Things you need to know.

ESPN GameDay at the game.
In case you haven't heard it yet, it's true. Corso and the boys will be waking us up from Eugene. Starting at 7 a.m. Pacific, they will do their show from the Casanova Center parking lot. Of course everyone wants Corso to wear the Duck head. But look for signs urging Herbstreit to pick USC. He's been wrong about Oregon all season, and we don't want him to break the streak now.

Game on ABC or ESPN2. 
For most everybody, the game will be on ABC at 5 pm Pacific. But if you're in a part of the country where it's not, don't panic. It will be on ESPN2.  ABC and ESPN have gotten really good this year about saying which games they're going to televise, and then rotating them to one of their varying stations depending on the region -- but televising the games nevertheless.

The fans have spoken: BLACKOUT
Officials at Oregon wanted to apply the theme "Fright Night" to this Halloween game. But that hasn't gone over as well as one of the most spontaneous and successful fan generated grass roots campaigns I've seen in sports since an entire boxing crowd demanded Mike Tyson spit out Evander Holyfield's ear that very instant.

BLACKOUT appears to be the theme. Blogs, boards, and chats are urging game goers to wear black as the primary and only accessorizing with yellow or green. (Did I just make that sound gay?)

The same goes for the team. Fans are demanding they come out with all black uni's. They've GOT to do it. Don't disappoint the fans.

If you haven't seen this, the Oregonian has posted a digital 'paper doll' type game with Oregon's uniform combinations.  You can separately select helmets, jersey, pants, and socks and shoes. It's easy and fun!

I plugged in all black. It looks sharp. If you want to see my own spin on it though, plug in black helmet, jersey and pants with WHITE socks.  NOW were lookin' fine.
Here's the link: http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindducksbeat/2009/10/oregon_ducks_uniforms_all_blac.html

Injury Report:
The Ducks are as healthy as they can expect to be. Jeremiah Masoli's knee is fine. He'll wear a brace as a precaution. Safety TJ Ward is back. And he couldn't come at a better time to introduce himself to Mr. Barkley. Offensive lineman Mark Asper hurt his foot this week but latest word is he's OK and will play. Talmadge Jackson III hurt his back at Washington. He practiced all week and will play.  Offensive lineman C.E. Kaiser was banged up. He'll play.
It's go time. They're all just gonna rub some dirt on it and get out there.

Don't just take it from me:
Here are the Oregonian's own John Canzano and Ken Goe showing their frightful selves in front of a camera to discuss OSU/UCLA and Oregon/USC. They talk about OSU until about the six minute mark if you want to skip ahead. (Sorry Beav fans. But we just don't care. We'll deal with you in 34 days.)
I believe/hope/believe/hope Canzano is right about Matt Barkley and how he'll stack up against Oregon's defense and Autzen.

College Football Insiders (CFI), Week 9

Some final thoughts.
It's real simple. If USC wins, they deserve the Rose Bowl if not more. But they just don't look like they have it all together this season. As another writer pointed out, the it factor is what everyone looks for. And the buzz is that Oregon has it this season. USC, not so much.
I think it's going to happen. I think Oregon will pull this off. I'm not big on score predictions. One more point is all we need. These Ducks are mature, they're ready. Pete Carroll THINKS he's played against this Duck spread option before. He hasn't played Chip Kelly's Ducks. This team is different. Cal and Washinton can tell you that.

I'm really excited . . . . . . . . . Waiting for kickoff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OK. I'm gonna go throw up now.] --kb

The Golden Boy.

[He has just turned 19 years old. He's a true freshman. The starting quarterback for USC, he leads the Pac-10 in passing and pass efficiency.

People can't say enough about him. He has football skills and QB instincts normally only seen in seniors.

Calm. Cool. Smart. Gifted. Handsome. Nice.

He is Matt Barkely,  a genetically superior, uber All-American whom everybody loves.

In high school he was the Gatorade National Male Athlete of the Year. He plays guitar for his church youth group. He went to Africa and did something nice for African children (read to them or fed them or something).

While he was in high school, and with the help of his father, he started "Monarchs for Marines" -- an organization of players, coaches and parents of his Mater Dei High Monarchs who volunteered their time in landscaping and renovation of the youth areas of Camp Pendleton.  Then they held youth camps and football clinics for the Camp Pendleton youth. Additionally they raised $100,000 to help families of fallen or wounded Marines.

What parents wouldn't want their daughters and even a few of sons to marry this guy?
Is that a hickey? How adorable.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Ya. We're in big trouble. Pete Carroll has run some pretty good QB's through his system. But this new scheme of his is downright diabolical.

It's one thing to have a QB that is tough to slow down because of his own set of skills. It's another to bring in a guy who has all that PLUS he is so likable, such an American Golden Boy, that blitzing and putting the hurt on him would make everybody sad.

This guy is like Buckaroo Banzai -- comic book hero, real life superhero, quantum physicist, rock star, pilot,  jet car racer, sensitive lover and heart surgeon. The only people who hate him are evil villains and space aliens bent on destroying the earth.

That is the role the Ducks must play Saturday. Here is Oregon with their best shot yet at getting back to the Rose Bowl. They've been getting it done in large part by attacking the quarterback. Jake Locker was only the latest to limp off the field after dancing with the Ducks.  A blind-sided blitz under the cover of the screams of Autzen is Oregon's most potent weapon. It's left many a QB wobbly legged and desiring to sit down.

 And now they await the Golden Child. The Ducks have no choice. They must be the evil villains. It is their destiny to end Buckaroo Barkley's legendom before it starts.

Actually, the Autzen crowd will provide all the evil on this Halloween night. The Ducks D. only have to do their jobs.

"Bring the boy to me. "

"There is power in the Duck side."

"Matt, this is your destiny."

"Uhhh . . . That's all I got."

