SB Nation User Blog: Matt Daddy

Final Retrospective on the Season... The Secondary

Matt Daddy — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 06:58:31 -0000

So we come to the last of our three part series of looking back at the defensive units from the season. If you haven't read the first two please do so here and here.

In the last part of this series we are going to be looking at a unit that I think has surpassed most fans expectations this year. If I were to tell you at the beginning of the season that Ward would miss 6 games, Thurmond would miss 8 games, Thurmond's number one replacement and the team's nickel back Glasper would miss 7 games, 2 freshman would play significant minutes against USC, Arizona, and Oregon State in our secondary... you would most likely expect Oregon to finish at or near the bottom in pass defense. Well, you would be wrong.

These guys have more than held their own on the field against some pretty efficient QB's (Canfield - OSU [4], Foles - UA [11], Moore - BSU [17], and Cain - Utah [20]) all ranked nationally in pass percentage and top 35 in QB ratings.

Yet not a single one of these defenders made All Pac 10 honors (yeah, I'm still bitter about TJ3 getting screwed like that, if they do that to my boy Cliff Harris there will be hell to pay!). Anyway, forget the Pac 10 and their politically motivated awards, we know what these guys have meant to us. Whether it was CH3's pick in his first start up at UW. Boyett setting up camp in the backfield against USC and taking out any RB coming his way. Lewis trying to decapitate the Freshman QB against UCLA. TJ3's momentum changing pick against UCLA. WT3's interception, or punt return for touchdowns. Glasper or Gildon or Johson filling in at vital times. And finally Ward, a senior who fought back from a severe high ankle sprain to help lead these guys to the Grand Daddy of Them All!

I could write 3000 words about Ward's toughness, attitude and leadership this season. I really don't think we make it this far without him coming back. He has allowed Boyett to be Boyett, the line backers to fly around and make plays, Aliotti to throw some crazy schemes at the offense, and has been instrumental in helping stop the run. I'll admit, when he first came back, I was worried that it would affect the secondary play and disrupt the chemistry that had been established between them. I couldn't have been more pleasantly surprised. If I ever have the privilege of meeting Ward, I will personally thank him for his contributions this season and what he has brought to this team.

Now let's take a look at these guys individually:

Talmadge Jackson III, CB

Name

Pos

Total

Tackles

Total/G

TFL

Passes Broken Up

Int.

Talmadge Jackson III

3.83

TJ3 had a monstrous year. He was 6th in the Pac 10 in passes defended, 12th in passes broken up, and 4th in interceptions (did I mention he didn't receive ANY All Pac 10 honors, complete travesty!). I digress. There has been a lot of debate of TJ3's technique around AtQ this year, one thing that isn't debatable has been his effectiveness. He's pretty much guarded the other team's number 1 receiver one-on-one every game and has been instrumental in helping Oregon have the #3 ranked pass defense in the Pac 10 this year (and 21st in the nation in passer rating defense). The experience he got this year going up against so many great receivers will help him tremendously next year as Oregon's number one lock down corner.

Javes Lewis, CB/Safety

Name

Pos

Total

Tackles

Total/G

TFL

Passes Broken Up

Int.

Javes Lewis

6.33

4.5

Lewis was a very versatile player for the ducks this year. Lewis started the season at ROV, but once the injuries started to pile up for the Ducks in the secondary, Lewis was called upon at times to fill in at corner. Obviously, Lewis was never as comfortable playing corner as he is playing safety. He ended the year 2nd on the team in tackles and 7th in tackles for a loss. At only a sophomore, Lewis' best years are definitely in front of him and should do just fine filling in for Ward next year with Boyett supporting him.

Sir John Boyett III Esquire, Safety

Name

Pos

Total

Tackles

Total/G

TFL

Passes Broken Up

Int.

John Boyett

6.5

What a year for John Boyett. Starting the season squarely behind returning starter TJ Ward, I am sure Boyett was not expecting much playing time. When Ward went down for 6 games, Boyett made the most of his opportunity. Boyett ended up leading the team in tackles this year. He also had two interceptions, one against Utah where Pleasant taught him a valuable lesson about going to a knee late in a game to seal a victory, which Boyett promptly demonstrated with his late interception against UCLA a couple weeks later. As a redshirt freshman, we can look forward to many more spectacular tackles in the backfield and game saving interceptions from Boyett.

TJ Ward, Safety

Name

Pos

Total

Tackles

Total/G

TFL

Passes Broken Up

Int.

T.J. Ward

8.43

2.5

Terrell Ray Ward (that's right his name is Terrell) has been a true leader of the defensive secondary on the field this year. He plays with a reckless abandon with little regard for his own body and even less regard for the opposing player's health. I think if Ward and Masoli were ever to meet on a fourth and short near the sideline, well, let's just say that I'd hate to see what happens. When he's not laying out WRs, knocking RBs out of bounds, or cracking anybody who makes the wrong decision of coming across the middle, he spends most of his time on the field making sure the other players know that he will. His mouth runs almost as much as his legs do during a game. He provides not only the toughness needed to make guys look over their shoulder when in the open, but also the attitude. Finally, come January 1st, if I was a Terrelle wearing Scarlet and Gray, I'd make sure I know where the other Terrell is wearing Green.

