This article from Ducks Sports Authority discusses the high school McDonald’s All-American hoop practice on Sunday. One paragraph mentioned Oregon recruit Michael Dunigan:
Michael Dunigan’s workmanlike attitude served him well in the practice. While the mode of the West practice was attempting the difficult play, Dunigan kept it simple and finished with strength around the rim. Oregon will benefit greatly from his physical and serious minded approach to the game.
Jay, here.
A couple of weeks ago, a thread (”DuckD’s In-Depth Pre-Spring Depth Chart”) from one of the eDuck message boards came across my desk here at Duck Sports News and caught my attention.
So, I decided to shoot an email to DuckD to see I could share his analysis with other Duck fans through Duck Sports News. Upon completing his preview, he was more than happy to email his entire entry (Thank you, DuckD).
Instead of publishing the entire entry here, I’ve decided to break it up into more bite-size parts over the course of several days. Here’s a look at the schedule:
Offense
Friday, March 21st: Quarterback
Saturday, March 22nd: Running Back
Sunday, March 23rd: Wide Receiver
Monday, March 24th: Tight End, Half Back
Tuesday, March 25th: Offensive Line
Defense
Wednesday, March 26th: Defensive End
Thursday, March 27th: Defensive Tackle
Friday, March 28th: Linebacker
Saturday, March 29th: Cornerback
Sunday, March 30th: Safety
Here’s DuckD’s preview of the Wide Receiver position:
DuckD’s Spring Preview: WIDE RECEIVER
Probable Starter: Jaison Williams sr., Derrick Jones jr., Jeffrey Maehl so.
Depth: Drew Davis so., Jamere Holland so., Terence Scott sr., Aaron Pflugrad so.
Incoming: Ellis Krout jr., Blake Cantu fr., Dion Jordan fr., Garrett Embry fr.
Analysis: Jaison, Jaison, Jaison… If he can pull a Dixon and gain some confidence/consistency for his senior season, I can honestly say that it is entirely possible that he could win the Belitnikoff Award this fall. His size and speed are such a freakish combination that just about anything is possible for J-Will if he can improve upon the mental aspect of the game. Here’s hoping he can put it all together for a season we will all remember for a long, long time.
Jones is a burner, pure and simple. The main issue with Derrick is his commitment to staying out of the doghouse by doing everything that is required of him, and it might not hurt if he stuck around this summer to work out with the rest of his teammates. With Derrick’s mostly off-field issues of the past year, I have to feel that he is walking a pretty thin rope right now. If he can get his head on straight, he has enormous potential on the field. He could make a huge impact at WR as well as in the return game.
Maehl was damn near remarkable last fall. He came in as a true freshman, gained a spot in the rotation at free safety (accumulating 14 tackles including 1 for loss), and then gets switched to WR where he wound up starting (and caught 9 balls for 118 yards and 1 TD, as well as gaining 34 yards on 3 rushing plays). He also showed outstanding hands, getting absolutely drilled against 0S(U) while making the catch. Not only making the catch, but then hopping up and jumping around excitedly as if he hadn’t even been touched! Also doesn’t hurt that he scored a TD against the Beavers. Maehl is going to be very difficult to keep off the field, regardless of if he stays on offense or if he goes back to defense. And either way he is going to be great.
Davis, I think, is poised to make a big push for a starting spot this year. He has a great combination of size, speed, hands, and ability. He didn’t see the field much last year, but that was more due to the extraordinary talents of J-Will and the solid blocking and all-around game of Garren Strong, than the lack of his own ability. Davis will be a solid contributor at the very least this fall.
Jamere Holland will finally get an opportunity to show what he can do this spring and fall. He has been working out with the guys and gaining knowledge of the system. Like Jones, he has outstanding speed. Will be interesting to see how willing a blocker he is and how he handles crossing routes, as well as possibly being a runner on option plays. Massive potential with Holland.
Scott had the “misfortune” of being a true team player last fall. Set to redshirt, he was called upon later in the year due to the injuries at WR thus burning his redshirt year. He only caught 2 balls for 4 yards while reportedly battling his own injury issues, but that is not remotely indicative of the talent that this young man possesses. He looked like a big-play waiting to happen last fall in practices. He has excellent speed and should, like many of the WR, make a push for a starting spot this spring and fall.
Aaron Pflugrad (PFLU!) reminds me a lot of Keenan Howry. Unlike Howry, I think he’s going to have his work cut out for him to gain a starting role but he should be a very solid role player with his terrific hands and excellent route running abilities. You can never have too many guys that can get open and make the clutch catch for the first down!
