After a couple of close calls the Ducks are starting to gel. IS this the best shot at a Natty we have had since playing in the finals vs tOSU? I'd say so.

I can almost hear leather hitting wood and whatever the nets are made of now.

The season for men starts next week with a Monday game vs UC riverside and then hosting Montana on Friday. For a change Dana starts with an almost heathy team but only one center in that shape so it will be interesting to see what kind of ball Oregon plays this season.

The women with 9 new players who have not yet experienced Gray's "coaching" open up also on Monday hosting Cal Baptist and follow with Nevada on Wednesday. Hoping this will be his last season as I'm not expecting much in his first stumble into the new conference.

Here is a link to the injury report followed by a nice little article about freshman running back Riggs.

In anoher exclusive, @RivalsWardlaw caught up with 2026 DE @ColmanBrusa2026 for a great conversation about his visit to Eugene. Check it out here:

Don't read this.

As a sports fan to the level that I seldom participated in physically (well I did play semi-pro fastpitch softball and ran on a cross country team that would have been the 1966 NJ state champs had 80%of the team not gone on drunken spree one Saturday evening/night/morning and gotten kicked off of the team) I pursued what I could and did well with officiating and writing. I go where other dare not go because they are too busy scoffing at it.

From that deep backwoods country I'm here to remind you that Oregon is not the only unbeaten team, no surprise there, but neither are the other seven (I think) D1 teams who have not yet tasted defeat. There are twenty other all-victorious squads. Sure, they are from "lesser" divisions but I am reminded of something that made me a good sports official . Every day of the week when football games (or any other sports contest from pee wee to professional) kick off, to every team with their fan bases, no matter how small or seeming insignificant, it the biggest event of the day or night, maybe the week. They give it their all the same as the players in every other game. They deserve but don't get the best officials or at least the best efforts from them they have. They bathe in the best reporting, even a box or line score on page three or four of the local sports page.

To report all of that is impossible for any sports writer, even as talented as I am. But ... I can a take few moments to list the top winners even if I don't have the time nor the will to dig more deeply into what should be said. I make a promise which I probably won't keep after the liquor wears off (OK .. so what if I don't drink anymore) to keep you updated on the list. This is a Ducks forum but, dammit, you should care about all of these folks you have been remiss in honoring with a minute or two of your time if you really love football.

Montana State Bobcats 8-0
Dartmouth Big Green 6-0
John C Smith Golden Bulls 8-0
Valdosta State Blazers 7-0
University of Charleston Golden Bulls 8-0
Kutztown Golden Bears 8-0
Western Colorado Mountaineers 8-0
Hardin Simmons Cowboys 7-0
North Central Cardinals 7-0
Cortland Red Dragons 7-0
U-Mass Dartmouth ?? 7-0
Hope Flying Dutchmen 7-0
Lake Forest Forest 7-0
St John's (Minn) Johnnies 7-0
Springfield Pride 7-0
Salisbury Seagulls 7-0
DePau Tigers 7-0
Whitworth Pirates 7-0
Marietta Pioneers 7-0
Mount Union Raiders 7-0

Imagine, if you will, yourself bundling up to sit in perhaps glorified high school bleachers to watch your team. Imagine the thrill of another win, even if not many others care about it. Sitting and sharing with you are friends and families of the players, perhaps a reporter or two and maybe a pair of play by play radio announcers for the local or school station. There are some old people in town visiting who may be alums or just town folk supporting the local college or university. Its a big deal for somebody everywhere every contest. Memories are embedded every time. It's the joy of sports.
I love it.

OK, now you can go back to not reading.

Let the hype begin. The Duck's media blitz is baaaack. As if it ever left, lol. I hope the link posts!

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We are back with our second podcast of the week as Drew Davis, Lee and myself wrap up a little bit on the Illinois win plus looking ahead to Michigan and talking some recruiting buzz this week.

Dave Iuli went from "out" against Purdue to "questionable" against Illinois and has been seen recently in cleats before practice. Generally speaking that means he is probably close to being ready.

Also there was this from Jahlil Florence today:

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Here we go with Part II of the DSA RoundTable. Our score predictions for the Michigan game, plus a bonus prediction from each of us for the Ohio State-Penn State matchup:

I think we have winners in JJ and Noah. It would be nice to still have Dowdell, but he got passed by Limar. UO has a running game!

The newest episode of Flock Talk: The Podcast is up!Today's episode features special guest Cody Cameron and we discuss Arizona recruits including a great conversation about Cooper Perry, Jake Hildebrand, Bastian Vanden Bosch, and Daylen Sharper.

Good morning #GoDucks fans, the Thursday Roundup is ready with our weekly recap of the week thatvwas in Oregon football on Duck Sports Authority:

We will have an extra episode tomorrow that I think you will enjoy. Full pod on Friday with Drew and Lee.

Getting a bigger role so far this season and apparently he's got the green light.

Jordan James talks Michigan defensive line, plus thoughts on Noah Whittington and Da'Juan Riggs.

You can guess to whom he was responding:

Final write up from interviews today Dan Lanning says 'the fields the same size'

Bassa was very candid about the excitement some of the players feel - especially Derrick Harmon - about the opportunity this Saturday.

Here is our full recap:

Poncho is pretty straight forward in his assessment of the Michigan DL as Oregon prepares to head to the Big House.

Here is our recap of his comments:

Teium Tuioti heaped praise on teammate Derrick Harmon "He creates havoc"

Here is our recap of Tuioti's interview today:

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On why he was looking forward to the visit: “Just to learn more about the offense and the culture coach Lanning is building.”

On how the visit was and what all he was able to do: “Just to learn more about the offense and the culture coach Lanning is building.”

On main takeaways and what stood out most about Oregon: “The quarterbacks’ meetings and just being able to see Coach Lanning and the culture he’s building.”

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Derek Colman Brusa is a 3-star Class of 2026 weakside defensive end who is ranked No. 4 in the state and No. 22 at the position who has 12 offers, including from Oregon, Tennessee, Washington, and Southern Cal.

Colman-Brusa who was at Oregon's game vs. Ohio State on Oct. 12, stuck around to watch the Ducks practice on Mon. Oct, 14, where he got a closer look into the inside of Oregon’s operation. “I just really love the tempo they practice at. The energy was really there, the juice was really there,” he said.

He talked about sitting in on the team meeting before-hand, which he described as pivotal. “That was very, very critical,” he said.

Colman-Brusa talked about a moving speech from head coach Dan Lanning. The defensive lineman from Seattle described the story of the 20-mile march in detail. “I’m not sure if you’ve heard that story, but it’s about the story of the two teams that raced to the North Pole. One was very inconsistent, and one was very consistent. The (team) that was very inconsistent perished and died,” he said.

And Colman-Brusa said that speech further ties into the relentless attitude of the Ducks and the overall message of their program’s culture. “You know, I love the culture (Lanning) is bringing. It’s a very hard-working, consistent culture. And I think he will be able to maintain that in the future. I’m excited about what Oregon is going to do during the rest of this season and during the playoffs,” he said.

This is a small excerpt of his full interview with me, which will be fully released in an article and a recording that I will make available to the group.

Today we complete our look at the win over Illinois with our defensive report card:

Offensive lineman Nishad Strother spoke after practice today about the challenges of the Michigan DL.

Check out our recap:

Really good stuff from Oregon defensive lineman Derrick Harmon following practice today.

Check out our recap!

Oregon DB Brandon Johnson spoke after practice about Michigan's offense and the value of elite competition in practice every day.


Check out our recap!