Quack Fix: Basketball Opens Conference Play, Jay Stricherz Retires

Before we get to the Quack, I'd like to welcome a new author to ATQ. Sean Larson will be joining Jake Tabor on our Eugene team, with an emphasis on covering live events. Sean is a U of O graduate who has written about the Ducks for multiple Eugene-based publications and already has an SB Nation presence as a writer on the Vancouver Canucks blog, Nucks Misconduct. I hope to make one more hire in the coming week or so and have a three person team filling that Eugene role. Sean's on recap duty fo the basketball game tonight, so you'll see his work soon enough. Give him a hearty hello and welcome to ATQ.

Onto the Quack:

Tweet of the Day:

With Stanford's loss in #RoseBowl100, @WinTheDay's 47 wins since 2010 are the most of any team in the FBS #GoDucks

— Andy McNamara (@McNamaraUO) January 2, 2014

Links:

• Conference play starts today for basketball. Our friend Adam Butler at PacHoops.com gives us 14 things to watch in what should be a fantastic conference season.
• Oregon travels to Utah in a game that should feature a billion points. Check out ATQ's preview here.
• It's a big recruiting weekend coming up, with several Oregon targets announcing their choices at various all-star games.
• Stanford tears are delicious. On a related note, both Michigan State and Stanford come to Autzen next season.
• Oregon State's Eric Moreland had his 14-game suspension lifted two games early--just in time for conference play. How convenient.
• How did I miss that Jay Stricherz has retired? Glasses ref was at times the object of our ire, but I'd like to thank him for his hard work and wish him a very happy retirement.