Ellis Krout is a JC transfer that I honestly know almost zero about. I know that he has good size (6′4″ 190) and reportedly has great speed. I hope that he’s here for spring ball, but I haven’t even heard if he’ll be here for spring or not.
Blake Cantu seems, on film, to be a bigger, faster version of Pflugrad. He runs solid routes, has great hands, and even played in a spread offense in high school so he already has some familiarity with the style. You can never have too many guys that can get open and make the clutch catch for the first down!
Dion Jordan will get tried out at WR first. There is a chance, down the line, that he may be moved to TE/HB, but I like the idea of him at WR. He has great size at 6′6″ 215, and decent speed (4.6). He is reportedly a great (and willing) blocker which will really help him see the field early for us. We need WR who can block in order to get the most effectiveness from the running game in the spread. He could be a great redzone weapon with his size, athleticism, and hands.
Garrett Embry is an intriguing prospect. Initially recruited as a potential safety, he exploded at WR as a senior and really seems to have a lot of potential at the position. Has a great physicality about him, though he will need to work on his speed to get the most of his talents. He has potentially the highest ceiling of this years recruiting class.
Tomorrow: TIGHT END, HALF BACK
Jay, here.
I’ve known Andy Papendieck for most of my life. While I wouldn’t say I know Mr. Papendieck really well, I do know three things about him. He’s a man of faith. He’s a tough basketball player. And he loves the Ducks. Even though this article in today’s Register-Guard might be considered off-topic by some, it’s close enough for me.
It’s Easter. It’s March Madness. And he’s a Duck fan. Good enough.
Click here to check out “Basketball behind bars” in today’s Register-Guard.
Jay, here.
This past Thursday, Sports Illustrated opened the vault on all of their content.
Covers. Articles. Ads. Everything.
That got me to thinking: how many times has the University of Oregon been represented on the cover of Sports Illustrated? The answer? Four. (Unfortunately, I can’t count Eugene resident Brian Lanker’s 1985 Swimsuit Issue cover photograph of Paulina Porizkova.)
Then I was curious as to how that stack up against the rest of the Pac-10. Pretty well. But, as you will see, USC and UCLA are in a league of their own.
This is not an exhaustive list (because of USC and UCLA). And the cover count only represents the instances where a school is the primary focus on the cover. For example, USC’s Todd Marinovich made the cover throwing against Stanford. But Stanford really isn’t the focus (Actually, they’re kind of oblique and out of focus.). So, that doesn’t count. And SI.com’s search feature is OK, but sometimes returns inconsistent results.
Here are the Pac-10 covers of Sports Illustrated.
Sports Illustrated Covers: OREGON - 4
Cover Dates: 06.15.70, 02.25.74, 08.13.01, 09.29.03
The Ducks kind of have one more cover. Well, a lot of schools have at least one cover, sort of, with this year’s NCAA Tournament Preview edition. Kind of like “Where’s Waldo?”, where’s Malik Hairston?
Did you find him? Look right next to the “I” in “Illustrated. And, I think, that’s Malik.
UPDATE: In the comments section, Chris pointed out that Aaron Brooks was on the cover of the 2007 NCAA Tournament Preview edition (03.19.07). I kind of put this cover in the category with the above cover: it’s nice, but doesn’t count as Oregon having a cover. That’s Aaron on the basketball.
Sports Illustrated Covers: OREGON STATE - 5
Cover Dates: 10.16.61, 01.07.63, 03.05.90, 03.23.81, 09.29.03
Sports Illustrated Covers: WASHINGTON - 3
Cover Dates: 10.03.60, 10.04.71
Thanks to Alex, there is one more from 11.24.06 that did not come up in SI’s search feature.
Sports Illustrated Covers: WASHINGTON STATE - 0
Washington State joins Arizona State as the only Pac-10 schools not to have a Sports Illustrated cover. Although, I think there is a WSU player (Cowgill?) on the cover of the 2008 NCAATournament Preview edition.
Sports Illustrated Covers: CAL - 2
Cover Dates: 11.24.75, 03.29.93
Sports Illustrated Covers: STANFORD - 5
Cover Dates: 11.08.02, 03.17.97, 11.23.98, 10.07.02, 03.29.04
Sports Illustrated Covers: ARIZONA - 4
Cover Dates: 08.29.94, 04.07.97, 04.02.01, 11.25.02
Sports Illustrated Covers: ARIZONA STATE - 0
Like Washington State, Arizona State does not have a Sports Illustrated cover to its name. Unlike Washington State, though, I don’t even think they have a player on the cover of the 2008 NCAATournament Preview edition.
