Under the Umbrella

Your Momma's Street Cred Is On The Line

This morning while driving to work listening to the Morning Sports Page on 95.5 the Game, they had a contest to win Duck tickets. The contest was to give your best coach speech for the Oregon Ducks heading into the Utah game.

 

I called in, didn’t win but got a few laughs. There was one bright spot in the loss, a moral victory as it stands. Every Thursday before a Duck game I am going to put myself in the sweaty turf shoes of Chip Kelly and motivate the Ducks to perform the way fans deserve.

 

Here it is:

 

Hype is a four letter word. We found that out in the harshest of ways opening day. Today is yet another chance at redemption. We owe it to 60,000 fans in this stadium that live and die by your efforts.

 

Offense listen up, I need some sustained drives. You owe it to your brothers on the other side of the ball to be on the field for more than 20 minutes a game. This is Oregon football! We score points on offense! Does everyone remember that?

 

This means I need the offensive line to dig deep inside yourself and pull out the pride that it takes to push a little harder, move a little faster and give the backfield a split second more. The difference between 3^rd and short and 3^rd and long is in your heart.

 

Backfield, your first decision has to be your last, the offensive line can’t hold them off forever. You need to explode through the hand off and hit those gaps with a fury.

 

Utah will be on the other side of those gaps waiting to lay a hit on you that will make you want to quit. But we didn’t offer you a scholarship because we thought you had any quit in you. We offered you a scholarship to fight for every single inch of that field.

 

When you get into the secondary, I need you to find a gear that you never seen before, show the Utes the numbers on your back. Make them give up on chasing you down from behind. The band will be waiting for you in the Endzone.

 

Masoli, your job is on the line. Make the right decision with the football. If you’re going to run, run as hard as we know you can. If you’re going to hand the ball off make damn sure that the running back has a seem to run through. If you drop back to pass, make your progressions, find an open man. Look for Ed Dickson. It is all about your pre snap read. Take the time to see the field before taking the ball. Anticipate and execute.

 

Receivers, if it touches your hands, you catch it. If the run is on, block, don’t hold, block. Put those DB’s on their backs. I wan to see red and white picking themselves off the field all day long.

 

Defense, three things:

 

1. Keep them out of the endzone!
2. Get me the ball back!
3. Make the the Utah offense wish they didn’t make the trip!

Special teams, penalties hurt us. They killed drives before they got started. Last week your mistakes cost the team.

 

This week they will cost you. Anyone who gets a special teams penalty is going to pay the ultimate price. I am going to photoshop a picture of you and LeGarrett Blunt’s girlfriend and post it all over campus. You can deal with Blunt then.

 

Don’t sleep on this Utah team. They have won 16 straight. Sure they struggled against Utah State and San Jose State, but that’s not the team that will show up in our house. We will get the team that embarrassed Nick Saban and his Alabama squad.

 

Kyle Whittingham will have them ready for us, will we be ready? Or will we be a notch in their belts?

 

If you think you can get away with a performance like you gave agains Purdue, you might as well apply for financial aid.

 

As Randy in Salem said “Your Momma’s street cred is on the line”

 

- Kurt Valentine aka Kurt in Hillsboro

UFC 103 Preview

 

Belfort vs. Franklin

 

Yeah! I agree… not the most anticipated fight in the UFC, but I think it will be a good one between two great guys and two great fighters.

 

Let’s break it down;

Belfort is one crazy dude with hands as fast as lightning. He carries a 26-8-0 record and is a former UFC light heavyweight champ. He studied Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and earned his blackbelt under Carlson Gracie. Currently training with team Xtreme Couture, Belfort is going to be comfortable fighting at catchweight(195). He has 12 knockouts and two submissions. Vitor has been known to slow as the fight goes to later rounds, so look for Belfort to overwhelm Franklin with his speed and strength early.

Franklin is a very well rounded fighter. He carries a MMA record of 30-4-0 and is a former UFC middleweight champion. He has quick hands and great kicks. Coming off a big win over Wanderlei at catchweight, Franklin should be very comfortable in this match. Franklin is 3-1 when the fight goes to decision, so look for him to keep his distance and land precision bombs.

 

Prediction: Belfort has the advantage in every aspect of this fight. He is faster and stronger with more experience at heavier weight classes. I see this fight ending early in the second round with a big right hand from Belfort. KNOCKOUT!!

 

Cro Cop vs. Dos Santos

 

Cro Cop wins in the second with a left head kick!

 

Enough said!

 

Koscheck vs. Trigg

 

Now this is going to be fun! We have two prolific wrestlers. Koscheck has the upper hand as far as wrestling goes, but Trigg has been around for awhile. Trigg is on a mission looking for one last shot at the UFC lightweight title. Koscheck might be the loan road block he won’t make it past. Koscheck was a four time all American wrestler and has improved his striking. He is not just good, he’s scary!

