Morning Quack Fix: Fearing the worst - still no word on Walter Thurmond III

I don't know about you, but I have been smiling all week and can't stop thinking about 42-3. Here's hoping more good times lie ahead.  On to the quack.

• Still, no official word on Walter Thurmond III's knee injury.  At this point, you have to believe that it is something serious -- though it sounds like WTIII is trying to remain positive in the event that he misses a significant portion of the rest of the season.  Moseley also notes that with T.J. Ward and WTIII out with injuries, the Ducks secondary now features no members from the "D-Boyz" group that started last year.  In Moseley's practice notes from yesterday, he reports that Jamere Holland appeared to have a good practice, after losing his starting spot to D.J. Davis against Cal.
  
• George Schroeder has a column up about Oregon earning validation, both on and off the field.  After the disastrious start, Kelly has not only righted the ship, but rekindled the feeling that Oregon can win the conference.  At this point, however, Kelly isn't getting that far ahead of himself: "The only thing we’ve guaranteed ourselves right now is the opportunity to go 3-9."
• DuckTerritory has a story (premium -- account required) up on Gabe King that confirms that King did in fact attend the last two Oregon games as unofficial visits.  It sounds like he came away very impressed with the stadium, fans and facilities.  Given that he has been assumed to be  a Cal-lean, Saturday was a great day to have him there in person.
• And, Nick Daschel comes out with his first set of bowl projections for the Pac-10 and has Oregon in the Rose Bowl.  Also of interest, though perhaps not very surprising, the Beavers are predicted to remain in Corvallis over the holidays. 
• Doc Saturday chimes in with his thoughts on the absurdity of the Coach's Poll.  As ridiculous as it may be having Cal ranked ahead of Oregon -- are we really that surprised?  I long ago accepted that that was how the polls worked.  With Cal being ranked #6 and us out of the top 25, it seemed very possible (if not probable) to me that Cal and Oregon would be ranked close together and that we wouldn't jump them this week. 
• It looks like Washington State is having problems with their offensive line depth as three starters will be out with injury.  And, two of the potential candidates to step in this Saturday are a true freshman and a former walk-on redshirt freshman.   A patched up offensive line and a freshman QB?  It could be a very long night for the Cougars.
• And, if you haven't seen the fan shot regarding Stafon Johnson's injury while lifting weights, here's Ted Miller's blog post about it.  Luckily, it sounds as if Stafon will make a full recovery. I know that the hearts of all Duck fans are with Stafon and his family during this time.
  

As always, post your comments or other links below. 

Go Ducks!