Walter Thurmond III, CB

Willie Glasper, CB

Name

Pos

Total

Tackles

Total/G

TFL

Passes Broken Up

Int.

Walter Thurmond III

4.25

1.5

Willie Glasper

2.2

1.5

Part of me feels cheated from not getting to watch both of these guys for the whole season. Glasper was having a solid all around year. He fit perfectly into Aliotti's new system with his flexibility on defense to add another dimension to the nickel and dime packages and spell TJ3 and WT3.

WT3 was having an All-American type season before his brutal knee injury against Cal. I cannot dream of how many INT-TDs he would have had, or how low the QB passer ratings would have been with him and TJ3 manning the corners. I know WT3 has been a tremendous asset on the sidelines since his injury. He's been a leader, a coach and a teammate to the young guys filling in for him. I couldn't feel happier for someone to make it to the Rose Bowl in the their final season than WT3.

Cliff Harris, CB

Name

Pos

Total

Tackles

Total/G

TFL

Passes Broken Up

Int.

Cliff Harris

2.29

To be continued later...

Finally, the other guys rounding out the secondary play this year.

Name	Yr	Pos	G	Total	Total/G	TFL	Passes Broken Up	Int.
Anthony Gildon	SO	DB	7	5	0.71		1
Brian Butterfield	JR	DB	12	10	0.83
Titus Jackson	SR	DB	3	3	1
Marvin Johnson	JR	DB	12	24	2

Gildon helped out quite a bit this year, until Harris really stepped up to control that position. I am sure that Gildon will be able to work on some of his coverage and tackling lapses and will be vital in years to come.

All in all, this was a difficult year for this secondary. Lots of things happened; injuries, guys having to play out of position, guys starting and playing for the first time. To end the season the way they did is truly remarkable, and goes to show just how well Neal and Aliotti have done in recruiting and coaching. With only one senior playing significant minutes this year, look for these guys to have more great seasons to come.

Guy in Joe McKnight scandal owns amandapflugrad.com

Matt Daddy — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 21:05:18 -0000

Guy in Joe McKnight scandal owns amandapflugrad.com

I was looking at the Conquest Chronicles for info on the Joe McKnight issue, and the response from Schenter about him owning 4joemcknight.com he listed he also owns...

... and for Scott Wolf, amandapflugrad.com.

Huh? I don't want a Husky fan and guy buying cars for USC players owning amandapflugrad.com. Am I mising something?

Link Here: http://www.conquestchronicles.com/2009/12/19/1208848/scott-schenter-responds-looks

You Blitz All Night!!!

Matt Daddy — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 10:47:50 -0000

You Blitz All Night!!!

This clip makes me think about Don Pellum talking to the linebackers at the beginning of the season after meeting with Chip Kelly, Aliotti and Azzinaro, to discuss what scheme they were going to play... "YOU BLITZ ALL NIGHT! If they cross the line of scrimmage I'm going to take every last one of ya out! You make sure they remember the night they played the DUCKS!!"

There was a lot pressure put on the LBs in Aliotti's system this year. They had to know their assignment, disguise their coverage, communicate adjustments to the line and secondary, hold their lanes, read the play, and then finally make a play on the ball. If the defensive linemen are the Unsung Heroes of the defense, the linebackers have to be the Brain Trust.

As much as I have gotten on Aliotti in the past for playing so conservative, never blitzing, using a base nickel defense, bringing the same 4 guys after the quarterback every play, this season of line backer play has been anything but that.

Rowe in a script> 3 point stance. Rowe standing and playing zone. Double LB outside blitz with Rowe and Pleasant. Zone blitz with Pleasant. LB crosses with Pleasant and M atthews. Line stunts with Matthews OR Paysinger or Matthews AND Paysinger blitzing. OLB blitz with Rowe and Paysinger. And finally the always fun Jailbreak blitz where all four come.

Here is my hypothesis. I think Chip Kelly met with Pellum and Aliotti this off season when he got the head coaching job to discuss the defense. I think it went something like this. "Listen Nick, I'm trying to do something special here at Oregon. Now you've been here for 19 years and Don you've been here for 22. I'm not going to tell you that you don't know what you are doing, but let's just say that if my offense was preparing to play against that predictable, vanilla, boring, scheme you like to call a defense we'd put up about 400 yards on the ground, and pass for another 300 without even breaking a sweat. I'm not asking you to go out there and win the game, our offense will definitely put up points. I mean it's not like we play in the Big 10, but if you could get creative and throw a couple of different looks at the offense that give us a few more chances to score each game, we'll definitely make the most of them. That's all I got guys... oh yeah... I want you to meet somebody who's going to be helping you out with this, his name is Jerry Azzinaro. Jerry, meet Nick and Don."

