Could That Have Been Any Better?

Tony Washington
IS The Hulk!

Mariota and the rest of the Ducks refuted
the popular myth among the FSU Rank that
Oregon was soft.

"Hello Mr. Winston. My name is Chris Seisay.
I'm the redshirt freshman cornerback you
were planning to pick on today."
From the Oregonian: No Florida State receiver eclipsed 100 yards. [Top FSU receiver Rashaad] Greene, mostly covered by [Tony] Hill but occasionally Seisay, had six catches for 59 yards. The longest Florida State completion was 29 yards. 

Winston crushed.







Running Back Thomas Tyner had a phenomenal game.
He came back from injuries to run for 124 yards and 2 TD's.
He and . . . . .
 

4th string RB Keni Benoit, who mopped up
in the fourth quarter, both wore Florida State
players like capes as they showcased Oregon's speed.

 

Ahh, that's a shame.
Charles Nelson's cape fell off.

There is so much to say about this game, one could write volumes. Yet all that comes to my mind is,

"Wow".
"Holy Moly".
"Did you see that?!?"

I'm wanting to get into Florida State's mind, a sad and scary place indeed. In the weeks before the game, Coach Jimbo, Jameis and the rest of the gang all kept yammerin' and yakkin'.  "29 points" this, "Undefeated" that, and "We've been here before."

I got the feeling they were hoping someone would say, "OK you've done enough already. Here's your Rose Bowl trophy."

While they were puffing their chests and saying all the right things at Disneyland and leading up to the game, I just had this feeling that they looked across at Oregon, thought about how they had been pulling rabbits out all season to preserve their win streak. And . . . .

They knew.

They knew it in the back of their minds.

It was over. All over.

They weren't facing the second and third best ACC teams. This wasn't a paper Notre Dame. This was a stratosphere of a next level. A heavyweight. A killer of giant killers.

Victory cigars on
the SI cover to
counteract its
voodooness.

After the game, I lit my victory cigar (Thank you, big brother, for sending them.), rounded up my posse and headed out through the neighborhood to wave the colors, play the fight song via iTunes through a bluetooth speaker and shout "GO DUCKS!" to anyone listening.

We stopped at Oregonian sports writer Ken Goe's house. And Goe made an interesting observation as he was hooking up his garden hose to spray us out of his yard. 

The grandboys with
Ken Goe, who refused
to sign a release for
this picture.

He said, "At halftime, Florida State had Oregon right where they wanted them." Down by only 5. They had just picked Mariota for only his third time. They would receive the ball first in the second half. Momentum was clearly on their side.

It was time for the Seminoles to take charge and pull out another trademark comeback win. They must have felt really good coming out of the tunnel for the second half.

What was different this time? Oregon's defense is a truly unheralded juggernaut in the second half of games. Also, Oregon's offensive pace routinely has a devastating effect on opposing defenses as the game goes on.

As the game went on, Florida State saw what they couldn't believe; felt what they couldn't admit. Not only was the game slipping away from them, it was free falling.

This was a score off of FSU's second turnover in the third quarter. What was fascinating was it was Oregon's second play of that series. The time from the
whistle ending the first play to the snap on this play? 12 seconds. FSU, to a man,
insisted after the game that Oregon's super fast pace had no impact on them. But on this play, they thought it was going to be another screen pass to the wideout. Oregon made it look that way and had been doing that play all day. But just as importantly,
they did not give FSU time to think and plan for other options. They had no time to communicate. 

Oregon's defense forced a turnover. Oregon's offense scored. Winston yelled at his teammates. Oregon forced another turnover. Oregon scored. Winston yelled at his coach. Jimbo refuted whether it was actual "yelling". But we know this, whatever it was, Winston was losing it, emotionally, literally, every way.


Winston: "Oh my! Oh Dear! Auntie Em, it's a twister, it's a TWISTER! Help. Help. 
 OH, JESUS TAKE THE WHEEL!!!!"

