While Ducks play Buffs, Seminoles play all of us.

Lunch at Autzen. Saturday at 1:30. Buffalo Burgers.
Colorado has lost 23 consecutive road games. But don't let that fool you. They've lost some very close games.
They've lost six games in a row. But two were in overtime.
Statistically they're average, but not terrible. Out of 105 teams, they rank about 120th in scoring defense. But they try hard.
They'll lose to the Ducks, but not without putting up some sort of a fight. You know, like a wiggling salmon in a grizzly bear's mouth.

It'll be a successful day if Oregon just gets the win and stays healthy. Center Hroniss Grasu is out for at least this game with a slight leg injury. Tight end Pharoah Brown is out for at least this season with a clean torn off leg.
Mariota should just unleash to track champion Devon Allen about five times in the endzone, then retire to the sidelines before he trips on a dent in the turf and thrashes his knee. Thank goodness SI so far hasn't decided to put him on their wicked cover for the fourth time.

Pleeeeeze just staaaay healthy stay healthy stay healthy
stayhealthy stayhealthy stayhealthy stayhealthy stayhealthy.

Oregon is currently #2. Alabama leaped over them. Florida State slipped to 3rd because in nearly every game, they've had to come from behind to beat the girl scouts they play.

There's another problem with Florida State . . . .
FLORIDA SHAME UNIVERSITY

DEAR FLORIDA STATE,
 WE REQUEST THAT YOU STOP USING OUR NAME FOR YOUR FOOTBALL TEAM. IT'S NOT ABOUT INDIAN DISCRIMINATION. WE'RE JUST EMBARRASSED TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH YOUR QUARTERBACK.
SINCERELY,
SEMINOLE INDIAN NATION

FSU QB Jameis Winston was accused of sexual assault nearly two years ago. Two of his friends who were at the scene of the alleged crime were given a hearing in May. Winston was not. One friend was cleared, while the other was given one year probation for filming the alleged assault without the alleged victim's permission.

So there's a film of Winston assaulting the victim? No. It was deleted before investigators could see it.

Winston's hearing had been scheduled for November 17th to discuss four charges against him. I'm getting my info from The Sporting News Story, "Shame of Jameis Winston and Florida State: Football above all else".
Here they say,
Winston is accused of four violations of the code of conduct; two considered "sexual misconduct" and two "endangerment." Punishment for any or a combination of the four ranges from probation to expulsion.
There's also the very real possibility that Winston could be charged with the lesser of the four violations — sexual misconduct defined as "conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile and offensive environment for another person" — and still play the remainder of this season

A letter of reprimand might be the hammer of justice in that case. The idea was he would have that hearing in front of a former Florida State Supreme Court judge (which wouldn't surprise me at all if that meant a Supreme Court judge who graduated from Florida State). The judge would then take up to 10 days to decide, or more if needed for "additional consideration of evidence and deliberation".

In any event, that would still leave time for a decision that allows suspending him from future games including their game against Florida on November 29th, the ACC Championship December 6th, the final College Football Playoff selection on December 7th, and of course the playoff and champion games to follow.

Guess what? His lawyer asked for an extension because he hadn't gone through all of the evidence yet. Here was Florida State's chance to say that two years was plenty enough time, and the matter at hand was more important than football.

Guess what? Free Shoes University granted the extension and set the new date for December 1st. That means that a decision doesn't have to be handed down until December 11th at the earliest, long after the regular season is over and the four playoff teams have been selected.

Life is good for the Winstonator.

But wait, there's more! Don't forget about the appellate process after the decision has been made which can be scheduled who-knows-how-long into the future. To sum it up, Jameis Winston is going to play every game whether he's a rapist or not. Florida State is seeing to that.

To make this a bigger pile of BS, this alleged crime -- although plenty bad enough -- isn't the only thing he's being investigated for. In his October 30th game against Louisville, Winston had a bad first half. A TERRIBLE first half. Two interceptions and less than 50% of passes completed -- one of his worst halves ever. Florida State trailed 21-0 going into the locker room.