Well, all that being said, let's meet this Brain Trust:

Casey Matthews, MLB

Name

Pos

Solo

Assisted

Total

Total/G

TFL

TFL/G

Sacks

Sacks/G

QB Hurries

Fumbles Forced

Casey Matthews

0.33

2.5

0.21

Casey is the President of the Advisory Board for this Brain Trust of linebackers. His tutelage from a young age of the linebacker position fundamentals has paid huge dividends this year as he is one of the leading tacklers on the team. He's a definite leader, communicator and commander of the troops on the field, and his consistent heady play results in him being in the right spots to make plays. Casey made All Pac-10 second team honors and should be looking to add to that next year. I think we all need to thank Juju that Pete Carroll was arrogant enough to ask Matthews to try and walk on at USC, forcing him to look north for a brighter future.

Spencer Paysinger, MLB

Name

Pos

Solo

Assisted

Total

Total/G

TFL

TFL/G

Sacks

Sacks/G

QB Hurries

Fumbles Forced

Spencer Paysinger

0.54

0.08

Paysinger is the silent deadly type. He doesn't make the bone crushing hits that Ward or Pleasant might make. He isn't a commander at the line like Matthews. He isn't in the backfield making sacks as much as Rowe, but did you know he is tied for second on the team in broken up passes (tied with TJ3 and behind CH3). He's tied for tackles on the team amongst LBs and is third on the team in solo tackles. We like to ohh and ahh at Pleasant (BMusgraves), we see how many sacks Rowe has, we know Matthews is the leader of the LBs, yet here is Paysinger, just consistently making plays.

Eddie Pleasant, OLB

Name

Pos

Solo

Assisted

Total

Total/G

TFL

TFL/G

Sacks

Sacks/G

QB Hurries

Fumbles Forced

Eddie Pleasant

4.17

0.58

4.5

0.38

What is there to say about Eddie Pleasant that BMusgraves hasn't already said. He's fast, tenacious (did you see him put that Arizona O-lineman on his ass?), has a nose for the football, tackles everything (including his own teammates), and he's only a sophomore. Two more years of Eddie Pleasant armies wreaking havoc on Pac -10 offenses (yeah I talking to you Jake Locker. Pleasant should have been reason enough to go to the NFL).

Kenny Rowe, OLB

Name

Pos

Solo

Assisted

Total

Total/G

TFL

TFL/G

Sacks

Sacks/G

QB Hurries

Fumbles Forced

Kenny Rowe

0.92

8.5

0.71

Most likely the MVP of the defense this year. 8.5 sacks, 2 QB Hurries, 3 Forced Fumbles, 3 tackles a game... Kenny Rowe is a stat machine. JShufelt said it best, they need to create a new reference for a guy like Kenny Rowe, DUEbacker (Defensive Utility End backer). He's the Swiss Army knife of linebackers. The guy can do pretty much anything asked except line up at corner and play bump and run. RB tosses to the flats that have killed the Ducks in years past now end up in a loss of yardage for the offense. Rowe's speed and awareness levels are off the charts for a DUEbacker. Honorable mention Pac 10, is a good start for this first year starting Junior. Expect great things from Rowe next year.

Now, for the remaining board member of this Brain Trust:

Name	Yr	Pos	G	Solo	Assisted	Total	Total/G	TFL	TFL/G	Sacks	Sacks/G	QB Hurries	Fumbles Forced
Michael Clay	FR	LB	12	16	14	30	2.5	1	0.08	1	0.08	0	0
Marvin Johnson	JR	LB	12	15	9	24	2					1	0
Josh Kaddu	SO	LB	7	13	8	21	3	4	0.57	1	0.14	0	1
Kiko Alonso	FR	LB	11	12	3	15	1.36	1	0.09			0	1
Bryson Littlejohn	JR	LB	10	5	4	9	0.9					1	0
Dewitt Stuckey	SO	LB	7	3	3	6	0.86
Riley Showalter	SR	LB	8	3	2	5	0.63					1	0
Brandon Hanna	SO	LB	5	1	2	3	0.6
Chad Peppars	JR	LB	7	1	2	3	0.43					0	0

Clay, Johnson, Kaddu (whose injury this year was a bigger loss than many think looking at the stats), and Littlejohn all played significant roles in reserve this year. Looking at these 9 reserve guys and the 4 starters makes me very excited of things to come, there is only one senior, six juniors, four sophomores, and two freshmen.

Pellum and Aliotti have done a great job of adapting their scheme to fit the strength of the Oregon defense... smart, fast, mobile and strong linebackers that are able to make plays all over the field. Certainly was a hell of a lot of fun watching these Ducks fly around and BLITZ ALL NIGHT!!!

