Tuesday, August 30, 2011

You think you're shaking now?

I just got off LSU's SB Nation site, "And The Valley Shook". It's nice. Clever name. And I salute their writer, Billy Gomilla for writing an intelligent and indepth X and O breakdown of the Ducks vs. Tigers.

He's got play diagrams, graphics and Duck game videos up the Wazoo like the Wazoo was a favorite Cajun watering hole. I like game analysis as much as the next beer drinking, porta-pottying, stadium screaming, wife embarrassing, football fool. But this is on steroids.

In his latest post, Previewing LSU - Oregon Part 4: What the Tiger Defensive Backs are Looking At (<-- That's the link. Help yourself.), he goes into great detail spelling out what key LSU defenders will have to do against Oregon. Below is an excerpt for a taste . . . .

"As seen in the above diagram, strong safety Brandon Taylor will primarily be reading Oregon's "trips" or three-receiver formations, for one of the Ducks' primary pass concepts, the bubble screen. I shouldn't have to rehash it for any LSU fan reading this, but Taylor will be the alley defender on most of those screen plays as the outside receivers block down on the nickel and cornerbacks. He'll also have some force responsibilities on some of Oregon's inside screens -- taking on blockers to give a better flow path to the ball for the linebackers and other defensive backs."

OK everybody. BREATHE!  In. . . out. . . in.   I know, it reads like getting directions from a gas station to a vacation rental in Sunriver. I wanted to give the guy some Duck fan insight, so I left him with this comment:

I can make this easier for you.
Very good X’s and O’s analysis. LSU fans know their football. I don’t care what Alabamans say. :)

   But if I may simplify it for you: You said, “. . .but as soon as the defense cheats one way a little too much, Chip Kelly will add that little twist and suddenly there’s a wide-open receiver”
   You’re partly right. As soon as the defense cheats, Oregon will take advantage of it. But it’s not even as complicated as a “twist” coming from Kelly and the bench. It’s already built into the play.
   Here’s the thing. Your entire post is basically, “If the offense does this, our guys must do that. And if the offense does that . . .”, and so on.
  
 Here’s part of the secret behind Oregon’s offense. Neither Kelly nor Thomas the QB know exactly what the play is going to be until after the ball is snapped. Handoff, keeper, throw bubble, throw long. Thomas is waiting for the defense to TELL HIM what the play should be.
   Any cheat anywhere, anytime in the game . . . . that’s what Kelly trains his QB to look for. And that is part of the wear down factor.
   When Duck fans say good luck, we’re saying good luck that none of your defensive players make a mistake for four whole quarters.
   Good luck, LSU. If you win this game, you will have definitely earned the win.

--Killer Bee.

Am I right? I'll tell you, I did not feel like trying to wrap my brain around his micro-analysis in this Part 4 -- let alone parts 1, 2, or 3 -- because I think it's irrelevant. He could be exactly right. But if any of his players fail to follow his diagrams to the letter, or if one cheats his intentions to Thomas, it doesn't matter.

Eleven players remaining disciplined for four quarters, especially toward the end of the game as fatigue wears in because the no-huddle is taking it's toll -- that is what Oregon demands of it's opponent. Doesn't matter what was drawn on the chalkboard.

Chip Kelly says it all the time. It's about execution. Who is executing better play after play after play?  The answer to that question is your winner.

And Another One Down
LSU lost another starter, this time to injury last week in practice. Senior Offensive Guard Josh Dworaczyk re-aggravated a knee injury from last season's Cotton Bowl and will require surgery. He's considered one of the best guards in the SEC.

"Go T-Bob...Go T-Bob...Go T-Bob..."
Coach Les Miles says he will be replaced by . . . (wait for it.) . . T-Bob Hebert. Yes that's his name, instantly making him my favorite player on LSU's or any SEC team. You can't be a bonafide southern university without a guy on your roster named T-Bob Hebert.









Oregon Ducks: The only team with a fashion section in it's media guide.
In case you were wondering -- and if you're a Duck fan, you were -- Oregon will be wearing custom designed uni's just for this game! To the video . . .

If you're like me, you NEED those gloves. Available at the Duck Shop

--KB


Sunday, August 28, 2011

An SEC Army couldn't . . . . .

