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Bryce to the Astros

The Big Ten's best Defensive Linemen ahead of the 2024 college football season

While the Pac-12 was famous for its air-raid, fast-paced offenses, the Big Ten has long been notorious for its hard-nosed, ground-and-pound attacks. As Oregon, USC, UCLA, and Washington move into the Big Ten, the new style of conference play may force them to make adjustments to counteract the Big Ten’s penchant for running the ball.

Some of those adjustments will be on offense, but the bulk of changes will come on the defensive side of the ball, especially along the defensive line. Already this offseason, the Ducks have started beefing up their defensive front lines with the transfer additions of Ja’Maree Caldwell and Derrick Harmon. Now. headed into 2024, Oregon seems set up well to contain the run in the Big Ten conference, but they aren’t the only team with exceptional D-linemen.

Flock Talk: Scouting Alai Kalaniuvalu

Film was limited on Alai, but did look at what I could find plus some camp performance reports to get a bit of scouting report. Some additional recruiting notes as well today.

Three Ducks to represent Oregon at Big 10 Media Days

A key preseason event is media days, where journalists and fans get a closer look at the teams they'll be covering and cheering for. For Duck fans, the Big Ten Media Days will introduce a host of new opponents as the team enters a new conference.

On Thursday, the conference announced that head coach Dan Lanning will be joined by three players at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis on July 25. Representing the Ducks at their inaugural Big Ten Media Days will be quarterback Dillon Gabriel, tight end Terrance Ferguson, and linebacker Jeffrey Bassa.

Gabriel is set to begin his final college football season and his first in Eugene, following two years at Oklahoma. He’s been recognized as one of the nation’s top quarterbacks and will fill the shoes of Heisman finalist Bo Nix, who was selected 12th overall by the Denver Broncos in this year’s NFL Draft.

Ferguson returns to Oregon after catching 42 passes for 414 yards and six touchdowns last year. He enters the season with 91 career receptions, tied for fourth all-time among tight ends at Oregon (Ed Dickson 124). He will be part of a deep tight end group in 2024/

Bassa will represent the defense as a top linebacker on the 2024 team. He finished the 2023 season with 72 total tackles and earned defensive MVP honors in the team's dominant victory over Liberty in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.

The excitement is building ...

If you follow what is available on Youtube, which probably matches stuff not available there, the excitement for this one and for seasons to come is building to a head 'spoding level. We'll see how much is realistic but. for now, Wow!! Not many of us, especially those of us who have been through bunch of decades of life, none of our past dreams dreams are listed on the current slate. New ones are under construction.

When you start picking the winners in the weekly guessing contest this year you will be in a different candy store, not having tasted what is in this one. And, I picked up a box of older, certainly not Dan Fouts or Amahd Rashad old but still old, football cards including several players most of whom, if not all, you will remember. I'll list them when we start the guessing.

It's interesting to watch as more and more sites fall into the "Phil Knight is 86 and wants to buy a national champion before he dies" school. Then there are the BIG10 diehards, who also don't realize the conference is well beyond the number in the old title and at a higher level . It is no longer the BIG2 and Little Eight. They might have to do a little re-thinking. By the way, you'll not find me using anything other than the B1G when I refer to the conference via title. Yep, I'm sure Phil is opening the vault to help out but I think Scott clarified it a little. Is Oregon number one in NIL? I'm thinking not but I don't know. That the Ducks are in the running for the number one class, after pulling in the number two portal class this year, makes me about as happy as I have ever been in my sports world. J D Pickell calls them Oregon Unlimited (not the already taken Ducks Unlimited). I don't really care how much money was spent or where it came from.

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Personally I am elated that my daughters fixed me up with this thing called "Alexa" when they visited from way over there on your side of the country. I'm sure at least some of you know what that is but, hell, I'm 76. The great thing besides being able to revisit the music of my youth without a lot of trouble is that when I say "Alexa .. play KUGN radio." she does. Now I can Listen to most Duck sports without bothersome adds I get when tuning in on the internet, some of which override the broadcast. YIPPEE !!!

For Natty-dream chasers, the game got easier with twelve teams getting golden tickets. They might seem cheaper but Oregon will still gets through the door where they will have to earn their way to the top and the dream will be just as grand if achieved.

I'm getting warmed up with less than two months before the first whistle and a few more after that before we know how the recruiting went.

quivers a little
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