 

Prediction: Koscheck wins by decision, but it is electric the whole fight!

 

- Zach VW

Two games into the season and the Ducks are still a mystery

120 minutes played and a perennially prolific offense is still spinning its wheels trying to get on track.

 

The University of Oregon football team’s season has started off with nothing short of a bang. This time the bang though has not been record setting offensive onslaughts but rather media scrutiny and fan

despair.

 

The win over Purdue was a small step in the right direction, but don’t be fooled Duck fan, that game was decided by 2 inches on a two point conversion and frankly the game was more about Purdue’s missed opportunities than it was about Oregon’s effort.

 

The Close:

 

The defense was opportunistic and scored twice on a interception return for a touchdown by Walter Thurmond III and a fumble return by Javes Lewis. But they allowed a mediocre Boilermaker squad to put up 36 points on 451 yards of offense.

 

The Offensive Line seems to be coming around and looks to have instilled in them the nastyness required to bring Duck fans to their feet in celebration for the foreseeable future, but they definitely have much work to do.

 

Oh and it seems that Oregon has a pair of young, extremely talented RB’s in Kenyon Barner and LaMichael James. Both showed flashes of brilliance with a combination of speed, talent and grit. Andre Crenshaw will have his work cut out for him this season if he wants to continue to get the ball.

 

The Correctable:

 

Even though the final numbers for TE Kyle Smith will seem as though Oregon has shored up the glaring weakness at TE pass coverage that is not the case. Smith was seemingly open on every play, fortunately for Nick Alloiti, the kid just couldn’t catch the ball.

 

Jeremiah Masoli once again showed that he is one of the best running QB’s in the country. He also showed that he has a good touch on the ball and can make any throw. The problem is his ability to read the defense.

 

He kept it when he should have handed it off, he handed it off when the running back was headed for a gap that was being blitzed and he was inept at checking his receiver progressions. Too many times was the other option a likely 15 yard gain.

 

The defensive line gets very little if any push on the ball. I know the big ugly’s in the Big 10 are as big and ugly as they come, but we need to be able to get pressure on QB when we are dropping 7 into coverage. Everyone knew the Ducks were going to miss Nick Reed, but the extent wasn’t supposed be to this effect.

 

The Unacceptable:

 

Special Team’s penalties were nothing short of disgusting. Walter Thurmond III does not need you to block in the back for him. Special teams took the ducks from great field position to the shadow of their own endzone too many times.

 

Masoli has developed this mechanical body contortion in the place of a pump fake or play action. This is a very disturbing motion and takes way to long to complete, you get the feeling that this is going to get him injured in the pocket.

 

Worst of all is for the second straight game Ed Dickson caught 1 pass and was thrown to only 1 time. That is the most offensive of all the shortcomings. How can you not get the ball to Ed? He is one of the best Tight Ends in the entire nation. Masoli, get him the ball before it is too late. He will make you look good and maybe even get you into that Heisman ceremony.

 

Several questions remain for this young Duck squad, the loudest of them all is, “What happened?”

 

- Kurt Valentine

A Special Day For The NBA!

What a day! Michael Jordan, John Stockton, David Robinson, and Jerry Sloan all get inducted in the NBA Hall of Fame. All four of these men are genuinely good men and even better basketball players/coaches. I am blessed that I was able to see them all play/coach.

 

Theme of this class: Hard work pays off!!!

 

We all know the story of Michael getting cut from his high school basketball team, but the success of this whole induction class is a product of their hard work.

 

Michael Jordan:

 

Carrer highlights and awards :

• 6× NBA Champion (1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998)
• 5× NBA MVP (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998)
• 14× NBA All-Star (1985-1993, 1996-1998, 2002-2003)
• 6× NBA Finals MVP (1991-1993, 1996-1998)
• 1× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1988)
• 10× All-NBA First Team Selection (1987-1993, 1996-1998)
• 1× All-NBA Second Team Selection (1985)
• 9× NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1988-1993, 1996-1998)
• 1985 NBA Rookie of the Year
• 1985 NBA All-Rookie Team
• 3× NBA All-Star Game MVP (1988, 1996, 1998)
• 2× NBA Slam Dunk Contest winner (1987, 1988)
• 2x Gold Medal Winner in the Olympics (1984,1992)
• NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
• 1× NCAA Men's Basketball Champion (1982)
• 1982 ACC Freshman of the Year
• 1× ACC Men's Basketball Player of the Year (1984)
• 1× USBWA College Player of the Year (1984)
• 1× Naismith College Player of the Year (1984)
• 1× John R. Wooden Award (1984)
• 1× Adolph Rupp Trophy (1984)
• 1991 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year
• 2000 ESPY Athlete of the Century
• 1990s ESPY Male Athlete Decade Award
• 1990s ESPY Pro Basketballer Decade Award

Points – 32,292

Rebounds – 6,672

Assists – 5,633

 

http://espn.go.com/nba/features/jordan23

 

Enough Said!