One Winston fan was happy about it though. A high school classmate and family friend of Winston's bet a whopping $5500 that his buddy's Seminoles would trail in that first half. He won $5000. And magically, Winston improved tremendously in the second half and won the game.

The question to ask here isn't "Did Winston actually sexually assault that woman?" or "Did Winston shave points in a game?"  And the question isn't "What is Florida State's position in all of this?" We know that answer already. FSU has no shame.

The question I have is "Where is the NCAA?" Why aren't they outraged? The NCAA, who gave Joe Paterno the death penalty -- he literally died from their sanctions -- when they stripped Penn State of hundreds of wins. This same NCAA who stripped Ohio State of an entire season of wins including a Sugar Bowl victory when they determined the great QB Terrelle Pryor had sold football memorabilia and driven several nice cars that he didn't buy. Why aren't they raising any kind of concern over how these "investigations" are being conducted.

The part that leaves a bad taste is that those wins by Penn State and Ohio State, including bowl wins, were vacated. The trophy didn't go to the losing team. It was just taken away, forever to be a blank spot in the history books.

These investigations on Jameis Winston won't amount to anything until months or years after this season is over, long after he has bolted to the NFL. And yet why doesn't the NCAA see the hand writing on the wall that this could end badly? Why are they not upset that the first College Football Playoff -- their first attempt at making us forget all about the BCS -- could end with vacated wins? The chances are disturbingly high that a Winston-quarterbacked FSU team could make a mockery out of their inaugural new playoff system.

How does that affect the other three teams? What does that do for the #5 team sitting on the outside while Winston plays?

It seems to me that the NCAA president Mark Emmert would very much want to avoid "vacates" (Vacancies? Vacations?) of major bowl games including and especially THE Championship Game. It smashes the remainder of college football's already dented credibility.

[CLICK HERE FOR A TOUCHING LETTER ON SEXUAL VIOLENCE BY MARK EMMERT]

Why doesn't he see the train wreck coming and order FSU to hurry up instead of delaying these investigations? Or better yet, why doesn't he tell FSU and other teams that players cannot play while investigations are under way for certain heinous crimes? 

Which crimes? Off the top of my head, sexual assault and fixed gambling come to mind as two pretty good examples.

If December turns to January and Winston is still playing football, the shame belongs to the whole system.

Colorado at Oregon game time: Saturday, 1:30 pm on the Pac-12 Network.
If you still don't get the Pac-12 Network, drive to your nearby television channel provider. Ask to speak to the supervisor and KICK THE BASTARD IN THE NUTS!!!

--kb

In Colorado

Buffalo. It's what's for dinner.

Ten reasons why Oregon will beat Colorado Saturday afternoon.

1: Oregon is better in every category.

2: Seriously? You need nine more reasons?

It's no knock against the Buffs. They're a rebuilding team. I commend them and their new coach Mike MacIntyre for joining the ranks of the no-huddle teams and changing the way football is played. They're on their way to becoming better.

But they're not there yet. The three week layoff forced on them because of the devastating flood in the Boulder area messed them up. Colorado was not in sync as they got blown out by Oregon State 44-17 last week.

If Colorado's fans need another reason to attend this game (And they do.), it would be the halftime activity.

Former legendary coach and original Promise Keeper Bill McCartney will be honored for his legendariness and Promise Keeping. Coloradoans love him for his 12 years and 93-55-5 record as the Buffs head coach as well as his evangelical ministries.

So Buffalo fans will be able to harken back to fond memories from the previous century while the Ducks butcher their present team like so much livestock.

Bill McCartney celebrating Colorado's 1990
Orange Bowl win to earn them a share of
the National Championship.

WHO ELSE WILL BE AT THE GAME?

Why yours truly. As I write this I am in Colorado visiting family and sharing my testimony with them and any other lost souls of the High Plains who need to hear the good news about the Ducks.

With the "smoke it if you got it" lax marijuana laws here, I am also excited to visit the Colorado campus and see what a LEGALLY stoned student body is like.

Game time Saturday, 3pm Pacific on the Pac-12 Network. Don't know if you get the Pac-12? Check your local listings; or if you are a Direct TV subscriber, call Direct TV and tell them they suck.

More later,

KB

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