Sports Illustrated Covers: USC - 31
Cover Dates: Too many. First: 11.26.56 Most Recent: 11.19.07
Sports Illustrated Covers: UCLA - 35
Cover Dates: Too many. First: 01.05.59 Most Recent: 03.18.08
Jay, here.
A couple of weeks ago, a thread (”DuckD’s In-Depth Pre-Spring Depth Chart”) from one of the eDuck message boards came across my desk here at Duck Sports News and caught my attention.
So, I decided to shoot an email to DuckD to see I could share his analysis with other Duck fans through Duck Sports News. Upon completing his preview, he was more than happy to email his entire entry (Thank you, DuckD).
Instead of publishing the entire entry here, I’ve decided to break it up into more bite-size parts over the course of several days. Here’s a look at the schedule:
Offense
Friday, March 21st: Quarterback
Saturday, March 22nd: Running Back
Sunday, March 23rd: Wide Receiver
Monday, March 24th: Tight End, Half Back
Tuesday, March 25th: Offensive Line
Defense
Wednesday, March 26th: Defensive End
Thursday, March 27th: Defensive Tackle
Friday, March 28th: Linebacker
Saturday, March 29th: Cornerback
Sunday, March 30th: Safety
Here’s DuckD’s preview of the Running Back position:
DuckD’s Spring Preview: RUNNING BACK
Probable Starter: Jeremiah Johnson sr.
Depth: Andre Crenshaw jr., Remene Alston so.
Incoming: LaGarrette Blount jr., LaMichael James fr.
Analysis: As with the QB position, we should be set at RB if Jeremiah Johnson can fully recover physically and mentally from his knee surgery. JJ has been a terrific player the past 3 (well 2.5 I guess ) seasons, averaging over 6 yards per carry for his career. Career rushing, 181 carries for 1135 yards and 17 TDs. He also is adept as a pass catcher and solid blocker, as well as special teams standout (though I don’t know if he’ll play much ST this fall as the starting RB). Many have felt that JJ’s talents are a better fit for the spread offense than Snoop’s were, and if he can stay healthy we should see a great year out of JJ.
Crenshaw has proven himself to be a capable backup. When JJ went down, he stepped up, and produced solid numbers behind Snoop: 82 carries for 415 yards (including a 39 yard run at The Big House) and scoring 4 TD’s. He could use a little more power for the inside running, but much like JJ, he is a great all-around back. He will battle for #2.
Remene Alston saw very limited action last year. He has shown flashes of being a special player, but it has yet to transfer over from practice to the games. What I have seen in practices leads me to believe that he could be a solid contributor with more experience.
LaGarrette Blount comes in with some pretty sizable expectations. He has been compared to Rueben Droughns by the coaches, and has Jonathan Stewart’s shoes to fill as the “power” back. I think he will be given every opportunity to be the 1B to JJ’s 1A, or at least be the solid #2 back. Blount is a big back, but also has good moves and speed, as well as athleticism. He could be a very special player. He also reportedly would like to return punts and kicks. At 6′2, 230lbs, that is a BIG DAMN punt returner!
LaMichael James is the second of the LaBoys. He’s not a huge guy at 5′9 185, but has terrific quicks, moves, and speed. The coaches have said that he is similar to JJ, so hopefully he can bulk up a bit like JJ did (and it wouldn’t hurt if he could develop his own Stiff Arm of Death!). I think James has the kind of talent that will make it very difficult for the coaches to redshirt him this fall. He could make an instant impact as a return man, if not in the regular rotation in the offensive backfield. Regardless, James looks to be the future at RB. And the future looks bright!
Tomorrow: WIDE RECEIVER
Jay, here.
[UPDATE: You can view the Save Oregon Wrestling commercial here.]
Got a press release in my inbox this morning from David C. Nelson and SaveOregonWrestling.com. While I don’t think their efforts are going to work to save wrestling in the immediate future, the wrestlers, the program, and their supporters are proving to be tough.
When I initially read the release, my first question was, “Did Oregon intervene with ESPN to spike this spot?” SOW’s Creative Director, Hank Hosfield, notes that even though the U of O has actively tried to stop SOW from raising donations, it probably did not kill this commercial (The commercial will be online early next week.).