[Following is from the Statesman Journal.
Lyrics added by me from The White Stripes' Seven Nation Army]


Oregon closes in on perennial power status
Written by Gary Horowitz, Statesman Journal

"I'm gonna fight 'em off
A seven nation army couldn't hold me back"

EUGENE — Trivia question: Name the only college football team in the past two years to play in the Rose Bowl and Bowl Championship Series national title game?
 
The answer is Oregon, which has put plenty of substance behind its glitzy image.

Yes, Oregon is on the rise. What the Ducks have been unable to do is finish the job, with losses to Ohio State and Auburn to end their past two seasons.

With a No. 3 preseason ranking in the Associated Press and USA Today/coaches' poll, and the return of Heisman finalist LaMichael James and dual-threat quarterback Darron Thomas, Oregon is poised to make another run at the ultimate prize in college football.

"We can get better," said James, who led the nation in rushing and scoring last season. "The sky's the limit for us."

Oregon is on the verge of perennial power status, but to join the pantheon of the chosen few where schools such as Alabama, Oklahoma, Texas, USC and Ohio State reside, the Ducks need to win on the grand stage.

They were oh so close last season.

"They're gonna rip it off
Taking their time right behind my back"

After Oregon tied Auburn late in the fourth quarter on a 2-yard pass to James and a two-point PAT, the Tigers drove the length of the field and made an 18-yard game-winning field goal on the final snap.

"It still lingers," Oregon rover Eddie Pleasant said. "For us to get there and come so close to winning it, it hurts."

"And I'm talking to myself all night
Because I can't forget
Back and forth through my mind
Behind the cigarette"

Oregon opens Saturday against SEC power and No. 4 LSU in a neutral field matchup with national championship implications.

SEC teams have won the past five BCS national titles.

"And the message coming from my eyes
Says "Leave it alone" "

"You can never predict making a (national championship) run," free safety John Boyett said. "What's important is getting a win in week one. Like coach (Chip) Kelly says, one game will not make or break us. We've just gotta go out there and try to win every game."

Beginning his third season as head coach, Kelly's players have embraced his "win the day" mantra. The bar has been raised.

Oregon's no-huddle, warp-speed offense led the nation in scoring last season.

"Everybody knows what we're about," Thomas said. "We're gonna come out fast, work hard. A lot of people think our plays are disguises and stuff like that, all these wrinkles … but they're just regular plays. They're just run to perfection."

Oregon enters the 2011 season facing an ongoing NCAA investigation for its ties to a Houston-based recruiting service run by Willie Lyles, and Cliff Harris' offseason speeding incident has left the all-America candidate suspended for at least the opener.
Midway through fall camp, redshirt freshman tailback Lache Seastrunk - the most highly touted prospect in the Ducks' 2010 recruiting class — was granted his release from the program and has transferred to Baylor.

"Don't wanna hear about it
Every single one's got a story to tell
Every one knows about it
From the Queen of England
To the hounds of hell"

But Oregon is so deep at running back with James, Kenjon Barner and emerging freshman De'Anthony Thomas, that Seastrunk's departure hardly registered.

Besides, LSU has its own issues.

Starting quarterback Jordan Jefferson was arrested Friday and suspended indefinitely after his alleged role last weekend in a fight outside a bar in Baton Rouge, La.

Two other Tigers also are suspended, backup linebacker Joshua Johns (the bar fight) and starting wide receiver Russell Shepard (NCAA code violation).

Despite distractions, the Ducks are 22-4 under Kelly with a 17-1 conference mark.

So how much does last season's national championship run benefit Oregon moving forward?

"We hope a lot," Kelly said. "We're all byproducts of our experience."

Many players on the roster, including James, Barner, tight end David Paulson, offensive tackle Mark Asper, guard Carson York, Pleasant, Harris and Boyett, played key roles on the Rose Bowl and national championship game teams.

Darron Thomas in the Natty.

Thomas is 12-1 as a starter. He said losing the national championship game is "the biggest motivation I've had in my life."

"And if I catch it coming back my way
I'm gonna serve it to you
And that ain't what you want to hear
But that's what I'll do"

But there's no guarantee that Oregon will return to the Rose Bowl or national title game. In the cyclical world of college football — Notre Dame and Michigan have fallen recently — anything can happen.

