Oregon Newspaper Article

#226
#226
DuckinTN said:
Or we could stop using a corrupt, biased system that excludes worthy teams from getting a shot every year.
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I agree with this. However, you get to the top of the standings by a good pre-season ranking and winning your games, along with a strong schedule. The Ducks will have their best chance this year in a while.
 
#227
#227
lylsmorr said:
I agree with this. However, you get to the top of the standings by a good pre-season ranking and winning your games, along with a strong schedule. The Ducks will have their best chance this year in a while.
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Yep. I personally don't see us doing any better than the Rose Bowl this year, but this year is the year that it could happen if all of the cards fall into place.
 
#228
#228
lylsmorr said:
I agree with this. However, you get to the top of the standings by a good pre-season ranking and winning your games, along with a strong schedule. The Ducks will have their best chance this year in a while.
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Oh yeah, and YOU win the gold star for being one of the few SEC fans to agree with this sentiment.
 
#229
#229
DuckinTN said:
Oh yeah, and YOU win the gold star for being one of the few SEC fans to agree with this sentiment.
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I'm not ready to say the Ducks will win out not being underdogs this year, but they might surprise me. Stanford, UCLA and Washington are the dark horses this year in the Pac10
 
#230
#230
lylsmorr said:
I'm not ready to say the Ducks will win out not being underdogs this year, but they might surprise me. Stanford, UCLA and Washington are the dark horses this year in the Pac10
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UCLA not so much. But I agree with the other two.
 
#232
#232
lylsmorr said:
I don't so much have faith in the coaching at UCLA, but they have some pretty good talent on the team
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Well, they lost Datone Jones today with a broken foot...he's a stud at DT so that's a big blow.

Basically, in a league where you pretty much need to have at least some offensive firepower, they have none. That's why I'm not sold on them. Prince is an awful QB.
 
#233
#233
XtennesseeX said:
They have this guy, and he really wants it.

2j124qa.jpg
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:lolabove: oregon got new jersey's?
wow they really care about their appearence.
 
#235
#235
A couple of additional personnel points...

I'm getting a little tired of everyone's comments about our WRs (and I don't just mean on this board.)

Maehl is a guy who is clearly a playmaker at this point but "no-name," as many of you are calling him, does not represent the extent of experience we have returning at that position. In point of fact, all three of our starters from last year are returning. DJ Davis is a physical specimen that has a lot of speed, and if we'd make a more concerted effort to get the ball into his hands he can do some damage. Lavasier Tuinei was new to us last season and now with a season under his belt I expect to see him more. He's tall and lanky, and his stride makes him deceptively fast in the open field.

Honestly all three of those guys are players, but our passing game has not been good ever since we lost Dennis Dixon - we just haven't had a passer like him since. Masoli made some things happen and was a great clutch performer, but the passing game with him taking the snaps really suffered. Behind the three starters, we've only seen good things from Blake Cantu, and former walk-on Justin Hoffman who has been on a tear since last spring. We also have a couple of talented big play threats coming in this year as true freshman to play in the slot - Keanon Lowe and Josh Huff. The latter of those two is already built like a division 1 player and I suspect he's going to factor in this offense in a big way sooner or later.

At TE Oregon lost Ed Dickson, who was terribly underutilized in the passing game given his athletic gifts, but his backup David Paulson has some of the best hands on the team, and is now quite experienced. Oregon also will be playing JC transfer Brandon Williams - who is a future NFLer waiting to breakout.

And with regard to the defense, one thing that has not been mentioned in this thread is that while Oregon's defense may be mediocre in terms of national rankings, the numbers have to be considered with a critical point in mind. Oregon's defense defends against more plays than any other team in the nation because of the Oregon offense - which makes no attempt to hold the ball and control the clock, and always operates with the intention of scoring as quickly as possible. Oregon's offense either rolls down the field in a hurry, or it's stopped, and possession is ceded. That's just the way it is. Beyond those rankings though, you'll find a defense that is as fast as any in the nation, while being a bit undersized up front. But with that said watch for Oregon to introduce converted TE Dion Jordan on the defensive line... He's 6'7, with speed. Also Oregon is getting beefier in the middle with true freshman Ricky Heimuli, and Anthony Anderson coming off of his redshirt.