A Retrospective on the Season... The Unsung Heroes

Matt Daddy — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 05:25:05 -0000

As we eagerly await the New Year, and the Rose Bowl, I thought it would be a good time to take a look back both individually and statistically at each of the defensive players contributions this season. This will allow us to talk about memories from the season of different units, players or individual plays that stuck out to each of us and made this season special. This will be a three part series starting with the defensive line, next the line backers and lastly the secondary... I may just add one specifically about Cliff Harris, I haven't decided yet. He's not returning my phone calls and he won't except my friend request on Facebook.

Now, on to the unsung heroes of the defense this year. The defensive line.

To properly look at the contribution of the defensive lineman, we first have to revisit the scheme employed by Aliotti and Azzinaro. For most of the time Aliotti employed a 3-4 scheme. Now one of the most thankless jobs in a 3-4 scheme is the D-line. Rarely do these guys end up making tackles for a loss. Rarely are they sent to go sack the QB. Heck, if they are doing their job correctly, they will rarely make tackles on running backs. Your job as a D-lineman in a 3-4 is to take on as many blockers as you can to create space for the much more heralded linebackers to make the plays. If you are a good DE, you will hold the guard and tackle at the line and allow the OLB to make a play on the ball. A great nose tackle will clog the middle, take on the center and a guard and allow the MLBs room t o shoot the gaps and either get after the quarterback or make a play on the running back.

These guys play a thankless position. You won't see their stellar play show up in the box score much (you don't get noticed for taking on a double team of 300 pounders all day). Much has been made of our undersized D-line, but these guys have been nothing short of spectacular all season. One of the main reasons Rowe was able to make the plays in the backfield he did all year, is because of Blake Ferras. You think Ward, Lewis or Boyett are going to be top five in tackles on this team if Tukuafu isn't keeping O-linemen from being able to get a block on them? I love Eddie Pleasant, but his speed is irrelevant if Bair isn't forcing a guard to help the center keep him out of the backfield. Their conditioning has been amazing, their tenacity relentless, and their pressure constant from the first game to the last.

If Masoli and James feel obligated to take the O-line out to dinner, on them, for helping them reach the pinnacles they have, then Pleasant, Rowe, Matthews and Paysinger need to be making dinner reservations real soon for these guys:

Starters:

Will Tukuafu, DE

Name	Yr	G	Solo	Assisted	Total	Total/G	TFL	TFL Yards	TFL/G	Sacks	Sack Yards	Sacks/G
Will Tukuafu	SR	12	22	13	35	2.92	6.5	22	0.54	2.5	12	0.21

Tukuafu has been a steadying force on the D-line all year. He has consistently made plays on the back side, as teams tried to run away from him. He ended up forcing one fumble and recovering one fumble this year too. He epitomized the position of a D-lineman in a 3-4 system. He was fast enough to be able to get off the line and cause havoc in the backfield but strong enough to take on blockers and make RBs have to move around him right into our LBs and safeties manning the edges. Will is a senior this year, and fully deserved his Honorable Mention All Pac 10 Honors for his solid consistent play all year. I know we will miss Tukuafu a lot next year.

Brandon Bair, DT/NG

Name	Yr	G	Solo	Assisted	Total	Total/G	TFL	TFL Yards	TFL/G	Sacks	Sack Yards	Sacks/G
Brandon Bair	JR	12	19	24	43	3.58	7.5	27	0.63	2	14	0.17

Bair had a break out year this year. At 6-7 270lbs he is a beast in the middle of the defense for any O-line to try and handle. QBs have trouble seeing over him, RBs have trouble running around him. He was the leading tackler on the D-line by being a force up the middle as teams tried (and I stress tried, Ohio St) to run it down the throat of the defense. As a junior and a first year starter, look for many great things from Bair next season. I will never forget his break out game against Utah where he seemed to be in the backfield on almost every play and had an awesome blocked punt.

Blake Ferras, DT/DE

Name	Yr	G	Solo	Assisted	Total	Total/G	TFL	TFL Yards	TFL/G	Sacks	Sack Yards	Sacks/G
Blake Ferras	SR	12	16	17	33	2.75	4.5	29	0.38	2	17	0.17

It is my guess that the most uncelebrated person of the Oregon defense is Blake Ferras. Ferras normally lined up opposite Tukuafu and on the same side of Rowe. He is largely responsible for contributing on almost every great play Rowe made all year. The one thing I remember most about Blake Ferras was the initial push he got on the goal line stop versus UCLA, you watch this video and starting at :24 you will see a guy in the middle diving head first, with no regard for his body at the ankles and knees of the UCLA O-line. When Prince tries to go in for the sneak there is absolutely no room and the LBs and safeties come in to clean up the work. That is what Ferras did all year. Sacrificed his body, his stats and the recognition for Oregon to get the victory. As a Senior too, Blake Ferras has left a big hole to be filled next year.

