Latest / The PNW Podcast / Can the Ducks Win It All? Oregon Insider Weighs In

Transcript

Can the Ducks Win It All? Oregon Insider Weighs In · The PNW Podcast

0:00
SPEAKER_01: So the offense is going to be championship level.
0:02
SPEAKER_01: And then when you have a defense, like I just said, returns eight stars, added another nine starter from uh another Big Ten school.
0:09
SPEAKER_01: I would say right now that all 11, well, I'd say 10 of the 11 starters are going to end up in NFL camps at some point, either drafted or undrafted free agents.
0:17
SPEAKER_01: The entire defensive line is going to be drafted in 27.
0:22
SPEAKER_01: That's how sick this defense is.
0:24
SPEAKER_01: So if you have a defense that's bludgeoning teams and an offense that's capable of dropping 40 at the drop of a hat, that's the type of team that you say, okay, this team can win it all.
1:05
SPEAKER_02: And for good reason, check them out today at Staffordhills.com.
1:08
SPEAKER_02: Tell them Drew sent you for half off your initiation.
1:12
SPEAKER_02: A great guest in here today with me.
1:14
SPEAKER_02: Um met him a long time ago, but I'm glad I get a chance to circle back.
1:18
SPEAKER_02: A longtime Oregon sports journalist, spent decades covering the region's biggest teams and stories, currently covering the Oregon Ducks for the Oregonian and Oregon Live.
1:29
SPEAKER_02: You can find him on Talkin' Ducks and the Ducks confidential podcast with George Reyster.
1:35
SPEAKER_02: Welcome into the studio, Aaron Fentress.
1:38
SPEAKER_02: Hey, buddy, how are you?
1:40
SPEAKER_01: I'm doing well.
1:40
SPEAKER_01: I'm kind of puzzled.
1:41
SPEAKER_01: Is saltwater is that better?
1:44
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, well, the saltwater pool, I'm glad you asked.
1:47
SPEAKER_02: Well, because I've got a handful of I've got three daughters, and I didn't realize this because I've never dealt with tangled hair.
1:53
SPEAKER_02: Uh, but the salt water helps with that to where they're not all tangled up.
1:58
SPEAKER_02: And you know, you spend a lot of time in a chlorine pool, messes with your skin, you get a lot of irritation there.
2:04
SPEAKER_02: So that salt water, if you're if you're planning on hitting it year-round, which it is a heated pool, uh, the salt water is the jam.
2:12
SPEAKER_02: Uh, and you can do it anytime.
2:14
SPEAKER_02: You come over here, Aaron, and I'll get you a guest pass.
2:17
SPEAKER_02: You go hang out by the pool.
2:18
SPEAKER_02: You'll have a lot of fun.
2:20
SPEAKER_01: All I'm thinking about are all the times when I've gone in the ocean and I get salt water in my mouth, I might but everything else you said makes sense.
2:28
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and it's a lighter salt.
2:31
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's not quite as aggressive as it is in the ocean, but I haven't found myself too salty on the way out, but slightly salty for sure.
2:40
SPEAKER_02: Um, I'm glad you're here though, because we are just about a week away.
2:44
SPEAKER_02: Uh we can change away from the Oregon Ducks kicking off the season against Boise State.
2:50
SPEAKER_02: Now, when we kick when we took on Boise State at Odson Stadium last time, I was at the game.
2:55
SPEAKER_02: I stayed right there, um, um right next to the cooler down the street, and there were so many Boise State fans staying at my hotel, and that blue is very aggressive.
3:06
SPEAKER_02: Um but I but I thought we were just gonna handle them.
3:10
SPEAKER_02: Now, I knew that they had Genty and I knew that he was a high quality running back, but I didn't think that it would come down to a final field goal right there at the end of the game uh to get the job done.
3:21
SPEAKER_02: Is heading into this season, are we gonna run into those types of pitfalls where we get a surprise from a Boise state, or are they uh without the firepower on the backfield, are we in a much better position there?
3:34
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that was an interesting situation back in 24, and that was also the same year they struggled with Idaho State.
3:41
SPEAKER_01: I think they won that game 24-14.
3:43
SPEAKER_01: I think it might have been 17-14 in the fourth.
3:45
SPEAKER_01: That's right.
3:46
SPEAKER_01: That was a very weird start because then a few weeks later they beat Ohio State, right?
3:50
SPEAKER_01: And then ended up going undefeated.
3:51
SPEAKER_01: So it was kind of a bizarre beginning for the Ducks.
3:54
SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, I just can't see that happening.
3:58
SPEAKER_01: Uh, they were breaking in a new quarterback that year with Dylan Gabriel who just transferred in, which obviously he was, you know, he was a six-year senior, so you kind of think, well, he's experienced, but he's learning a new system, learning new players.
4:10
SPEAKER_01: So they were a little bumpy on offense.
4:13
SPEAKER_01: I don't see that happening with this crew.
4:14
SPEAKER_01: Uh, you got you know, returning quarterback and Dante Moore, a lot of all of his targets he played with last year, pretty much.
4:20
SPEAKER_01: Uh, so I think they're gonna be on point.
4:22
SPEAKER_01: And then also, you know, that defense obviously turned out to be really good, but this defense is probably on a different level with eight returning starters, and then you steal Coi Paris from Minnesota, who's you know, gives you a ninth Big Ten starter.
4:35
SPEAKER_01: Uh and then uh Devin Jackson, who is gonna start at linebacker next to Jerry Mixon, is a guy who could have been a starter in the past, had not had serious injuries, and he is just a beast waiting to happen.
4:45
SPEAKER_01: I'm very excited to see what he does uh to opposing uh running backs and quarterbacks who try to escape the pocket against this very fast linebacker.
4:53
SPEAKER_01: Um, so I just think defensively they're gonna shut down whatever Boise State brings in, and Dante Moore is gonna put up at least, you know, high 30s to 40s.
5:01
SPEAKER_01: So I don't think I think it might be semi-interesting in the first half, but I do think the Ducks win by close to the spread.
5:06
SPEAKER_01: What's the spread?
5:06
SPEAKER_01: 24 and a half?
5:07
SPEAKER_01: I think I think there'll be a right right around there.