The Ducks are not without questions. They will be breaking in a new center, likely Hroniss Grasu. There are three new starters on the defensive line, three-year starting linebackers Casey Matthews and Spencer Paysinger must be replaced, and Lavasier Tuinei is the only starting wide receiver back.

But all the uncertainly has not created restless nights for Kelly.

"I don't really look at it as a worry," Kelly said. "Just staying up nights isn't gonna make it different for you, so we'll find out when we get out there on Saturday."

Spoken like a coach who knows what he has.

Oregon has its highest preseason ranking in school history and is the media's choice to win the North Division and inaugural Pac-12 title.

The Ducks never have won three conference championships in a row. That could change this season.

"And the feeling coming from my bones
Says "Find a home" "

 
[The following from Lisbon, Portugal may be one of the White Stripes wilder performances, but the audience in this vid reminded me of something I saw of Oregon fans at Matt Arena last winter. Oregon's band played Seven Nation Army, and all the fans threw up their hands and flashed the 'O' while singing with the song their own lyrics:
"Ohhhhhh, O, O, O, Ohhh, Ohhhh."
Then I saw this. I had no idea there were so many Duck fans in Portugal. . . . . ]

 
[Bonus track. If you hated that one, you might actually like this one. Seven Nation Army is probably the most covered song over the past seven years. But no one could do it much better than a German (but English speaking) punk country western band, The BossHoss]

 
--KB

Monday, August 22, 2011

Time for Kelly to get his Eastwood On




Chip Kelly has been holding his tongue, keeping the peace all summer long now. I think, in the style of a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western,  it's high time for him to set his drink down with the force of a gavel and slowly stand up -- the "ching ching" of his spurs echoing in the otherwise silent saloon. Push the card table a few inches away from him to give him some space. Then look the bastards in the eyes, and tell them how it's going to be.

Starting with . . . .

"Hey Willie, you can pay back that 25 grand you owe us, or I can just nail your big flappy lips to the floor.
Come to think of it, somebody get me a hammer and some nails."

Lache Seastrunk has left Oregon. That's all folks. Hope you enjoyed the show. Good night and drive safely.

The Seastrunk era ended before it started, and yet packed enough drama and events for a 5th year senior. What did Oregon get for him? A giant FUBAR (Fuskied Up Beyond All Recognition). That check for $25,000 to Slick Willie Lyles raised the eyebrows of NCAA investigators . . . . . No wait, let's back up.

Oregon's successful recruitment of Seastrunk raised the ire of SEC and other Texas schools -- "Not in OUR backyard," they said. So using the ol' handkerchief over the the phone trick, they called the NCAA and slipped them the juicy "Deep Throat" tip that Oregon was paying way too much for mere films and stats.

Here's the real truth. Those giant Southern football factories of LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma, Auburn and at least five others in the great state of Texas . . . They're not mad that Oregon allegedly paid 25 grand to leverage a Texas boy to Eugene. They're FURIOUS that had they thought they could've gotten away with it, they would've gladly paid 50-, 75-, or even 100,000 dollars to get him! 

Oregon apparently beat them at their own "greased palm" game for a bargain! So the NCAA makes like "Smokey and the Bandit", and their flashing lights appear in Oregon's rear view mirror. And now they're all, "You in a heap-a-trouble, boy." More about them later.  

But is that what Oregon really did? How much trouble is Oregon really in?  I'm sure you've read all you can stomach about the whole Willie Lyles, Lache Seastrunk, $25,000 payment "scandal". If you haven't, Google those two names and have a ball. We'll wait right here til you're all caught up . . . . . . . . .

What some of you may not be aware of is that one blogger, Scott Reed of "The Other Side of Duck" had better success at contacting the people close to Seastrunk. He was able to piece together the story of Seastrunk's journey to Oregon that was far less influenced by Willie Lyles than what Lyles wants the world to believe.

Reed is a little long-winded, but he's a thoughtful writer, and he appears to have done his homework. He mainly lays it out in three posts: "Who was Lache's Mentor?"  "Who was Lache's Mentor, Part II", and "Seastrunk Family Clears the Air."