Here is who will be trying to fill those holes left by Tukuafu and Ferras, and the other stats from the defensive lineman this year:

Reserves:

Name	Yr	G	Solo	Assisted	Total	Total/G	TFL	TFL Yards	TFL/G	Sacks	Sack Yards	Sacks/G
Terrell Turner	SO	12	12	7	19	1.58	4	24	0.33	3	23	0.25
Zac Clark	JR	12	7	10	17	1.42	1	1	0.08
Simi Toeaina	SR	11	5	5	10	0.91	1	4	0.09
Tyrell Irvin	JR	11	5	0	5	0.45	1	6	0.09	1	6	0.09
Terrance Montgomery	JR	8	2	0	2	0.25	1	2	0.13	1	2	0.13

Toeania is another guy who will be missed next year. Turner, Clark, Irvin, Montgomery, and whoever Azz and Aliotti are able to bring in recruiting (cough... King, OWA, Heimuli... cough) will have a huge standard to live up to set by these three starters this year.

I really don't think the D-linemen in our system have gotten nearly enough credit this year for the work they did. We all know that Oregon's defense works as a system, each unit relying on the other for success. The defensive line has definitely held up their end of the deal this year, and have done a great job in the process.

Leave comments, memories, clips or photos in the comments section about the D-line. I would love to see a ton of photoshop material about these guys and the work they did.

I would not live if this happened... 4OT Oregon victory in the Rose Bowl versus...

Matt Daddy — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 04:54:50 -0000

I would not live if this happened... 4OT Oregon victory in the Rose Bowl versus anOSU.

whatifsports.com has the 2009 NCAA teams up. Enjoy wasting hours with this.

Final Coaches Poll Votes

Matt Daddy — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 03:35:19 -0000

Final Coaches Poll Votes

How each coach voted in the final poll.

Saturday Football Open Thread

Matt Daddy — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 17:20:42 -0000

I figured most of us are still trying to recover from our late Thursday drinking fests... But, I wanted somewhere to talk about Saturday Championship games, so I"ll create my own. Before we talk about the games, I'll relay 2 funny stories from Friday.

First, I live on a street surrounded by Beaver fans. To the right, behind, across the street, and my only duck fan neighbors lived to the left of me, but they moved earlier this year and guess who moved in... yep more Beaver fans.

Now I display my Oregon ducks flag in front with pride, but after Boise this year, I was afraid to rake my leaves, cause I would get accosted with "how about Blount?" comments (in all seriousness, my neighbors are awesome people and were really cool about the whole season). That didn't mean I wasn't going to take the time to rub this win in a little. So after about 8 Jujubleales and 37 Oregon points later, my buddy and I decided to make it so that not only my neighbors, but all Beaver fans when they drove by my house, had to see a little reminder of who I support:

I think the Hydrant looks a lot better now, how about you?

Next story I related in a comment. My daughter told me on Thursday after school that her teacher and a lot of teachers at her school were Beaver fans. So much so, that she was the only girl in her class rooting for the ducks and had to hear all day about how the Beavers were going to beat the ducks. She was really excited to watch the game with me.

So Friday, I sent her yellow roses to her classroom with a note that said, hand these out to teachers… personally, I'm not expecting the next parent teacher conference to go very well.

Finally, on to Saturday games. Here's who I think is going to win:

Cinci

Florida

Texas

Houston

WVA

GA Tech

Arizona

Discuss today's games in comments below.

Stopping the OSU Offense, Part 2: Win the Day!

Matt Daddy — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 07:09:19 -0000

Ok, so now that we know some of the stars that play for OSU (if you don't, please read here), let's look at how this offense works and what Oregon can try and do to slow them down.

My main feeling with Oregon's defense is that if they play their game, stay disciplined and make good reads, our defense should be fine. It would take a perfect game plan by Aliotti and the defense to shut out OSU, which I don't think will happen, but I do believe Oregon has the athletes to make enough plays to give OSU trouble and get off the field and give the offense a chance to win the game.

My initial read on OSU's offense is that it is built on plays, and counters to those plays. Much like a lot of pro style offenses, this one is going to try and get the defense moving or looking in one direction while the real threat escapes or gets open on the other side.

OSU is a well disciplined offense. Rarely do you see these guys miss blocks, run the wrong route, or have their timing off. I hate to heap tons of praise on OSU, but Riley does a tremendous job building levels of plays on top of what they already know in order to confuse or gain leverage on their opponent.

[How to read the pictures: The program I am using does not allow the FB to be exchanged for either a second TE or anther WR, nor does it allow the TE to be exchanged for another WR. Just realize that the FB in these pictures is most likely another TE (Brady Camp) or a third WR. OSU rarely uses a FB, but employs more of the single back formation. Their power formations usually consist of two TE on the line or a TE in the FB position, and they will definitely use 3 and sometimes 4 WR formations. Dotted lines indicate a play action (fake handoff) and the solid lines are routes run. Lines ending with an arrow indicate a running play hand off.]

The first play we will look at is their Shotgun Wide Receivers Tight play [From the Cal game].

In this play you can see that Canfield fakes the handoff to Quizz who heads out to the flat. The right slot receiver runs a corner post route and the left slot receiver stays in to block (interesting side note, but a lot of the times that a TE is kept in to block it is on the left side where their youngest and smallest offensive lineman are. Look for our blitzes to come off the left side (Rowe and Pleasant) to try and exploit this.) James Rodgers is lined up to the left and runs an in route and the outside receiver runs a go route.