Ya. . . Kind of like that.

[A Duck fan wrote Matt Barkley a nice letter courtesy of the L.A. Times.  Very funny.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/2009/10/bleacher-report-a-letter-from-an-oregon-fan-to-matt-barkley.html ]

Never a doubt . . . . mostly.

LaMichael (Little Train) James spikes himself into the endzone.

Notice how his blockers have their backs to the goal line.

They turned the Husky D-line completely around.

[In the days leading up to the game against Washington, it appeared to me that the local media got a little bored with merely repeating what everybody knew in their hearts -- that Oregon was going to win this game big time.
Rob Mosley of the R-G actually found three or four national media guys who thought Washington was ready to pull off the upset. They gave reasons like, "Oregon couldn't decide who their QB was." or "Husky Stadium was as hostile an environment as Boise State -- and we all know what happened there. "
Ken Goe basically had two words of warning for us giddy Duck fans: Jake Locker. He argued that Locker could be the best QB in the Pac-10.
Through my typical sleepless Friday night before a Husky game I was wondering, "What if what they say is true? What if the Huskies are as good as they hope they are? What if Locker proves to be the toughest QB Oregon has faced.
Every stat, every video clip, every X, and every O told me that the Ducks would crush the Dawgs. My head was clear. But my stomach still churned. These were the Huskies, after all.
The hex of doubt was finally lifted from me about two hours before the game when I was watching Purdue's Joey Elliott hold off a tough Illinois attack for another victory to go with their one over Ohio State last week.
Remember Elliott? He was the toughest QB the Ducks had faced, right after they had tangled with Kellen Moore at Boise, and just before they had gone against Terrence Cain of Utah. And then came Cal's Kevin Riley. RILEY, for crying out loud -- He can be lethal.
Yes, Locker could be the best QB in the Pac-10 or West or whatever; but after watching Oregon's 43 -19 whipping of the Dawgs, it's time to be real.

He is not.
Compared to those other QB's. Jake Locker is merely another one. And the Ducks proved it.
Following is a story from the R-G about the Ducks' lockdown of Locker . . . ]

Ducks lock down UW quarterback

By Adam Jude, The Register-Guard

Javes Lewis intercepts Jake Locker's pass in the endzone.

SEATTLE — As Jake Locker’s passing statistics rose and rose and rose this season, so too did his NFL stock — so much so that one expert skyrocketed the Washington quarterback all the way to the top of the draft board last week.

His professional profile might be heading up, but against No. 12 Oregon on Saturday, Locker only seemed to be going down. And down. And down.

“A lot of people got to hit him today,” UO defensive end Kenny Rowe said after the Ducks’ 43-19 victory at Husky Stadium. “So we feel good about that.”

Yes, it was another feel-good day for the UO defense, which wanted — and got — Locker to sit back and attempt to beat the Ducks through the air.

Locker had “too much” success in that regard, Rowe said, completing 23-of-44 passes for 266 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions.

But the Ducks said they were most wary of Locker’s ability to beat them with his feet, and in that regard Oregon shut down the 6-foot-2, 226-pound junior.

Locker was sacked four times and attempted only three other runs, netting minus-16 yards on the ground. His first instinct, it seems, was to throw the ball, even when a running lane appeared to open up.

“He couldn’t run,” UO senior safety T.J. Ward said. “It was either throw it or get sacked.”

That’s a stark contrast to Locker’s first two seasons as the UW starter, when he rushed for a combined 134 yards on 29 carries in two previous games against Oregon.

“He’s a legit quarterback, there’s no doubt about it,” UO defensive tackle Brandon Bair said. “He’s definitely improved on his passing game since I played against him last. He’s got confidence throwing the ball, (but) I noticed he doesn’t run the ball as much anymore. He can if he needs to, but he sits in the pocket and passes.“Today, that probably hurt him more than it helped him with us.”

Bair, Spencer Paysinger and Josh Kaddu were each credited with a sack Saturday, with Rowe and Will Tukuafu combining on another.

“Maybe we miscalculated their team speed in a sense,” UW coach Steve Sarkisian said, “because there were times I thought we were going to get them to the edge, and (Locker) wasn’t able to get there and they closed on him.”
[Would you believe that even after this game, an R-G writer still believes Sarkisian is a legitimate candidate for Pac-10 Coach of the Year? Here we are in the middle of the season. Tons of film, scouting reports, interviews etc. are at their disposal. And this C.O.Y. candidate says “Maybe we miscalculated their team speed in a sense,”
In a sense? Ya. NON-sense. It's one thing to say, "We knew these guys were fast, and Locker couldn't outrun them." But how does one MISCALCULATE something like that. ]

Tukuafu, one of Oregon’s defensive captains, credited the coverage of Oregon’s secondary for allowing the front seven time to pressure Locker.“Our defensive backs were able to hold their coverage and forced him to hold the ball a little bit longer than he normally would,” Tukuafu said.

The Ducks D. gave Locker plenty of time to lie down and

and think about calling the Anaheim Angels (who drafted him)

and becoming a baseball player.

That’s a somewhat surprising development considering the secondary was hit with yet another injury at cornerback. Junior Talmadge Jackson III, the Ducks’ most experienced cornerback still standing, left in the first quarter with a back injury.

That left sophomore Anthony Gildon and true freshman Cliff Harris to man the corner positions, with sophomore rover Javes Lewis also filling in there on occasion. Harris had his first career interception, off Locker in the third quarter.

Lewis added a pick off Locker in the end zone on a fourth-down play in the second quarter, the Ducks’ second goal-line stand in as many weeks.

Kaddu, who later left the game with an ankle injury, was credited with a forced fumble in the third quarter, which Rowe returned 18 yards. The Ducks’ three forced turnovers gave them 19 this season.Ward returned to the field for the first time since suffering an ankle injury in the season opener, finishing with five tackles as John Boyett’s backup.