FUMBLLLLLE!!

FUMBLLLLLE!!

INTERCEPTIOOOOON!!

FUMBLLLLLE!!

Is it still Christmas? Because Florida State just keeps giving us gifts!!!

WHATEVER JAMEIS . . . .
Then came the after-party. The Oregonian's John Canzano wrote a great piece that measured the difference between the two Heisman quarterbacks. I got tired of hearing people say how they were "similar". They couldn't be more different.

That was obvious enough in the game. It became crystal clear in the post-game interviews. The following is an excerpt from the article showing Jameis Winston in total denial that Oregon had "honestly" beaten them.

 But here's what Winston said: "This game could have went either way, if you want to be -- if everybody in this room just want to be real with themselves, this game could have went either way. We turned the ball over a lot. We beat ourself. Just be real with yourself right now. We beat ourself."

"Tonight was unfortunate," Winston said. "It wasn't just they were stopping us. Their offense did great. Their defense was great. But we were never stopped at all." [I'm . . . . . I'm speechless.]
"It was never over," he said. "Honestly, it was never over. We just got beat, turned the ball over too many times. But it still ain't over. We can go play again, honest."
[And then when Winston looked at the crowd and noticed everybody just slack jawed and staring at him, he added, "29 WINS!"]

Here is the video of the post game interview if you can't believe he actually said that, or his grammar was that poor. In this video they cut to Coach Gumbo and asked him one question about whether or not Oregon's pace had any impact on his team. Again, total denial. I highly suggest he reviews the film and sees it for himself. They were not making plays on the Ducks because they were not given enough time to read and react.



SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!
OREGON DID WHAAAAAAT?!?!?!?
You've probably seen this already as it has gone viral. Because he was busy beating Alabama, Ohio State's coach Urban Meyer hadn't yet heard the final score of Oregon's win over FSU . . .

FUN FACT
This is the first true official NCAA top division playoff national football championship.
In 1939, the NCAA held it's first official national basketball championship.
The players: Ohio State vs. Oregon. Oregon won that game 46-33. Sounds like a pretty good football score too.

ONE FIRST THOUGHT ON THE NEXT STEP
This is a new experience in college football. And the Ducks and Buckeyes have to figure out some new guidelines as they are the first teams to win a bowl to only prepare for another bowl.
Case in point. Did you see all the Duck players passing around the Rose Bowl trophy and kissing it like moms on a new baby?

Thomas Tyner

100 Rose Bowls before, who cared? But they got a bigger game in a week. And this is the cold and flu season!

Am I the only one who worried about them germing up that thing?

More important wisdom later.
--KB

You all ready for this?

So what's going to happen New Years Day at 2pm Pacific on ESPN? Will the Ducks be ready? I've read a few articles that make me feel good about their chances.

We all know about Ifo Ekpre Olomu. (Editor's note: I have NEVER been able to type his name without looking it up first.) He screwed up his knee in practice a few weeks ago and will not be playing. He was easily Oregon's best pass defender. The thought of replacing him is scary.

But replace him they must. Now here's the bright side. Ifo didn't get good by his senior season. He was good from the first time he took the field when he was a freshman. The player to step into the rotation to replace him, Chris Seisay, is already impactful as a redshirt freshman. He says he's excited, motivated, and ready to show what he can do. Never underestimate the freshman.

Kenny Wheaton? The Pick? Freshman.

According to his bio, Seisay is a little taller than Ifo. He's already been playing; recording tackles, pass break ups, forced fumbles. Although he was a three star recruit to Ifo's four, he still received tons of player-of-the year accolades from his high school and town. He's got great hands -- he played both sides of the ball as cornerback and receiver; he was even punter with a 41-yard average! He's an athlete. 


That's Seisay mixing it up at UCLA.

Seisay is every bit the next man up. But he won't be manning the secondary alone. Here is an overall view of Oregon's backfield post-Ifo.

