Kenjon Barner and De'Anthony Thomas are an unstoppable combo for Chip Kelly |
When Chip Kelly was offered a NFL head coaching job with the Tampa Bay Bucs, he admitted his flattery, respectfully declined and then had these words for the Autzen Zoo faithful: "I have some unfinished business to complete at the University of Oregon." Well, folks the picture is sharpening into focus and he could indeed finish said business this season with the Ducks.
Don't get me wrong, we've seen this type of high-flying, awe-inspiring Oregon team since the day Chip Kelly stepped on the Autzen field in 2009. They've been to a National Championship and they've been to two Rose Bowls. There's history here. But something's always been missing from Kelly's Oregon teams and that is a killer instinct. Well the 2012 Ducks might just have that killer instinct.
Take for instance last week, Oregon rolled into a classic trap game, on the road against a weak Cal team after their thrashing of the Trojans and proceeding their huge game against Stanford. Early in third quarter they were locked into that trap game as expected, 24-17. I was actually watching the game at a bar, looked away to talk with some friends and then looked up again to see the score was 45-17 with 14 minutes to go in the fourth quarter. All I could say was, "Classic Oregon pulling away." That's sort of been the motto all season. Games just get out of hand when you play these Ducks, and every result has been that way. They destroyed the 22nd-ranked Arizona Wildcats 49-0 and the 23rd-ranked Washington Huskies 52-21, both at home. That big game at #17 USC in the Coliseum? They were up 62-45 before a last second TD gave the Trojans at least a semblance of a close result. How about an average of 32.5 margin of victory? Or 54.8 points per game? Just for fun they rang up 70 points on a Colorado team that had no business being in the state of Oregon let alone Autzen Stadium.
The numbers are laughable when it comes to Oregon, but the team is not. The ingredients are all there for this team to make a National Championship run. They're led by a dynamic offense who can sting you in anyway possible. Freshman QB Marcus Mariota has been fantastic at controlling this wild beast of an offense with only five picks and 31 total TDs. Kenjon Barner and De'Anthony Thomas are an absolutely unstoppable duo and the offensive line is so mobile and versatile that it makes everyone on the offense look like a Heisman candidate. Want to know something else? This team actually has a competitive defense. I'm not saying they're Alabama or LSU on defense, but they only allow 22.3 points a game. While that doesn't blow your mind, they do play in the Pac-12 which has a style that's about as wide open as a Nebraska cornfield. All in all, this is surely Chip Kelly's finest product yet.
Different from the 2010 squad that bowed out in the National Championship game against Auburn, this team doesn't have the sense of entitlement that team had. This team realizes that it's foot on the throttle every single game, no matter who they're playing. 2010 presented almost exact situation for the Ducks heading into the Cal trap game on the road, and they only won 15-13 in a sloppy, ugly game. The trap game never made it past halftime for the 2012 Ducks.
But just as fast as I can crown these Ducks the best team Chip Kelly's ever had, they still have two enormous games on the docket. Next week an interesting 13th-ranked Stanford squad comes to the Zoo for what could easily become another blowout victory for the Ducks. The game that really should put fear in the Ducks is the Civil War game against the rival Beavers, who know a thing or to about spoiling National Championship runs at home (ask the 2008 USC Trojans, who never recovered after that loss). If the Ducks are lucky enough to escape that game, which I think they will, then they will meet UCLA or USC in the Pac-12 Championship game. Both teams are extremely beatable. By that time they should have usurped the Big-12 leading Kansas State Wildcats for the #1 spot.
It's obvious that anything can happen in a National Championship game, anyone can step up, any superstar can falter; pressure does in fact bust pipes. Yet if the Ducks do reach the big game as I think they will, I'm quite confident that their unstoppable offense will be too much for the Wildcats, Dammies or anyone else that sneaks into that #2 spot in the BCS.
Chip Kelly returned to Eugene for one reason: to win a National Championship. And a National Championship he will win.
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