Ward said “it’s amazing” how well the secondary has performed in the face of so many injuries.

[Ya, I don't know how they're doing it, but Oregon's young, inexperienced secondary are playing like seasoned veterans. Hopefully TJ3 will be able to take some ibuprofen and get back out there. Playing the Trojans is no time to discover that maybe your young D-backs are in fact NOT up to the task.
An excerpt from this next article in the Seattle P-I talks more of Locker, but compares him to Jeremiah Masoli:]

Huskies not taking advantage of Locker near goal line

. . . . Certainly Locker is a better athlete than the 5-foot-11, 220-pound Masoli. [Oh, did I tell you this was from the Seattle P.I.?] But when Oregon got down inside the 5-yard line, it was Masoli who proved impossible to stop as he twice scored on short touchdown runs after play-faking the Husky front out of position and waltzing through gaping holes up front.

Meanwhile, the Huskies continued their terrible struggles inside the 5 despite the multi-dimensional threat of Locker, who should be money in that situation.

Who's the better athlete?

Used to be the Huskies would run option plays near the goal line, using Locker's speed and strength.

But this season they've steered clear of that ploy, instead trying to jam the ball up the middle unsuccessfully as happened repeatedly at Notre Dame and again several times Saturday against the Ducks.

And when that hasn't worked, they've rolled Locker out on slow-developing pass-run options that fail to take full advantage of his speed and power along the line of scrimmage.

The Huskies had six plays inside the 10-yard line in the first half Saturday and came away with just three points, thwarted completely on their second thrust into the red zone when Locker threw an interception on fourth-and-goal from the 1 on a rollout play where he ran out of room and just threw the ball up for grabs.

At the time, Washington trailed just 8-3, but Oregon responded by driving 80-yards on its ensuing possession to completely swing the game's early momentum.

On their second drive of the third quarter, the Huskies moved to Oregon's 22 before Locker was intercepted again at the 4-yard line. Three trips into prime position and just three points to show for it.Game, set, match.

On the other side, Masoli was money in the red zone. The junior has a myriad of options to call upon when Oregon nears paydirt and Washington was incapable of stopping any of them.Four times Oregon trooped into the red zone. Four times they scored touchdowns. It's no accident. The Ducks have now scored touchdowns 19 times in 26 red-zone chances this season. Washington is 14 of 27 on the same statistic.It's a glaring difference, the ability to capitalize when opportunity arises. [There are those red zone stats again. Somehow Sark and his fans got it in their minds that Washington was a pretty good red zone team on both sides of the ball. I trust they saw the truth on Saturday.
Coach Sark has made no secret that he is trying to change Locker from a running QB to a more sit-in-the-pocket pro style QB. And it's driving Husky fans nuts, especially when they see Masoli come in and do what he does.]
"This is a very fine line we're operating with, when we're trying to change the complexion of a guy's game," Sarkisian said. "I knew it wasn't going to happen overnight. … We're going to have some growing pains and not just Jake, but as a football program.

"The challenge for us – and for Jake – is to learn from these games and learn from this style of play. Where is the happy medium? Where can he take the running style he had previously and where can he fit in this scheme that we're running?"

Matching an individual's talents with a team's scheme was never so obvious as Saturday, with Masoli orchestrating Oregon's attack like a maestro.

Masoli completed 14 of 22 passes for 157 yards with no interceptions. Locker was 23 for 44 for 266 yards, but his two interceptions were killers.

But more glaring was the ground game. Despite his immense threat as a rusher, Locker ran the ball just three times from scrimmage for 5 yards and was sacked four times for minus 21 yards. Masoli carried nine times for 85 yards and was sacked twice for minus 31.

Nobody is going to say Masoli is a better running threat than Locker, [Oh ya? "MASOLI IS A BETTER RUNNING THREAT THAN LOCKER." Scoreboard, Baby!] but he made hay in his team's offensive scheme. [Another miscalculation?]

"The big issue was the quarterback scrambling," said UW defensive coordinator Nick Holt. "We had some pressure and he got out and made some plays. My hat's off to him. He's a good little nifty player." [Ya, and you're a cute little nifty shiny headed defensive coordinator. Oh by the way, in the time it took me to type that, someone just scored on your D again.]

Nifty little Nick

Masoli's two touchdown runs came from the 3 and the 1 on the same misdirection play where he faked an inside handoff, watched Washington's line chase the back and then ran it himself up the gut untouched. [Read that again: SAME PLAY.]

The Huskies, meanwhile, can't find a way to get a tough yard down by the goal line if a bowl game depended on it. Which, in hindsight, it probably has given the failures at Notre Dame and now against Oregon when the game was still hung in the balance.
[ I feel for Jake Locker. He is a good QB who may have suffered irreparable harm to his psyche from experiences with Willingham and now Sarkisian.
Oh well. The Ducks move on . . . ]

There's no D in USC
When I watched that USC/OSU game in L.A., I shuddered. That frighteningly ferocious team was the Ducks' future opponent; and they almost beat the Trojans.

Seriously, OSU has nothing to hang their heads about, if they don't count the fact that they could've beaten USC.

No. More seriously, USC is tough. OSU made some mistakes, which are unforgivable when you're playing down at the Coliseum. But the Beavs showed us something.

They, like Notre Dame before them, showed us that you must never give up when you're chasing USC, because USC will let you catch up.

Consider their past two games. In their game at South Bend, USC allowed a mediocre Notre Dame team to score 27 points -- not to mention the Irish were on the goal line trying to score again in the final seconds -- but they escaped with a 7 point victory.

Then the Trojans came back to home-sweet-home (where one would think you would play better) and they allowed Oregon State to score 36 points, escaping with just a 6 point victory.