LOVE TO HANG AROUND, FSU; BUT GOTTA RUN.
The winner of this game will have the better rushing stats. Simple fact: The first time Oregon played Arizona and lost? Didn't run well. The next time they scored 51 points, ran much better. (Look up the stats yourself if you don't believe me. I don't feel like digging them out.) 

 Here is an excellent article about how Oregon's philosophy on the run is successful and won't change for the playoffs. 

An excerpt from that article:
"When we run the ball well, we are hard to stop,'' offensive coordinator Scott Frost said. "One of the things Chip (Kelly) and Mark brought to this offense is balance. We want to make teams defend everything. We try to stay as close to 50-50 (run/pass) as we can while making teams defend sideline to sideline. For a defense, that's hard to do.''

The word is, as good as FSU's defensive players appear to be on paper, they are a little soft on the run, even straight up the middle. Oregon needs to test that.

It looks like Thomas Tyner will be in to help. He's had time to heal his shoulder and ankle and has been practicing. Starting center Hronis Grasu has been practicing too, after sitting out the last two games with a knee injury.

RECEIVERS
Oregon's receiving corps will be near full strength. Along with the great squadron of Charles Nelson, Darren Carrington, Devon Allen, Bryon Marshall, and tight ends Evan Baylis and Johnny "The Mundster" Mundt -- who are filling the shoes of the injured Pharoah Brown, Oregon is getting back veteran Keanon Lowe and 6'7" Dwayne Stanford from injuries.

All of these guys are playmakers. They are catching passes from Mr. Heisman, and they have the smartest group of fundamental X and O coaches anyone could ask for.

Here's an article that got me hard just reading it.

OK I've reached that moment before a game. I'm done talking about it. I'm done reading about it. It' GO time. Let's get it on.

So what's going to happen? How do I think the Ducks will do? I'm not a score prediction or points spread guy. I prefer imagery. Let me just show you in a picture.
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Ducks are gonna rip off their arms, and then their legs;
then beat them over the head with their own arms and legs!

--KB

At Last

The key word: "Champions".
No Championship Participation souvenirs this time.

What did Wisconsin learn from this?

1) Don't bet the dairy farm on a wide open shootout with the Ducks. Imagine if the Clantons brought a Gatling gun to the O.K. Corral.

2) Never, NEVER try to kill the clock with only two seconds left. It's already dead.

Playing fearless. I mentioned it last week. Coach Kelly talked about it in the postgame. (That's right. Kelly is as smart as me.)  Wisconsin's style and weaknesses played right into Oregon's hands so that every time the Badgers scored, Darron Thomas and Co. jumped off the bench like kids flying out of their beds and running toward a present-rich Christmas tree.

They couldn't wait to open another gift. "Oh goody. Another can of whoop-ass for Wisconsin!"

And after they scored, the offense just sat down and waited. With Wisconsin's customary high number of plays and time of possession, they waited for Alliotti's defense to exploit a mistake. In the second half, they got three.

Kiko Alonso was the defensive player of the game because before Monday, his most noticeable stat was the number of games he was suspended for alcohol related trouble. He was destined to watch the game from a couch somewhere next to Cliff Harris.

He took his punishment like a man and came back with great courage.


Great shot by Orange County Register just before interception.




It was a good pass. Kiko just "Wheatoned" it.



After game, Kelly can't say enough about how proud he is of Kiko.

The second mistake was what will forever earn Coach Kelly the name "Air Kelly". After Russell Wilson completed a 29-yard pass to Jared Abbrederis, Terrance Mitchell stripped the ball to watch it lay on the carpet for what seemed like an eternity. Michael Clay pounced on it, and a second Wisconsin drive was killed.

Kelly leaps as Michael Clay recovers fumble.

Below is what Duck fans know of as Oregon's "other" fight song featuring Air Kelly and the Fumblettes. Thanks to Mad Duck reader E.Z. for showing me this.