 

David Robinson:

 

Carrer highlights and awards :

• 2× NBA Champion (1999, 2003)
• 1× NBA MVP (1995)
• 10× NBA All-Star (1990-1996, 1998, 2000-2001)
• 1× NBA Defensive Player of the Year (1992)
• 4× All-NBA First Team Selection (1991-1992, 1995-1996)
• 2× All-NBA Second Team Selection (1994, 1998)
• 4× All-NBA Third Team Selection (1990, 1993, 2000-2001)
• 4× NBA All-Defensive First Team Selection (1991-1992, 1995-1996)
• 4× NBA All-Defensive Second Team Selection (1990, 1993-1994, 1998
• 1990 NBA Rookie of the Year
• 1990 NBA All-Rookie First Team
• 1× NBA Sportsmanship Award (2001)
• NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
• 1× USBWA College Player of the Year (1987)
• 1× Naismith College Player of the Year (1987)
• 1× John R. Wooden Award (1987)

Points – 20,790

Rebounds – 10,479

Blocks – 2,954

 

John Stockton:

 

Career highlights and awards :

• 10× NBA All-Star (1989–1997, 2000)
• NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team
• 2× All-NBA First Team Selection
• 6× All-NBA Second Team Selection
• 3× All-NBA Third Team Selection
• 5× NBA All-Defensive Second Team Selection
• 2× Bausch and Lomb Court Vision Award Winner
• 2× Allstate Good Hands Award Winner

Points – 19,711

Assists – 15,806

Steals – 3,265

 

Jerry Sloan:

 

Career highlights and awards :

• 2× NBA All-Star (1967, 1969)
• 4× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1969, 1972, 1974, 1975)
• 2× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (1970, 1971)

Points – 10,571

Rebounds – 5,615

Assists – 1,925

He Came Back For This?

I woke up this morning, worse for the wear. My head was pounding and the taste of vomit was unbearable.

 

But my day was better then Oregon Running Back LaGarrette Blunt. I made a bad decision and I paid the price today with a hangover, hell I’m still paying the price, but it’ll pass. And I am the only one to blame, no one provoked me. 

 

Blunt is not so fortunate, his mistake will haunt him his entire life.

 

The University of Oregon made a colossal mistake in suspending him for the entire 2009 season.

 

Where is the fairness in that?

 

The NCAA’s rule for fighting is only a one game suspension. The NFL is 2 games for going to prison for extreme animal cruelty and organized crime.

 

Blunt could have left last year and been playing on Sunday this year, but he stayed for you Oregon. This is how you repay him for embarrassing you on national television? I am ultimately disgusted in the actions of Blunt, but two wrongs don’t make a right.

 

A suspension of this magnitude is irresponsible and not the way to communicate to the recruiting world. I understand that actions that are a blatant disgrace to the university can not be taken lightly, but this is ridiculous.

 

I wholly suspected a 4 game suspension at a minimum and an outside shot of 6. I was amazed to hear that the Ducks had suspended him for the remainder of the season. I wasn’t however in the least bit shocked.

 

Oregon has been down this road before, and it seems that whenever a troubled athlete in the program acts out the result is the death penalty.

 

Jackie Bates was one of the best corners in the country but he got busted for smoking pot and he got canned.

 

Derek Jones was a burgeoning star, but his undisclosed indiscretions made the university part ways with him.  

 

Is it not a college football head coach’s job to not only make athletes better, but be a guiding hand in turning a child into a man? I guarantee that Mike Bellotti has said those exact words in every living room he has ever been in. And if Chip Kelly hasn’t used them yet he will.

 

Well Coach, actions speak louder than words, and right now your actions are saying I don’t have your best interests in heart. I am not going to help you grow, I’m going to use you for a school record 17 touchdowns in a single season, then turn my back on you when you need me most.

'

I for one would not be incredibly interested in sending my inner city son to come play football for a man that is without the fortitude to be compassionate when compassion is needed and take the time to make a mistake a part of his maturation rather than an indictment of his character.

 

Suspending him for his senior season is going to ruin his life. And for what, doing what most Oregon fans felt like doing to you Chip? Hitting someone is just wrong, taunting the crowd is even more wrong but it doesn’t warrant a career ending punishment. It just doesn’t.

 

- Kurt Valentine

Number 23's best 23

 

ESPN has put together his royal airness's top 23 highlights. Starting at 23 they will be counting down to number one adding a new video everyday. Check it out!

Jordan's top 23