire most of the coaching staff.

Kelly didn't invent the "Swoosh."

Kelly didn't come up with the idea of using multiple, state-of-the-art uniforms to attract recruits.

Kelly didn't pay money to former USC running back Reggie Bush, leading to the Trojans facing serious penalties.

Would a 45-year-old Kelly have had the same success at Oregon had he taken over the program in 1995 instead of 2009? No chance.

Would the Ducks of the past four years have dominated the conference during the Bush-Pete Caroll-Matt Leinart era of last decade? Not likely.

In other words, while Kelly certainly did his share to elevate Oregon to another level, an argument could be made that the Ducks were headed in this direction anyway. Therefore, an equally compelling argument could be made that Oregon would continue to be successful without Kelly.

I feel good for Kelly. I feel good for Philadelphia. And I especially feel good for Oregon. I got an email from one of you yesterday saying, "Wouldn't it be perfect if next year Oregon won all their games and the National Championship?"

"Yes. Perfect," I replied. And by no means a stretch. It's certainly happened before where great old coach leaves and new young coach comes in and rockets the team to the next level. Oregon's opponents are breathing a sigh of relief that Kelly is gone. But that is premature my friends. Oregon hasn't left. Oregon is still Oregon.

--KB

Moments to Remember

Photos from AP sources.

Days later I woke up and thought, No I'm not dreaming. Oregon won it's second consecutive BCS Bowl. Here's another look.

Oregon’s offense was supposed to be the difference maker, but it was the Ducks’ defense that was the story of the game. It limited K-State to 283 yards and had it not been for a pass interference call in the first half, the Wildcats’ only touchdown in the first 48:25 might have been averted.
That is from a story by Bob Lutz of the Wichita Eagle, which stands in sharp contrast to Kansas State running back John Hubert's comment that Oregon's defense were a bunch of prima donnas.

Oregon held Hubert to 55 yards on 17 carries. Senior running back Angelo Pease had 47 yards. Honorable Mention Heisman candidate and QB Collin Klein was dishonored with 30 yards rushing on 13 carries, only 151 yards passing with no TD's and two interceptions.

Here are a few photos of Oregon's "prima donnas" at work.

I count four or five "prima donnas" eager to hug
their old friend Chris Harper.

Prima donnas Hill and Jackson are giving
Harper something to think about other than
the ball -- like "Is this landing going to hurt?"



In the second half, Eric Dargan
prima donnas four feet off the ground
like a freakin' ballerina to snag a rare
pick from Heisman candidate QB
Calvin Klein.




And prima donna linebacker Kiko Alonso sacks Klein so hard,
he brings down the QB's family.



Speaking of which, a note to Mrs. Klein.
Having married into a family of hair dressers,
I can say with competence that if there's ever a
chance you're going to have your picture taken,
Honey, you have GOT TO color those roots.

As for the offense, Marcus Mariota got off to a sluggish start before heating up and earning himself the Offensive Player of the Game Award.

Flyin' Hawaiian leaves 'Cats cryin'.
(Ha Ha . . . I just thought of that. Just now!!!)

Kenjon Barner was his usual spectacular self with 143 yards rushing plus a key TD reception to end the first half and make K. State go to the locker room feeling small and inadequate.  

In a beautiful delayed pass play where Mariota and Barner both
recognize that the defenders have neglected him for a moment,
Barner gets wide open and, with the help of excellent blocking,
sees nothing but purple endzone.

And then there's DeAnthony Thomas. What more can you say about DAT? Did you see the look on all the Kansas State fans' faces when he ran back the opening kickoff? Kansas folk never seen a space shuttle launch before.

I think I'll put this video on my desktop to click whenever I need a boost. One technical note: The clock stopped two seconds after DAT "broke the tape" at the finish . . . or goal line. It took about 10 seconds for him to run that 95 yards. Someone estimated he was going 26.5 mph. That's fast.

Like most teams, Kansas State quickly discovered that they
just don't have the personnel to keep Thomas out of the endzone.
This was his second score; and just like "dat", K State was down 0-15.

I have to wonder if the Wildcats became a little stunned after that opening TD. They might have thought, "Was Oregon really going to score every time they touched the ball?". Perhaps on paper Oregon was only eight points better than KSU as the odds predicted. But their jump to an early lead proved to be self fulfilling prophecy. Kansas State couldn't catch them and they knew it.

A FEW MORE OBSERVATIONS THRU PHOTOS

When the 'O' is flyin' and K State fans are not,
you can guess what's happened.

