[If you missed Sabin's first post, "Duck Fans, Rant Away…It’s Your Right", you can check it out here.]

The Ducks Meet Their Shadowy Future
By Sabin Brabb
DSN Guest Contributor

“The sea is dangerous and its storms terrible, but these obstacles have never been sufficient reason to remain ashore… Unlike the mediocre, intrepid spirits seek victory over those things that seem impossible… It is with an iron will that they embark on the most daring of all endeavors… to meet the shadowy future without fear and conquer the unknown.” - Anonymous

I believe in looking to the past for lessons but not in dwelling there. I believe in being, first and foremost, a person that lives in the now but always with an eye towards the future. If we don’t learn from the past we’re doomed to repeat it and if we live solely looking towards the future we never enjoy where we are.

Right about now you’re probably starting to wonder if somehow you fell off DSN and into some other page hosted by Oprah, Deepak Chopra or Tony Robbins.  But before you object, allow me a moment to show relevance.

If that quote at the top sounds like it came off a motivational poster…it did…but that doesn’t make it any less impactful. There’s a reason it was selected to sit on a motivational poster. But what, you may be asking, does it have to do with the Ducks?

Allow me to clumsily attempt to rephrase the quote:

“The Duck football season is dangerous and its injuries, challenges and losses are terrible, but these obstacles have never been sufficient reason to stop playing… Unlike the eternally pessimistic; intrepid Duck football players seek victory over those things that seem impossible… It is with an iron will that they embark on such a daring endeavor… to meet the shadowy future of the rest of the season without fear; to overcome their own weaknesses and to conquer their opponents on the gridiron.”

The Duck team that comes out of this bye week to face Arizona State in Tempe will be a litmus test for what we can expect for the rest of this season, and potentially the near future of Bellotti’s continuing tenure.

The lack of a solid passing attack and our continuing issues in pass defense that once again raised its ugly head in the UCLA game have been discussed ad nauseum on various Duck blogs and message boards. But here’s what I see and why I believe we will come out and look, in some ways, like a different team as we go into the second half of the season.

Defense:

The Now: The defensive scheme I saw against UCLA encompassed many of the things I’ve been hoping for. More safety help in the passing game. Letting the front seven have primary responsibility for stopping the run. Not rushing three and dropping eight in pass coverage on third and long. What I saw was Aliotti making some schematic changes that will make a difference. Injuries, lack of experience with these scheme changes and multiple missed interception opportunities including that horrible pass interference call all contributed to making the UCLA passing game more effective than it should’ve been and we did manage to shut the running game down.

The Future: Getting players healthy, two weeks practicing those schematic changes, a defense looking for redemption plus a weak ASU O-line and running game equals a major defensive improvement that can be a building block for the remainder of the season. This will not be USC’s defense but it can be enough to give the Ducks a chance to win every game.

The Passing Game:

The Now: Masoli has a rocket arm and while he only hit 5 of 19 passes those incompletions included five drops and a couple of smart throw aways. Once again it wasn’t as bad as it looked statistically. Masoli admittedly needs to take it down a notch and not rifle every pass but his receivers need to help him out by catching the ball even if it’s not perfectly thrown and running better routes. Ken Woody has a great column covering that aspect of our passing woes. UCLA has a very quick and talented defensive backfield that held our passing game in check but their defense allowed Masoli to run wild.

The Future: I don’t know that the receivers are going to dramatically improve but I do believe that Masoli’s running performance against UCLA will force defenses to account for him thus opening up the passing game. Look for Chip Kelly and Masoli to use these two weeks to throw some new wrinkles in playing to Masoli’s comfort level and strengths. As the receivers continue to get comfortable catching Masoli’s rocket throws I would look for less drops but until he can ease up and get better touch on those short throws I still think drops will be a problem.

Arizona State has a gimpy QB, no running game and a terrible offensive line giving up the most sacks with Oregon coming in leading the conference in sacks.

Stanford is an up and coming squad with a decent defense and a strong running game.

Arizona has a great passing attack but a weaker defense and they play at Autzen.

Oregon State has a great running game, a solid passing game (although four interceptions against WSU is cause for concern) and a solid defense. This game is the toughest left on the schedule in my opinion.

Overall I think this team finishes strong losing one more game leading up to the Civil War in which I believe the Ducks will be playing the Beavers for the Holiday Bowl. As is always my caveat all bets are off if the Ducks start going through players like last year but if the Ducks can finish 9-3 beating OSU in Corvallis and going to the Holiday Bowl that will be a remarkable season given our youth and inexperience at QB. If the Ducks go 8-4 but play well and are in every game that will not be a disappointment.