5:09
SPEAKER_02: And it it's always tough to take a 24-point spread in a game like that.
5:15
SPEAKER_02: Well, my heart's too close to for me to actually partake in that part of it, but 24 points.
5:20
SPEAKER_02: I mean, if you don't get ahead early, then there's a there's an opportunity where we start playing backup players and we start, you know, kind of taking our foot off the gas.
5:30
SPEAKER_02: Now, I don't know with Oregon.
5:32
SPEAKER_02: Maybe we're gonna make a statement from the very beginning because I feel like we're in a position here this year where everybody's saying it's Oregon's year.
5:40
SPEAKER_02: We've been here before, but I feel like they're saying it more this year than other years.
5:46
SPEAKER_02: You've been at camp, you've seen what's going on a lot more than other people.
5:50
SPEAKER_02: Does this year feel different?
5:52
SPEAKER_01: It's close, but oh, so you haven't been able to see them.
5:55
SPEAKER_01: So we've got to watch practice, no.
5:57
SPEAKER_02: Okay.
5:58
SPEAKER_02: Um actually, you know what's funny.
6:00
SPEAKER_02: My nephew is an intern, just got an internship at the program and he doing film stuff, and they at the end of him kind of showing them what he could do, he had to hand over his gear and erase it like right in front of him because you can't be letting all that stuff out.
6:17
SPEAKER_02: So makes sense that they wouldn't let the press in.
6:22
SPEAKER_02: But you are you have been down and around it though, so it does it feel different.
6:29
SPEAKER_01: So when uh one of the different times I've covered the ducks was the Mariota era.
6:37
SPEAKER_01: And so right before Marcus and then right after Marcus.
6:40
SPEAKER_01: And so in 2010, 12, 13, 14, I believe those teams had legit chances to get to the national championship game.
6:47
SPEAKER_01: Two of them did.
6:48
SPEAKER_01: Uh after that, I I pretty much declared, from my opinion, that once Marcus left, and based on the recruiting issues I already noticed were kind of bubbling up there, that the window was going to close for the foreseeable future, not forever, but that there was gonna be, you know, a dip to where they're not considered a national contender.
7:08
SPEAKER_01: And that is pretty much maintained true until pretty much 24.
7:11
SPEAKER_01: I mean, the 19 team, the 2019 team won at Arizona State.
7:16
SPEAKER_01: That team, since they won the conference, would have probably been in the 14 playoff, but I don't think they were true national championship contenders.
7:21
SPEAKER_01: And even the 24 team I didn't buy, and last year's team I didn't buy.
7:25
SPEAKER_01: This year's team, I it's sort of a running joke with me and George about whether or not the window's open.
7:30
SPEAKER_01: So for the first time since 2014, I actually believe the window is open.
7:35
SPEAKER_01: And I believe that because you have the combination of one, a returning quarterback who's gonna be a first-round pick and who could have been a first-round pick but came back.
7:44
SPEAKER_01: That that that level of talent with another year is when you see guys explode.
7:51
SPEAKER_01: That's what you saw with Marcus Go off.
7:53
SPEAKER_01: That's what you saw with uh Bo Knicks in his fifth year, which he only had the fifth year because of COVID, but you get what I'm saying.
7:59
SPEAKER_01: So I expect Dante Moore to put up crazy numbers.
8:02
SPEAKER_01: So the offense is going to be championship level.
8:04
SPEAKER_01: And then when you have a defense, like I just said, returns eight stars, added another nine starter from from uh another Big Ten school.
8:11
SPEAKER_01: And all nine, like I would say right now that all 11, well, I'd say 10 of the 11 starters are going to end up in NFL camps at some point, either drafted or undrafted free agents.
8:21
SPEAKER_01: Um, I would say most of them are going to be drafted.
8:23
SPEAKER_01: The entire defensive line is going to be drafted in 27, right?
8:27
SPEAKER_01: That's how sick this defense is.
8:29
SPEAKER_01: So if you have a defense that's bludgeoning teams and an offense that's capable of dropping 40 at the drop of a hat, that's the type of team that you say, okay, this team can win it all.
8:38
SPEAKER_01: All right.
8:38
SPEAKER_01: I do have one concern.
8:40
SPEAKER_01: And I piss off George when I bring this up, but I do have one concern, and that's the offensive line, because you have to replace three starters, three guys who are now in the NFL, and your offensive line last year against Texas Tech and Indiana kind of got handled.
8:56
SPEAKER_01: You couldn't run the ball well, you couldn't protect well.
8:58
SPEAKER_01: So am I supposed to believe that an offensive line with three new starters is going to be better than the offensive line last year that had three starters that are now in the NFL?
9:05
SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
9:06
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if I can buy that yet.
9:07
SPEAKER_01: I need to see it.
9:07
SPEAKER_01: So I wonder if late in the season against powerful teams, and we might our first look at that really would be at Ohio State, week nine for them.
9:15
SPEAKER_01: You know, all of a sudden you can't run the football and you can't protect Dante, and then the game just completely changes, and then boom, you're susceptible to a loss in the playoffs.
9:23
SPEAKER_01: But regardless of that one red flag, I still think this team definitely has a shot.
9:28
SPEAKER_02: Do you think that Dante Moore would the extra year?
9:31
SPEAKER_02: Now, I love Dante first, before let me preface this before I even ask this question.
9:36
SPEAKER_02: I think his talent is crazy.
9:38
SPEAKER_02: I love the person that he is.
9:41
SPEAKER_02: Um there were times late in the season when adversity would pick up and he wouldn't disappear, but it would almost like he was a shadow of himself in moments.
9:53
SPEAKER_02: And I I can attribute some of that to not getting the time.
9:57
SPEAKER_02: You know, the pressure was aggressive in those last couple of games.
10:00
SPEAKER_02: Do you think that there's something different about him, or did we just not see, or did we just get a weird sample there at the end of the season?
10:09
SPEAKER_02: Is he do you think that he's going to be able to handle that knowing that that pressure could come with three new starters on the offensive line?
10:18
SPEAKER_02: Do you think he's going to be able to handle that when we take on the big dogs?
10:23
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so quarterback, as everyone knows, is the most complicated individual position in in all team sports.
10:31
SPEAKER_01: Um because you have so much going on in your head.