As I said in a previous thread, however, none of this matters if Oregon doesn't get a good performance out of the QB - and right now who will get the nod is something that is very much up in the air.
 
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#236
#236
Yeah Oregon is returning 5 o-line, but their o-line isnt that great. Masoli made it look like he had an amazing o-line, but he really had a tough time because he didn't trust his o-line. James is gonna run all over us, but Costa isnt that good of a QB if he starts.
 
#237
#237
Actually I think it's James that makes the O-line look better than it is... but it's still very good. And Masoli had problems because he couldn't see.. not because he couldn't trust them, imo.
 
#238
#238
Eberry said:
Yeah Oregon is returning 5 o-line, but their o-line isnt that great. Masoli made it look like he had an amazing o-line, but he really had a tough time because he didn't trust his o-line. James is gonna run all over us, but Costa isnt that good of a QB if he starts.
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Yeah, uh, you're completely wrong about the o-line.
 
#239
#239
Eberry said:
Yeah Oregon is returning 5 o-line, but their o-line isnt that great. Masoli made it look like he had an amazing o-line, but he really had a tough time because he didn't trust his o-line. James is gonna run all over us, but Costa isnt that good of a QB if he starts.
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Against a sack of potatoes, they will look amazingly talented.
Posted via VolNation Mobile
 
#242
#242
orangespirit said:
Against a sack of potatoes, they will look amazingly talented.
Posted via VolNation Mobile
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This. Our interior d-line is now a squirrel, two of those shamwow towels, and a roll of duct tape and that's if the squirrel doesn't blow an Achilles between now and Oregon.
 
#243
#243
norrislakevol said:
Lets break it down further:

QB, Advantage: Even. Unknown for both teams at this time.

RB, Advantage: Even. Both teams have talent and depth at the position.

OL, Advantage: Oregon. They have returning starters, we don't.

WR, Advantage: Tennessee. We have talent and depth, Oregon doesn't.

TE, Advantage: Tennessee. Stocker is a future NFL player.

DT, Advantage: Oregon. We are just thin on experience.

DE, Advantage: Tennessee. Talent and depth abound for the vols here.

LB, Advantage: Tennessee (slight). Tennessee has loads of experience and depth here.

DB: Advantage: Tennessee. Tennessee has good experience here, plus the Ducks just seem to have problems defending the pass.

Kickers, Advantage: ??????? I just can't say right now. Tennessee may have the best legs in the country right now, but they are young.

Returners, Advantage: Even. Oku has done a quality job for the Vols.

Intangables, Advantage: Tennessee. Oregon hasn't done well in away games, plus traveling east is very hard on west coast teams particularly in a daunting stadium like Neyland.
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Way off, imo.

QB, Advantage: Even.
RB, Advantage: Oregon. Both teams have depth. Oregon's RBs are better based on YPC (6.7 and 6.0 vs 4.8 and 4.1)
OL, Advantage: Oregon.
WR, Advantage: Tennessee.
TE, Advantage: Even. Oregon has a set of excellent TEs in Paulson, Williams and White.
DT, Advantage: Oregon.
DE, Advantage: Tennessee.
LB, Advantage: Even (if not Oregon). Probably Oregon's greatest strength on D.
DB: Advantage: Tennessee.

GreyWolf1129 said:
Hmmm...you may have a point.

Nope. Just checked. Bad misfire on your part.

Compare the conference and National / BCS titles between the two programs...going back to...say 1893...and Oregon is so far behind UT that you'd need a telescope to spot them.
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Actually, no. My point remains valid. You just missed it.

Point summary: nobody cares about UTs past titles other than UT fans.

Enjoy your past titles. You might as well be bragging to me about how your nephew got straight A's last year. Congratulations! Not sure why you think such statements have any bearing on my enjoyment of the Ducks doing well.

GreyWolf1129 said:
Oregon's major claim to fame over the past two decades is (a) uniforms that look like they were designed by a gay bullfighter, (b) and their own wing at the county jail. UT might not be spotless, or flawless, during that span...but we do own a crystal football, and we are rebuilding. Oregon has peaked. Your best QB is in Mississippi, playing for a head coach who would offer a scholarship to Osama Bin Laden if he could hit the skinny post against the Alabama pass rush.
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"Fame":

Oregon is famous to Oregon fans for many reasons. No crystal football required for that.