Call me a Pollyanna if you want to but I still believe. If the ASU game is more of the same shaky pass defense and shakier passing offense, even if we win, I could change my mind. But if this team exhibits the character I believe they possess and come out and take it to ASU that future will no longer be so shadowy.

DSN: Sabin, what are your credentials as a Duck fan?
Sabin: I’m a third generation Duck fan. I’ve been going to Duck football games since 1977. My earliest memories are sitting with my dad in what seemed like a half empty Autzen Stadium in the rain (back then it seemed like it always rained in Autzen Stadium) watching my beloved Ducks get completely destroyed by (fill in the blank). Unlike the 300,000 people that were apparently at the 1994 Oregon vs. Washington game I watched ‘the Pick’ from home on TV and it forever altered my Duck football paradigm. I’ve been a season ticket holder since 2001. When Bellotti said his goal was to win a National Championship back in 1995 I didn’t believe it was possible. Starting in 2001 I believed and 2007 renewed that belief. I guess the only other important piece to add is that I absolutely cannot stand the Huskies. If they go 0-12 from now till I die that would be just fine with me.

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While the Ducks try to find their identity on the field during this bye week, Duck fans in the stands are struggling with their identity, too (when they are not struggling with each other).

This week, Steve Apel is our guest writer, blogger, contributor (his credentials are listed at the bottom of his piece) and chimes in on the plight of the Duck fan.

By Steve Apel
DSN Guest Contributor

The Duck fan. What comes to mind? Some might say passionate and supportive, while others might say drunk and uninformed. Regardless of the sentiment, they still suffer the same fate. Like an expected emptiness, you know it’s coming. The Ducks aren’t the Cubs nor the Clippers, but they are somewhere in between. They are at that level where greatness seems possible, yet like the rain in late fall, it all comes crashing down.

One thing that any Duck fan can attest to if they’ve followed the Men’s athletic programs for a number of years is never being completely surprised when they blow it. Even when things start to go bad, whether its at Mac Court or Autzen Stadium, you can feel the fans never being completely shocked by what they’re seeing (Colvin’s fumble at the goal line versus California and the 55-16 loss to WSU following beating #4 Michigan in 2003 come to mind). Then the “we’ve seen this before and it doesn’t get any easier” faces kick in. This frustration leads to the excessive alcohol consumption and cursing which perpetuate down from the crowd. Although the bar is so much higher than it was ten years ago, the years and years of finding ways to lose are so ingrained in the minds of the fans’ that it is never out of the realm of possibility to happen. The popular sentiment for the Duck fan is to blame exterior sources like the BCS or injuries on the failure to come through. It’s reality in the PAC-10 that unless you are a pre-season top 5 or USC, you aren’t going to get the benefit of the doubt when it comes to BCS selection. Losing in 2001 at home to Stanford was inexcusable, and although our only regular season loss in 2005 came to USC, everyone (including the pollsters) knew we weren’t that good and validated that by the Pac 10’s annual “We should have been in the BCS, therefore we’ll lay a goose egg to an inferior team in the Holiday Bowl” loss to Oklahoma.

For the Duck fan, it is hard to feel if they couldn’t do it last year that it will never happen. USC was in a down year and the best team (LSU) had lost twice. Everything was aligned for the Ducks to finally breakthrough, yet when Dixon went down clutching his knee, so did the season. A cruel ending to what felt like years of justification finally coming. The one constant with this team over the years is they don’t exactly fight through adversity. Three of the last four years we’ve ended the regular season on a 3 game losing streak. It’s as if the players and coaches share in the collective “here we go again” groan. Each year there is a different reason for the collapse (injury, tough loss) but the uninspired play from then on is a given. It’s surprising how easily Mike Bellotti is able to get away with this. The fact that he is a more likeable character than other coaches (Kent, Ernie) gives him leeway, yet with the high expectations you’d think he’d have been held more accountable.

It’s an interesting parallel with our arch rivals up Highway 99, Oregon State. Since the start of the 2002 season, the Ducks are 46-29 and the Beavers are 47-29 (There is no way the average Oregon fan is aware of this stat, otherwise there might be some bodies floating in the McKenzie). It’s hard not to like a team that never has the same quality of players, yet you get the sense their desire to win is so much higher. Although they’ve begun to pour the money into the football program, they’re still light years away from UO territory. What has to agitate the Duck fan, especially in the last few years, is with the Ducks demise down the stretch and the Beavers seasonal rise. In their last 3 home games against USC, the Beavers have lost by 8 and won twice (all when big underdogs). The Ducks only win since the USC era begun was the 2007 game which we were favored (Booty was also out). The Duck players have been pampered too much (not their own doing) for a team that hasn’t accomplished its goal. Considering the money the UO spends, these number isn’t doing the Ducks any favors. At first glance one would think the Ducks have a much superior program, and in many ways they do. But the actual results don’t lie. The Beavers are blue collar, and the Ducks are the rich kids.