10:34
SPEAKER_01: You have to know what all ten of your teammates are doing, and you have to know what all 11 defenders are doing, right?
10:39
SPEAKER_01: And that takes time to master.
10:41
SPEAKER_01: And so last year was his first year starting at Oregon.
10:44
SPEAKER_01: He had started a year um for UCLA and that did not go very well.
10:48
SPEAKER_01: Then he spent a year learning behind bone eggs, and then he started last year.
10:51
SPEAKER_01: So we've definitely seen a great progression from his first year at UCLA to last year.
10:55
SPEAKER_01: But now, you know, no matter how good you might appear physically, there's things you have to learn mentally to be able to process.
11:04
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
11:04
SPEAKER_01: And so if a team is is, you know, you know, showing pressure over here, but they're gonna bring it over here, even if that fools you at first, you have to be able to process it and know that okay, I've got this route here.
11:18
SPEAKER_01: And boom, it's gone.
11:20
SPEAKER_01: The great quarterbacks, that's what they do.
11:22
SPEAKER_01: So that that play that could have been a sack or could have been an interception or could have been just a waste of play, is now a 17-yard game.
11:29
SPEAKER_01: And I I've always said this about like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning and Joe Montana and the great quarterbacks.
11:33
SPEAKER_01: Their greatest is not just in throwing touchdowns, or wasn't just in throwing touchdowns.
11:37
SPEAKER_01: It was those moments.
11:39
SPEAKER_01: It was, you know, Brady seeing the blitz and just throwing a quick out to Wes Welker, who then turns it up the field for 15 yards.
11:45
SPEAKER_01: All he did was throw a little five-yard pass that any high school kid could throw, right?
11:49
SPEAKER_01: But the but that wasn't the point.
11:51
SPEAKER_01: The point was he read the blitz, he he avoided the pressure in the sack and got the ball to his guy.
11:56
SPEAKER_01: And because they blitzed, there's fewer defenders, and now his guy gets 17 yards.
11:59
SPEAKER_01: That pisses off a defense more than anything, right?
12:01
SPEAKER_01: So Dante, and he said this, he's getting, he's gotten better at recognition reading deep pre-snap reads and then in play reads to be to have more confidence to get rid of the ball on time to the right guy.
12:13
SPEAKER_01: Because every no matter what a defense, okay, the offense has the advantage in football.
12:17
SPEAKER_01: It just does.
12:18
SPEAKER_01: So whatever a defense throws at you, there's an answer.
12:21
SPEAKER_01: It's just whether or not you can find the answer in 2.3 seconds, right?
12:26
SPEAKER_01: And then make an accurate throw, right?
12:28
SPEAKER_01: And so that's and so I did a feature on on Dante.
12:31
SPEAKER_01: I did two parts feature on him, and one of them I talked to Mariota about how the much the game was different for him from 13 to 14 when he won the Heisman.
12:38
SPEAKER_01: If you go look at the stats, they were all great every year, but in 14, boom, he just blew up like 5,000 yard total yards of offense, or yeah, 5,000 yard total yards of offense to defense, 50 touchdowns, everything just exploded it.
12:50
SPEAKER_01: And he talked about how, you know, playing quarterbacks about seeing patterns and reading the and reading the patterns quickly and then providing the app the answer right away.
12:58
SPEAKER_01: And he said, Yeah, from that, that it was his redshirt sophomore year to his redshirt junior year, everything became clear.
13:04
SPEAKER_01: And then I made the joke with him.
13:05
SPEAKER_01: I go, plus, the guys who gave you trouble, if they were good enough to give you trouble around the league, guess where they are now?
13:11
SPEAKER_01: They're in the NFL.
13:12
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
13:13
SPEAKER_01: They're usually gone.
13:14
SPEAKER_01: So then you got some young whippers snappers coming up who probably aren't as good, who probably aren't as shifty, who probably can't do as many things to you.
13:20
SPEAKER_01: And he joked, but yeah, that's true too.
13:22
SPEAKER_01: You know, you get rid of some of the guys who gave you trouble, and you've gotten better, and then boom, that's when things take off.
13:26
SPEAKER_01: So, long answer there, but my point is yes, Dante reminds me a lot of Marcus.
13:30
SPEAKER_01: I told, I told Dante this, I told Marcus this, in terms that they both know they're great, but they don't act like they know they're great.
13:38
SPEAKER_01: They act humble and they act uh like like two guys who understand that they are nowhere near as good as they can be.
13:45
SPEAKER_01: Therefore, they're always seeking growth and to be better.
13:47
SPEAKER_01: And when you have a guy like that, they're gonna work on those little things, and then you then all of a sudden, you know, come next season, there's gonna be some problems that Dante's gonna face, and he's gonna have the answers when he didn't have them last year against Indiana, necessarily against Texas Tech, although that wasn't as bad as some people made it out to be, and then against Indiana again.
14:05
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I think they definitely have a similar energy, the two the two guys, Dante and Marcus.
14:11
SPEAKER_02: You know, back when Marcus was having his run, I used to live, I lived in Eugene for 16 years.
14:18
SPEAKER_02: So I would go to this small little golf course called Oakway Golf Course that sits close to the country club there before NIL deals.
14:27
SPEAKER_02: So Marcus, if he wanted to play golf, he did they didn't take him to the country club.
14:31
SPEAKER_02: He had to go pay his way at a at a basically like a municipal-sized golf course.
14:36
SPEAKER_02: And man, the most humble guy, you would never know that he had just crushed people three days earlier on Saturday as he was sitting there.
14:43
SPEAKER_02: Right.
14:43
SPEAKER_02: And it's that type of energy that I love because they let their they let their play speak for itself.
14:49
SPEAKER_02: And I'm so excited to see what Dante can do this year.
14:53
SPEAKER_02: And, you know, he deserves to have a great moment because how many people chase the money.
14:58
SPEAKER_02: And now, granted, you get paid to be in college when you're the man at Oregon now and and you get a sweet condo in the whole deal, but you you could have had so much more if you just chose to run and and chase it.
15:10
SPEAKER_02: And I think that speaks volumes on this guy.
15:14
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, returning it for you know five, six, seven million dollars is definitely easier than returning and having to pay your own way at a public golf course.