UT is famous to UT fans for their own reasons. Reasons that fans of other programs by and large could give a rats ass about.

"rebuilding":

In order to be rebuilding, a team has to perform better than it had been. If anything, UT is the program that looks to have "peaked".

"peaked":

In order to peak, a team has to perform worse than it had been. If anything, Oregon has been improving for the last few years and according to polls, most believe they are continuing in that direction this year.

"Osama":

Points for humor.

GreyWolf1129 said:
You might win the game. You should win the game. But consider the fact that you'll crow over a win against a UT team that is as down as it has been in 20 years. If UT wins, it's just another game against a PAC-10 also-ran. South Carolina, in puke green uniforms.
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It's the opposite. Because UT is down, Oregon has nothing to gain and everything to lose in this game. If they win, everyone will say it's nothing to crow about. If they lose, everyone will say that Oregon isn't the team they thought they were this year.

stevenharvey11 said:
Oregons inexperience at the quarterback position is one. If the ducks are one dimensional, Wilcox and the UT defense have it a lot easier.
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I can't disagree with this. QB is, imo, a big question mark for Oregon right now. Until I hear otherwise from practice reports, I'm putting them at a 50/50 chance of having QB worked out for this game.

I think this will go one of two ways:

A) If Oregon can't establish good QB play, it could be a close, low scoring game with the win going either way.

B) If Oregon can establish good QB play, Oregon will blow out UT by 20+.

stevenharvey11 said:
Another thing is Oregons depth at wide receiver. If the qb does play pretty well, he has one legitimate threat. And I don't even know his name. That's how bad that situation is. Although I will admit I've never kept up with Oregon like I do UT, I usually know the big time and good players for them.
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You're probably thinking of Maehl. I think you might be surprised by Oregon's WRs if they have someone to get the ball to them. Not a lot of names stand out because there has been a lot of turn-over at the position for various reasons (WRs getting kicked off team, grades, etc.). Tuinei, Cantu, Davis, Williams, Paulson, Maehl and others can catch the ball.

Also, the way receivers are utilized in Kelly's offense isn't the same as the typical pro-set, downfield system. You don't need a bunch of 5-star burners that can out-jump anyone in man-coverage on fly routes. You just need a bunch of slot, possession receivers that know how to run clean short routes so that the defense has to cover more field. Oregon does have the receivers to do this. It's just a matter of having a QB that can execute and force defenders not to cheat inside.

stevenharvey11 said:
Another thing is the Wilcox situation. This is a hire I really like. His multiple defense he runs seems to be suited to do well versus most offenses. That was a problem last year. Tennessee was great against pro style offenses. Not so great against the spread. Enter Wilcox and hopefully that has changed. Seems to also do more with less. And this is probably the least talented defense he will have while at UT.
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I agree that Wilcox is an excellent hire and will serve UT well. I just don't see him making a huge impact in the short time he will have before the Oregon game. The UT defense is going to be dealing with a lot of new core information.
 
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#244
#244
ok, here's the deal.

1. since january, tennessee has lost 5 players for the season (for one reason or another) who were either going to start or play a significant amount of time. myles, b. brown, douglas, walls, and martin.

2. tennessee made an emergency free agent style signing during the off-season (gooch), not to provide depth, but to play this year. this is something i have never season at a program of tennessee's stature. gooch may start. if that doesn't speak volumes for the problems on the offensive line, i don't know what does.

3. chewing gum and duct tape are already being used to hold the team together and try to provide depth. thomas moved back to d-line. teague and meline moved to d-back. position changes happen, but they usually happen in the spring. position changes in the fall are usually not a good thing.

4. freshman (in some cases due to talent, in other cases due to need) will play a significant amount of time at various positions. even supremely talented freshman don't walk out on the field in the second week of september and beat people. just doesn't happen.

this doesn't even touch on the potential disaster at qb or the amount of players who will be playing at some positions that may not very good, but who else is there.
 
#245
#245
SamQB7 said:
Picked up the papers this morning for my wife to cut coupons and I pulled the sports page out and skimmed through them. "The Oregonian" which is equivalent to "The Tennessean" had a few nasty things to say about our program and how we are always going to blame Lane Kiffin for our defeats over the next couple of years. "The Register-Guard", which is the local paper here in Coos Bay had this to say.

