Funny thing about 2005. Both Oregon losses (USC, and Oklahoma in the Holiday Bowl) were later vacated by the NCAA. They still count as losses for Oregon, though; otherwise, Oregon would have had an undefeated season. UW would classify that as an NC.
One has to think that Oregon will be able to exploit USC's injuries at safety more than Iowa did. I keep hearing Oregon should go to a ball control offense, but there ought to be some good opportunities vs. backups in the secondary.
I'm hoping Harkey is closer to 100% this week. I watched him quite a bit and he did not look full speed. The fact they did the guard swap to help him out was a big tell. USC has a good pass rush and they had to notice this too.
GrandpaDuck wrote: Wed Nov 19, 2025 3:49 pm
I'm hoping Harkey is closer to 100% this week. I watched him quite a bit and he did not look full speed. The fact they did the guard swap to help him out was a big tell. USC has a good pass rush and they had to notice this too.
I’m pretty sure the guard swap was due to Iuli struggles, not Harkey. They even tried bumping Harkey inside due to Iuli being our weak link
duckfan96 wrote: Sun Nov 16, 2025 8:55 am
RUN
THE
BALL
What ^ he said...
U$C's run defense is attrocious. RUN, RUN, RUN. The only way USC is within 2 tds of us is if we get stupid/cute in our play calling. I'd like to see our backs get 50+ carries in the game. Slobberknocking is fine with me. Give them the BARNER treatment. Kenjon Barner’s performance vs. USC in Los Angeles (Nov. 3, 2012): He rushed for a school-record 321 yards and scored 5 touchdowns in Oregon’s 62–51 victory.
GrandpaDuck wrote: Wed Nov 19, 2025 3:49 pm
I'm hoping Harkey is closer to 100% this week. I watched him quite a bit and he did not look full speed. The fact they did the guard swap to help him out was a big tell. USC has a good pass rush and they had to notice this too.
I’m pretty sure the guard swap was due to Iuli struggles, not Harkey. They even tried bumping Harkey inside due to Iuli being our weak link
How does playing luli out of his normal position help him struggle less? I'll stick with my lying eyes, Harkey coming off his injury looked less than 100%.
Watched Riley's presser. No questions about Oregon from the USC media except for 1 recruiting question, which LR downplayed. Of course we know they negative recruit more than any other west coast staff.
Notre Dame beat USC because they got consistent pressure on Maiava. If Oregon does that, they win by something close to the line. If they don't, or if they turn the ball over, then we'll all be praying for a squeaker.
This is the best USC team in some years. Danton Lynn has made their defense a very respectable unit. The offense finally has a running game. They're very good, just not great.
Our run game has been dynamite since we've been forced to lean on it, and we've faced some extremely good run defenses. I see no reason why we can't run all over USC. In fact, unless we're plagued by turnovers, I don't see how we lose this game if we just run the ball like we have been. Keep our defense rested, keep USC's offense out of rhythm, and just feed our stable of dominant RBs. And when USC starts to load the box then burn 'em deep.
This is a big game for fans like myself who really want to jump on the Will Stein train. The blueprint for beating USC is out in the open, and nobody's more capable of executing it than we are. Will we do it? Or is Stein going to try to think of some other way to connect the dots?
pezsez1 wrote: Thu Nov 20, 2025 10:38 am
Agree about running the ball.
Our run game has been dynamite since we've been forced to lean on it, and we've faced some extremely good run defenses. I see no reason why we can't run all over USC. In fact, unless we're plagued by turnovers, I don't see how we lose this game if we just run the ball like we have been. Keep our defense rested, keep USC's offense out of rhythm, and just feed our stable of dominant RBs. And when USC starts to load the box then burn 'em deep.
This is a big game for fans like myself who really want to jump on the Will Stein train. The blueprint for beating USC is out in the open, and nobody's more capable of executing it than we are. Will we do it? Or is Stein going to try to think of some other way to connect the dots?
Couldn’t agree more. If we just lean into our obvious strength, it won’t matter what the USC offense does. We lead the nation in rushing yards per attempt, and might have the best rushing attack in the country. If Stein doesn’t outsmart himself and just runs the ball I don’t see how USC keeps up.
Part of the success of our running game has been the emergence of Davison, does anyone know his injury status? Is he expected to play close to or at 100%? Losing him or having him play dinged up could really hurt Oregon’s run game.