At One Click Sports News, we try to provide Duck sports news in ‘one click’. Unfortunately, that’s not the case all of the time. In this particular instance, we could have linked (or not linked) to this site on our main page without any comment. But we just could not do that. And after watching the video and reading the comments, we think you’ll agree.

So, if you did not get to see the end of the OSN broadcast of the Oregon-Arizona football game, take a look at it here and read the comments (”Oregon’s Commentators Don’t Seem To Understand College Football”).

I had family at the Arizona game. And I’ll tell you this: they are never going to a game at Arizona again. The facilities are terrible, and the fans are worse.

Did anyone else have a less than enjoyable experience at the Arizona game?

JJ

So, does Ken Goe (“What if Willingham, not Bellotti, had been coaching Dixon?”) have a point? Willingham benched Jake Locker after a serious injury. Should Bellotti have done the same with Dennis Dixon?

JJ

Already, it’s become very clear that football questions this week will have very little to do with the upcoming game in Los Angeles against the Bruins.  If the early headlines are any indication, this week will have everything to do with the decisions surrounding Dennis Dixon’s choice to play in last Thursday’s Arizona game.

So, here’s the question: what would you have done if you were in Coach Bellotti’s position?  Would you have let Dixon play?  Would you have held him out?  Would you have deferred the decision to others?

What call would you have made?

JJ

I’m sitting here in the Denver Airport (along with some wrestlers headed to Eugene for tomorrow’s event) waiting for a flight back to Eugene and I began to wonder why what has happened to this football season has got such a hold of me. Maybe it’s the fact that 3 or 4 people came up to me (proudly wearing my Duck gear) in the airport to say such things as: “Bummer about your Ducks, they were fun to watch” and “Man, sucks about Dixon, he was going to win the Heisman.” The country knew it. So did we.

As a lifetime Duck fan, I’ve been through some tough times (Seattle Bowl and last year’s Las Vegas Bowl come to mind recently). But this one is different.

Last year was tough, but it became evident as the season wore on that we were merely being exposed for what kind of team we really were: one with no chemistry or confidence, the key ingredient for any winning team.

Last September, as we left Autzen Stadium having just defeated Oklahoma, there was the feeling that anything was possible: how far could this team go? But as we got home and turned on the TV we came to find out what most had already known, they had blown the call to end the game and the Ducks had been given a gift. From that point on, the season unravelled until we reached one of the most embarrassing moments in UO football history: the Las Vegas Bowl.

All of that had most fans wary of a repeat this year. We knew we had the talent, but would those key ingredients be present or would most pre-season prognosticators be correct, picking the Ducks to finish in the middle of the Pac-10?

I know I felt this way. I had a wait and see attitude all year. But when we beat USC and ASU back to back, I finally allowed myself, despite all the injuries, the believe this might be the year. And just about then is when Dixon went down in the fourth quarter against ASU. And the hopes and dreams of a special season went down with Dixon. But wait! It’s only a sprain, he’ll be okay. Just a slight scare…

So back came the feelings that this was a special season, backed by Dixon’s first quarter TD run against Arizona. Until he went down a couple series later for the final time. That was it.

What hurts most about losing the game at Arizona isn’t so much the number added to the loss column. We’ve experienced many of those. But rather, its what was lost:

• Dennis Dixon, a great story of success from last years woes, to the baseball diamond, to the top of most everyone Heisman list. While he’s just one of many important players to go down for the season, he’s the rudder that steers Chip’s ship.
• A chance at the national championship. The tough part about this is that its hard to know how to distribute your anger here. If we’d been bowled over by the BCS much like 2001, we could have directed our anger there. In forums and around water coolers the “we got screwed” banter would have been heard. As it is, we’re tempted to blame Bellotti for letting Dixon play, or not telling the press or the rest of the team about the extent of his injury. But it was Dixon and his family’s decision. So that blame is harder to pass.

We’re stuck with the realization that this is football, a great game of ups and downs, wins and losses, injustice and injuries. I for one, despite knowing what has been lost, will be rooting for the Ducks and one win closer to a shot at the Rose Bowl.

We’ve lost much this season. That, no one in the country will argue. But we still have plenty to gain.

– rw

With reports coming out of Michigan that Lloyd Carr is going to announce his retirement on Monday, ESPN Radio has started speculating who might take over at Michigan. And guess who’s name came up? Boise State’s Chris Petersen? Yes. Wake Forest’s Jim Grobe? Yes. And…of course, Mike Bellotti.

So, if you were Mike Bellotti, what would it take for you to consider going to the University of Michigan?

Ducks fans, you know how you’re feeling right now.  But do you know how the rest of the Pac 10 feels about your team?  Do they feel your pain?  Not exactly.

Here’s a sampling from around the Pac 10 blogosphere.  Mind you, this is only a compilation, a very sour sampler.  This is not a compendium of forum and message board comments.  If want to get a glimpse into a fan’s online soul, go the message boards and forums to take a look at your own risk.