But like a broken record, people continue to say that USC has a great defense. Wake up and smell the Icy-Hot. This Trojan defense is hurtin'.

And that brings us to our "Question of the week" in the left column.

Lots more to talk about. More later] --kb

Dark Days of the Purple Haze

[Recently, my grandson came up to me and asked me a very good question: ]

Papa, why do we hate the Huskies?

Well, all through the ‘80’s and early ‘90’s they ruled the west coast and even the nation at one point. They got drunk with their power and dominance. Their fans became mean and arrogant, ambivalent and uncompassionate of others. They took away many of our freedoms. They put us down and didn’t allow us to say what we believed.
As they gained in power, they swaggered around. Their band used to march on our field and play our own fight song in a waltz. They smashed our visitors’ locker rooms. But it wasn’t just in the stadium. It spilled out into the streets.
When we walked downtown, Husky fans would point and laugh at us. They would cut in front of us in line at Denny’s.

Wow Papa. That sounds terrible.

Terrible? You don’t know the half of it. Let me ask you something, when you went to school today, did you wear your Duck hat?

Of course Papa. You always flick me in the ear when I don’t.

Never mind that. Now I’d like to know something. Any time you’ve worn your Duck hat, has anyone dressed in purple come up to you, ripped your hat off your head, taken a crap in it, then squashed it back on your head again?

(GASP) Papa, NO! That’s NEVER happened.

And it never will as long as we don’t allow the “Dark Days of the Purple Haze” to come back ever again.

Gee Papa, that sounds scary. What else did the Huskies do?

Tell me, boy. What’s your favorite T.V. show?

SpongeBob SquarePants.

Mine too. But you know back then, you couldn’t watch SpongeBob?

Because it didn’t exist?

WHO’S TELLING THIS STORY, YOU OR ME?

Sorry, Papa.

It wasn’t on because back then the children were only allowed to watch one show. A horrible, mind numbing propaganda tool about a purple dinosaur!

You mean Barney?

You’ve seen him?

Well, ya. He’s on sometimes. I don’t really care for him.

Back then, boy. We all detested him and everything he stood for.

But Papa, he never really talks about Husk-

HE’S PURPLE, ISN’T HE?!?!?!

Yes Papa. . . . So what else did the Huskies do?

Back then, we weren’t allowed to email any of our Duck friends.

You weren’t?

Nope. Every time you tried to log on, all you got was a busy signal.

The Huskies controlled the computers?

Boy, the Huskies were the cause of everything that was wrong with the world.

Wow! What else did the Huskies do, Papa?

Well . . . . . I’m not sure if I should tell you this . . . . I don’t know if your Mom and Dad have told you the truth about Santa Claus, have they?

Oh Papa, (tears welling up) some older kids at school told me he’s not real! They’re liars, aren’t they, Papa? TELL ME HE’S REAL!

Oh yes, yes, yes. Santa Clause IS REAL . . . . . . . at least he was.

What? . . . . You mean Santa is DEAD?

Well, no one knows for sure. The last known present delivered by him was Christmas Eve, 1991. A small boy in a Spokane children’s hospital had asked for a little stuffed cougar. Stories have it that after Santa delivered that present he climbed out of the chimney, only to find his reindeer lying on the ground below. Dozens of arrows were sticking out of them every which-way.

OH NO. So what happened to Santa?

Well, one witness said he lost sight of Santa when he jumped off the roof; after which . . . (sigh) . . . . the terrible sound of ferocious dogs filled the air. Growling, barking, snapping. . . . .
Since that time, the grown-ups have had to take over all the present buying and wrapping and delivering. But like I say, no one knows for sure. He could still be alive. We just have to believe that he is. I believe. And I also believe that one day, they’ll let him go.
So son, do you understand now why we hate the Huskies?

I . . . I guess so . . . But I have a question?

What’s that?

Well Papa, you once told me that hating is bad. And that hate is what causes all the wars and violence and sadness in the world. And at church, my Sunday school teacher tells me we should love our enemies, and forgive those who have treated us bad. So I was just wondering, shouldn’t we try to forgive the Huskies for the way they treated us back then, and try NOT to act that way towards them? Because wouldn’t that make us as bad as they were? Would it, Papa?

[This young, amazing boy was clearly wise beyond his years. Right then it occurred to me that what I had been telling him was wrong. I had to make it my personal responsibility to make amends and give him the words he needed to send him on the right path.]

Boy, . . . . I haven’t been completely honest with you. You see, the truth is . . . that . . . . . the Huskies . . . well, they . . . . they really did kill Santa Claus. I saw it myself.

(Sniff, sob) I hate them. I HATE THE HUSKIES!!!

There, there now. Sit down here with me and hand me the remote. Let’s see if we can find us some SpongeBob. He hates the Huskies too, you know . . . .

[-kb]

\/

"Welcome back to 'Barney and Friends', boys and girls.

Hey you, little boy in the front row with the green hat. That's a nice hat. It's got a ducky on it and everything.

Can I see it? Don't worry I'll give it right back.

Thanks. . . . Ya, that's nice. Where'd you get it?

Oh, from Santa, huh? Do you like Santa? . . . Ya?

Tell me something, kid. How big of a crap do you think a dinosaur like me makes . . .?"

Head Coaches. Love 'em and hate 'em.

Breaking news on Masoli's knee. His status is day-to-day.

[If you didn't get it, that's the joke around Eugene, except it's no joke. Chip Kelly has two injury statuses. Either you're "out", or you're "day-to-day". But word is, Masoli is getting as many reps as Nate Costa with the first team. They both are in the mindset of preparing to start; although Masoli apparently looked pretty good for a Monday.

Following is a link to a video from the Oregonian -- Monday's press conference with Coach Chip Kelly. Immediately after Boise State, callers and bloggers were raging about Kelly's inexperience. Today, as evidenced in the video, it's all smiles and laughter. He can do no wrong.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/behindducksbeat/2009/10/coach_chip_kelly_on_the_bye_we.html

Aggressive? Compared to what?