15:22
SPEAKER_01: Whereas you think about if Marcus, if Marcus, if this were 2000, if NIL existed in 2014, Marcus could have probably gotten$10 million, a free golf membership, a private chef, you know, all those kind of things.
15:33
SPEAKER_01: But still, regardless, regardless, to your point, Dante, you know, he could be making even more money and starting to clock towards that bigger contract.
15:42
SPEAKER_01: But as he said, other people have talked about the more prepared you are when you go in, the more likely you are to get to that bigger contract in a position to command to be one of the highest paid, right?
15:54
SPEAKER_01: If you come in and you're struggling and get knocked around for three or four years, then all of a sudden the team's like, okay, well, we want you back, but we're gonna give you this amount, which is still gonna be over$200 million, right?
16:03
SPEAKER_01: Crime a river.
16:04
SPEAKER_01: But you're not gonna put yourself in a position where the team says, okay, like what like with Justin Herbert.
16:07
SPEAKER_01: Justin Herbert hasn't won a damn thing, but Herbert was good enough coming out of his of his rookie contract where you're like, okay, we have to give this guy a big time deal because of his talent and the promise he's shown.
16:17
SPEAKER_01: And that came in part because he was more prepared coming out of college than had he come out early.
16:23
SPEAKER_01: Because had he come out after his junior year, eh, who knows how things would have gone.
16:28
SPEAKER_01: But that extra year helped prepare him for the NFL.
16:31
SPEAKER_02: So, one last question about quarterbacks.
16:33
SPEAKER_02: So we've been kind of considered quarterback you for the last handful of years, and it goes all the way back to Harrington and AJ Feely and and well, Fouts and all that stuff in the past.
16:44
SPEAKER_02: But Musgrave and O'Neill and Well, yeah, even recently, I mean the list goes on and on, but even recently, you know, with uh with Mariota and Nyx and now Dante Moore, what where does he stand in the in kind of the hierarchy of talent as quarterbacks here at the University of Oregon?
17:07
SPEAKER_01: Ooh, good question.
17:10
SPEAKER_01: Clearly for me, the most uh talented and gifted w is Marcus, mainly because of the the combination of the running and the guy ran like a wide receiver, right?
17:19
SPEAKER_01: And so that made him just you know the the the perfect player for their blur offense system because he gave you the running ability that mate that Dixon had, but also the passing ability that Kellen that Kellen had.
17:34
SPEAKER_01: Kellen had a rocket arm.
17:36
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, he did.
17:37
SPEAKER_01: So when you look bo Bo took time to develop, and I think that that fifth year with the COVID year helped him a lot because he was way better that year than any year prior.
17:46
SPEAKER_01: Uh but Bo clearly very tal very talented.
17:49
SPEAKER_01: Uh Gabriel's in the NFL, but probably never gonna be a starter in the NFL.
17:53
SPEAKER_01: But I I would say Dante is just one step below Marcus because he isn't the runner Marcus was, but Dante has a better arm.
18:03
SPEAKER_01: I think he has a little better arm talent.
18:06
SPEAKER_01: Uh so I would put him maybe overall NFL caliber talent, I would say just as just a notch ahead of Bo, and that may sound crazy, but he's he's further ahead now than Bo was after his junior year at Auburn, right?
18:21
SPEAKER_01: So I think there's a case to be made.
18:23
SPEAKER_01: Um I think he definitely has a stronger arm.
18:26
SPEAKER_01: They're both about the same in terms of their running ability, um, but that little bit stronger arm and put Dante a little bit ahead of him.
18:32
SPEAKER_01: Uh so yeah, he's I mean he's he's one of the more talented and gifted quarterbacks the Ducks have ever had, easily.
18:38
SPEAKER_02: So where do you put Herbert on the list?
18:40
SPEAKER_02: Because I left him off of the precursor there.
18:42
SPEAKER_02: I want to make sure he gets a spot.
18:43
SPEAKER_01: Right.
18:44
SPEAKER_01: Herbert Herbert's right in that same uh, you know.
18:48
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, oh man.
18:50
SPEAKER_01: I mean, he's pretty fast, he's got a good arm.
18:53
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, he's the he's deceptively fast, and he does have a ridiculous.
18:57
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I'd okay, I'd probably put him a tick.
19:00
SPEAKER_01: So like let's put it this way.
19:02
SPEAKER_01: Like, instead of going, you know, 7, 8, 9, 10, I would go, if I say Marcus is a 10, I'm saying, you know, Herbert's a 9.1, Dante's a nine, and Bo Nix is an 8.8.
19:14
SPEAKER_01: That like that's how it's close.
19:16
SPEAKER_01: But definitely, but but Herbert, Herbert slipped my mind for whatever reason.
19:19
SPEAKER_01: But yeah, her Herbert, the thing, the thing about Herbert was if you ever stand next to the guy, he's so ginormous.
19:25
SPEAKER_01: Like he's 6'5, 6'6, right?
19:27
SPEAKER_01: And he put on weight as time went on.
19:30
SPEAKER_01: And he he is the kind of guy, you know, if you go back in the day before people worried about running quarterbacks, he'd be like, you know, the prototypical 6'4, 6'5, 6'6 quarterback, strong arm, we could stand in that pocket and sling it like a like a Dan Marino, right?
19:42
SPEAKER_01: Uh so he sort of fits that mold.
19:44
SPEAKER_01: But yeah, Herbert's definitely in that top three or four.
19:47
SPEAKER_02: This episode brought to you by Motorsport Hillsboro, your one-stop shop for everything when it comes to dirt bikes, street bikes, side-by-sides, e-assist, mountain bikes, and so much more.
20:01
SPEAKER_02: Save thousands right now on a gas-gas e-bike.
20:05
SPEAKER_02: These things are epic.
20:06
SPEAKER_02: These electric mountain bikes are pedal assists, but they'll take you longer, farther, and higher than you've ever gone.
20:13
SPEAKER_02: I mean, some of the things that you see people do on these, they'll take you down a trail that you would have been gassed, gas-gassed long ago.