The third and final mistake, as mentioned before. Wisconsin tried to kill the clock and they killed themselves. What is Oregon's motto? Win the Day: Fast, Hard, and the most important, FINISH.

In the postgame, Badger QB Russell Wilson talked about losing three games this season in a total of about 40 seconds and just a handful of points. That's got to be harsh. Yet in this game alone, they can look at two pointless timeouts early in the second half to go with the clock-stopping blunder.

Finishing has to do with playing smart. And that partly comes with experience.  Looking for their first BCS win in three tries, I saw some very smart Oregon coaches and players the other night. Sure they had a couple of turnovers. But they didn't hurt themselves with stupid penalties, panic or mental blunders. They finished this thing.

What was that moment like for you when you saw Wilson spike the ball with 00's on the clock?
"It's over," I said to the other people in the room. But even after uttering the words I didn't believe it myself. This is the Rose Bowl after all -- the kind of game Oregon loses. They haven't lost yet. Shouldn't the football gods give Wisconsin one more chance to ruin it all?

The silence and chaos in the stadium transmitted through every TV in the nation. We were watching the most important official replay review in Oregon Duck history. Then the ref flipped on his mike.

"After further review . . . Prior to the spiking of the pass, the clock went to zero. The game is over."

This is what I saw and heard. The ref walked up and tapped on the TV screen, "Hey Killer Bee, the game is over. Pinch yourself. It's real. Your Ducks have just won the Rose Bowl."

The next sound I heard was from across the room -- a gasp from my wife. She was as stunned as I was. We just looked at each other forever. I walked over to her, still gazing into her eyes.

I can only think of two other moments when her eyes were that beautiful. Our wedding, and the Kenny Wheaton interception.

And right then and there, I pressed my lips to hers, and we just started making out wildly in front of seven other adults and at least one grandchild.

OK maybe it didn't happen exactly like that. And maybe the referee didn't say those precise words to me. But it was still that kind of moment. Real, yet unreal. True, but unbelievable.

The Oregon Ducks are Rose Bowl Champions.
The Oregon Ducks are Rose Bowl Champions.
The Oregon Ducks are Rose Bowl Champions.

Go ahead, say it three times. Then say it about 300 more. Don't ever get tired of saying it, because as a long suffering Duck fan like me, you've earned it.

Here's to us, Ducks.

Etta, get well soon. And could you sing that song just one more time while we peruse the following pics we've waited so long to see?

"After further review . . .The game is over."

D.T. was only sacked twice during the game,
 but numerous times after.



Barner



Offensive linemen aren't afraid to hug.


 

Duck Banatic?

Finally. Green and yellow confetti.



All season long, Darron Thomas said,
"Put the team on my back."

 



(Whew) Did the room just get warm?

DAT all smiles.



The Mayans predicted a Duck holding a Rose Bowl trophy
is the first sign of the coming 2012 apocalypse.
Sorry world. But, you know . . . priorities.



Letting the fans touch it.



Injured Carson York holds trophy.



--KB

Ducks To Face Their Fears on Monday

LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner (seated in front) are buddies.
They got this pic on the Space Mountain ride at Disneyland.
What did Barner do once he saw this image of LaMJ crying like a little girl?
He did what any good friend would do and immediately sent it viral.
I got this off of international gossip site, TMZ.

SIDE NOTE . . . ._____________________
You would think that with internet blogs and such, you would get a lot more quality coverage of Oregon and the Rose Bowl (I know. My blog is clear proof that that's bull.).
   But really, it's hard to pick through so much blah, blah, blah, to find some really insightful analysis.
   Here's an example. Perhaps you've heard of the blog Bleacher Report? Here is a line from one contributor's analysis of the game:

In the end, this matchup is going to come down to who racks up the most points.