"Everything will fall into place if...... There's no hiccup at Tennessee. On talent alone, the Ducks will be favored to beat the Volunteers, who have a proud tradition but are in a tough spot after enduring Lane Kiffin's defection to USC. Still, playing at a massive SEC stadium could be a daunting environment."

The paper went on and talked about how Oregon's road record as been abysmal since the 2000 season. Paper says they are loaded up front with all 5 returning O-lineman, deep at RB, questionable at QB, and extremely thin at WR due to 2 being dismissed from the team and 2 more being declared academically ineligible. Says the defense needs to improve from last year, but there aren't many signs pointing to that actually happening. Living here and talking to fans about the upcoming game, I have found mixed reviews. Obviously, there are some that say Oregon will steam roll us this year, and some that think it will be Oregon's first true test of the season. IMO, the ones that seem to think Tennessee will be a harder win than most think, seem to be the ones that are more football intelligent. They seem to understand the X's and O's and the real happenings of a football game better.

Thoughts?
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I dont think their defense needs to improve that much. They were number 1 in pac-10 play last yr. They return 10 starters on D so im not sure why they wouldnt get better anyway
 
#246
#246
99gator said:
ok, here's the deal.

1. since january, tennessee has lost 5 players for the season (for one reason or another) who were either going to start or play a significant amount of time. myles, b. brown, douglas, walls, and martin.

2. tennessee made an emergency free agent style signing during the off-season (gooch), not to provide depth, but to play this year. this is something i have never season at a program of tennessee's stature. gooch may start. if that doesn't speak volumes for the problems on the offensive line, i don't know what does.

3. chewing gum and duct tape are already being used to hold the team together and try to provide depth. thomas moved back to d-line. teague and meline moved to d-back. position changes happen, but they usually happen in the spring. position changes in the fall are usually not a good thing.

4. freshman (in some cases due to talent, in other cases due to need) will play a significant amount of time at various positions. even supremely talented freshman don't walk out on the field in the second week of september and beat people. just doesn't happen.

this doesn't even touch on the potential disaster at qb or the amount of players who will be playing at some positions that may not very good, but who else is there.
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Why are you so obsessed with tennessee?
 
#247
#247
99gator said:
ok, here's the deal.

1. since january, tennessee has lost 5 players for the season (for one reason or another) who were either going to start or play a significant amount of time. myles, b. brown, douglas, walls, and martin.

2. tennessee made an emergency free agent style signing during the off-season (gooch), not to provide depth, but to play this year. this is something i have never season at a program of tennessee's stature. gooch may start. if that doesn't speak volumes for the problems on the offensive line, i don't know what does.

3. chewing gum and duct tape are already being used to hold the team together and try to provide depth. thomas moved back to d-line. teague and meline moved to d-back. position changes happen, but they usually happen in the spring. position changes in the fall are usually not a good thing.

4. freshman (in some cases due to talent, in other cases due to need) will play a significant amount of time at various positions. even supremely talented freshman don't walk out on the field in the second week of september and beat people. just doesn't happen.

this doesn't even touch on the potential disaster at qb or the amount of players who will be playing at some positions that may not very good, but who else is there.
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Who are you again?:ermm:
 
#248
#248
Great post, Wheaton (THE MOST IMPROBABLE FINISH TO THE MOST IMPROBABLE GAME!). I agree with everything you said, other than the fact that I'm sold on Oregon's DE unit, but not on Tennessee's. Great info, though.
 
#249
#249
Thank you.

Rowe is solid at DE. Not sure about the other side yet. There are positive reports. But, not enough game-time evidence for me to know.

I don't know much about UT's DE situation. So, I'll take their word for it that they're good there, to be fair.
 
#250
#250
wheaton4prez said:
Thank you.

Rowe is solid at DE. Not sure about the other side yet. There are positive reports. But, not enough game-time evidence for me to know.

I don't know much about UT's DE situation. So, I'll take their word for it that they're good there, to be fair.
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We really do appreciate you being fair. Thats mighty nice of you.

If your QB gets rattled, the DEnds start teeing off on him, the crowd gets into it, your doomed. The rest will not matter.

The only thing you can hope for is that the game becomes a defensive battle and your running game gets hot.
 
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