Well, it's been a quiet beginning of the week. I assume that a lot of that is simple hangover from the USC win. The quack is also a bit sparse, but here's what I found.
- Rob Moseley writes on the special teams of both Stanford and Oregon. Both Stanford and Oregon have excellent kickoff return, and kickoff coverage teams. Kenjon Barner and Chris Owusu are 5th and 6th nationally in kick returns, both averaging over 35 yards per return, while Owusu has returned 3 kicks for touchdowns this year. This will be a great battle, and as Moseley reminds us" "As Oregon found out in 2001, a magical season can be undone by special teams play against Stanford." Let's pray that doesn't happen again.
- The Oregon women's basketball team started things out with a bang, winning an exhibition game against Southern Oregon 109-47. The hire of Paul Westhead promised an increase in game speed, and that was seen from the beginning, as the Ducks took a 21-2 lead 5 minutes in due to fastbreak offense and full court defense. After years of under performing teams, the Oregon women could be quite a surprise this year.
- John Hunt tackled the all consuming Oregon vs. Boise State polling question by contacting a number of AP voters. While Oregon hasn't passed BSU and some voters refuse to entertain the idea, by the end of the season, voters could be split right down the middle.
- Nick Daschel looks at the Pac-10's hot coordinators, and I gotta say, not the most inspiring group (Nick Alliotti is the top coordinator, according to Daschel). With the inlufx of head coaching talent, it just seems that coordinators have taken a back seat for a few years.
- John Canzano has another Blount piece, just what I know you all were waiting for! This time, he's saying that bringing Blount back will hurt the football team. Hmmm, who knows more about the football team, Canzano, or Chip Kelly? I'll go with the coach, thanks.
- Lastly, Anne Peterson of the Seattle PI has a good piece on the young Pac-10 QBs stepping up. Things definitely looked sketchy coming into the season, but Luck, Barkley, Foles, and Tuel all have their teams on the upswing. With the young QBs and coaching talent in the league, the Pac-10 will be very difficult over the next few years.
As always, leave your comments and links below. GO DUCKS!