I do enjoy the occasional welcome diversion from the issues of the day. One of them came across my sight this afternoon.
The Oregon Ducks played the Ohio State Buckeyes in a college football game in Columbus, Ohio. The Buckeyes were ranked No. 3 in the nation; the Ducks came in as the No. 12-ranked outfit.
The Ducks won the game in the stadium they call “The Shoe.” It was filled with 100,000 or so screaming fans. Dare I say they weren’t wearing masks? Oh, what the hey … I’ll save that one for another time.
I am an Oregon native. I didn’t attend the U of O, but I cheer for them when they show up on national TV. I did so today, alarming Toby the Puppy when it appeared near the end of the game the Ducks would win.
We all need to have our attention yanked away from those things that dominate the TV airwaves, or the printed pages of newspapers, or our computer screens.
My wife and I rolled out early this morning to attend a 9/11 commemoration at a fire station in Princeton, Texas, where we now live. It was a wonderful event. They played “Taps.” They hoisted the flag and then lowered it to half-staff. The deputy fire chief delivered some heartfelt remarks about the heroism we all witnessed 20 years ago today when the terrorists attacked us.
Then we went about our day.
I took some time away from scouring news sites for matters on which to comment. I just cheered for my favorite college football team.
Dang! It was great to see the Oregon Ducks win a huge football game in front of the whole nation.
I did not have time to watch that game today. I really wish I had. I was happy to hear they beat OSU. I have no idea how but I became a Ducks fan several years ago. Maybe it was their uniforms or perhaps the coach they had at the time. I don’t recall his name right now, but he went to the NFL and flopped. Not his fault at all. He simply found out the professional egos couldn’t handle his coaching style. I thought he was a good coach. I’m not sure what the folks of Oregon thought of him. I’m curious to know if you know???
Was it Chip Kelly?
Yep. It was Kelly. I didn’t think he would cut it as a pro coach. I didn’t say so on this blog, but you’ll just have to believe me. Kelly’s problem as a pro coach is that he was dealing with players who are millionaires and who just don’t respond to coaching orders the way college kids do. He’s at UCLA now and doing pretty well. Hey, thanks for cheering on the Ducks.
Kelly wasn’t loved universally in Eugene. He is a bit of a quirky guy. Kinda goofy at times. FYI, it was his offensive coordinator, Mark Helfrich — who succeeded him as head coach — who recruited Marcus Mariota to enroll at U of O. He went to Honolulu to look at someone else, but spotted Mariota during a HS football game. Mariota lit ’em up and Helfrich was so impressed he called Kelly and said, “Hey, coach, you oughta see this kid in action” … or words to that effect.
He seemed like the Mike Leach of Oregon, but wasn’t sure. Probably not that eccentric. I’ve always felt the real meat of the coaching is the offensive and defensive coordinators. The head coach is more of the face of the team. Great find with Mariota!
Completely agree with you pro coaching assessment of Kelly. Professional players, especially the QB’s and running backs basically call the shots on pro teams. More times than not, the players should be the ones fired for not winning. But then again, a great coach finds a way to get his players to follow him.
I agree that Kelly had a certain Leach-y quality about him. Just a tad off-center at times. Except that I believe Kelly actually played FB in college; I think he went to a small school. I wish him well, but I believe he hit his high-water mark at Oregon.
One more point then I’m out. The Ducks’ defensive program has suffered terribly in recent years. Even when they were winning, they did so by outscoring the other guys. Lots of 45-35 games, that kinda thing. They seem to have found a defensive coordinator who knows how to coach these young men into getting key stops. We saw that against Ohio State. The defense won that game with QB sacks and that amazing interception.
I just watched the key plays on YouTube TV. It really was a great game. And your correct, their defense was instrumental in the win. If they continue to play like that, who knows what the season may bring. God luck!!
Thanks for the good wishes. The Ducks have let me down too often to get very excited just yet. AP poll puts ’em at No. 4, which puts the Ducks in the playoff hunt. Here’s hoping for more success.