They will bounce back. Our expectations were probably too high. Our offensive line & most of our defense is so green, the playmaking WR just isn't there, and the leadership of guys like Casey Matthews, Jeff Maehl, Brandon Bair, etc . . . that's a lot to overcome. What we saw last night was that this isn't a national championship contending team. Forget the 4 t/o's. They eye test told you that LSU was the more physical, more athletic team. If Lee wasn't such a stiff, they could have really taken us to the woodshed. That said, the season isn't over. I don't think they are good enough to run the table, but if they lost a couple of more games, win the Pac-10 Championship, win the Rose Bowl, and go 11-3 is that a bad season? Of course not. We just need to put last year behind us. Different time, different team. Those seasons don't happen every year, not even for juggernaut programs like Alabama or Oklahoma.
12 penalties, 4 TOs, and our "Heisman trophy candidate" held to 54 yards/ 3 yrds per carry. Also , the defense was the reverse of last season - wearing down instead of getting stronger in the 2nd half. I'm not saying it is all on the coaching staff, or that Kelly should be fired.....but this is not a great team and did not deserve to be rated in the top 10.
I'm definitely not jumping off the bandwagon. I think it's a little disappointing because I had told myself after losing to Auburn that we would have another shot at it with LMJ returning and some of our big names still on the team. It doesn't look that way after the loss last night. Playing LSU in the first game of the season, on hostile ground, and with a number of true freshman sure seems like a bad idea in hind site. We rolled the dice on a chance that could have put us in the drivers seat to return to the NC and we came up snake eyes. I still predict that we will win the Pac 12 and will most likely go to the Rose Bowl. No big loss, I just had really wanted that NC. On the bright side, DAT sure looks like a star. After a good solid year on the team I suspect he will put on some more muscle and take over for LMJ when he graduates.
The loss, while being most disappointing, doesn't make me want a big change right now. I watched as the ducks got more and more frustrated and started letting a lot of things slip. Thomas looked like he wanted Jeff Maehl back more then anything else and seemed to timid to run when the few if far between openings showed up. We just seemed like a team that got overwhelmed with the pressure and made way to many mistakes. Another shot at a NC title would have been nice but I was hoping for another good season to show the top recruits that we are a program that will constantly succeed so we can have better recruiting classes then last year for years to come.
Even before last night, I was already thinking a NC run might have to wait until NEXT season. We're just so young. Of course, LMJ would have to come back for a Senior Season for that to even be a consideration. If we can't play in another NC game, then let's go WIN a Rose Bowl! With all of the success the program has had in recent years, we still haven't done that.
I would attribute this to the Defense being on the field for the majority of the 2nd half The Defense did just fine IMO. What was the average length drives LSU had I wonder? I wouldnt think many were more than 40.
True, but the Ducks often "lost" the time of possesion battle last season, but more than compensated with their depth. This team doesn't look as deep.
correct they often lost the TOP and I expect it to be the same this year. But I cant recall many times where they were on the field for such a high percentage of a half. Except for maybe Stanford in 09? (although this game they were on the field so much because of TO's)
I'm no Oregon fan, but I laugh a bit on the inside when I see threads like this b/c I know where you were in 1994. You wouldn't have been able to schedule a neutral-site game with a top 25 team, much less have a chance at beating them. First games with young teams against good teams end up like this sometimes. Not everyone can be an offensive and defensive powerhouse in their first game like Navy.
It's not relevant to say "I know who you were in 1994". That was a generation ago. Forest Gump and Pulp Fiction came out that year for Pete's sake.
So in your opinion, how long would it take for, say, Iowa State, or Indiana, or Vanderbilt, or Kansas, or Connecticut to go from where they are today to become teams who could schedule Top 5 teams on neutral turf after being to 2 BCS games in a row?
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sorry about that.. my wife figured out how to sign up for this site. I'll try and keep her from doing it again.
just to follow up on this a little more. LSU had the ball for 13+ Minutes of the 3rd Quarter. No defense is gonna get stronger over the 2nd half when you are being Battering Rammed(is that a term?) for that much time straight almost with no rest. The Defense was not the problem Saturday night. http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/drivechart?gameId=312460099