Genius. And he picked Oregon!  With logic like that, who could argue?
____________________________________

Brian Bennett contributed a post to the Big Ten blog of ESPN. It spells out some trends in much of the analysis I'm seeing.
Opposite offenses could attract Rose record

By Brian Bennett

When they paint the end zones at Rose Bowl Stadium, they might want to consider a second coat. Because there's a pretty good chance Oregon and Wisconsin could end up trampling lots of colored grass under their cleats.

   On paper, at least, this matchup has the potential to surpass the record 80 combined points that Iowa and Washington put up in the 1991 Rose Bowl game. The Ducks average a little more than 46 points per game, while Wisconsin is just a hair under 45 points a contest. Each team has scored at least 50 points four times this season and has broken the 45-point barrier seven times.
   Bowl games between a pair of high-scoring teams are nothing new, of course. What sets this one apart, though, is how radically different both styles are and how difficult each may be for the other to slow down
"The great thing about this matchup is it's kind of like the direct opposites of offensive philosophy," Wisconsin coach Bret Bielema said. "Obviously, Chip [Kelly] and Oregon like to score at a very rapid rate, and we like to hold the ball and score as often as possible for the most amount of time. It's a very unique situation, and something that we're excited about."

Boil the contrast down to the essence, and you have Oregon's warp-speed spread attack versus the Badgers' Midwestern brute force. It's not nearly that simplistic, but for the purposes of the next couple of paragraphs, let's follow that narrative.
   The Ducks would like to snap the ball before the officials remove the pigskins from the equipment case, if that were possible. They try to hit you with as many plays in a short amount of time as the laws of physics allow. Oregon has 41 touchdown drives this season that have lasted two minutes or less and 13 that have taken less than a minute. Their last-place FBS ranking in time of possession is a source of pride.
   Even though the Big Ten is more familiar with 21st-century offenses than casual fans believe, nothing in its league can quite prepare Wisconsin for what's coming.
    "We've seen some spread offenses like Michigan that used to be like that," Badgers defensive end Patrick Butrym said. "But they didn't move nearly as fast. It's unbelievable. I've never seen anything like it."

Wisconsin doesn't have Phil Knight or flashy uniforms, and the team's main offensive strength -- its offensive line -- isn't exactly sexy. But the Badgers can be equally effective, as Kelly knows from watching some Big Ten games during pregame breakfast on the West Coast.
   "It just seems like it's a pinball number sometimes when you're watching Wisconsin games," Kelly said.
   And the offensive line provides the paddle. The front five is massive at an average of more than 320 pounds per man, and that doesn't include the fullback and tight ends that offensive coordinator Paul Chryst often employs to bludgeon people with the ground game. Wisconsin averages nearly seven minutes of possession per game more than Oregon and has had 11 scoring drives of five minutes or more this season.

   But it's not just size that overwhelms opponents. The Badgers' big uglies are shockingly athletic, and defenses often aren't ready for that until a guard pulls and plows open a gaping hole for star running back Montee Ball. Just as teams can't adequately simulate Oregon's speed, they can't exactly find scout-teamers who can duplicate Wisconsin. Kelly said that while the Ducks have faced beefy, pro-style attacks from Stanford and USC, those Pac-12 teams don't also have a high-caliber back such as Ball.

Big Ugly Badgers

   "People know what we're going to do, but a lot of teams don't see our style of offense very often," left tackle Josh Oglesby said. "That's an advantage that allows us to really go after guys early and confuse them with some sets. We've got power and we really move. The way we do it, you don't see too often."

The offensive philosophies aren't complete opposites. If Oregon were merely a finesse team, it wouldn't be averaging a nation's best 6.5 yards per carry. LaMichael James may be a smaller back at 5-foot-9, but he's no fun to bring down. Wisconsin doesn't just plod away; with the dynamic Russell Wilson at quarterback, it has a dangerous play-action passing game that can occasionally quack like a Duck.