OSU uses this formation in a number of different ways, but this play action can cause Oregon a lot of trouble. Not only will it get the weak side LBs moving towards Quizz freeing the TE, but it will also help slow down any rush off the strong side with the extra TE blocking. Ward should be used to come up from the safety position to add support to the weak side and spy on Quizz whenever they are in this formation. Paysinger will have the responsibility of the right side TE. Harris should be 1:1 with the right WR with support from Lewis over the top, and Jackson will have 1:1 all day on James Rodgers.

Next, here is a staple of the Riley offense; The Single Back Dive Play [From the Washington Game].

Now a lot of times in this formation Canfield will put a TE in motion into the FB position. The offensive line will have straight up blocking responsibilities. Quizz's job will be to read the hole and explode through it. Most of the times this play is used in short yardage or first down situations where their offense is trying to set up one of the counters.

First counter, The Single Back Counter Play [From the Cal Game].

Once again the left side TE will go in pre-snap motion. Only this time Quizz will fake like he is going for the dive looking to suck the MLBs up into the middle where the right guard is pulling to the left and the TE is blocking down on the outside LB or looking to get to a safety and spring Quizz. Oregon needs to be very careful of this play if they try to blitz Ward off the right side (see Stanford game) because OSU will be overloaded on the left and Quizz will only need to make one cut to get into the open field. Once again, this is a play that is used a lot in first and second down, but also once they have established the dive play, and are looking to capitalize on an over pursuing defense.

Second counter; Single Back Play-Action Pass [From Portland State Game].

This is the last counter we will look at in the single back formation. This time the right side TE goes in motion to once again add protection to the left side of the line. Again, Quizz will dive down the middle trying to draw the MLBs up to stop the run with the fake hand off, but will then move to a safety valve for Canfield should he need to dump off the pass. Only this time the left TE will run either an in route or a post pattern in the space between where the MLBs have just vacated and the safety has help over the top.

All of the single back dive plays are meant to key on the MLBs and get them to either be hesitant, or over pursue the wrong gap and get them out of position. I think that Oregon will use Ward as a spy on Quizz. Then they will rely on bringing in an extra safety in passing situations (3-3-5 formation), or 1:1 coverage with Jackson while Lewis and Harris play zone against the other side of the field. Either way, Matthews, Pleasant and Paysinger need to make good reads on what is going on in the backfield and where the play is going. I think their speed will help mask some of the mistakes they make if they make the wrong choice, but the safeties need to be on the ball to back them up should they break down.

Lastly, here is the play we all remember too well; The Fly Sweep [From the Civil War 2007].

Ok, I'm trying to regain consciousness after Eddie Pleasant just tackled me for writing The Fly Sweep [From the Civil War 200...arghaghaghaghah...Damnit Eddie!! knock it off, I'm trying to finish this thing. Ok, we all remember this play, I don't need to rehash it. The thing is it puts a lot of pressure on the right side of the defense. Once again, I think this is where TJ Ward will have a huge impact. Also, Lewis is going to have to see this play coming and come up and fill the gap and get at James Rodgers. Remember my first post, tackling is going to be huge, a missed tackle on the Fly Sweep and James will have no problem looking for the endzone. It is also important to stop it because is leads to this.

The Fly Sweep Play Action [From the Cal Game].

If Lewis or Ward get too aggressive trying to over play the fly sweep, Riley will have no problem calling the play action and throwing to either Adeniji with 1:1 coverage from Harris deep and no help over the top, or Halahuni running a post with no safety in the middle.

Final thoughts. Obviously, these are not all the plays that OSU runs. This is only trying to demonstrate some of how their offense works and what Oregon needs to do to contain it. Besides the play action fly sweep, all of their counter plays take a long time to develop. I think that with Oregon's speed, they should be able to get at Canfield enough times to force them into long yardage situations, disrupt the play enough to throw off the timing, or recover and make the stop without giving up the big play.

Ward is going to have the time of his life shooting the gap and hitting Quizz (remember this is Ward's last home game and last Civil War, think he's going to be a little jacked?). Casey Matthews is going to need to play smart ball in the middle of the field and take away the TE passes, while still providing run support up the middle. Harris, has a huge test on his hands. Adeniji is a big target, and Canfield is an accurate deep ball thrower. Rowe and Pleasant need to do that thing they do and get at Canfield against a freshman and undersized o-linemen. Lastly, Jackson, you got James Rodgers, try and keep him in front of you and make the tackle once he gets the ball.

I think Oregon matches up really well with OSU and how they run their offense. I will say it again, I do not expect a perfect game from the defense, just enough stops and big plays to let the offense get back on the field and beat up on OSU's outmatched defense. I really cannot wait. Win the Day! Go Ducks!