I can’t relate to wrestling as a sport, but I can relate to the difficult position they were put in by ESPN. You’ve got contracts signed and you think you’re ready to roll. And then…Well, we can’t air that because of a policy that was in place when we signed the contracts, but failed to tell you. If that had been the case all along, wrestling could have possibly adjusted the creative from “Save Oregon Wrestling” to something like “Congratulations Oregon Wrestling” , and backdoored the campaign (SOW to COW).
I will say this: I like the fact that the wrestlers are not kowtowing to anyone. They’re passionate, creative, and aggressive. And they’ve got moxy. Unfortunately, it’s not 1884. But what else should I expect? They’re wrestlers.
March 22, 2008
SaveOregonWrestling.com
SAVE OREGON WRESTLING TV SPOT REJECTED BY ESPN
Last minute decision to ban SOW TV spot voids contract and hampers national campaign to save Oregon wrestling.
The Save Oregon Wrestling Foundation (SOW) was informed on Wednesday (3/19/08) that its TV commercial was rejected by ESPN and would not appear at any time during its scheduled run on any ESPN channel during the network’s upcoming broadcasts of the 2008 NCAA Wrestling Championships. SOW originally purchased a slate of 11 commercial spots on ESPNU and 1 one spot on ESPN during the NCAA finals on Saturday. The commercial contracts for these commercial buys were finalized on 2/29/08. The decision to void those comes just one day before the tournament starts. Word of ESPN’s reversal was relayed to SOW via USA Wrestling’s Director of Development, Larry Nugent, who was working as an agent between SOW and ESPN to secure commercial airtime. Nugent was notified by ESPN’s Jim Thurston, who explained that the spot was yanked because: “ESPN does not accept advertising that consists of, in whole or in part, political advocacy or issue-oriented advertising.”
SOW surprised by ESPN’s sudden refusal to air TV spot.
SOW leader, Ron Finley, in St. Louis where he’s representing SOW at the NCAA tournament, heard about the decision from USAW Director of Communications, Gary Abbott, also at the tournament. Finley stated: “We’re very disappointed that they’ve stopped our message from reaching a nation of viewers, but our fight will go on.” Hank Hosfield, SOW Creative Director, who wrote the commercial and worked with USAW to produce the banned SOW TV spot, wondered with dismay: “What did ESPN think Save Oregon Wrestling is? It said right on our contract, non-profit organization. It’s hard to believe they didn’t know what we were about when they approved the initial contract. Now, out of the blue, one day before we go nationwide with our campaign and they yank us. All of the blame for this is on ESPN, but the damage is all to us, the people working to save wrestling.”
SOW will receive a full refund for the unaired commercial spots. Those spots will likely be sold to other advertisers, as ESPN’s NCAA Wrestling Championships broadcast has a backlog of sponsors seeking airtime.
Nothing controversial about SOW TV commercial.
Hosfield claims there was nothing particularly controversial about the 30-second commercial. “It was pretty tame stuff—nothing more than an appeal to fight to save wrestling. It’s hard to imagine that they would consider it very political. They express stronger editorial comment every day. I don’t see how we’re very different from United Way or some other charitable organization working to promote opportunities for youth. It’s puzzling.” Hosfield said he hadn’t seen a final edit of the banned SOW TV spot, but he was able to provide the following script of the voiceover:
VO: Oregon’s wrestling heroes include America’s first world champion, The guy who beat Gable, And another some call our most complete wrestler. But now the University of Oregon plans to drop its storied program. If a team with Oregon’s wealthy resources can vanish, how many others may follow? Let’s keep the honor roll going. Fight to save Oregon Wrestling.
Did the University of Oregon exert pressure on ESPN to squelch SOW TV spot?
When asked if he thought the University of Oregon may have exerted pressure on ESPN to drop the commercial, Hosfield expressed skepticism: “One, I think they’re smarter than that—because that would only come back to draw even more unwanted negative attention; two, I don’t think they have that kind of juice; and three, I doubt that they’re paying that much attention to us.” Hosfield did however concede that the UO was aware of the upcoming SOW commercial on ESPN, as representatives for SOW had spoken about it during a March 3, 2008 meeting with President Frohnmayer’s executive assistant, David Hubin. He also observed that the UO Athletic Department had intervened to thwart other SOW fundraising efforts, such as killing a two-paragraph story about SOW in Duck Talk, the Oregon Club of Portland’s monthly newsletter, after OCOP’s president, Ralph Cole had previously invited SOW to submit for publication to help SOW connect with many of the UO’s most avid athletic boosters. Hosfield added: “Kilkenny clearly doesn’t want to see our fundraising efforts succeed, but despite the athletic department’s opposition, donations keep picking up. Imagine how easily wrestling could be saved if the UO weren’t so determined to kill it.”