Washington fans, on the other hand, have been very critical of their new coach after that loss to ASU. As a proud, self-respecting Duck, I thought I might as well pile on.
Here's an excerpt from a story about Washington Coach Steve Sarkisian by the Seattle Times' Jerry Brewer . In this, Sark -- as the kids up there like to call him -- is trying to explain some of the poor coaching decisions ultimately leading to their overachieving effort to lose that game at ASU.

"I thought I tried too hard at times," Sarkisian said after three days of reflection. Immediately after the game Saturday, he blamed himself. That's admirable, but a lot of coaches do that. On Monday, he did something rarer.
He explained himself.
Expounding about trying too hard, he first referenced Jake Locker's red-zone interception in the second quarter. Sarkisian was upset with himself for calling another pass play right after Locker had an interception negated because of a penalty.
"We have been very aggressive in the red zone, and we will continue to be," Sarkisian said. "But I felt at that time, when a quarterback throws an interception [which was negated], you can take some of the burden off him and possibly run the ball there and not try to force the issue."


Say what? You've been very aggressive in the red zone? OK. I guess there's one way to check that out. Let's review the stats. First of all I'm assuming a desire, or goal, of being aggressive in the red zone is just that: Goals. You're trying to score touchdowns. Let's look at Washington's red zone-to-touchdown ratio and see how its working out for them compared to a few other teams.

Oregon has been in the red zone 22 times this season and scored 15 touchdowns for a rate of 62%. Is that good? Well USC and ASU are tied with 14 TD's out of 24 red zone trips for 58%. So who leads the league? Ah, you guessed it: OREGON STATE. 17 out of 24 for a whopping 71%.
Where's Washington? A mediocre 12 TD's out of 23 reddies for just 52%.

So what does he mean, "We've been very aggressive . . ." ? I came across a spider on my patio once, all kinds of markings on his body -- looked like gang graffiti. He was bearing these huge fangs at me, raising his front legs as if he was trying to reach up and pull me down nose-to-nose with him. Very aggressive . . . right up til the time I stepped on him.

Washington can be as aggressive as they want. But like ASU, Oregon is going to pounce the moment the Dawgs are stupidly aggressive.

Steve Sarkisian

Can you believe this Sark is only 35 years old? Who in their right mind would hire a man so young with no previous head coaching experience to try to rebuild a Pac-10 football team from it's lowest point in school history? I mean how many years do they think they can stick with this guy and put up with bonehead coaching decisions while he "grows and matures". How long will that take, five, 10, 15 years? Who's going to wait around that long?


No one. That's who. I can't think of any other team that hired someone this young and inexperienced and had any kind of success with it . . .

\/

\/

\/

\/



Rich Brooks was given his first head coaching assignment at Oregon at age of 36. Sixteen short years later, Ducks carried him off the field as Pac-10 Champions.








Oh ya, that guy. Well, good luck to you Dawgs. Maybe we'll see you back in the Rose Bowl around 2025.] --kb

Pac-10 battles this week offer clues to Oregon's previous and future games.

[USC holds on to beat Nortre Dame. Cal beats UCLA in a high scoring game. ASU gets past Washington with a grand finale. Arizona slips past a tough Stanford team. What do these games mean to the Ducks? Let's take them one-at-a-time.

USC-34, ND-27
Credit Irish QB Jimmy Causen for the close score. A tenacious competitor who refuses to quit, he brought ND back and was at the goal line trying to tie the game when time expired.
But let's get real. Charlie Weis has been a huge dissapointment for the Irish. They'd fire him if they could, but they yolked themselves to him with such a hugh contract, it would cost five to ten million dollars.
His team is mediocre -- terrible by ND standards. And yet USC struggled to slow down their scoring.
Chip Kelly is a smarter coach than Charlie Weis. OSU's Mike Riley is a smarter coach than Charlie Weis. USC's next two games are against OSU and Oregon and I'm smelling blood.

Cal-45, UCLA-26
THERE'S the Cal we've been looking for. After scoring only three points each against Oregon and USC, they find a team with an average defense and do their thing. I think this game says more about Oregon and USC than about Cal or UCLA. The Pac-10 has the correct two teams at the top. They are the teams with the best defenses.

Arizona-43, Stanford-38
Two teams ahead on Oregon's schedule, and the Ducks have to play at their venues. These two teams can score a bunch of points. But they have to. Their defenses are leaky. Oregon should show them what a tough defense looks like while taking all the points they're willing to give.

ASU-24, Washington-17.
Two more teams standing in the way of Oregon. I feel for ASU's QB Danny Sullivan. At 6'4" and 240 pounds, he's not built for speed. He's heavily dependent on his offensive line to give him time to throw. Washington's D-line is designed to rush and destroy immobile QB's. And as the season wears on for the Devils, protecting the QB will become a bigger concern.
Having said that, ASU won because Washington's defense has a lot of heart, but a heart can't run and tackle, and it's not a brain. The Dawg's D. had a total mental breakdown with five seconds left and Sullivan killed them with an easy 50-yard TD pass.
The Huskies (Oregon's next opponent) have the same problems as last year on offense because they depend so heavily on Jake Locker for all of their points and yardage.
Washington's defense is supposedly better against the run this year. But their new coaching staff ain't seen nothing yet. ASU had moments where they occasionally spread their line a little and created seams and optional gaps for their running backs. And Washinton's big slow D-linemen were worthless to stop them.
The Dawgs won't stand a chance when Kelly unleashes the Oregon's spread.]