20:20
SPEAKER_02: And of course, the easiest and best financing for you right there at Motosport Hillsborough, where they make sure to get the job done for you and to do in a way that you leave feeling good so you can hit the trails and let that wind burn through your hair and maybe catch a little dirt in your teeth while you're at it.
20:37
SPEAKER_02: Motorsporthillsboro.com.
20:40
SPEAKER_02: Also brought to you by Axiom, Plumbing, Sewer, and Septic, everything water and waste, they'll take care of you.
20:46
SPEAKER_02: And of course, my buddy Bruce is born and raised in the Portland area.
20:50
SPEAKER_02: Not private equity.
20:52
SPEAKER_02: He takes care of his people too.
20:53
SPEAKER_02: Uh, tell them Drew sent you for 10% off your first purchase and also$500 off a water heater if you need one of those.
21:02
SPEAKER_02: And as we head into the fall months, it's gonna be needed for you to get on board and maybe stay warm in the shower unless you're ready for a cold plunge every single time you get in there.
21:12
SPEAKER_02: Uh so hit him up today, axiompdx.com.
21:16
SPEAKER_02: And of course, the Stafford Hills Club, these are my people, voted the number one health and wellness facility in the Portland area, and you've got to come down and see them.
21:26
SPEAKER_02: They got everything you need from workout facilities to the saltwater pool and classes, classes, classes, classes with the best instructors.
21:35
SPEAKER_02: And just the community here is next level.
21:38
SPEAKER_02: I talk about it all the time, but I truly love it and they care about the people who walk in this door.
21:44
SPEAKER_02: If you want to be a part of it, staffordhills.com.
21:46
SPEAKER_02: Tell them Drew sent you for half off your initiation.
21:50
SPEAKER_02: So, uh, final question for you.
21:52
SPEAKER_02: When the dust settles and the ducks season is complete, how far do they get?
21:58
SPEAKER_02: And uh, you know, what kind of a record are we?
22:00
SPEAKER_02: Looking at okay.
22:08
SPEAKER_01: Barring any major injuries, I don't see them losing more than one game in a regular season, and I think that one loss would probably come at Ohio State.
22:19
SPEAKER_01: But here's the thing about college football.
22:22
SPEAKER_01: What if Underwood at Michigan makes a huge leap like Dante Moore did?
22:28
SPEAKER_01: Dante Moore had an extra year in there.
22:29
SPEAKER_01: But what if Underwood all of a sudden throws 30 touchdowns, right, for 3,500 yards and rushes for another eight?
22:36
SPEAKER_01: Now all of a sudden Michigan, which should have a pretty good defense, now all of a sudden that game at Austin is a seven-point spread, right?
22:43
SPEAKER_01: And it could it could be a game where it could go either way.
22:45
SPEAKER_01: So there's there's unknowns.
22:46
SPEAKER_01: Like, who saw two last year?
22:49
SPEAKER_01: Dude, last year I I said coming into the season that Dante's gonna have a game where he has to elevate his play to help the team win, something he hadn't done yet.
22:59
SPEAKER_01: And I thought it was gonna take him time to get to that point.
23:02
SPEAKER_01: And so I thought they were gonna lose at Penn State, right?
23:06
SPEAKER_01: They won at Penn State primarily because Dante did what?
23:09
SPEAKER_01: He elevated his play in a hostile environment and was magnificent in that game in terms of being under control.
23:16
SPEAKER_01: Like we just talked about making right decisions.
23:17
SPEAKER_01: He didn't throw for 350, but he kept the game under control.
23:21
SPEAKER_01: He didn't turn the ball over.
23:22
SPEAKER_01: And then late he made some key plays, including the game-winning touchdown pass, right?
23:25
SPEAKER_01: So then on Talking Ducks, Joey, Joey, uh excuse me, Jordan Kent, Anthony Newman, and uh George Reiser were just killing me on Talking Ducks.
23:34
SPEAKER_01: So much so that I have a bobblehead that we started the show with my bobblehead on the show, pretending that it was just sitting here like this, and I wasn't on screen pretending like I was ducking them, right?
23:44
SPEAKER_01: So they just crushed me.
23:46
SPEAKER_01: But then the next week, they lost to Indiana.
23:50
SPEAKER_01: And no one saw that coming.
23:52
SPEAKER_01: I had them winning by 10.
23:53
SPEAKER_01: Like everyone, they were number three in the country after that game.
23:56
SPEAKER_01: Uh Dante was the Heisman front runner nationally.
23:58
SPEAKER_01: Everyone seems to be a number one pick, and blah, blah, blah.
24:01
SPEAKER_01: Ducks are gonna win the national title.
24:02
SPEAKER_01: And then Indiana came in here and smacked them, and no one saw that coming, right?
24:06
SPEAKER_01: So you never know who what team on their schedule is gonna rise up like that.
24:09
SPEAKER_01: So, anyway, I see them 11-1, which should get them into the Big Ten Championship game, win or lose that game, they're in the playoffs.
24:17
SPEAKER_01: And then, man, okay, they're gonna make the final four at least.
24:20
SPEAKER_01: And then I just think it's gonna come down to the matchup in that game and where the offensive line is.
24:26
SPEAKER_01: If they're if they're starting Tommy Tofi, right, a true freshman, and if Utu, a redshirt freshman, starting, and Fox Crate, like they're those are talented guys who in three years are probably all gonna be in the NFL, but they're gonna be ready to handle a playoff national championship situation.
24:43
SPEAKER_01: I just don't know.
24:43
SPEAKER_01: So all I'm gonna say right for now is that this is at least a Final 14 with a chance to get it done, but I can't say for fact they're gonna win it all.
24:52
SPEAKER_02: And and well, as a duck, knowing the history of the ducks like you do, it's impossible to give us any guarantees because, like you've seen, and even back to the Mariota deal when the last time you said the window was open.
25:04
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I remember exactly where I was sitting as both of those dreams were crushed.
25:09
SPEAKER_02: I remember the plays that crushed those dreams.
25:11
SPEAKER_02: I I remember being wearing too much duck gear because you're peeling off layers of this and that.
25:21
SPEAKER_02: A 10-minute display.
25:22
SPEAKER_01: All the down to your duck's underwear, right?
25:24
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, exactly.
25:25
SPEAKER_02: Um and so that's that's kind of a thing where um it's got me I'm always weary when we get down to the juggernauts.