A lot of players have deliberately flashed the Heisman pose,
but Barner naturally twisted into this perfect "huck and buck"
in the middle of traffic. But if they ever decide to adopt a new
trophy for the Heisman . . . .

Now THAT's a pose. That's a statue.
DAT's taking the opening kickoff across the goal line is
"The Flying Duck".

More trophy pics.
Gold-flek paint and rhinestones never looked so beautiful.

Coach Kelly to Defensive Player of the Game Michael Clay,
"I love you, Man!"

War Eagle!

WAR DUCK!!!

Speaking of mascots:
Kansas State, yours scares children.

And so after three 12-win seasons, three Pac-10/12 Championships and winning two for four consecutive BCS bowls, Oregon fans should spend this time to reflect on these best days to be a Duck. Who knows what the future holds. But we won't fret. It's not our style. For in these four years, someone taught us to not worry about the future or the past, but just "Win The Day".

No Chip, YOU the Man!

But if you still feel sadness or anxiety for the future, I invite you to read the following Oregonian article that puts things in a good perspective: Chip Kelly must do what's best for Chip Kelly

Still pining for Chip to stay? You can sing with the following Eugene songwriter and Duck fan who shares your pain. Very funny.



--KB

Play like it's your last time together.

Modern Family's Ty Burell is from Oregon and a huge Duck fan. His co-star Eric Stonestreet graduated from Kansas State. Meanwhile there's a third guy in the video. Notice the T-shirt he's wearing. Very funny.



I don't think I'm the only one who has been guilty of focusing on the Chip Kelly/NFL drama at the risk of almost forgetting that Oregon has one more game to play -- a huge game -- what many are calling the biggest bowl game next to the Natty.

Let's all just start off by easing our minds about something: Coach Kelly will be coaching an NFL team next season. The latest has him meeting with the Cleveland Browns on Friday. Maybe it won't happen, but right now it's best for everyone to let go of all the speculation and contemplation and just resolve our mindset to the probability.

But for now, this great Oregon team has one more encore with it's "Win The Day" creator. (Ken Goe got a head start on Kelly's impending collegiate career obituaries in this article about Kelly's "WTD" legacy at Oregon.)

Thursday, with Kelly leaving in the back of their minds, everyone in that locker room needs to make this game special. Play for each other. Play for their coach. Play like it's the end of an era.

The storyline for Oregon's date with Kansas State is interesting. The Ducks will be facing a team coached by a very smart man.  Coach Bill Snyder showed wisdom in deciding he never wanted to play the Ducks. Three years ago, he cancelled a home-and-home series with Oregon. The risk of loss, especially this year at Autzen, didn't fit into his strategy.

And it worked. The Wildcats got a win where they might have had a loss; and for a whole week KS was ranked #1 with Oregon right behind.

But now, irony of ironies, his roll of the dice has turned against him. Had Snyder faced Oregon earlier this season, he would've faced a young redshirt freshman quarterback that had barely cut his teeth on Arkansas State. He would've had the first real shot at unleashing his talented defense on a young Mariota who had yet to win any days against league opponents including at L.A. Coliseum.

Had he played Oregon as originally scheduled, he would've faced a young team that had yet to get it's mouth bloodied by a Rose Bowl bound Stanford -- a team with a defense far better than his. The Cardinal gave Oregon some valuable experience in how to face a big D that's tough on the run.

Hey Snyder, do you have Alanis Morissette's
"Ironic" on your Ipod? Because THAT would be ironic!

Certainly the same can be said for Kansas State. They're no doubt better than they were four months ago. But their experience is more troubling. Their one loss was a slaughter against the one opponent (with a losing record, mind you) that played Oregon style football.

Baylor pasted the Wildcats with a running back who had easy success on them, Lache Seastrunk. Sound familiar? Yes, that Lache Seastrunk who was fifth on Oregon's depth chart a year earlier. 

The Portland Tribune wrote about it. Here's an excerpt from Tuesday's article.

• Coach Chip Kelly, whose Ducks have the same 11-1 record as K-State going into their bowl meeting at Glendale, Ariz., had these observations of the Wildcats' loss to Baylor:


"On the defensive side, they just missed some tackles. Schematically, it wasn't that (Baylor) exploited something from K-State where you were like, 'Wow, we can add that to our arsenal as we prepare for this game.' ... When you look at that game, then you look at the totality of the season, there's not one thing that (K-State) did drastically different in that game. I think Baylor has a lot of speed, speed in space. They made kids miss tackles. When they missed tackles, they hit some long runs. Didn't happen the rest of the year."