Stopping the OSU offense, part 1: tackle, tackle, tackle

Matt Daddy — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 06:06:54 -0000

So over the last week, I have watched a bunch of video of OSU highlights from this season (can be seen here). I am going to try and highlight a number of the sets and plays they run and how I think our defense can match up.

Before I do, let's look at some of the key players for OSU and how Oregon needs to match up with them. This OSU offense is unlike any OSU we have seen in a while. They are healthy, their stars have been playing well lately, and they know the system they are running very well. Everybody on this team is well coached. They don't have a lot of physical "wow" factor on the team, but they make sure to make the most of every aspect of the players they have.

The key to this game defensively is going to be to make them one dimensional and then play fundamentally sound and disciplined football. If Oregon tries to over pursue, or take too many angles on OSU, they will burn them for big plays.

I wish I could track the number of missed tackles in this game, because I think it will be the statistic that determines the winner. If Oregon gets to the Rogers brothers, they have to bring them down. When Oregon gets to Canfield, they have to get the sack. Oregon CANNOT let him escape and get a second chance in the play. Oregon has to take away the other guys on OSU 1:1 and make them rely heavily on James and Quizz against overloaded sets to produce the yards needed. Autzen needs to be a factor and help Oregon's defense by rattling their young offensive line and turning short yardage situations into obvious passing downs. Lastly, Oregon has to tackle, tackle, tackle!!! Oregon needs to fly to the ball, wrap up, and bring them down. Missed tackles will turn punting situations into first downs, and short plays into game changers.

On to the breakdown. First, highlighting some of their stars and statistics:

Quarterback Play:

	Effic	Cmp-Att-Int	Pct	Yds	TD	INT	Lng	Avg/G
Canfield, Sean	147.47	260-370-6	70.3	2797	19	6	87	254

Canfield is the most efficient QB in the Pac 10 (sound familiar... cough... Stanford... cough... Arizona). He has done a tremendous job throughout the year improving on a number of areas that got them beat earlier in the year. Early in the season the Rodgers brothers accounted for over 70% of their total yards rushing and receiving. That number is down to 61%. Canfield has made a concerted effort to spread the ball around and has started hitting the TE and other WRs more often making defenses play a little more honest. His TD/INT ratio is one of the best in the conference. Plus, his completion percentage is really high. Oregon is going to have to try to force him out of the pocket. He is not a very good scrambler, and if Oregon can cut down the field and make him throw to one side, they can limit not only what type of passes he throws, but also who he throws those passes to.

Rushing Game:

	Att	Gain	Loss	Net	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Rodgers, Jacquizz	239	1355	42	1313	5.5	19	61	119.4
Rodgers, James	49	297	37	260	5.3	1	33	23.6

We all know the two names listed here. Quizz is a BEAST. He is a work horse who looks like he has no intention of slowing down whatsoever (man, can you just go to the NFL already!!). Most of Quizz's runs come out of the pro style offense that Riley employs. He is second in the league in yards and attempts per game and also second only to Gerhart in touchdowns. James Rodgers has increased his number of carries this season, but his yards and TD's are both down. Personally, I think they are not running the "Fly Sweep" as effectively as previous seasons, and it is hurting James' production. Recently they have gone to some more "Wildcat" (Wild-Rat) offenses with Quizz taking the direct snap and James in motion. Look for this in the Civil War, as it has been a thorn in Oregon's side defensively. Both Rodgers are not big "Gerhart" like runners and Oregon's front seven should be able to bring them down. The key is bringing them down on first contact. If you let these guys break tackles and get to the second level, Lewis, Boyett, Jackson, Johnson, and Harris are going to have trouble containing them. I don't look for OSU to run over Oregon offensively like Stanford did, but they will institute a number of the same formations and if Oregon does not tackle properly, the Rodgers brothers are going to have a huge day.

Wide Receivers:

	No.	Yds	Avg	TD	Long	Avg/G
Rodgers, James	77	865	11.2	8	87	78.6
Rodgers, Jacquizz	67	436	6.5	1	35	39.6
Adeniji, Damola	47	672	14.3	4	41	61.1
Halahuni, Joe	33	462	14	3	48	42

First two names on the list look familiar? Quizz is more of an outlet for Canfield and besides the screen play, not a lot of passing plays are called for him. James is their go to guy. He has big play threat, and he is also a great route runner. The guy can pretty much do anything at the WR position. Once again, NO YARDS AFTER THE CATCH! He is going to get open and make plays, but we have to limit those plays to the yards thrown for, and no more. Adeniji has become the second option for Canfield in the passing game, and runs a lot of deep routes. Look for Harris to be locked up on him all day and this is going to be Harris' biggest test all year. Halahuni is their TE. He definitely has some plays called his way (more in the second half of the year), but he is a great safety valve for Canfield. If James is covered and Adeniji does not get open deep, Halahuni will most likely be running an underneath route. Paysinger is going to need to be on him like stink on Corvallis (oh and Paysinger, if you feel like actually catching one of your INT opportunities this game, feel free to take it back to the house).