25:34
SPEAKER_02: And just like what you say with Michigan, I'm never confident playing Michigan at all, but I'm also beat down from years of them being the big dog and us being the little dog, all the way back to when you know I was in my early 20s and we beat them on a questionable onside kick at Odson, which felt like it was an impossible situation.
25:56
SPEAKER_02: And now it obviously is not, but anytime you play Ohio State, Michigan State, and any of the those, you know, the top end of the SEC, I don't come in thinking we've got this until we're up three touchdowns, to be honest.
26:11
SPEAKER_01: No, it's true.
26:12
SPEAKER_01: I mean, and also in those big losses, the losses mainly happen in the trenches, right?
26:18
SPEAKER_01: Now, what's a little different about this team, other than the inexperience on the offensive line, is like I mentioned Tommy Tofi, he's 365.
26:25
SPEAKER_01: Now, I think that's a little big.
26:26
SPEAKER_01: I think he probably needs to trend down a little bit.
26:28
SPEAKER_01: But they recruited some monsters up there, right?
26:31
SPEAKER_01: So, like to me, the offensive line next year and the year after that should be absolutely insane.
26:37
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
26:38
SPEAKER_01: Um, but defensively, like Lanning has put together a defensive line that I'm not gonna say it's like his Georgia defensive lines exactly, because I'm not sure I see a bunch of top 10 picks, but all four of those guys are getting drafted probably inside of two rounds, right?
26:54
SPEAKER_01: And so that now, but then but then we can go back to the national championship loss to Ohio State.
27:00
SPEAKER_01: You have Buckner and Armstead, two top 15 picks on that line, and Ezekiel Elliott rushed for you know 3,000 yards in that game, it's seemingly, right?
27:08
SPEAKER_01: So, you know, there's just a different animal when you get to those types of teams and what in terms of what they can bring to the offensive and defensive lines.
27:15
SPEAKER_01: And I do think defensive line-wise, that Oregon's gonna be right there to be able to handle that.
27:20
SPEAKER_01: Offensive line, I'm just not sure, as I've said, but they are progressing to the point, especially with the offensive line talent they're building, to where they're gonna have an offensive line pretty soon where you're like, yeah, no one's stopping this this group.
27:32
SPEAKER_01: They're they're gonna bulldoze.
27:34
SPEAKER_01: I'm just not sure this is quite the line.
27:36
SPEAKER_01: We'll see.
27:36
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and you know, we we are in a better scenario also without there's no Indiana on the schedule.
27:43
SPEAKER_02: Even though, and I want to ask you a question about Signetti and that team.
27:46
SPEAKER_02: Now that Mendoza has moved on to the NFL, and I saw they got six first place votes in both polls again this year.
27:54
SPEAKER_02: So there's people who they, you know, the front runner, they hold on to hope.
27:58
SPEAKER_02: Do you think that he continues this quest where he's pulling Indiana out of just being a basketball school, or was that a flash in the pan?
28:08
SPEAKER_01: Oh no, I I think I think they're gonna be here to stay.
28:11
SPEAKER_01: And they were good the year before last year.
28:13
SPEAKER_01: Uh Mendoza took a huge jump.
28:15
SPEAKER_01: They they got I was just looking at the transfer, they got from TCU, Josh, Josh Hoover, who actually was better uh his last year at TCU than uh Mendoza was at Cal.
28:24
SPEAKER_01: So now is he gonna necessarily be what Mendoza was in in the one year at Indiana?
28:29
SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
28:29
SPEAKER_01: We'll see.
28:30
SPEAKER_01: But you kind of reloaded there with a transfer, and so the same people who went out and got Mendoza and made him what he was have their hands on this guy, he's at least going to be good, right?
28:39
SPEAKER_01: So you're not gonna you're not gonna be bad at quarterback.
28:42
SPEAKER_01: And then they're pouring money into their program, and and the donations are pouring in because of what they just did.
28:47
SPEAKER_01: So they're gonna be able to go out and and buy players and free agents, so to speak, in the portal and and and their their recruiting's elevated.
28:54
SPEAKER_01: So no, I as long as Signetti is there, they're gonna they're gonna be a threat.
28:57
SPEAKER_01: So I you know if Hoover comes in and he's just okay, then yeah, they're probably not gonna contend.
29:02
SPEAKER_01: Because without Mendoza, we talked about quarterbacks making plays.
29:06
SPEAKER_01: I mean, some of the plays he made against Miami were just right.
29:10
SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm a hurricane fan.
29:12
SPEAKER_01: Where's my hurricane helmet something so far?
29:14
SPEAKER_01: You got a little Miami in you.
29:16
SPEAKER_01: Uh I'm a little, yeah.
29:17
SPEAKER_01: I uh since I was a kid, I've never even been to a Miami.
29:20
SPEAKER_01: Well, I went to one minute, I mean I watched him lose at UW in 2000.
29:25
SPEAKER_02: But so I I do I do love watching the Miami machine just because it's it's pretty showtime.
29:32
SPEAKER_02: There's always a little uh bit of flash.
29:34
SPEAKER_02: Especially there.
29:34
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
29:35
SPEAKER_02: Especially back in my blurry.
29:36
SPEAKER_02: Back in the day it was epic.
29:38
SPEAKER_02: But now, I mean, but I had just have this thing because Chris the Ball ran out the door on us.
29:43
SPEAKER_02: I know he went to school there, but we just it it's like when I'm on my third stepdad and he leaves too, but for good reason, it's still my stepdad just left again.
29:54
SPEAKER_02: You know, and so that's what it feels like as a duck fan.
29:59
SPEAKER_02: I mean, do you see it though?
30:00
SPEAKER_02: Like I mean, you Willie did it, he did it.
30:04
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it just goes the list goes, Chip did it.
30:06
SPEAKER_02: I mean, now Chip didn't go to college, but I mean, we were writing love ballads to Chip Kelly to keep him from leaving, and you know, maybe it was all for for good in the end, even though I think we win that title um if he doesn't leave, well, we still have Mariota.
30:23
SPEAKER_01: You know, I mean I mean well, I mean the off the offense the offense did not drop at all after Chip left, and actually uh Helfrich did a good job.
