Close your eyes, take a deep breath, and reflect on another impressive Oregon season. Feel better? Good. Now enjoy your final regular season Morning Quack Fix:
- The Oregon men's basketball team, who trailed 44-24 at the half, came just short of notching an impressive comeback, falling to No. 9 Missouri, 83-80, last night at Mac Court. Behind E.J. Singler's career-high 19 points, the Ducks outscored the Tigers 56-39 in the second half, but Johnathan Loyd's 30-footer at the buzzer fell short. Despite the loss, it's clear new head coach Dana Altman has this team going in the right direction.
- With only a day to go before the 114th Civil War, more important than the previous 113, the hype machine is in full effect. And despite players and coaches on both sides downplaying the bitter rivalry, make no mistake: The Beavers want to spoil the Ducks' party. Ted Miller discusses how OSU could pull it off, "could" being the operative word.
- Of course, this year's Civil War isn't the only time in 113 meetings that the two teams have played for high stakes. Here are five others.
- Oregon special teams coordinator Tom Osborne is, well, special. And he's a finalist for an award to recognize what has to be a pretty thankless job at times. Kudos to Coach Osborne.
- As the Pac-10 continues to beat itself up, it might have actually done itself a favor this time. Arizona State's James Brooks blocked not one, but two PATs to lead the Sun Devils to a double-overtime win over in-state rival Arizona, 30-29, last night in Tuscon. ASU will become the fourth bowl-eligible Pac-10 team if their waver request is approved by the NCAA. Two other teams are vying for a berth this weekend: Washington (hosting Wazzu) and Oregon State. But let's be honest, the latter ain't happenin'. So, for the good of the conference, go Huskies?
- Speaking of the Pac-10's lack of bowl-eligible teams, SI's Stewart Mandel examines the conference's round-robin schedule and the effect it has on the postseason.
As always, leave any relevant links or comments below.
GO DUCKS!