By the way, Oregon has speed in space as well.

  It's like this, Snyder. If you didn't think you could beat Oregon before, what makes you think you can beat a more experienced Oregon team now? An Oregon team that could crush the Baylor that crushed you. An Oregon team that will only be better for playing a Stanford that could also beat you. 

Snyder, you left an Oregon team and it's coaches very disappointed when you weasled out of your contract to play them. So what might you think of Oregon's desire now to . . . . uhh . . . make the most of this opportunity?

Thursday evening will be the time when the Ducks demonstrate a simple statement -- a statement that I sincerely hope a Duck fan in the stands of the Fiesta Bowl will have the wisdom to write on poster board along with the usual letters "ESPN". A statement when, at the appropriate moment in the game, a cameraman will turn to it to summarize for the world what will already be clear:

"This is why Snyder didn't want to play the Ducks."

Excuse me? Did he say prima donnas?

Go for it, Hubert. Oh and tell your tough defense they'd better get a good night's sleep tonight.



Fiesta Bowl Thursday, Jan. 3rd. 5:30 on ESPN.

Great End to a Great Season

Oregonian photos

THIS ONE! This is the one to hang over my fireplace.

In 1994, I was sitting in a corner of Autzen Stadium with my wife. We were surrounded by Husky fans. The game was over, but we all just sat there, because we had just witnessed Kenny Wheaton intercepting a Husky pass and returning it to immortality.

We had been exchanging mostly, but not always, good natured jabs through the game. But afterwards we all just sat there and took the moment to be a little philosophical and whimsical.

The purply person sitting to my left, a nice lady for a Husky fan, told me frankly how this loss to Oregon had basically ruined Washington's season. Mind you, Washington was just four years removed from winning the national championship. And she went through each season since, year by year, saying how one loss here and one loss there RUINED the season because it prevented them from getting back to the National Championship.

I listened and knodded to her story, although I thought a bit odd. So I stood up and kneed her in the face. And while she was choking on the blood gushing out of her nose, I killed her husband.

OK no. . . but I wanted to; because what I was thinking as she was talking was that if the Ducks were ever in a position -- oh, say 15 to 18 years from that moment -- when they were beating their rivals regularly, winning the league championships, going to the big bowls including the national championship and flirting with undefeated seasons, I would never allow myself to get so highbrow that I couldn't enjoy a less-than-perfect season.

We are Duck fans, not Duck snobs; and we can't forget our roots. One loss? We had years when we worried for one win. Many times we have suffered the night-and-day difference between a 5-6 and a 6-5 season. Beating Washington this season for the ninth consecutive time is as special to me now as it was back then in '94. Sweeping the Arizona schools. Beating UCLA. And how 'bout that game against USC?!?.  I still say "Wow" when I look back at any one-, two-, even three-loss seasons.

And then there's Oregon State. Winning at Corvallis, no matter how many times Oregon has done it, is still a great accomplishment. It's never easy.

But it's so rewarding when it happens. You've heard of the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem? Because of the following pics, I've come to call the three foot high barrier that rings the stands at Reser Stadium OSU's "Failing Wall." 

From three consectutive Civil Wars at Reser:


Failing Wall: 2008



Failing Wall: 2010

 

And this is my new favorite: Failing Wall 2012.
This poor guy is surrounded by Duck fans all smiling
like they're posing for a Christmas Card. But look at the
girl on the left. She's Beaver-clad as well, but she leans
away from him and smiles with the Ducks.
This poor orange-blooded sufferer is all alone in his own stadium.




Like little kids running around the living room playing superhero,
Super Mariota and . . . .




. . . The Black Mamba both run around the field
with their orange capes flapping in the breeze.



Ah oh. Barn Burner's cape is slipping off.

It looks like the Ducks are going to the Fiesta Bowl to face either Kansas State or Oklahoma depending on whether Texas will get its Bevo on this Saturday.

I lick my smackers at the chance to take on either of those teams this year. And it was the Duck's making the best of their opportunities that makes that possible. Below is an excerpt from the Oregonian article: Oregon's still cresting dynasty at critical juncture 
. . . . logically, Oregon should not have been a national title contender.

A redshirt freshman quarterback, season-ending injury to senior guard Carson York, no emerging go-to receiver and several other injuries along the offensive line increased the degree of difficulty to replace two all-time greats, James and quarterback Darron Thomas.

The defense lost its leader, senior safety John Boyett, and his replacement, budding star Avery Patterson. Injuries along the defensive line led to true freshmen being called upon to carry the load for two weeks. Arik Armstead, DeForest Buckner and Alex Balducci should anchor the 2014 line.