After reading those stories, I came away with the conclusion that any time and resources the NCAA puts into investigating this "scandal" will be time and resources wasted.

Willie Lyles likes to hear himself talk.  A lot.  He's so smooth, sharing his sad story to Yahoo, the NCAA, and anyone else about how he's the victim. Oh ya, Lyles, you're just trying to make a living and help the kids, and the world hates you for it.  Is he noticing yet that it's harder to get anyone to return his calls?  

And after setting themselves up as Lyles personal megaphone, are the folks at Yahoo  so busy patting themselves on the back for suddenly getting thrust in the spotlight as big time sports investigators that they're too stupid to see the big "SUCKER" signs on their foreheads?

As for Lache Seastrunk, he's not the bad guy here. He's done nothing wrong. Scratch that. He let himself down in one area. He failed to stay 1, 2, or 3 on Oregon's depth chart. Slipping to as low as #5 of late, he apparently became discouraged. No one should say a single bad thing about this young kid. I wish him nothing but the best.

Now, back to the NCAA. . . . .

"HEY NCAA, GO DUCK YOURSELVES!"

It bothers me to see Oregon mentioned in the same paragraph or breath with the other "problem schools" like Ohio State, USC, Connecticut, South Carolina, Tennessee, and last but not least, Miami.  The violations of all of these other schools involve extreme cases of giving players extra benefits -- money, cars, apartments, academic cheating.

Lache Seastrunk didn't receive a cent. LaMichael James hasn't received a cent. Furthermore, before those two, there were Terrell Pryor and Reggie Bush.

Bush was heavily recruited by Oregon. His final choices came between the Ducks and USC.  For Pryor, it came down to Ohio State, Penn State and Oregon. Looking back, it is clear that the schools they chose, USC and Ohio State respectively, were able to offer them things that Oregon couldn't or wouldn't.

Meanwhile as these scandals grow more numerous, the NCAA is shown to be run by a short-sighted, knee jerk reactionary in President Mark Emmert.

"More sanctions," "Harsher penalties," "The DEATH Penalty," is all Emmert screams. He can't see the forest for the trees. He can't see the difference between an Oregon and an Ohio State. And worst of all, he can't see that the college sports world is laughing at the pitiful NCAA.

The NCAA system is broken, and all Emmert knows to do is come down with harsh program killing penalties without fixing the fundamental flaws of the system.

How ridiculous is it when the NCAA takes months and years to complete an investigation and hand down severe punishments to schools long after the guilty players and coaches are long gone?

How stupid is it when NCAA investigators waste time and resources on ticky-tac stuff like a coach buying a player a Coke while Miami and Ohio State flaunt the system in full view?

Should the NCAA choose to come down hard on Oregon for this silly Willie Lyles FUBAR after a snail's paced investigation, it'll say more about the NCAA than Oregon. In fact I hope it exposes them as the bunch of buffoons they are.

It is ironic that a similar episode occurred when, over 30 years ago, an undergraduate stood up for his rights and shook his fist at the system. On the University of Oregon campus, a pre-law student ("I thought you were pre-med."  "What's the difference?") spoke eloquently of how the indictment of his organization was an indictment of the whole system and even the country.
Stick this in your double-secret probation, NCAA!!!

In case you miss the connections: Dean Wormer is NCAA President Mark Emmert. Otter is Oregon. Greg represents the "Good Ol' Boy" Football Schools of the South. And the Sorority sister in the pink cashmere sweater struggling to get down every word? That's Ken Goe.

One more thing. Recently, the media got ahold of police video that suggested Darron Thomas and marijuana were in the same car with speed racer Cliff Harris. The next morning, BREAKING NEWS:

COLLEGE STUDENT SMOKES POT *   *Allegedly

Really, sports writers?
Really?

Oh what kind of world do we live in where priviledged collegians show no regard for organized society, openly smoking the brain numbing weed in front of responsible elders who work for an honest living. Elders like you journalists who stand for ethics and morality (See Canzano's sermon on Leadership). But what does that get you? Nothing. For these disrespectful young degenerates have already burned the bud that you dutifully stand in line to buy with your lawful medical marijuana cards.

Thomas denies smoking pot in Cliffy's car. But even if he had, would you rather have him doing that, or getting caught up in a bar fight?

--KB