   "When you look at our offense, it's unconventional in its own way," Wisconsin defensive coordinator Chris Ash said. "We've got some quick-strike ability with our quarterback and Montee Ball. We can score from anywhere on the field, also; it's just in a different way."
  
Projected high-scoring games often disappoint. Just look at last season's BCS games involving these two teams. According to statistics, the Oregon-Auburn BCS title game and the Wisconsin-TCU Rose Bowl matchup should each have been played in the 40-point range. The combined point total for both games: 81.
   Something about this feels different, though, probably because the contrasting styles could give each side fits. Better apply that second coat of paint in the end zones just in case.

I think he's right about this being a high scoring game. The major difference between Wisconsin and Oregon's three games with Ohio State, Auburn and LSU are the latter teams' defenses. Those three teams each had NFL-ready D-linemen. While Wisconsin is good, it's not that good.

Also, I will be interested to see when one of Oregon's ball carrying speedsters breaks into the open and starts running to the endzone. It was a shocker when that happened against the other three teams. They had the personnel to catch up to our guys and bring them down from behind time and time again.

Does Wisconsin have the men to do that? When I hear one prognosticator after another say Oregon is going to win (I swear, the ratio is like 4 out of 5 favoring the Ducks), that is what they tend to point to. Speed.

Oregon can score a lot of points on Wisconsin.

But Wisconsin is easily the most prolific offense in the Big 10. If Andrew Luck had Wisconsin's offensive line and star running back, they might be going to the national championship.

USC showed that when the QB and receivers can have a great day, they can beat Oregon. Wisconsin's Russel Wilson had great days with his receivers all season long. And then they have Heisman candidate running back Montee Ball.

Wisconsin can score a lot of points on Oregon.

So if high-scoring is the kind of game it's going to be, who does that favor?  Again, this is why everyone is pointing to Oregon. Even if the Badgers and Ducks are trading TD's, who has the better shot at scoring with less than 2 minutes on the clock? In addition, as the game moves on and Oregon can establish pace, can Wisconsin keep up?

Another way of looking at this: Compared to the other three big games, this could be the first time when Oregon doesn't have to worry so much about adjusting to the other team and just focus on being themselves. This being their third consecutive BCS game, Oregon can feel at home against a quality opponent rather than on another planet against freaks like Terrell Pryor, Cam Newton or Nick Fairley.

When Wisconsin scores, the Ducks need to smile and say, "This is fun. Now give us the ball."
Oregon can challenge high scoring Wisconsin to beat them at their own game. They can help tired Badgers up onto their feet again to get ready for the next play. They can ignore the scoreboard and just play.

They can be fearless.

And no one is more eager to do that than this guy:

Space Mountain? Maybe.
But Badgers? He don't fear no stinkin' Badgers.

Rose Bowl: Monday January 2nd, 2pm Pacific on ESPN.

May this be the year.

--KB

The Most Awesome Uniforms EVER!

My question is, will they actually get to wear those wings in the game? Are the wings like swords to stab would-be tacklers? Can they fly?

Luke, I am your father.

 

These uni's look like they're about $1 million per copy. They're like Oregon't finest china. Do we really want to smash-bang with the Badgers and scratch that gloss finish on the helmets?

With wings on the sides, they slid the 'O' to the back of the helmet.

 

As for those Badgers, they're supplier -- Adidas -- is unveiling a new Rose Bowl uniform for Wisconsin. And if you go to this website: http://wisconsinrose.com/ , you'll see a countdown clock to when the BIG REVEAL of these fancy uni's will be. It's scheduled for about two days, TOO LATE!

 

For one thing, an online jersey shop is apparently already selling them, and I've got the pics right here.

Adidas' and Wisconsin's weak attempt
to keep up with Oregon and Nike.



Notice the lovely rose petaling in the numbers.



 Secondly, in comparison to Nike's unveiling, timing, and overall look, Adidas is already knocked out of the ballpark.

 

 

 

 
This link to goducks.com tells the story.

http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205352242