30:31
SPEAKER_01: And Helfrich and uh uh Frost, who was OC, were were more creative offensively than Chip.
30:41
SPEAKER_01: Chip Chip's thing was run the same place over and over and over as fast as you can, and they're gonna pop.
30:49
SPEAKER_01: Frost and Helfrich, who didn't come up that way, but then adapted under Chip, wanted to play fast, but they I don't know if you remember, but they would take more time sometimes and pause.
30:59
SPEAKER_01: Like they brush the line of scrimmage and they look like they're gonna want to play, and then and then Marcus would look and they diagnose the defense and then give them a play, and then they'd run it.
31:06
SPEAKER_01: Um so they were doing they they ended up being actually more.
31:09
SPEAKER_01: I remember talking to Coach Campbell about this, um, about sort of the differences between the two.
31:13
SPEAKER_01: So they were more creative offensively.
31:15
SPEAKER_01: Not that that's a knock on chip, but things chip chip things was just let's just get up and go.
31:19
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I know we're running the same zone read.
31:20
SPEAKER_01: Give it to LeMicha, just go, go, go.
31:22
SPEAKER_02: And then you know, touchdown eventually, right?
31:25
SPEAKER_02: Is that when we were using the flashcards?
31:28
SPEAKER_02: I feel like we would think.
31:29
SPEAKER_02: The flashcards were always fake.
31:31
SPEAKER_02: All of it was fake.
31:32
SPEAKER_01: Everyone I've ever talked about that said that was for sure.
31:35
SPEAKER_02: Really?
31:35
SPEAKER_02: That's amazing.
31:36
SPEAKER_01: And it made sense.
31:37
SPEAKER_01: It never made sense.
31:38
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I could see where you might have done there.
31:43
SPEAKER_02: But yeah, and it makes it for me, it's way better that it was fake.
31:47
SPEAKER_01: You can make you could it would the way they were doing it, and again, like I said, everyone I've ever talked to about it said they were fake.
31:54
SPEAKER_01: The only way I the only thing I think you could probably put on it would be the formationing.
31:58
SPEAKER_01: Like if you see a dolphin as this formation, or you see, you know, Princess Die, it's that formation, or something like that.
32:02
SPEAKER_01: But I don't think I don't think anyone could see formation play and get on the line like that with the different cards they played.
32:12
SPEAKER_01: If you watched the cards, they weren't like even waiting for the play and then doing the card.
32:15
SPEAKER_01: They were just getting another card ready and then just throw it up.
32:19
SPEAKER_01: So there was no synergy between the play call coming.
32:22
SPEAKER_01: And so it anyway, that people always tell me.
32:24
SPEAKER_01: But anyway.
32:25
SPEAKER_02: I just hope that that's that took uh you know, different teams spending hours on end trying to figure out the pictures or I'm sure they did.
32:33
SPEAKER_01: I'm sure some did.
32:34
SPEAKER_01: And and then you'd have to learn them each week because you'd have to change them each week.
32:37
SPEAKER_01: You couldn't keep the same ones because then yeah, people are spying on you, they're gonna be able to figure it out.
32:41
SPEAKER_01: But anyway, uh we we digress.
32:43
SPEAKER_01: But uh Mar listen, Jim Kelly, Billy Taggart, and Mario Chris Ball had zero ties, zero interest, zero life experience that would make them want to stay in Eugene for the long run.
32:59
SPEAKER_01: That's true.
33:00
SPEAKER_01: I I predicted all three would leave before they they left because Mario was just a given.
33:05
SPEAKER_01: Like that as soon as Miami came calling, that was just a given.
33:08
SPEAKER_01: Like that it was lights out.
33:09
SPEAKER_01: It was, it was, it was game over.
33:10
SPEAKER_01: And I couldn't believe people would argue with me there for like four years.
33:12
SPEAKER_01: I'm like, if Miami ever comes out to this guy, he's out.
33:14
SPEAKER_01: You're crazy.
33:15
SPEAKER_01: His wife loves it in Eugene.
33:16
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, right.
33:17
SPEAKER_01: This Cuban woman, this Cuban woman from Miami would choose to live in Eugene over being a millionaire's wife in Miami.
33:25
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
33:26
SPEAKER_01: That's a level of delusion.
33:28
SPEAKER_01: That that might be some of the most delusional things I've ever heard any fan say ever when you say something ridiculous like that.
33:34
SPEAKER_01: And of course, they were out right away, but you can't blame them.
33:37
SPEAKER_01: Dude was raised in Miami, played high school football in Miami, went to Miami, won a national championship in Miami, coached at Miami, and his mom lived in Miami.
33:47
SPEAKER_01: He married a woman from Miami whose family was also in Miami.
33:51
SPEAKER_01: The idea that he was gonna stay at Oregon was just preposterous.
33:55
SPEAKER_01: I could not believe I even had to argue with anyone about that at all.
33:58
SPEAKER_01: And when he left, you know, I spiked the football a little bit.
34:00
SPEAKER_01: I was like, I told y'all, but I but I wasn't even like I felt like I was a genius.
34:04
SPEAKER_01: I felt like everyone who thought he wasn't gonna leave was just being just blind.
34:08
SPEAKER_02: It was common, it was common sense.
34:10
SPEAKER_02: And you know, I knew they had an ace in the hole.
34:12
SPEAKER_02: Same thing with Willie.
34:13
SPEAKER_02: I knew that as soon as Florida State called, it was over.
34:16
SPEAKER_02: I knew Chip was gonna leave for the NFL if they came calling.
34:19
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
34:20
SPEAKER_02: But that being said, um, you know, Dan Lanning, he has come out publicly and said that he wants to keep the job long enough for his kids to get through school.
34:30
SPEAKER_02: He's sick of moving his kids.
34:31
SPEAKER_02: And to say that out loud, putting your kids in the forefront of your plan, I kind of believe him that him now, granted, if if Georgia calls or something, then maybe, but I don't know.
34:44
SPEAKER_02: I kind of believe him that he he likes his resources, he likes his paycheck, he likes he likes it here.
34:52
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you know, I I had my I had some doubts early.
34:56
SPEAKER_01: Uh I've kind of given him him the benefit of the doubt that he's at least gonna stay through his kids graduating.
