New Duck Football Center not paying off

[SlyPokerDog]

Some might disagree but IMO the new Duck Football Center was built more for recruiting than it was to take care of the players on the team. Some shock and awe to take our recruiting to the next level.

Our recruiting didn't take that next level jump and some would argue it hasn't even maintained the level of success that we've enjoyed in recent years.

 

[Wheels]

I'm interested to see how it goes next year. Next year the West Coast is LOADED with Talent, and its a bit easier to convince those kids to stay in the same Time zone, than to jump over 1 or 2.

I def want every great kid, but recruiting #1 is location, location, location. Its why the usual powers over history can come back even after a few down years.

 

[Zalsa]

See: Joe Mixon, that fresno Michah(?), the Arizona kids, they went out east. No one out East aside from TJ wants to come here.

Ugggh

 

[Wheels]

See: Joe Mixon, that fresno Michah(?), the Arizona kids, they went out east. No one out East aside from TJ wants to come here.

Ugggh

Mixon and Quick went to Oklahoma. Midwest, I'd hardly put them in the same boat as Tony James coming all the way across country. Not sure what Arizona boys you are referring to going east. So if you are looking just eastern direction in general (when compared to the west coast) Here are the list of kids who committed from Non West Coast schools.
WR Jalen Brown - AZ, OL Tyrell Crosby Nevada, DE Justin Hollins TX, RB Tony James FL, DE Jalen Jelks AZ, DB Mattrell McGraw Louisiana, ATH Charles Nelson FL, DB Arrion Springs TX, LB Jimmie Swain KS

 

[BLAZER PROPHET]

Some might disagree but IMO the new Duck Football Center was built more for recruiting than it was to take care of the players on the team. Some shock and awe to take our recruiting to the next level.

Our recruiting didn't take that next level jump and some would argue it hasn't even maintained the level of success that we've enjoyed in recent years.

I agree. A monument for recruiting that has failed.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

I agree. A monument for recruiting that has failed.

I wouldn't go so far to say it's failed but the early returns are a little disappointing.

 

[Zalsa]

I count Arizona and Nevada as WC due to that they share the same timezone.

From what I can see:

Arizona
Kyle Allen, Qualen Cunningham to TAMU
Andrew Mike to Florida
Mark Andrews and Natrel Curtis to Oklahoma

Nevada
Nick Gates to Nebraska

California
Mixon, Quick, Dallas Todd, to Oklamhoma
Nifae Lealao to Vanderbilt(followed Mason)

While it was great getting Springs, Swain, McGraw, and Hollins, I felt like there could have been more.

 

[Quack U!]

I've heard rumblings that our D line Coach Ron Aiken is not easy to get along with and many D line players are tuning him out. If that's the case it may translate into why our DT's this year were non existent in recruiting.

 

[Natebishop3]

I think what most disappointed me is that we never really saw the improved recruiting that we were supposed to get from playing in a natty. Out of all the top teams in the rankings, I feel like we have the worst recruiting by far. It doesn't seem like the uniforms and the facilities and the consistently high ranking mean much when trying to convince top recruits to come here. We've had guys go to the NFL and be successful, but that doesn't seem to matter either.

I think this is what I find most frustrating about recruiting and why I stopped following it closely.

 

[Wheels]

I've heard rumblings that our D line Coach Ron Aiken is not easy to get along with and many D line players are tuning him out. If that's the case it may translate into why our DT's this year were non existent in recruiting.

in before the "is that what you HEARD" penis measuring post!










.
but seriously thank you for posting what you are heard (not sarcasm)

 

[Wheels]

guys say it with me again. Location!

 

[Natebishop3]

guys say it with me again. Location!

If I was a highly touted recruit, I would play in Alaska if I thought it presented me with the best chance to get to the NFL.

1) The Ducks get on national TV a lot because of their style of play. IE that's exposure for guys that want to go pro.

2) The Ducks have consistently been at the top of the rankings for the last few years. That's also exposure.

3) Our offense seems to really highlight the abilities of speed positions. If I was a speedy RB or WR I would most definitely want to be at UO. If I was a TE I probably wouldn't pick the Ducks.

 

[PapaG]

guys say it with me again. Location!

This class averages more stars than any class in UO history at 3.4, if I'm not mistaken. It's a smaller class of 20, because a lot of players are coming back from last year, but being disappointed with it seems like a lot of whining. Try being a UW fan today. Outside of Baker, it's a Mountain West Conference class.

Pac-12 star ratings:

USC 3.79
UCLA 3.56
Stanford 3.48
Oregon 3.4

UW 3.0
OS 2.7

The sky is falling!! :MARIS61:

 

[santeesioux]

in before the "is that what you HEARD" penis measuring post!










.
but seriously thank you for posting what you are heard (not sarcasm)

I heard that Wheels likes weaboo games like Ni No Kuni, what a nerd!

 

[Wheels]

If I was a highly touted recruit, I would play in Alaska if I thought it presented me with the best chance to get to the NFL.