Actor William Baldwin offers support to SOW commercial effort.
The nationwide and international media coverage the SOW/Kesey “Further” Bus-capade received caught the attention of actor William Baldwin, who read about the Save Oregon Wrestling effort in the New York Times. Baldwin, who had previously helped save wrestling at his alma mater, Binghamton University, called Ron Finley and asked how he could help. Hosfield suggested he could offer his talents to read the voiceover for the SOW TV spot, and maybe appear on camera in additional spots the were written for Baldwin. Production arrangements were made to shoot in LA, where Baldwin is back at work on the ABC series “Dirty Sexy Money”, but Baldwin was unable to get permission from ABC/Disney in time to appear in the SOW spots. He was given permission to read the voiceover, but coordination of tight production schedules at USA Wrestling made it too difficult to meet ESPN deadlines. Hosfield commented: “In retrospect, it’s a good thing we didn’t shoot the Baldwin spots, because all of the favors we had to call in to get those in the can would have been considerable—and it would be extremely embarrassing if they all had been similarly rejected.” Hosfield had enlisted the help of LA-based advertising agency hot shop, 72andSunny to produce the Baldwin TV spots. Hosfield said that even though SOW missed their window of opportunity with ESPN and the Baldwin spots, he believes there are more future opportunities to get the SOW message out. He further stated: “We’ve barely scratched the surface of the viral realm. We’re just getting started. We’ve got a hell of a story yet to tell. Who knows, maybe even Billy Baldwin will do something else for us.”
The Save Oregon Wrestling Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to the reinstatement of wrestling as a varsity sport at the University of Oregon.
For more information about SOW or their continuing efforts, go to saveoregonwrestling.com.
Jay, here.
A couple of weeks ago, a thread (”DuckD’s In-Depth Pre-Spring Depth Chart”) from one of the eDuck message boards came across my desk here at Duck Sports News and caught my attention.
So, I decided to shoot an email to DuckD to see I could share his analysis with other Duck fans through Duck Sports News. Upon completing his preview, he was more than happy to email his entire entry (Thank you, DuckD).
Instead of publishing the entire entry here, I’ve decided to break it up into more bite-size parts over the course of several days. Here’s a look at the schedule:
Offense
Friday, March 21st: Quarterback
Saturday, March 22nd: Running Back
Sunday, March 23rd: Wide Receiver
Monday, March 24th: Tight End, Half Back
Tuesday, March 25th: Offensive Line
Defense
Wednesday, March 26th: Defensive End
Thursday, March 27th: Defensive Tackle
Friday, March 28th: Linebacker
Saturday, March 29th: Cornerback
Sunday, March 30th: Safety
Here’s DuckD’s preview of the Quarterback position:
DuckD’s Spring Preview: QUARTERBACK
Photography courtesy of Oregon Duckcast Network and Cameron Resnick.
Probable Starter: Nate Costa so.
Depth: Justin Roper so., Cade Cooper jr., Cody Kempt so.
Incoming: Darron Thomas fr., Chris Harper fr.
Analysis: As long as Costa is fully recovered, physically and mentally, from his knee surgery we should be in great shape at QB. He has a terrific grasp of the system and has shown real leadership potential since he’s arrived here, and particularly with the way he has taken Darron Thomas under his wing this winter.
Roper showed in the CW and Sun Bowl that he is definitely capable of running the show. He would make a decent starter and will prove a very good #2. The offense may not be as explosive as it could be with Roper at the helm, but it could still be very good.
Kempt really needs to show marked improvement, in my opinion, to even remain in the discussion for QB. If he doesn’t make some big jumps in the spring, I think he either gets moved, switches to baseball, or looks at transferring.
Cooper is one of the guys we’ll all be watching this spring, and I think he’s kind of been lost in the shuffle with the additions of Thomas and Harper. He was strongly in the running to start for BYU before he got hurt, and it will be interesting to see if he can make things interesting for Costa and Roper.
Thomas has a little head start on his fellow freshman because he’s been here for all of winter workouts and conditioning. He’s got some limited time with Chip Kelly to work on his mechanics, and he’s gotten a good amount of time with the offensive players running Oregon’s plays. Not to mention a lot of 1-on-1 time with Nate Costa, learning the finer points of this offense. I don’t expect him to push for the starting job, but he very well could push to be the #3 guy and travel.
