This was the season of “what ifs”…

• What if Smith spotted Hayes as the superior kicking talent early on?
• What if Smith had all the correct personnel on the field from day 1?
• What if Smith punted vs WSU?
• What if Smith put in Gebbia in all the 2nd half failures of Luton?

And on and on…etc.

Oh Well. Still it was a very positive season in that the progress was clear. Most impressive was the defensive performance despite a total lack of depth and only a few play-makers (Hamilcar, Speights, Morris), maybe Dunn. It was a motley crew of defenders that Tibs coached up and Smith got to buy in. Very impressive from Cal Poly onward, sans Utah.

Regarding Luton vs Gebbia. That’s been beaten to death. I’ve been over it since week 3 when it was clear stat monkey’s had the win. But in regard to the future, Gebbia went 26-40 for 243 and ran for 25 yards in his FIRST career start. Oregon isn’t a great defense, but they’re definitely fast and aggressive. Completely impressive debut. Luton was fine this season. Pretty much what I expected except I thought he’d throw more interceptions (so many dropped INTs…the guy must have paid the football gods dues for breaking his neck and back). Whether it was the right decision for Smith to start him? Eh. Maybe if we made a bowl you could justify that call, but interestingly, due to Smith’s errors we didn’t make a bowl. So in retrospect (or not for me) we were better off starting Gebbia with eyes on the future. I still think we win 5 games with Gebbia, so in a sense it was a total waste. Luton hindered the program his entire regime, and Gary Andersen still lingered until yesterday. We should be free from him now. Luton as a backup and Gebbia starting would have led to a magical season, but leave it to the Beavs to not see it.

What else…

Jack is dead. I’m upset. He pretended to know something about anything, which made everything interesting.

• Hayes emerging is huge.
• Dunn at CB is emerging. Not quite elite but getting good and playing with arrogance (psycho?).
• Hamilcar was a 5-star recruit for me and lived up to it finally. Should return…he’s body isn’t NFL ready.
• Lindsey showed flashed to take over for Hodgins. He needs Xanax to calm his nerves (he constantly is thinking downfield and run before the catch). Or a joint, or a shot of whiskey. He’d be elite if not for the nervous disorder. If Hodgins is back our receivers should be best in the conference.
• Gebbia and Hodgins found chemistry in the second half. See above.
• Musgrave looked like a Gronk light edition in limited time. Noah graduating should be fine. Noah did come on late, which was good to see.
• Not sure it was mentioned, but we had a running back stable of Jefferson, Pierce, and Tyler…three presidents. Did anyone pick up on this in the media? I never saw it.
• We officially became “Hurdle U” this year. Seth must be coaching off the books while he sirs his 20th kid.
• Flemings has heart but he shouldn’t be involved in kick returns or much else but a gimmick/slot player here and there. Love the guy’s passion but he’s not a legit PAC player like the Rogers brothers were at that size.
• Thanks to AB PayPal patrons. Need it throughout the year/offseason to keep this thing going so please don’t stop, as I now have a mortgage and refuse to work for free in any capacity. I’m getting older, more demands on my time, and simply can’t do it. If you like AB then keep it alive. I’ll keep working if you all keep supporting. If you haven’t yet donated please do so, and even better, become a monthly donor (whatever you can afford per month, even if it’s a few cents)
• Finally, the future is bright. People accuse AB of being a negative site. I never understood it. Reality can be bleak, and reality can be bright. Right now it’s bright. There’s no reason to bury your head in the sand and pretend darkness is light just because you don’t like how darkness feels.

Go Beavs!

Go Beavs.

42-35 Ducks

There’s a lot I’d like to write about last game, but I just don’t have the time right now.

In short, you all know I disagree with the call by now. I did before the call, so it’s not Monday morning quarterbacking. In the game thread I said (and another commented said shortly after) having Luton try to get the D offsides then punting was the call. Good mix of aggressive and conservative.

That game felt like if you punt there you win. You can’t be so afraid of conventional football that you overthink yourself out of a win. There also has to be a point where you don’t fear the opponent. Everyone thinks going for it means Smith is aggressive and going for the win, but in reality it means he feared WSU. At some point you just have to punt and tip your cap to WSU if they go the full 80 yards in a minute. What’s wrong with that? It’s not Riley-esque. It’s just smart.

The other issue was the clock. I missed it, but apparently Luton was snapping the ball with 13 to 15 seconds on the clock. How is this an issue at this point in the season? And is that on Smith or Luton? I’ve seen it in earlier games. Seems it should be coached out of the QB if it is the QB. Disturbing.

I still like Smith, but this is going to get old fast if it’s degenerate gambler move one after another. I don’t think aggressive for the sake of it is somehow cooler than lame-ass Riley curling into a ball. Both are terrible for different reasons. Why is it so difficult to have in-game feel and play the odds?

Anyway, go Beavs. Ducks should be -14.5 favorites, so the line is steep again. Ducks are fast on D but not technically very good. They make up for that with speed. Johnson and Verdell are matchup nightmares. If we get the A+ Beavs and the B- Ducks we get a win. Anything short of that we’re done.

Go Beavs.

Go Beavs!

I don’t feel strongly about this game so no prediction, but I felt the line should have been WSU -6.