The Ducks made the cover of the west coast region of Sports Illustrated for August 20. Here’s the link:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/cover/featured/11278/index.htm
I don’t know whether this is a cursing or a blessing because of the SI cover jink (allegedly). It’s still a great honor for Jeremiah Masoli and center Jordan Holmes. Let’s just hope that the Ducks fair well this year or face the consequences of not living up to high expectations…
Here’s a blog post I sent to the Daily Californian, after sports editor Katie Dowd asked me to submit what I thought of the Ducks early in fall camp and make a prediction:
There are high expectations in Eugene for the 2009 football season. A year after finishing No. 9 in the country with a win in the Holiday Bowl and a No. 14 preseason ranking has everyone thinking big.
Especially 1,000 yard rusher LeGarrette Blount, who says everyone’s goal isn’t just a BCS bowl, but the top BCS bowl.
“We’re just trying to take it all the way and play for a championship,” Blount said. “We are a strong team with a strong bond. As long as we all have each other’s backs, we’re going to excel.”
Those are lofty goals for a team that has only 10 starters returning from last year’s 10-3 team. Quarterback Jeremiah Masoli leads a potent offense with Blount and freshman LaMichael James in the backfield. But right now the biggest area of concern is the offensive line. C.E. Kaiser is the most experienced of the bunch with 10 career starts, and the whole line has a total of 20. If the Ducks stand a chance in the Pac-10, the line will have to grow up quickly.
The defense as a whole is in good shape despite losing six starters. The linebacking corps and secondary are full of athletes and the line, while young, isn’t as inexperienced as the offensive unit is.
Despite these shortcomings, Oregon is going to challenge for the Pac-10 crown with USC and California because of the matchups this
season. If the Ducks beat Boise State in Boise to start the season, they could go 3-0 in non-conference play before the conference opener with the Bears on September 26. They play Cal, USC and Oregon State in Autzen Stadium, which is good for them because they have one win (against OSU last year) away from Eugene against those teams in the last eight or so years.
Not to say it’s going to be a walk in the park, but Oregon has a shot to do something special this year.