Nevada Dawg

To reinforce your point, Nevada blew that game against SMU (but give the ponies some credit) and should well have won that game. As for BSU, I am pretty darned confident the Ducks get this one done but have to say that it could well worth taking the points and laying a bet on the Broncos If... If this game were to take on the Blue field rather than at Autzen. I think that BSU could keep this one interesting for a while if their offense, which I know nothing about, is any good at all.

It is certainly nice that the Ducks are very clearly on the national radar now--I love it to a point. This is no time for rejoicing. I went through high expectations for the Dawgs as early as Kirby's second season, but was advised by sage voices to be cautious about what I said and very, very uneasy until the Dawgs actually won something. I watched the Dawgs get their hearts ripped out, both times by Bama, in OT in the 2017 Natty and the 2018 SEC Championship game--two games that a more experienced coach and squad should have won. In 2021, I was overly cautious even with an 8-point lead in the Natty with two minutes to go and didn't allow myself to feel confident until CB Kelee Ringo intercepted Bryce Young and returned the ball 70 some yards for the clinching score. My first reaction was unbelievable exuberance followed immediately by relief, fatigue, and a healthy pour of bourbon. It was FINALLY over. Never take for granted that something is likely to come to pass because others think it might. If my Dawgs can't get it done this year then I'll be hoping it is my Ducks. But no matter how good the team, it is always a struggle to make it to the end, especially if you have never been there before.

I was 9 and probably off fishing at the Seacliff wharf in Santa Cruz county. The only college football I watched in those days were the four big New Years Day Bowl Games--Orange, Sugar, Cotton and Rose Bowls. The old man was always perturbed because the Sugar and Cotton Bowls were on at the same time. As there were no remotes in those days, He'd drive us crazy sitting on the floor spinning the channel selector back and forth to monitor both games. Sometimes, we'd miss half the Orange Bowl because the Rose Bowl parade was running at the same time and Mom simply had to watch that one! But she did enjoy football and would root like a trooper for whatever Pacific Coast team was facing off against the Evil Empire in the Rose Bowl. She had grown up in the Midwest but absolutely hated the Ohio State Buckeyes. So I was indoctrinated early against the Big-10.

This game will be hyped beyond belief by NBC. It should attract a massive audience I'd expect. Are there any other big games being broadcast at the same time?

Lots of marginally talented guys who are credible short-term backups have made tidy fortunes carrying a clipboard along NFL sidelines over the years. More power to Marcus if his "back-up" career leaves him set for life in the years ahead.

Front-line talent is top notch IMHO. It is the talent "depth" on a young roster that I most worry about at the end of a grueling season. How far the Ducks go may depend very critically on how healthy they remain, although that is true of everyone, and is were quality depth becomes most apparent.

Yeah I don't think that the amateurs would lose every game either but they certainly wouldn't medal in today's world.

This is probably the last time we see Steph, LeBron and KD at the Olympics, and 2028 will be a strong challenge after seeing what I saw out of France and Serbia, both loaded with NBA players. This rising competitiveness abroad makes the tournament all the more exciting IMO. The same is true for the women who squeaked out a 1-point final second type win against the French women. I think that we have the NBA and WNBA to thank for this worldwide infusion of interest in roundball. I had assumed (there's that dreaded word assume) that both gold medal games would be walkovers for the US. Yet, they were infinitely more interesting because they were not!

Just for informational purposes, There is a prognosticator in Dawg Country, Uncle Lou, who picks the records of all the G4 teams every post-Spring practice season. I listened to his podcast for the Ducks the other day and he predicted a 12-0 regular season for the Ducks mainly because the OSU game is at Autzen. This guy is no clown but a darn good picker, so this is indeed a sign of respect. Like me, he is a Lanning fan all the way with the qualification that he is still yet to win a "big" one. According to Uncle Lou, that happens Oct 12 (although he thinks it very likely that this is reversed in the B1G Championship game--he only officially picks the regular season. Thought All Y'all would like to know.

didn't know Hocker was an ex-Duck until after the race, but that makes his thrilling upset all the sweeter. Congrats Cole on a truly thrilling performance. Races like this is why I love the Olympics!

Yeah, but I want the recruit for whom the "other boxes" are the main thing, and if it is perceived that they are not, particularly by one's prospective teammates, culture problems could clearly surface. Some who know have said that this was a problem a couple of years ago when T$M clearly bought the top rated class. Now several of those "bought" players are gone, as is the head coach.

Lol, thanks Jon

And SC follows suit by flipping a Georgia commit the very next day (or two) later. The Georgia player flipping saw the stacked DB room at Georgia and had been seeking other pastures since late Spring. As the SC flip was also a DB, this comes across pretty much as a trade with Georgia getting the player more willing to come in and compete for a job--Kirby's kind of guy. As for the theme of this post, I would take a move by SC to hand the reins over to Prime as an indication that the Trojans were in the early phases of de-emphasizing football. How could a once proud program be so cavalier?