1) The Ducks get on national TV a lot because of their style of play. IE that's exposure for guys that want to go pro.

2) The Ducks have consistently been at the top of the rankings for the last few years. That's also exposure.

3) Our offense seems to really highlight the abilities of speed positions. If I was a speedy RB or WR I would most definitely want to be at UO. If I was a TE I probably wouldn't pick the Ducks.

You also get a ton of exposure much much closer to home (Talent rich areas) in Los Angeles, Tuscaloosa, Baton Rouge (New Orleans), Tallahassee, Gainesville, etc etc.

Those teams also churn out NFL prospect after NFL prospect while getting tons of exposure.

 

[RR7]

On national TV a lot? I feel like they're never even on locally. They always seem to be on the dumb PAC 12 channel instead of being on ABC when they have afternoon games.

 

[PapaG]

If I was a highly touted recruit, I would play in Alaska if I thought it presented me with the best chance to get to the NFL.

1) The Ducks get on national TV a lot because of their style of play. IE that's exposure for guys that want to go pro.

2) The Ducks have consistently been at the top of the rankings for the last few years. That's also exposure.

3) Our offense seems to really highlight the abilities of speed positions. If I was a speedy RB or WR I would most definitely want to be at UO. If I was a TE I probably wouldn't pick the Ducks.

The strength of Oregon has always been skill players on offense, and fast LBs and DBs on defense.

 

[Wheels]

This class averages more stars than any class in UO history. It's a small class,

exactly. Overall rankings on sites dont take into account just average stars, they look at total points. People Tend to forget that alot. A Class with five 4* players and 15 2* players could come out with a higher "class ranking" than a class with 8 4* Players and 5 3* players

 

[Wheels]

I heard that Wheels likes weaboo games like Ni No Kuni, what a nerd!

Ni No Kuni kicks ass!!!! Although I havent beaten it yet, so no spoilers!

 

[Natebishop3]

The strength of Oregon has always been skill players on offense, and fast LBs and DBs on defense.

Yeah, and that's why our defense was so weak last season. We didn't replace the LBs that we had just lost in terms of production, although I have no idea how you replace Clay, Jordan, and Alonso in one year.

 

[Targus]

Likely to be off with this thought but the new center complimented Kelly well. Sure kids are impressed and it is nice and all...and it helps us in the PacNW and even against LA/AZ schools...but, really...what elite talent is going to choose rainy and boring Eugene over playing for Saban at Bama or Mad Hatter at LSU?

I think the effect is, 'impressive', but in the end, elite talent wants to join elite talent. Anyone seen the class and size that Bama brought in? Crap.

 

[Natebishop3]

Likely to be off with this thought but the new center complimented Kelly well. Sure kids are impressed and it is nice and all...and it helps us in the PacNW and even against LA/AZ schools...but, really...what elite talent is going to choose rainy and boring Eugene over playing for Saban at Bama or Mad Hatter at LSU?

I think the effect is, 'impressive', but in the end, elite talent wants to join elite talent. Anyone seen the class and size that Bama brought in? Crap.

Yup. We took a huge blow by losing CK.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

How did Chris Peterson and the Huskies do?

 

[PapaG]

Yeah, and that's why our defense was so weak last season. We didn't replace the LBs that we had just lost in terms of production, although I have no idea how you replace Clay, Jordan, and Alonso in one year.

The defense wasn't "weak," and rarely can teams replace the #3 overall pick, and savvy player like Clay, and the guy who should have been NFL Def. Rookie of the Year with the same level of player. It doesn't work that way.

 

[santeesioux]

Ni No Kuni kicks ass!!!! Although I havent beaten it yet, so no spoilers!

You ever play those Persona games? I'm thinking about trying those with the 5th one being announced.

 

[OneLifeToLive]

See: Joe Mixon, that fresno Michah(?), the Arizona kids, they went out east. No one out East aside from TJ wants to come here.

Ugggh

It's a pretty weak class especially for a program who had appeared to take the next step. It might be fine to get a weaker class if you could coach. The problem is there is no certainty Mr. Helfrich can coach. This program maybe just about ready to come crashing down.

 

[Quack U!]

Oregon got kids from all over the country this year! How many did Chip get from Louisiana, Kansas and Florida? Had we gotten JuJu, Trey and Poona not a word would be said. JuJu had USC as a favorite since childhood, Trey has family in LSU and he's in love with nightlife more than ball! Poona followed his coach to Texas and after watching him interviewed today think we may have gotten the better of that deal. There's not anyone else I would have wanted that we didn't get! We got Freeman, Springs, McGraw, Swain, James, Mahalak, Talia, Lousi and Brown. This was a weak DT class nationally to begin with. 7 in the top 100 nationally for those who would fill our needs. I'm not sure why this is a disappointment rather than a victory. We basically need a few DT's and we are set at every other position.

As for Helfrich, he coached a team with a brand new LB chore, no Dion Jordan, Marcus with a heavily sprained MCL for most of the year and DAT who decided to sit out his Jr. year! Lost two games and beat Texas!

