Anymore I think that rope-a-doping with a vanilla showcase of plays and talent for any CFB game these days does not accomplish what it means to do.  Sitting on a playbook and holding back the talent on the team for "tomorrow" is not why these players are in your program.  They came to play, have a blast, get their degrees and win some games- today.  MC better watch out, Chip's Bruins are the team with the mojo these days and it is easier to sell fun in SoCal than in Eugene.  Chip always plays to win...  MC is playing a game of chicken with his players and coaches and almost got bit...  

We will see how this all plays out on Saturday.  I think that the Ducks are a much better team than we saw last weekend and will play much better this Saturday on the big stage in the 'Shoe...

Regarding MC in the big picture, I do want to be sure to state that while I am critical of certain aspects of his leadership (from the friendly confines of a keyboard), I think he is a solid human being and a great fit at Oregon.  I think that he gets life in the big picture and that authenticity is why the team is attracting and signing the caliber of player these days like never before.

It's a Canzano saying he stole from someone else, but it is true about X's and O's vs Jimmy's and Joe's.  I think MC has "it" to get the players to campus, he just needs to let his coordinators take the point on the playbooks and play calling and trust why he hired them in the first place...   work in progress...  

Rather have a gripe about MC than commiserating over WT or Helf...  

PDX to JAX wrote:

I like him very much as our coach. I feel like he has been a great steward of the program, a tireless worker, and a man of character. 12-2 and that Rose Bowl win over Wisky is so legit. We have seen him make some great in-game adjustments and also keep us mired in the suck (Baylor?)...

I like him, and he is coaching in one of the top three games of his career this week, to be sure. Go Mario, and Go Ducks!

I’m with you, PtJ. I like Mario a lot for his character and how he brought the program back to respectability. I don’t think we will ever have the exciting wins we got during the Chip and Marcus eras. Just hoping for wins, even if it’s just by one point.
I’m a Duck from the Brooks era.

Last edited by KONA808 (9/08/2021 9:50 pm)

https://duckswire.usatoday.com/2021/09/09/hes-going-to-show-his-true-colors-mycah-pittman-isnt-standing-for-slander-on-qb-anthony-brown/

Interesting quote in there from Mycah Pittman: “I think you guys saw the smaller portion of him because I think we’re going to let it loose against Ohio State and he’s going to show his true colors.”

Will be interesting to find out what "let it loose" means.
 

Last edited by DuckInTheMountains (9/09/2021 8:28 am)

I agree.  I'll take it a step further.

That talent sitting on the bench is a lot better, in most cases, than the talent sitting on the bench across the way.  So if you extend the number of plays by moving quickly between plays, and by passing the ball, and by opening up the offense and getting first downs, you bring your depth advantage into play more and more, too.  

If you ground and pound and run the clock, you diminish your depth advantage.  If you do it well enough that you always get a first down and so you wear down the opposing defense, then the opposing defense's depth disadvantage starts to come into play, but if you don't make those first downs consistently, you are simply throwing away your advantage.

That's what I think, anyway.  I'm sure I would be a disaster as a coach, but I'm pretty sure I'm right on this point.

if there's anything I've learned over the last four years & change, it's that Mario is gonna Mario. he will play his signature brand of ball--stubbornly, at times, to us outsiders--because that's what's bringing these nationally regarded O-linemen to Eugene. I've resolved to just accept it and move on (which is also why I've been married 28+ years).

I think he was clearly shaped by his time under Saban in Tuscaloosa. Bammy is different now--wide open and up-tempo like almost everybody else--but back in the day Tide played it conservative and close-to-the-vest, ground n pound, ate clock, trusted the D, and counted on winning over 60 minutes because it had superior athletes (the occasional FG attempt returned 100 yards for a TD notwithstanding).
Saban put up a lot of public resistance to the Chip-style evolution of college ball, even lobbying for rules changes to slow the game . . . again, because he had superior athletes and expected to be ahead after four quarters through simple attrition. took him a while to join the modern era.

I also think Mario was shaped by his first season in Eugene as co-OC under Taggart. two games stand out for me. Brasky, where we raced to a 42-14 halftime lead and then ran out the clock for the entire 2nd half, holding on for a 42-35 win (hey, we got the W man). and of course Cal, where Justin cracked his collarbone on a goal-line keeper and a 9-3 season (Ws over Wazzu & BruCru) and a bowl game the players would have cared about turned into 7-5. that one had a lot to do w not turning Herbs loose in the run game in 2019 until Utah & Wisky.

in Mario's defense, I will say (again) that he has not had stellar athletes in the offensive skill positions during his tenure. Herbs, yes; but Justin's best WR in four years was Dillon Mitchell, a seventh-round draft pick who hung on an NFL practice squad for a coupla years. Verdell & Dye are not NFL players. we have some talented young WRs this year, but JJ III is starting and Jaylon Redd is getting touches, and neither of them are Sunday material. I don't have much confidence in Brown so far, but I hope going forward we'll get the ball in the hands of the wideouts w quick hitters, bubble screens, etc., and let them make plays.

and, one more time . . . I recall sitting in the Rose Bowl (40-yard line, bro-in-law works for bank in Burbank w branches in Pasadena) less than two years ago on a cool SoCal evening watching the Ducks celebrate on the field, and thinking the best team did not win the game. we managed 206 yards of total O, but got five takeaways (converted to three TDs) and gave it away just once (Herbs INT on 2nd possession that Wisky converted to a FG). game before that no TOs v Utes as opposed to two picks (one in end zone) and a Kayvon punt block for a 37-15 win that was closer than the score. and game before that punted on 4th down three successive possessions in OS territory cuz helpless beavs weren't going to get past the 50-yard line.

so . . that's the blueprint I'm seeing. more or less Sabanball a decade later. I think Mario will evolve some as more of these talented young recruits make their way into the offensive lineup, and maybe Titanic Thompson will accelerate that process. but for now, don't expect scoreboard pinball. take care of the ball, trust the D, and make the opponents earn anything and everything. v a tough opponent, hang around and give yourself a chance in the fourth quarter. 

Go Ducks!

DuckInTheMountains wrote:

Can't disagree, OMM.  It's not what I'd like to see but it is what it is.

I do disagree that it is necessary to play that way to bring the great linemen.  They like to see points go on the scoreboard, too.  It's easier for them to open holes if the defense doesn't know what's coming.  If Mario thinks that style is needed to bring the linemen, I'm not sure what to say.

But, I won't complain if Mario keeps recruiting at this level and wins 10-12 games a year, gets us into a top bowl almost every year, beats the Huskies most of the time, and has us in the playoffs occasionally.  It's a far cry from Oregon back in the 70s when I first started watching the Ducks, and at a level I thought we'd never reach except for the odd fluke season. 

Do I think it could be more if we had better game plans, with the level of talent we have?  Yes.  But I'm not sure that level of talent comes with another coach.

Welcome and thanks for joining us on our easy going and very informal forum. It's nice to have someone new making great post.