Amidst this all, it’s hard to feel bad for a program that prides itself on shameless promotions, and seems to be more worried about what they’re wearing than the actual game plan (as bad as the football uniforms have been, nothing beats the Men’s Basketball jerseys at UCLA last year when they looked like they were about to perform the opening number for a Broadway Musical). It’s difficult to blame the players and the coaches when the Marketing Department and Phil Knight’s endless supply of money is the real root of the problem. It’d be hard to imagine people around the country rooting for a school with these traits, so when we get “left out” it’s hard to say it wasn’t partly self-inflicted. Yet those same detractions also bring additions. Nicer facilities and superior talent go hand in hand, and the UO has definitely produced that. They are an above average program who can make a serious run at a top 5-10 ranking every couple years. They’ve even mixed in some run-ins with the law like all successful programs. All things considered, that’s probably as good as it was realistically ever get. We don’t have the sunny skies or the big city like other top-tier programs. Will that be okay for the UO and its fans? No, at least until this is realized. But being a possible contender is much better than what 80% of the other D1 schools have to contend with, so it really is something that every Duck fan should be grateful for (This is the same school that played in SI’s worst college football game, ever).

As the old adage says, championships aren’t bought, they’re earned. Regardless of the schedule, the injuries, heck even the jerseys, the Ducks will have to earn it on the field. They’ll get their chance (they do every year) which makes it that much more frustrating for the Duck fan.

Then what is it that prohibits the Ducks from achieving what they seem to be on the cusp of? Do the football Gods shun the Ducks for their on/off the field marketing? Justified karma? Or are they just unlucky? All options are possible, and plausible. The Duck fan will most likely get that answer in the next 5 years, when we find out if this program has reached its potential already, or if it still has that extra push to take it to a championship level. Regardless, Duck fans will still put on their green Oregon sweatshirt and fill out Autzen Stadium, hoping for that dream to come true. If there is one thing we know about the Ducks it’s that, good or bad, anything can happen. Nothing is impossible. If only Dixon hadn’t gotten hurt…

DSN: Steve, what are your credentials as a Duck fan?
Steve: Having lived in Eugene my whole life, I have been bumming seats off friends for the last 15 years, with 4 of those being in the student section while I attended the UO (I can still smell the smoke). My once-prized posessions were a signed Akili Smith football and a game worn glove from Patrick Johnson. I still think Mike Bellotti bailed on AJ Feeley too quick and my all time favorite Autzen Stadium memory was watching Reggie Bush zig zag all across the field. I like to think I have a very objective, unbiased view towards the Ducks, thus allowing me to never get too upset.

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September 6, 2008

Here are some photos by AJ Untermeyer of the Oregon-Utah State game.

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By Jay Jones, August 16, 2008

Today’s scrimmage at Autzen Stadium was the last open scrimmage of Fall Camp.

Here are few photos from that scrimmage before my camera melted.

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By Jay Jones, August 11, 2008

If former Duck Josh Wilcox is emailing me his contributions this early in August without me asking for any (Josh has an open invitation to write about anything, anytime on DSN) , then it must be time for football.

Now, I have to apologize to Josh. He sent this to me early last week. But with everything going on, I kind of forgot to post it.

My bad.

But his words as true today as they were last week. Heck, it was only a week ago, right?

Sorry, Josh. And thank you.

Here’s Josh and his take on Fall Camp:

It’s about damn time. I have been anxiously waiting this day for over 7 months. Fall Camp is starting. Many will think this is the start of the season for the Ducks, but that actually started in January.

This is nothing like double days in High School. So, for all of you Uncle Rico’s out there who think you would have won State if you would have gotten more playing time, it’s just not the same.

The first couple of days fresh legs are abound. The energy level is at an all time high, as the excitement builds. Then the pads go on, and the only fresh legs are Kickers, and some of the QB’s.

As each morning passes and the bull horn in the hall way acts as the alarm clock, you awake from a deep sleep, or if you have a loud snoring roommate, no sleep. For about two to three seconds you forget the aches, pains, sprains, but then your body wakes up. You begin the day figuring out how to roll out of bed without banging something that is sore. The instant this occurs you are reminded of the long day ahead. But in some sort of sick sadistic way you love that feeling, you feed off that feeling. That proves to yourself that you are actually doing something right.