I think we'll be fine!

 

[Wheels]

guys say it with me again. Location!

Just thought I'd further up on this cause I was curious and snowed in on my lunch break.

I did some research using the Rivals Final Top 100 prospects Found Here

I only got through the first 20 Prospects so far, so its a small sample size. And of course there will always be outliers. But I decided to take the city they were from and Mapquested that city to the school they signed with. I took the first "Suggested Route" when multiple ones were offered (Those were usually longer anyway)

Here is what I came up with. (The outliers are RB Joe Mixon going 1619 Miles from home to OU, and LB Bo Scarbrough going 3 miles from home to Bama)

Using all 20 Players I totaled 8,381 Miles away from Home for College, which comes to an average of 419.05 Miles if Kids leaving home for school.

Excluding the outliers it comes to 6,759 total miles or an average of 375.50 Miles.

anyhell just thought it made for some interesting evidence towards why its so hard for Oregon to get those Monster classes every year, like we always want.

DE- Da’Shawn Hand – Woodbridge VA to Alabama (Tuscaloosa) 798 Mi

DE - Myles Garrett – Arlington TX. To Texas A&M (College Station) 180 Mi

DB – Jabrill Peppers – Paramus NJ to Michigan (Ann Arbor) 650 Mi

RB – Leonard Fournette – New Orleans LA to LSU (Baton Rouge) 80 Mi

DB – Quin Blanding – Virginia Beach VA to Virginia (Charlottesville) 175 MI

ATH- Adoree Jackson – Gardena VA to USC (Los Angeles) 15 Mi

QB – Kyle Allen - Scottsdale AZ to Texas A&M (College Station) 1120 Miles

RB – Joe Mixon Oakley CA to Oklahoma (Norman) 1619 Mi

DB – Marlon Humphrey – Hoover AL to Alabama (Tuscaloosa) 52 mi

DB – Jalen Tabor – Washington DC to Florida (Gainesville) 778 Mi

WR Travis Rudolph – West Palm Beach FL to Florida St (Tallahassee) 417 Mi

RB – Racean Thomas – Oxford AL to Auburn (Auburn) 92 Mi

RB – Sony Michel – Plantation FL to Georgia (Athens) 654 Mi

LB – Rashaan Evans – Auburn Al to Alabama (Tuscaloosa) 160 Mi

WR – Malachi Dupre – River Ridge LA to LSU (Baton Rouge) 74 mi

ATH – Bo Scarbrough – Northport AL to Alabama (Tuscaloosa) 3 mi (in Tuscaloosa County)

OL – Cameron Robinson – West Monroe LA to Alabama (Tuscaloosa) 304 Miles

RB – Dalvin Cook – Miami FL to Florida St (Tallahassee) 484 Mi

LB – raekwon McMillain – Hinesvilla GA to Ohio St (Columbus) 709 Mi

OL Damian Prince – Forestville MD to Maryland (College Park Maryland) 17 Mi

 

[Quack U!]

We need to have an in state tuition match for athletes families who want to attend U of O "who can get in" with Samoa, Tonga, Hawaii and Fiji. We'll bring the D and O Lines here and their families too. Pacific Islanders have a HUGE sense of family, maybe it would help to corner that market.

 

[STOMP]

guys say it with me again. Location!

Uncle Phil should build new Duck Football Ops buildings in Texas and SoCal then

I've watched Helfrich's press conference a couple times now. Throughout the recruiting process coaches aren't allowed to comment on specific recruits so the initial presser is usually filled with good insights into recruiting and the state of the program. Anyway, a little over 4 minutes in MH was asked if distance was a bigger factor in recruiting then the relationships built with coaches. He said (paraphrasing) that overall the #1 determining factor for recruits is distance... guys tend to stay close to home. #2 is winning.

So Oregon doesn't have (& never will) the most important factor in landing guys going in their favor but they've somehow been doing awesome with #2. The kid who grew up in Texas rooting for UT tends to commit to a Longhorn's offer, or at least stay within close proximity to Mom's cooking (see Budda Trey & Juju). Lacking a rich pipeline of local talent, Oregon is after the remaining kids who are willing to leave. While great facilities & coaches help develop talent, it really helps if the kid has the sort of personal makeup to put in the work on & off the field. How much of UO's success is due to them targeting recruits they feel have high character? As Helfrich said early on, a 5* kid is less then a coin flip to turn out, so the Oregon staff tries to "manage the knowns" with the guys they go after. He made light of the recruiting site's big day and congratulated them for turning NSD into a business, but as with Kelly he alluded to Oregon's ranking of recruits being very different. Speaking about their process he relayed the staff has been in over 1,000 High Schools this past year. I'm sure we'll see a few of the 3* guys from this class blossom because they always do. Who's going to be the next Michael Clay, Hronnis Grasu or Johnny Mundt? It's of course impossible to really parse out the factors in recruiting, but I bet the New Ops building is only helping them land & then develop their sort of guys, keeping factor #2 working in their favor

STOMP