Arizona - Not available.

Arizona State - “Tucson, AZ: Where BCS Dreams Go To Die”

Cal - Not available.

OSU -”Oregon Ducks Suck Against Arizona”

Stanford - Not available.

UCLA -”No Dixon”

USC - “Dixon out with a Torn ACL”

Washington - “Wow….34-24 Arizona Over Oregon”

And we saved the worst for last…

Washington State - “WHAAAAAAA! WHAAA!”

Josh Wilcox is going over the the middle, again.

This week, OneClickSportsNews is proud to introduce a new weekly feature and contributor to DuckSportsNews.com, Wilcox Over The Middle.  As the Ducks make their title run, visitors to DuckSportsNews.com are throwing ideas at Josh to see what happens.  Even we don’t know what’s going to happen, but we know it’s going to be honest.

The Junction City, Oregon native was a four-year letterman with Ducks.  In the Rose Bowl Season of 1994 against Arizona, Danny O’Neil threw 15 yards to Josh for the game’s only touchdown early in the fourth quarter as Oregon came from behind to win 10-9.  Arizona was ranked No. 11 by The Associated Press and ranked 23d by The New York Times computer.  Josh went on to catch 11 passes for 135 yards against Penn State in the 1995 Rose Bowl.  After finishing his career at Oregon, Josh went on to play for the New Orleans Saints in the NFL.

Now it’s time to send Wilcox over the middle…
Dave in Portland, OR wrote:
The turning point of the 1994 (Rose Bowl) season was…

Josh:
The turning point of the 1994 (Rose Bowl) season was…“The Pick”. We were 2-1 in the Pac having won a huge game at USC with outstanding play from Graz, but got beat bad at WSU. Cal was a good win and in came the highly ranked and hated Huskies. We got up, they came back, we had a drive, and then they started making plays, and everyone was wondering what would happen. Were these the old Ducks and would Washington come back and win one? NO. This play stands for more than just the Rose Bowl; it stands for where the program is today. Let’s not forget that part of the disdain for the Huskies was due to their success, and now we are the ones with consistent success and high expectations!

Bob in Eugene, OR wrote:
Playing at Arizona Stadium is like…

Josh:
Playing at Arizona Stadium is like…playing a game of 2-2 tackle football with your brother and buddies at your buddies house on his lawn, with his rules. You know it will be a tough game, a fight, but you are ready. You don’t know if they will spread you out and throw it, or run it at you, or even pull out the option. You know they can always “D” you up because that is the family tradition; they learned it from their older brothers. There will be injuries, you will be tired, sore, and beat up, but the victory over someone you respect is the ultimate.

Ryan in Seattle, WA wrote:
If Oregon was running the spread offense when I played, I would have…

Josh:
If Oregon was running the spread offense when I played, I would have…most likely been on the bench holding coach Greatwood’s cords. Actually I think that having speed on the outside only can open up the middle and short routes we used to run. We did a lot of two tight end stuff which opened it up for lots of us. But I don’t think I am exactly a prototype for a tight end in that offense, but success is not always up to your bench press and forty times. Sometimes it takes heart, desire, courage, and brains to be a football player. I mean look at Jed Weaver, Blake Spence, Justin Peelle, Willy Tate, Jeff Thomason, all great tight ends at the University of Oregon and none would dazzle you in the weight room or on the track, but when it came to playing football, their production does not lie.

Pat in Gresham, OR wrote:
Players on the University of Kentucky’s football team think Coach Brooks is…

Josh:
Players on the University of Kentucky’s football team think Coach Brooks is…a great coach, but an even better man. He is a coach who has evolved through the years as players have, but one thing about him is that he is loyal to his players, and he cares. You could see the losses eat at him, and you could hear the joy in his voice during victory speeches. Despite his critics he keeps his head held high, and always has his player’s backs. He has also taken two teams in the two toughest conferences in the nation and made them contenders. There are not many better coaches out there. It is a pretty neat thing to have two coaches you played for that are two of the best in America at what they do.

Jeff in Denver, CO wrote:
New Orleans is the best city in the country to…

Josh:
New Orleans is the best city in the country to…visit. New Orleans was a fun place to live, but I missed the tree’s and mountains and west coast feel. However when it comes to food, drinks, and having a good old time, New Orleans is the place to do it. I went back for a wedding in March of 2006 and it is sad to see some of the devastation which occurred to some of the historic areas. There were some beautiful French style houses which just got destroyed. The people there are very friendly and you will get that down home southern feel. If you’re looking for lo-cal and fat free, you might want to go somewhere else. If your looking to hear some blue’s, eat some oysters, and have a few adult beverages then don’t skip Bourbon Street. There is a lot more than just Bourbon Street and some of those places off the beaten path are actually the best.
Would you like to send “Wilcox Over The Middle”? If so, go to OneClickSportsNews.com or leave a comment and throw one to Josh to see where he goes with it