As football has evolved, training camp has gone away from the days of fourteen straight doubles with full pads, salt tablets, and no water. This is beneficial for the players as now they tend to have less hitting and provide better physical care to these highly trained athletes. But in someway, I think this has taken away from the overall toughness of players in the game. It’s a fine line. And if there were a magic formula, then everyone would do the same thing. All coaches have different styles, ideas, thoughts, and backgrounds which contribute to their formats.

Fall Camp is a time when players bond more with each other, because that is all you see. You get sick of seeing the same guy. You get in fights with your friends. But at the end of each day you find out something you did not know about a key member of your team. Not where they are from, or their favorite rock band, but you see if that guy will make a difference. When everyone is tired, who are the ones pushing it? Who are the ones making plays? Who is taking the easy way out? Who is really hurt? Who is taking the practice off because of jock itch (true story, not me)? Spring ball is for teaching, and evaluating. This is the time to show if you are going to make the traveling squad or not. It’s an attitude. Do you want it bad enough? How important is it to you to leave everything on the table? Are you going to be a legend in Oregon Duck football and help build the tradition? Or are you just there to be on the team? Get some bowl game rings you will never wear, and stock up on Oregon gear so you can show people you were part of the cool club?

And I have yet to talk about the meetings. There are meetings for all special teams, offense, defense, your specific position, and meetings just to meet. The fun is seeing who will fall asleep and who won’t. Standing up in meetings is a common occurrence; because you would much rather stand up than be called out for sleeping. You are so tired you almost need toothpicks to hold up your eye lids. And if you’re lucky, some of the coaches will cut you loose so you can get an extra 30 minutes of time to relax before bed check, or another practice. Some of the best all around funny moments occur during film study, not so much as what happens on the tape, but the comments made in meetings. Movie lines, bad jokes, and overall smart-ass comments are a staple in trying to bring some normalcy to your day. Nicknames like Loony, C-3P0, Francis Sawyer, Rusty, are a common staple. And most of the time you don’t get to pick yours. So if you got one that sucks, you’re screwed.

The smell of the locker room. Well, I really don’t think now they have that big of issue with the ventilation systems in the lockers. But when I was around, I can think of a few lockers that needed to be quarantined and required bio hazard suits. And for the most part it was usually the offensive and defensive line. Surprised? I know because aren’t these guys some of the cleanest, physical specimens you will ever run across.

Damn I miss it.

In fact I would like to address a rumor which has been tying up my phone and email in box. I did contact the University to see if any slow old out of shape players could get any more eligibility. I know I retired many moons ago, but in order to not create a fiasco like the one in Green Bay, I took the buy out. I settled for a tall call six pack of Meister Brau, a pound of Hooters Chicken wings, and the chance to watch games I will not attend on Dish Network. And just to think it did not cost Oregon a dime. I should have listened to my agent, as he wanted me to hold out for more. But who in the hell would turn down Meister Brau?

On another note, congratulations to Gary Zimmerman. It proves my point again that those guys are not only Hall of Fame players, but Hall of Fame people. He is a tremendous role model to up and coming players that you do not need to talk about your accomplishments (which is the norm today). Instead, if you are that good, you will be recognized. Some people have to wait longer than others. But if you play, and your play merits you being there, then you will get there.

So, now it begins. Bring on the Huskies.

Josh Wilcox, a 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.

Here are some photos from today’s practice in full pads.

Here are some bonus photos from yesterday’s afternoon practice.

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By Jay Jones, August 7, 2008

Today, Gavin Dawson on The Morning Sports Page talked to former Duck, current OSN commentator, Anthony Newman about the upcoming season for the Ducks on 95.5 FM “The Game” in Portland.

Here’s the link to the interview.

Take a listen because Anthony makes some interesting comments regarding Bellotti’s future and Chip Kelly’s coaching possibilities.

Personally, I’m not comfortable speculating on Bellotti and Kelly’s futures.  Although, I think it’s safe to say that other schools will continue to persue Kelly.  Whether he has any interest or not in being a head coach, is a completely different question.  And I don’t think anyone will ever know until he accepts another position.  And, of course, Bellotti’s name has been mentioned as an Athletic Director possibility.  So, that’s really not going that far out on a limb.

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Here are some photographs from this Thursday morning’s practice.

And here are a few bonus photographs from Monday’s afternoon practice.

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(Turn up the volume.)

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(Turn up the volume.)

Get all your sports news on the Oregon Ducks at DuckSportsNews.com. Innappropriate comment? Let us know. Spam filters are set on high. Please be patient for your comments to be posted.