Offensive Line:

LT 77 Philipp, M.	6-3	313	FR
LG 70 Johnson, Grant	6-3	278	SO
C 60 Linnenkohl, A.	6-2	297	JR
RG 73 Peat, Gregg	6-3	295	SR
RT 50 Remmers, Mike	6-4	299	SO

Probably the biggest improvement all year has come from their guys up front. As you can see this is a young group and also not a very big group of guys either (compared to Stanford who had four 300+ o-line man, and a beast of a FB too). Quizz's abilities mask a lot of problems that still exist with the OSU o-line, but they are more fundamentally sound then they were earlier in the year when a lot of OSU fans were looking for Moevao to return so that their QB wouldn't have to play every game from his back. I think Oregon is going to be able to exploit some of the weaknesses that still exist, but it is going to take a very disciplined game plan. Since OSU's o-line is still young, when OSU is in obvious passing situations Oregon should be able to throw a number of different blitz packages at them that they haven't seen and allow an Oregon LB or Safety to get after Canfield (if only they will let Casey Matthews out of jail for this game). Also, because they are a relatively undersized o-line, Bair, Toeania,Tukuafu and Ferras should be able to hold their ground and force Quizz to make reads off the LBs shooting through the gaps.

Lastly, I won't take time to tell you how big the Autzen crowd is going to need to be, you can read it here. Just remember, this is #1 versus #2 in the Pac 10 for the third time for Oregon this year and the first time for OSU, and this is the first time a number of these young o-line have experienced this type of intensity, this amount at stake, and this level of noise...ever. Let's hope Autzen accounts for 25 yards worth of false starts and turns a couple of 2nd or 3rd and shorts into long and obvious passing situations.

Conference Rankings:

	OSU Offense	Oregon Defense
Scoring	3	5
*Rushing*	6	5
Passing	1	3
Total Offense/Defense	3	3
*Sacks Allowed/Gained*	9	2
Turnovers Lost/Taken	1	2
3rd Conversions/Stopped	1	5
Red Zone Scores/Stops	1	1
Red Zone TD Scores/Stops	2	8

As you can see, OSU is highly ranked in a lot of offensive categories in the Pac 10 this year. As much as OSU relies on Quizz to carry their rushing load, they are only 6th in the Pac 10, but 1st in passing. OSU really uses the run very well to set up their pass. Their play action is some of the best we will see since BSU. Unfortunately, they are 9th in sacks allowed, so we should be able to get to Canfield. OSU does not turn the ball over very much (oh and by the way, Quizz has never fumbled...jinx...jinx...jinx... QUIZZ HAS NEVER FUMBLED!!!) and Oregon is really good at taking the ball away. This is going to be a matchup of a very good, well balanced offense versus a good defense in their own house.

Tell me what you think. I think Oregon has the ability to turn Canfield into a scrambling passer and force OSU into a lot of TE passes and outlet valve throws to Quizz. I hope Oregon has taken the extra time this week to work on tackling and making sure they fly to the ball and bring down the guy. This is going to be a great game for the state of Oregon and for the Pac 10. Go Ducks!!!!

Atonements for Juju

Matt Daddy — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:38:04 -0000

So the big game, the monster rivalry of all time, the love, the hate, with the biggest prize in Pac-10 football on the line is now in front of us. Everything this team has fought for, worked hard in practices for, and has sacrificed so much for is one opposition away.

We as fans find ourselves in a problematic situation. Not one of us will have a single carry or reception or tackle in this clash of the titans. But I believe we can still effect the outcome. Now normally I am not a superstitious individual, but this game is too big to leave anything to chance. So we must make our sacrifices this coming 10 days as well.

Here is a starting list of things that MUST or MUST NOT happen this coming week and a half:

1. CaDuck, you know the drill, now curse that little dreadlock wearing ball carrier, and make him cough one up finally.

2. No Polls about how confident we feel going into the Civil War. Please I beg of you!

3. Chip Kelly, stay off of the Jim Rome show. You appeared on his show before the Stanford and Boise State games. For the love of Juju, stay in your office breaking down film, don't go on that show.

4. MCD grow that beard again. If your wife doesn't like it, tell her it's for the good of all.

5. Tako Tuesday, you have two chances to give us a beer topic to talk about. And Shu, feel free to forget to bring it.

6. Please NO WHITE PANTS!

7. Is there anyway to give Quinn the Swine Flu again?

8. How much money does Uncle Phil have to send to College Game Day to get them to come to Eugene on a Thursday?

9. Yes, I will be doing a breakdown of the OSU offense and what our D needs to do to shut them down, as soon as I get my hands on some video of OSU games and the Civil War last year.

10. Somebody hack Phil Steele's website and make his pick Oregon State.

So here is your place to lay your superstition sacrifices at the alter of Juju. Let us know what you will be offering to the great Juju god of Oregon Victories. Juju has helped us so much already this year and I know our sacrifices will not be looked upon in vain.