35:03
SPEAKER_01: I also think the world has changed in college football, right?
35:07
SPEAKER_01: I I think under the old system before the N transfer portal, I think it's far more likely that he would bail because you can just recruit better talent other parts of the country because you have talent in your back door.
35:18
SPEAKER_01: Right.
35:18
SPEAKER_01: Whereas in Oregon, you have to leave the region to recruit.
35:22
SPEAKER_01: You can't live off the players in the Northwest.
35:25
SPEAKER_01: But if you're down south, you can recruit just just within 200 miles and have at least a good team, right?
35:30
SPEAKER_01: So but but the change and the fact that Oregon's willing to pump major cash into the roster, well, now it's easier to recruit.
35:39
SPEAKER_01: Far easier for him to recruit than it ever was for any other coach in Oregon history because he can oh whoa, we'll give you 800k.
35:45
SPEAKER_01: 800k makes the distance a lot shorter for a lot of people, okay?
35:50
SPEAKER_01: So I think there's a competitive reason why now it may not be as attractive to leave as it might have been four or five years ago.
35:58
SPEAKER_01: Uh but that being said, dude, listen to me.
36:00
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna say the same thing.
36:02
SPEAKER_01: I I said Chip, Mario, Willie.
36:07
SPEAKER_01: Don't hate the player, hate the game.
36:11
SPEAKER_01: But the coaches all say the same thing.
36:15
SPEAKER_01: If they all say the same thing, what does that tell you?
36:19
SPEAKER_01: It's part of the game.
36:21
SPEAKER_01: Right?
36:22
SPEAKER_01: People get too caught up in, oh, this person's honest and that person is this.
36:27
SPEAKER_01: No, it's a game.
36:28
SPEAKER_01: We can go back in time.
36:30
SPEAKER_01: Almost every coach that's ever left at some point said, I'm not leaving.
36:34
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
36:34
SPEAKER_02: It's bad for business to say I'll be out of here soon.
36:37
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
36:38
SPEAKER_01: You would never say that.
36:39
SPEAKER_01: You would never admit you're even looking at a job.
36:42
SPEAKER_01: Imagine, imagine, and Willie, like people were all Billy Taggart lied.
36:46
SPEAKER_01: Imagine if Willie had said, Yeah, I'm talking to Florida State.
36:48
SPEAKER_01: If they offer, I'm out.
36:49
SPEAKER_01: And then Florida State doesn't offer and he's still your head coach.
36:52
SPEAKER_01: How does that work?
36:52
SPEAKER_02: And it's awkward.
36:53
SPEAKER_01: Same thing with Miami and Mario.
36:55
SPEAKER_01: If Mario, Mario's like, yeah, sorry.
36:58
SPEAKER_01: Mario's like, look, Miami comes calling, but I'm I'm I'm packing my bags tomorrow.
37:02
SPEAKER_01: And then Miami doesn't come calling and he stays, how are fans going to feel?
37:06
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's a good point.
37:08
SPEAKER_02: I just don't want to lose another stepdad, Aaron.
37:09
SPEAKER_02: That's all.
37:10
SPEAKER_01: I no, I hear you.
37:11
SPEAKER_01: And I think I think Dan at least is going to be here through his youngest graduating high school.
37:17
SPEAKER_01: But I also believe that because as long as the resources are there, I think there's legitimate reason to believe that he's not going to feel like I need to go to X because I'm already competing with X for talent.
37:30
SPEAKER_01: So why go when winning it here is going to be a bigger deal than just going to Alabama and winning it, which is when a bunch of them, going to Georgia and winning it, going to, you know, you see what I'm saying?
37:40
SPEAKER_01: So I think Oh no, I I feel you.
37:42
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
37:43
SPEAKER_02: The writing's on the wall that they do, they all leave eventually.
37:46
SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's the history of it.
37:48
SPEAKER_02: But hopefully we can keep him around long enough where he can he can love his custom Air Force Ones, his Nike money, and that beautiful indoor practice facility that we're building down there, which will help to draw in some new people.
38:02
SPEAKER_02: Uh where we gotta go, but uh, what do you think of the facility?
38:05
SPEAKER_02: You've had eyes on it.
38:07
SPEAKER_01: Every time I go down there, it looks you know, further, you know, towards completion.
38:12
SPEAKER_01: It's gonna be pretty phenomenal.
38:14
SPEAKER_01: Unfortunately, the media won't be able to actually ever go in there, but to watch practice.
38:18
SPEAKER_01: But uh but yeah, it's gonna be amazing.
38:23
SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, but I don't know.
38:26
SPEAKER_01: I I don't I don't I don't know, I don't know if bells and whistles like that win you anything.
38:31
SPEAKER_01: I I think it may get you a couple different recruits, but they're recruiting well now anyway.
38:34
SPEAKER_01: So like you gotta win on the field.
38:37
SPEAKER_01: You're not gonna be better, you're not gonna be better because you practice in there as opposed to at Austin or in the Mo Center, right?
38:42
SPEAKER_01: Uh it's just gonna be something that makes your program maybe stand out, and maybe you might be able to pluck a couple extra recruits here and there.
38:49
SPEAKER_01: I don't know, but you're already recruiting at a high level, so I'm not sure how functional it is to the program other than the fact it's gonna look spectacular.
38:56
SPEAKER_02: It really is gonna look spectacular.
38:58
SPEAKER_02: And I'll be down there at the first game.
38:59
SPEAKER_02: Hopefully I see you down there, Aaron.
39:01
SPEAKER_02: Sure.
39:01
SPEAKER_02: As we take on Boise State and get this thing rolling.
39:04
SPEAKER_02: I wanted to talk to you about a slew of other things, but we'll have to have you on another time because we get into those ducks and the grind is real.
39:10
SPEAKER_02: So uh make sure you check him out on Talkin' Ducks and of course Ducks Confidential with him and George Reyster as they break down everything to do with the ducks.
39:20
SPEAKER_02: One of the great things here in the Pacific Northwest.
39:23
SPEAKER_02: Thank you, Aaron, for your time.
39:24
SPEAKER_02: I appreciate you, bro.
39:25
SPEAKER_01: All right, man.
39:26
SPEAKER_02: Cheers.