I care about his opinion. He is a first-rate college analyst. Of course, analysts who make so many calls get a number wrong. I believe Michigan has a good shot .very good, at reaching the playoffs but have lost too much to be considereed prime candidates to hoist the trophy when all the playoff smoke as cleared. In this sense I agree with McElroy. Of course, I also know that many of you may not give a flip about what I think

Yes Charles, you do. And those who do often end up living their dreams, at least some of the time. A couple of sources who know Kirby Smart well say that he always dreamed of their being a day when he was mentioned as belonging in the circle of Nick Saban and the other coaching luminaries of that era. He lost out in the head-to-head competition while Nick was still around, and two of those games, the 2017 natty and 2018 SEC championship, are games that many think UGA should have won. But after two Nattys and a near miss on the playoffs last year, Kirby has earned his spot at the table. I'll be watching with great interest to see if young coach Lanning can manage to pull up a chair at that prestigious coaches table over the next few years. Go Ducks!

I saw the Lanning interview with McAfee today in which Dan Lanning jabbed back playfully at Kirby Smart's nice comments about meeting Phil Knight and wishing he had some of the NIL war chest available to Lanning. It is abundantly clear that Smart and Lanning really like each other. In fact Lanning said Kirby was an awesome mentor from whom he learned more than he had from any other football coach. Had Smart been there he might have quipped back with something like "Yeah, I might have taught him enough that it will probably come back to bite me in the butt some day." They are both great guys IMHO, awesome football coaches, and excellent guides for serious minded young men. The profession is lucky to have them.

I know Mullins is paid to worry and who could blame him after Taggert and Cristobal (neither of whom ever impressed me). Of course, I couldn't say for sure that Lanning would stay, but having heard his positive comments about Eugene, the university, and the affection his family felt for the area, I would have been shocked by a move to Tuscaloosa. For one thing it was too early. And I think Dan felt he had serious unfinished business in the valley. I also think that Dan knew the risks of following Saban at Alabama. If you are going there you want to become the guy who follows Saban's successor. DeBoer may do quite well there' but it is really an almost impossible comparison over the long run..

The Ducks-Dawgs matchup could easily happen this year though we'd be projecting pretty far into the future for both teams. But it would be fin to watch, wouldn't it? And I'd feel good about the outcome no matter which team prevailed.

I agree that there is no way that a football tourney can be inclusive as basketball. I also think that 17 games should be about the absolute max. Yet, in the interest of inclusivity. it is OK for a very deserving team to be excluded occasionally. It has happened to my Dawgs twice in the past five years (2018, 2023) when virtually all the heavyweights considered Georgia to be one of the best four teams, but other considerations put them at #5. I didn't like it but knew the rules for inclusion and was OK both years (though not happy). Again I will say that no team should gripe too much if omitted when they can't finish at least third in their conference. Give the Libertys or App States or Boise States shot if warranted. Funny things can happen (e.g., Tulane over the condoms two years ago). Now wasn't that worth it?

Want to kill college football for the larger public? Keep finding ways to chastise some power 4 champs as less worthy, exclude G5 teams, and give the majority of the slots to the BIG and SEC. I personally want playoffs that are broadly inclusive and have no sympathy for excluded SEC or B1G teams that can't manage to finish at least third in their conference. There may be some good ones occasionally that are excluded, so let them play in a better bowl game. Sorry if that offends anyone, but that's my view and I'm sticking with it.

I get a kick out of these "projecton" exercises which, if nothing else, aptly illustrate that the offseason is too damn long. How these things come out depend heavily on assumptions made and on little that is objectively verifiable. This little exercise is gratifying for those of us who follow the Ducks and are fun to read. But...remember that it is another in a long line of mental masturbations that make their appearance every off season. I know, I'm no fun. But THANKFULLY, Fall camp is about ready to start and we will soon be into the data that really matter--what actually happens between the lines.

My cable provider still does not "provide" the BTN Network and it is one of the majors (Spectrum). It does provide the ACC network however, not that there are oodles of ACC fans in my neck of the woods. Hopefully, Oregon will be enough of a draw to keep most their games on Fox or CBS. If there is Duck game on BTN that I can't miss, there is a casino sports book 8 miles away so I guess I'll be good.

I can guarantee that Kirby respects Lanning and the Ducks program. And if anyone still had any doubts, the good natured jabbing between Saban and Smart at SEC media days should put to rest forever the ridiculous assertion of many Dawg and Bama fans that the two men don't like each other. I am fortunate to get to know each of these men at different points in my academic career. They are both decent honorable men who truly respect each other. Kirby was still calling Saban coach during the interview, and Saban called Kirby the best assistant coach he ever had. They wanted to beat each other's brains out between the lines. but only within the context of a sporting event. I suspect that someday Kirby and DL will talk about each other in the same way.

To me, bringing the SEC out west would imply having a big, fast, physical team with a power defense. I haven't seen it yet, but Lanning is trying and we have to remember that he is only entering his third year as a head man. I expect to see real strides in that direction this year, although I still think there may be bumps in the road that several of us cannot foresee in the overexuberance of Talkin Season". I'm getting really tired of talking. Can't wait for Fall camp to start and getting ready to back the talk (or not) between the darn lines!

I've told my fellow posters that on the Talk'n Dawgs site that DL is building an SEC caliber team in Eugene, and several pitched in to say that they like the Ducks' physicality. My .02 worth: The rank and file of the PAC-12 in its final year was superior to last year's B1G rank and file IMHO. Michigan was a worthy champ, but top to bottom, the PAC may well have been the better overall aggregation.