Still, despite these issues, Oregon went 11-1 and did so in mind-blowing fashion.

The roster's talent level is an abundance of riches that should keep Oregon entrenched in the nation's top 10 teams for at least the next couple of years.

Fentress goes on to talk about better things ahead through the next couple of years provided the overly anticipated NCAA penalties aren't too bad and they survive whatever coaching changes may come.

Meanwhile, its interesting to see other schools react to their misfortunes.

COLORADO, ARE YOU HIGH?
Say you're a house painter. A homeowner calls you and says he needs you to undo a terrible job done by a previous house painter and then get the job done right.

You look at it and see the previous paint is thin and peeling already. You tell the homeowner that while most paint jobs take three to four days, this will take a good ten days to undo the bad and paint it correctly.

The owner agrees.

So just four days in, you've scraped off all the old paint and applied a primer. And you're getting ready to put on the first coat when the owner comes by.

He sees that the job is still far from where he wants it and fires you immediately.

"But I told you this was going to take longer," you said.

"Ya, but it looks worse now than before," he replies.

"Yes, but I've just started," you reply.

"Too bad," is his answer.

And you look straight at him and say, "Man . . . . . Do you know what? . . . .Man . . ."

And you storm out and forget to load your ladder on your truck because you're so mad.

Colorado fired coach Jon Embree after just two seasons of a five year contract that he told them from the start would take the full five years. Good ESPN story here.

When should you fire a coach after only two years or less?

When he's caught in a hotel room with a stripper named Destiny.  When he is seen abusing his players. When he is seen abusing anybody. When he punches an opposing player during a game. When the GPA of his team dramatically drops. When his players constantly get into legal trouble. When he shows blatant negligence or disregard to basic university and NCAA regulations. When he has a gambling problem. When he shows up to work drunk. When he doesn't show up to work at all. When throughout the season, a steady stream of players walk into the athletic director's office and says, "This guy doesn't know what he's doing."

None of that happened at Boulder. In fact Embree's players had the best GPA's in school history. They stayed out of trouble. They respected him. Embree was going to fire at least two assistants and switch to the spread option. He was planning for the next three years, getting ready to add two good coats of paint.

Could he have turned Colorado around? The point is, we'll never know. Colorado gave him five years to bring their program out of the shambles that Dan Hawkins had spent five years putting it in. But they panicked after just two years.

SO LONG JEFF AND THANKS FOR THE NEW STADIUM
Hey Jeff Tedford, Ernie Kent returned your call and said, "Ya, tell me about it."


MEANWHILE, BACK AT AUBURN . . .
Overheard in the coach's office: ". . . Well, what did you expect Colorado to do? I mean Embree only had four wins in two seasons -- HA HA HA. . . Hey hold on, I got a call on the other line . . . Hello, this is Gene Chizik . . . .What?  I'm FIRED?!?!?"

It's like Auburn was on a hot date but discovered her bra was stuffed with tissue. Once they saw Chizik naked without QB phenom Cam Newton and genius offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, the thrill was gone.

Sure he won the Natty two years ago. But since then switched from Malzahn's no-huddle/spread back to a pro set. His team went 3-9 this year. Two of his players were arrested for public intoxication. And new NCAA investigations are on the horizon. Suddenly he was very unattractive.

PAC 12 CHAMPIONSHIP:
UCLA cleverly loses to Stanford to set up upset at Stanford?
Did you hear the L.A. reporter accusing UCLA coach Jim Mora of throwing the game against Stanford to avoid having to go to Eugene to play the Ducks?

At very beginning, then again at 4:30 mark.


Thanks for flattering the Ducks, Scoop. But honestly, I think Mora's Bruins lost this game the old fashioned way. They sincerely and genuinely played like crap.

Should UCLA suddenly pull out some secret offensive sets and stun the Cardinal tonight, we'll talk again. But I think Stanford proved that they are worthy champs after beating USC and UCLA and stunning Oregon at Eugene.  Keep in mind also they narrowly missed out on an upset at Notre Dame in overtime.

"Noooooooo!"
That was the lament of a blog writer who learned that Washington Coach Steve Sarkisian was a serious candidate for the job opening at Arkansas. Only this wasn't a Husky blog, it was of Oregon.

Hey Dawgs, it's a bad sign when your rivals are nervous about your coach leaving.


Finally, an excellent recap of the Civil War accompanied by 38 Special. Crank it so Beaver fans near you will ask, "What are you watching?"


Next: Waiting for bowl selections.
--KB