"Feed the Tuna Mayonnaise"
[Speaking of Chip Kelly, George Schroeder of the Register Guard wrote an excellent story on what a typical day for Kelly looks like. He followed the coach around for a whole day -- the Monday before the UCLA game.
If you think you put in a full day's work, Kelly might just make you look like a couch potato.
One thing that impresses me about football is the need for the coaching staff to be extremely organized and efficient in getting the team prepared each week. I believe a coach can be the smartest X's and O's guy on the planet, but if he can't manage his own time and the time of his staff and players effectively, he won't have a successful program.
I saw glimpes of a Bellotti-led practice and was impressed how he made full use of every member of his staff, every piece of equipment, and every part of the field over every minute. He had 100 men covering the entire field in a dozen small groups, all working like a fully functioning clock.
Chip Kelly appears to take it to a whole new level.
The story is too long to paste here, I recommend you click it up and read it on your lunch break. Afterwards you'll do one of two things:
You'll cut your lunch short out of guilt and get back to work. Or you'll take a nap from exhaustion just reading about his routine.
Here's a couple of clips from the story to whet your appetite. . . .]

“He does like six things at once,” says Callie Evans, the football
program’s secretary. “I don’t know how he does it.”
None of this is unique. Long hours are a staple of football coaching. Juggling is in the job description for head coaches, who function like micro-managing CEOs.
But from well before dawn to long after dark, fueled by Diet Pepsi and trail mix, the 45-year-old first-year head coach tries to find ways to feed mayo to tuna.

[Offensive Coordinator Mark Helfrich and Kelly are talking about different things at 6:55 am. including . . . ]

. . . how Helfrich’s day has started off poorly; the
bagel shop was out of peanut butter.
“You get off the freeway (to get the
bagels)?” Kelly asks. “That’s inefficient.”

[LOL. Helfrich: "Note to self. Find someone who sells bagels ON the freeway."

Here's the link: http://www.registerguard.com/csp/cms/sites/web/sports/21650215-41/story.csp ] --kb

Bye Week Bonanza

[Just a few odds and ends to cover as we relax and rest through this bye week:]


Oregon/Washington to be televised next week.

The Oregon @ Washington game will air October 24th, 12:30 pm on ABC.

__________

Nearly 18 tons of goods amassed for tsunami relief

Duck players are doing good things for relief in Somoa. This is a great thing to see. But the reality is it won't get any Youtube or ESPN play if nobody is getting punched in the face.

The Oregon athletic department this afternoon solicited 35,380 pounds of food, water, medical supplies and other goods to send to Samoa and American Samoa after those regions were ravaged by a recent tsunami.
Players and coaches accepted donations from the public from noon to 5 p.m. at the athletic department today. The final total was nearly 18 tons of goods, according to Tucker Davies of Lile Moving and Storage, which donated use of the 51-foot semi truck that is being navigated down to Northern California by driver Tim Galus for delivery by Wednesday afternoon.
“For such a short notice deal, this was a real feather in the cap for the university and our state,” Davies said of the fundraiser, which was announced last week.
Among the items donated were about 30 wheelchairs and an estimated 30,000 bottles of water, Davies said. Galus’ truck is just 620 pounds short of the legal limit for highway driving, according to Davies. [That's fortunate. That drive to Samoa will be tricky enough even with the truck at the proper weight.

"What's that Mr. Truckdriver? You're trying to find Samoa? Sure we can help. We love Samoas. Here's all you do. First you take two graham crackers. Then you melt a chocolate bar and toast marshmellows and . . . . no, no, no, wait.
First you start a campfire . . . . NOW we're cookin' . . . Heh heh, I just made that up. That was funny, huh Patrick?
So Mr. Truckdriver, where you headed?"

The fundraiser started with an idea from UO football coach Chip Kelly and defensive tackle Simi Toeaina—who spent part of his youth in American Samoa—and was put into motion by UO assistant athletic director for student-athlete development James Harris. Toeaina, Jeremiah Masoli and Andrew Iupati all have family in the Samoan islands, as do a handful of Oregon athletes in other sports.
The effort kicked off at noon today, but boxes of clothes were already piled up in the loading dock of the Moshofsky Center. At 12:02 p.m. the first car pulled up to unload donations, in that case bags of flour and rice. The first group of football players accepting donations included Toeaina, Titus Jackson, Blake Thompson, Mana Greig, Denton Tuiasosopo and former UO receiver Brian Paysinger. [There's a Tuiasosopo playing for Oregon? It's true! He's a junior. On the roster his position is listed as 'player'. But I guess that comes as no surprise. Husky fans will tell you your garden variety Tuiasosopo can play any and every position.]
“I’m excited that you care enough to do things like this,” Liz Thwing told the players as they unloaded from her trunk bags of rice and flour donated by Eugene-Delta Rotary.
After today’s Oregon Club luncheon, Kelly arrived at about 12:45 p.m. to greet donors as they drove up to the Mo Center. At one point, around 1:20 p.m., the line of cars waiting to unload donations was seven deep.
The truck full of donations will be unloaded in the Bay Area on Wednesday, and on Friday will leave for Samoa by ship. [Oh . . . ship. Now I feel stupid. I was wondering about the connection between Samoa and college football. How many teams just in the Western US alone have at least one Samoan on the roster? I'm betting it would be easier to count the ones that don't.

__________
About those Dawgs.

The Huskies gave the Ducks and the rest of the Pac-10 not one, but two solids so far when they gave USC and Arizona each their first conference losses, putting Oregon in the driver's seat for you-know-what. We Duck fans owe them a "Th . . . .Tha . . ha . . ha . . . . . Thhhhaaaaaaank . . . y. . y-. . .youuuu, Hhh. . . . Hu . . . . Hussssssssk . . . . . " Screw it. It's not worth the pain.

