The Colin Cowherd Previews our Game

I can't remember if it was the R-G or the Oregonian that ran it a week ago, but since then I've heard the idea mentioned on ESPN.com. CNNSI.com and CBS.SPORTSLINE.com.  I might have even heard it on the radio broadcast of the game.  I don't think there's a lot of credence to this idea.  I remember Washington having similar problems in the late '90s - start the season hot, get to the top-10 and then fade and finish 8-4 or 7-5.  Occasionally everything clicks and you have a special season.  Hell, we didn't start winning in our 2004 season until classes started.  

And to add to the idea that athletes don't really have to worry about classes: I know that a handful of my professor's at U of O always talked about how they rarely saw football players enrolled in their classes during the fall quarter, and sometimes the winter quarter, and that they actually bulked up on classes over summer session.  

While we're talking about student-athletes I feel that Andiel Brown should be applauded.  I spent a year as a music major and that took up some serious time.  In addition to your classes, which are assigned a lower number of credits so you can pack in more of them, you have to devote a couple hours a day to practicing on your own and then devote a solid 4-5 hours of group rehearsals a week as well.  It's not like a normal major where you can passively work on it while you focus on football and then cram during the offseason; you have to practice all the time.  In addition to that, he's heavily involved with the Black Student Union and is a former walk-on (no idea if he's on scholarship now).  Contrast that to Rid on ESPN a   couple years ago stressing over his Art History final in the days building up to a tournament (Pac-10 or NCAA?).  I'm proud to say that Andiel Brown is our punt returner.