Harper seems to be the least “polished” as a passer right now, and unless he makes some quick improvement under Chip Kelly’s guidance this spring, I think he’s destined to redshirt. Assuming of course that his desire to see action this fall doesn’t lead him to switch positions. If he switches positions, I could see him playing a decent amount this fall. The only question would be: what position? I would guess, in this scenario, WR and RB would be the two most likely spots to see his talents quickly. Either way, I think these 2 freshmen will be watched very closely this spring to see how they develop.
Tomorrow: RUNNING BACK
Jay, here.
This is it. The final word on Terrelle Pryor. I promise.
But I was at that press conference yesterday. Despite the video evidence and written accounts to the contrary, I was the only one there. And this is what happened:
JJ: So, Terrelle, where are going to play football?
TP: If everyone’s here…
JJ: Uh…It’s just me, Terrelle. Everyone lost interest a long time ago. You didn’t sign on National Letter of Intent Day. That was like on February 6th, almost a month and a half ago. Plus, you said you don’t like the attention.
TP: If everyone’s here…
JJ: Yes, we’re all here. It’s just me! No one else is here. Get on with it! Where are you going to go to school?
TP: University of Ohio State.
JJ: Excuse me?
TP: University of Ohio State.
JJ: University of Ohio State?
TP: University of Ohio State.
JJ: What’s that?
TP: University of Ohio State.
JJ: Haven’t heard of University of Ohio State. Don’t you mean Ohio State University?
TP: University of Ohio State.
JJ: Yes, Terrelle, I can see the hat and t-shirt. The hat has an “O” on it. If I was color blind, it could be Oregon, for all I know. But your t-shirt says “Ohio State University”. After waiting a month and a half of keeping the collective nation of college football fans hostage, that’s your announcement?
TP: University of Ohio State.
JJ: Yes, Terrelle, I heard it the first time. And I can’t believe you said it a second time. It’s Ohio State University. Actually, it’s “THE” Ohio State University.
TP: I’m not worried about none of that.
JJ: You’re not? You should be. Because every time a former Buckeye introduces himself on Monday Night Football, it’s always “THE” Ohio State University. Every single flippin’ time!
TP: I think the football field will speak for itself. I mean, that’s why you are here, right?
JJ: Terrelle, I’m not here for an announcement from the football field. I’m here for your announcement. And after a month and half of thinking about your decision, you drop a University of Ohio State on me? What?
TP: I didn’t ask to be No. 1 in the country.
JJ: Are you kidding me? You drag this on for over a month and you didn’t ask for this? Really? In all that time, you didn’t pick up on the fact that it’s Ohio State University, or “THE” Ohio State University?
TP: I can learn from a senior.
JJ: Terrelle, you are a Senior. Are you telling me that you didn’t practice at all? Ohio State University. The Ohio State University. What if you had decided to go to one of the other schools you were considering? Were you going to practice saying, “I’m a Michigan University Wolverine?” “An Oregon State Duck”? “A UPS Nittany Lion”?
TP: You don’t want to go through it.
JJ: All we’re talking about is practice, Fred.
And that’s a true story.
Jay, here.
Don’t know much about the Mississippi State Bulldogs?
Other than being a family friend of a famous MSU Bulldog, I don’t know much about them either.
Well, I won’t make this a John Grisham thriller. Here’s the “Sport Idol” Justin Myers’ interview with Mississippi Sports This Afternoon’s Ben Ingram about Oregon’s matchup with the Bulldogs.
Jay, here.
Actually, according to Sports Illustrated’s Luke Winn, the Ducks are the worst.
2008’s defensively challenged 1-8 seeds:
Team Off. Eff. Def. Eff.
(Seed) (Nat’l Rk.) (Nat’l Rk.)
Notre Dame (5) 118.9 (11) 93.9 (61)
Drake (5) 120.4 (6) 94.5 (67)
Miami Fla. (7) 113.5 (39) 95.0 (72)
Vanderbilt (4) 114.3 (33) 95.8 (77)While this quartet has some real offensive firepower, I didn’t pick any of them to go past the second round. It’s also worth noting that Oregon, which was handed a No. 9 seed, is the worst major-conference defensive team in the entire NCAA tournament. The Ducks rank 125th in ADE. I don’t recommend picking them against Mississippi State.
You can read his “Bracket Math: Part Two” entry here.
Thanks to Tad for the tip.