This Saturday (FSN, 7:15 p.m.) the Dawgs are at ASU. They have a shot against Erickson's Sun Devils who are really struggling to find themselves. But regardless if they win or lose, they're providing good film for the Oregon coaches to analyze and strategize.
____________
OSU is also bye this week and will go to USC next week. That won't be fun. But perhaps they can further find a chink in the Trojans' armor.
____________
How is who? Oh ya, Masoli.
He is hoping to play against Washington. Here is an excerpt from Wednesday's Oregonian.

Masoli, who injured his right knee against Washington State on Oct. 3, was in shells and didn’t do much running. But he threw more than he did in the two practices he suited up for last week. “I took a lot more reps,” Masoli said. “I was taking a lot of reps with the first team, getting my routes (and) timing back.”

The severity of Masoli’s injury remains unknown. Masoli had an MRI done on his knee last week, but said “the MRI didn’t show anything really. It’s fine.”

Masoli said after Wednesday’s practice in the Moshofsky Center that his knee felt better, but remains stiff in the morning. He said the precautionary plan at this point is to avoid cuts and side-to-side movements and remain “just straight ahead.”Masoli’s availability for the Ducks’ game at Washington on Oct. 24 probably won’t be decided until late next week.

Enjoy your bye. Goodbye. --kb

UCLAin't

Kenjon (Barn Burner) Barner got things rolling in the second half with a 100 yard kick off return. Why only 100 yards? Because "The Man" won't give him the extra two yards in the endzone.

[There were three parts to this amazing game. 1) The Oregon defense's goal line stand that sets the tone in the first quarter. 2) The first four minutes of the second half. And 3) sprinkled throughout the game, the constant bombardment the Duck defense put on UCLA's quarterbacks. Below is an excerpt from Ken Goe on the goal line stand with a link to the whole article.

http://blog.oregonlive.com/pac10/2009/10/pac-10_insider_oregons_defense.html

Goal-line stand

This Oregon team is gritty. Take the goal line stand, late in the first quarter. The game was tied, but the Bruins were . . . . . moving the ball. An eight-yard completion from Kevin Prince to Chane Moline set up UCLA on the Ducks' 2, first and goal. "There is a mentality you have to take as defensive linemen on the goal line," said 6-foot-7, 268-pound defensive tackle Brandon Bair. "We're down on all-fours. We're basically crawling. We're cutting their legs, and our linebackers come over the top. If you let an offensive lineman push you at all on a goal line stand, there is no way you have a chance. They're going to run it right in." The Bruins' line had no surge. UCLA tried tailback Derrick Coleman twice, and Prince tried to sneak twice. In the end, the ball remained nearly a full yard outside the end zone. "To tell you the truth that was probably when our defense really got going," Bair said.

[From the other side, we have a very good accounting of what happened to start the second half. Here's an excerpt from the L.A. Times. Below that is a link to his complete story:

By Kurt Streeter, LA Times
October 11, 2009

An educational video should be made of the opening minutes of the second half, which UCLA entered leading by the tellingly non-dominant score of 3-0. The title: "Learn How Not to Play Football in Just a Few Slim Minutes."

Act 2: Talmedge Jackson III

Here's how it would look. Act 1: Nice and easy 100-yard Oregon runback of the second-half kickoff. Act 2: UCLA interception on its first second-half play from scrimmage, the pass lodged precisely in an Oregon defender's gut. Defender scores, untouched. Act 3: UCLA loses fumble. Act 4: Oregon receiver takes a little dump pass from his noodle-armed second-string quarterback, then strolls through a series of arm tackles -- touchdown, Ducks!

That nifty little series of stumbles took just under four minutes. Oregon suddenly led by 18. It never looked back.

Act 4: Jeff Maehl

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-streeter11-2009oct11,0,3228440.column

[He goes on to thrash his poor Bruins. Yet he was never willing to admit that perhaps Oregon was every bit as good as UCLA was bad.

Oh well. Screw him as he chokes on Santa Ana winded grass fires. As for his description of Nate Costa, I will take Oregon's "noodle-armed second stringer" over UCLA's tackling dummies 1 and 2 any day.

"Noodle-armed" Nate makes very few mistakes, which is more than you can say for . . .Tackle Dummy #1, Kevin Prince giving Kenny Rowe good practice. . . .

. . . and Tackle Dummy #2, Richard Brehaut. That's not a very good picture of him because he's being crushed.

[Oregon remains #13 and 16 in the polls. Very few teams above them lost. Next week the Ducks are bye and will take on the Huskies in Seattle October 24th.] --kb

Thorny Issue

[Below is actually the second article of it's particular sort that I've seen in a week. I'll show you an excerpt and then I have a comment about it after . . . .]

Victory has UO donning rose-colored glasses
By George Schroeder
Register-Guard columnist
Appeared in print: Sunday, Oct 11, 2009 ,

PASADENA, Calif. — He never considered anything else. The ball came floating down, and Kenjon Barner was standing in the end zone, but he knew what he was going to do.

“Just run.”

Barner caught the kickoff two yards deep, and he looked up, and “I just saw holes.” And the question today is: Do you see the possibilities?

Because 100-plus yards later, Barner was in the other end zone. Oregon had the lead, and “everybody was going crazy,” according to Talmadge Jackson III.

And after a huge win on a Saturday set up for a setback, it’s fair to wonder where else these Ducks might be going.

“We’ll be back!” wide receiver Garrett Embry was telling teammates on the Rose Bowl sidelines in the final moments of a 24-10 win over UCLA, and there was no mistaking his meaning.

Yeah, we’re a long, long way from Jan. 1, only halfway through with the season. But if you were still looking for reasons to believe in this Oregon team, consider the context. . . . .

[Ya, about that . . . . . I have a thought on the dreaming and the tantalising talk of such a prospect. . .

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SHUT UP!!!

