This is a pretty bad attitude if you ask me. I get that expectations exceeded performance this season but no player should ever look down at the Rose Bowl IMO. ""I don't want to play in a Rose Bowl unless I'm playing for a national championship," wide receiver Josh Huff told reporters Monday.....It's not a big deal at all," Thomas told reporters. "We already won a Rose Bowl, so it feels like, 'Whatever......It will be a good experience for the guys that haven't been on this team," he said. "It's a great opportunity for them to experience it and, you know, go out there and have fun......Huff said. "I just wish we would have handled things differently when we played those guys. ... I don't mind playing in the Rose Bowl, playing for the fans and my teammates. But deep down I don't wanna be a prep game for the national championship game." http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/10011543/oregon-ducks-unhappy-prospect-rose-bowl-trip Some comments are better left for the locker room, away from the media.
Yeah, if they even make it to the Rose Bowl, it doesn't sound like they'll be motivated to play. Hey vball, sorry to hijack your thread, but I'm interested to know if you want Coach O to be your next head coach. We know the players love him, but what about the fan base? Has he won you over?
Yeah, I agree that's a very bad attitude, Stacey pointed this guy out to me after the Stanford loss, he's the one they showed crying on the sidelines. Josh Huff puts on shows, little dramas starring himself,.. I hate that kind of shit. A really good receiver, but I'm glad he's a senior. Personally, I think the Rose Bowl is most excellent, playing on New Year's is special, and the Rose Bowl is far and away the best. And Volly girl, thank you and SC, for putting the Ducks back in the drivers seat. Orgeron is making Kiffen look even worse I hope the Trojans find their way to the PAC Champ game.
I admit he is making quite a case for himself. When he was named interim I was on board with just seeing how the season turned out and figured we would be looking for an established HC. I didn't think it was him although I did want him to stay around. At this point I would say the majority of fans are behind Coach O and a small minority are not sold and would prefer a bigger name. I have come around for a few reasons and with a few lingering concerns. First and foremost, he is winning. Who doesn't want that? He has provided the kind of leadership that convinces players to play beyond themselves and has them believing they can win. Kiffin had absolutely destroyed that positivity and belief among the players. Hard to fathom, but Buck Allen had not even seen the field under Kiffin. Coach O can recruit. We are putting together a pretty good class with strong interest from players one and two years out. As we come out of the sanctions, he is putting us in a position to compete across the board. The players absolutely love the guy. Hard to ignore that. Momentum. Bodies in motion tend to stay in motion. He's rolling....no reason to stop the bus. Championship teams have coaches with a defensive mindset IMO. Miles, Saban, Carroll, etc. Coach O is a "D" kind of guy. He gets the whole Trojan Family thing. Concerns....he lacks the administrative skill set that a HC needs. He still has to make small talk with the blue haired monied alums. His prior stretch as a HC wasn't that successful. He took this job knowing that it might be temporary....he had nothing to lose. People perform remarkably well under those circumstances for whatever reason. I think it's still a bit premature to go 100% with him. We have two more season games to play. No reason to think we shouldn't beat Colorado but last week we used just 2 defensive subs for almost the entire game. Our guys are tired, beat up, and playing at altitude. If we come up with a win against ucla, it would be very hard not to support him as the new HC.
I always figured all Pac teams looked to the Rose Bowl as the end of season goal. Crazy to think players consider it nothing more than a consolation game. Kiffin was just horrible. Amazing to think we looked that bad and now realizing we DID have the talent. No way we make it to the CCG. ASU would have to lose both remaining games and I don't see that as a possibility. Maybe they lose to the bruins but not AZ. I would love to have a shot at Oregon this year but I don't think it happens. Depending on how the last few games go, it's looking like either the Holiday Bowl, Vegas Bowl, or *gulp* Sun Bowl, lol.
Maybe he has a point. I mean you think this Alabama team would be excited to play in the Sugar Bowl? Or FSU would be excited to play in the Orange? Nope prolly not.
He's an outstanding recruiter, so even if he doesn't work out, he'll leave you with talent. It all depends on the UCLA game (I'm already giving you the W over Colorado). Like you said, if he wins, Hayden is going to be hard pressed not to offer him the job. Lose to UCLA and I think his support from the fan base goes with it.
Like I said....keep the comments inside the locker room. 42-16 and the Ducks may be seeing the Rose Bowl in a different light at this moment.
Shot their mouths off,.. Got what we deserved,.. and our run defense has been exposed. Like against Stanford, our opponent out-coached us, they had a more effective game plan, and their team was better prepared. Now we get to see what Mark Helfrich is made of....
Heh. As if the Rose was/is the be-all end-all game. I remember chuckling several years ago when the Stanfools up here were debating which game was more prestigious, the Rose Bowl or the BCS NCG, as if they were gonna be pissed if they had to go to the championship instead of the Rose Bowl. That's what being too smart can delude you into thinking.