Do you want to ruin this? Oregon still has six perfectly losable games left. And now is not the time to act like drunken dreamy Coug fans who always go, "We won five games. That Rose Bowl is as good as ours! No one can stop us! We deserve it!"

And then they lose the next one and they're right back to their fickle bi-polar, "Our team sucks."

Don't tempt Duck fans into falling for that same trap.

Just ask any Beaver fan who bought a dozen roses and brought them to the Civil War game in Corvallis last year. Ask them if they can remember any previous $25 purchase that was a BIGGER waste. Do they remember a time when they felt any stupider than that night when they held those wilted, beaten, stomped roses while watching their wilted, beaten, stomped football team? We Ducks would like to think we're smarter.

NOW HERE THIS. That particular flowery bowl is the one bowl of which the name must NEVER be uttered to, by, or on behalf of any Duck fans until late evening December 3rd -- the end of the Civil War. Until then, you must not speak of the 'R' word. Don't even hint about it. No (reddish) colored glasses. No smelling of anything.

Because I will show you red.

I will give you something to smell if you don't . . .

SHUT UP!!!

--kb]

UCLA has problems of their own.

[In my college years I wouldn't have thought I'd hear myself say this, but I will gladly take Oregon's team over UCLA's this season, injuries and all. UCLA coach Tricky Rick Neuheisel is overhauling his offense in the middle of the season and hoping he has the talent to make it work.

How's their red zone offense? Their lack of TD's has allowed the Bruins' field goal kicker to lead the nation with 12 kicks. They're averaging 22 points per game -- second worst to WSU.

If their non-league wins were cause for optimism, their loss to Stanford may have shown the truth.

Now Oregon arrives coming off their second consecutive Pac-10 blowout win. And Neuheisel's only rays of hope show in reports from Eugene of injured knees.

Oregon is struggling with 2nd and 3rd string depth. Neuheisel's struggles lie with his first team. Here's a story from the L.A. Times.]

UCLA Coach Rick Neuheisel discusses a broken pass pattern with receiver Taylor Embree, right, and quarterback Kevin Craft on Saturday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times / October 3, 2009)

Bruins take a run at a little passing
Rick Neuheisel says team had to come out of its 'run the ball or die trying' mantra.
By Chris Foster, LA Times
October 6, 2009

The buzz words around the UCLA football program have become "high octane" and "explosiveness." This seems a long ways from Coach Rick Neuheisel's preseason philosophy of "run the ball or die trying."

A 24-16 loss to Stanford created new topics of conversations, out in cyberspace and around the program. It produced a first-loss panic among the fan base, and a small shift in emphasis inside the UCLA beltway.

"We had to come out of our 'run the ball or die trying' mantra and throw a little more," Neuheisel said. But, he added, "everybody just wants to see deep balls, long throws in the air. It's exciting. It's like the play at the plate in baseball. It's the 'wow' factor while the ball is in the air. But you have to have the ability to play the entire field before you start putting up the 'heaves' and 'hos.'

"Neuheisel said, "I feel like I got the best play caller in the business in terms of picking his spots," in offensive coordinator Norm Chow, adding, "You don't have to go back very far to see plays that were pretty explosive that this guy called."

UCLA fans can think back to that, though the players Chow was directing were wearing USC colors. Bringing that to Westwood would appear to be a personnel issue.

Kevin Craft threw for 204 yards, but had only one completion beyond 16 yards. Kevin Prince, the Bruins' No. 1 quarterback, is on track to start against Oregon on Saturday.

Prince, out the last three weeks because of a fractured jaw, will have X-rays taken Wednesday. That is expected to be a mere formality.

"He has a big arm and can put the ball in all portions of the field," Neuheisel said. "We need to keep working on some of that down-field throwing. He gives us a chance to do that."

That, though, is only half the equation. The Bruins are still lacking in big-play makers. The speed to burn was brought into the program this season, but it has yet to have a major impact.

Receiver Morrell Presley has provided energy, but his pass-catching abilities are a work in progress. He dropped a second-down pass on the Bruins' last drive against Stanford.

Receiver Randall Carroll, a two-time California 100-meter champion at Los Angeles Cathedral High, did not get off the bench against the Cardinal, an indication that he is having difficulty absorbing the offensive system.

Tailback Damien Thigpen got into the game late, picked up 28 yards in three carries and was "a breath of fresh air," Neuheisel said. But Thigpen started the week fifth on the depth chart.

"You want to be able to control the line of scrimmage and take pressure off the quarterback position," Neuheisel said. "By running the ball and forcing teams to get closer to the line of scrimmage, that should create some big-play opportunities."

So far, it hasn't.

[Is that Rick Neuheisel or Rich Brooks? Remember Brooks' mantra, "You have to run to establish the pass."? He stuck with that for years until he got a more creative offensive coordinator named Mike Bellotti.

Bellotti has evolved into Kelly. Now Kelly will say, You have to run off left tackle in order to establish the wide receiver hand off to the right. And you have to pass to the tight end in order to establish the QB keeper. You have to _________ to establish _________. Fill in the blanks any way you want as long as you have the talent and ability to teach it.

It seems Neuhoser's problem is he doesn't have much to work with; so he's trying to keep it simple and basic.

If I were him and I had my better-than-average long range passer back with his jaw taped to his skull, and I knew Oregon's starting D-backs were done for the season, I'd go for the pass. I'd see how Oregon has held every opposing running back under his average this season and I'd practice the long ball this week.

They might lose. But they'd lose for sure otherwise.

Oregon's defense has been stalwart this season, giving the offense the chance to get it together. Now it's the offense's turn to lead the way while the new D-backs start accruing minutes on the field. That obviously puts pressure on Costa to start performing from the coin flip. But I think he can handle it.

In fact I will predict after this game is over and Oregon gets it's 'W', the sports radio shows and message boards will be full of discussions on who's the better QB, Costa or Masoli.] --kb