Bears Bureau: Ducks Go Hunting
The Bears enter Hibernation
I mean what else is there to say. This is the 2022 California Golden Bears. A team that in flashes looks like we had all hoped it would be, but in other times simply cannot function, as if it’s like 2013 all over again. It’s odd because this team did get meaningfully better at several skill positions and yet the overall state of the offense is about the same. And coming into a game vs the #8 Oregon Ducks, it didn’t look like things would improve much.
Narrator: They in fact didn’t improve.
Well how did Oregon win this game and did anyone really rise to the occasion for the Golden Bears? Let’s find out.
Where to buy
Kai Millner
Even though the offense wasn’t really that productive in the grand scheme of things (10 points through 3+ quarters), once Kai Millner came on in relief of Jack Plummer, the offense started to click. The part I was most impressed with was his niftiness in the pocket, dealing with pressure and being hit pretty much on every single dropback. It takes some real poise to come in and keep wheeling and dealing, and Millner certainly made the most of it. Some Oregon defensive starters may have been out of the game, but Millner exhibited maturity beyond his experience in throwing two passing touchdowns to Monroe Young and Justin Richard Baker respectively. It makes me want to see more, because the offense was different with him under center. Will Millner be the quarterback of the future? No one knows but I certainly want to see more of him at the helm.
Millner’s stats: 8/11, 114 yards, 2 TD. 1 rush, 13 yards
*this will be all for this weeks buys, so you may be wondering why aren’t Jeremiah Hunter and J Michael Sturdivant here? Simply put, you’ve bought too much by this point that the return doesn’t make sense. Just sit back, enjoy the ride and enjoy the tweet I made during the game.
Where to sell
Tight ends
I genuinely don’t understand the purpose that Bill Musgrave sets for his tight ends in his hybrid west coast offense. At least in the Collin Moore, Gavin Reinwald, and Jake Tonges era there were distinct identities, with Moore being the blocker, Reinwald being the hybrid, and Tonges being the most receiver like tight end. In the present day, it’s hard to establish how the tight ends are acclimating, with Jermaine Terry II seemingly being the blocker, Elijah Mojarro being the hybrid, and Keleki Latu being the most receiver esque. The bigger issue at hand is that this group simply isn’t producing, with their blocking and receiving not being up to par. This isn’t good enough when you consider the context of the offensive line and I’m not sure it is going to get better this season.
Peter Sirmon
Bill Musgrave gets a lot of flack and rightfully so, but defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon can’t be absolved of blame. The defense as a whole has taken a step back from an elite unit under Tim DeRuyter to a slightly above average unit under Sirmon. The problem? A slightly above average unit doesn’t win you games with this offense, putting your scheme under the microscope more than years past. This season, the defense has given up an average of 416 yards per game and 25 points per game. The points you can live with, especially with the tighter defense on the plus side of the field. However the sheer amount of yards given up is not good for getting off the field on third downs, especially in the second half when the offense needs the ball. Sirmon needs to rechannel the energy his defense had in the backhalf of last season and he needs to find it quick.
Pac 12 Quick Hits
Bo Nix: Buy
Outside of the Georgia massacre, Bo Nix has been nothing but elite. I mean he accounted for 6 total touchdowns against Cal for heavens sake. That includes several trips on the plus side of the field where Oregon didn’t convert, signaling the confidence Dan Lanning has him and the control of the offense he has. The Ducks have not put up less than 41 points in a game ever since Georgia, a menacing feat for any opponent to see in the scouting report. When it was announced that Nix was transferring to Oregon, I sat back and rejoiced. I’ve been proven wrong and then some. Bo Nix is having a career renaissance in Eugene and it’s time we take notice and give him his due.
Dan Lanning: Buy
In the same vein, I wasn’t sure of Dan Lanning’s coach chops when he came to Eugene. He’s relatively young, hadn’t had a head coaching job, and was heading into an environment where results simply matter more than most. And he’s hit the ground running, making Oregon fans think he’s the coach of the future. He and Kenny Dillingham have revitalized the offense, he’s better at in game adjustments than Mario Cristobal, and is harnessing the talent that Cristobal recruited. He’s essentially illustrating what Cristobal wanted Oregon to be. Dan Lanning will be the future of Oregon football for a while, it’s time to get on the ride.
Nicholas Barr-Mira: Hold
The UCLA kicker went 14/21 on kicks last year and looks to be on a better pace at 12/16 so far this season, but he’s had some really inexplicable misses this season. He had a puzzling short miss against Utah, shanked one against Stanford, and against Bowling Green he wasn’t good either. Even on his makes, they are aren’t smooth and I’m struggling on whether to attribute this to technique and coaching, or the fact that its a Chip Kelly led team which means the kickers aren’t allowed to succeed. If UCLA is in a close game that comes down to a kick, having Barr-Mira back there would give me way less pause than Joshua Karty for example.
Ja’Quinden Jackson/Utah coaches: Buy
Down Tavion Thomas, Micah Bernard, and eventually Cam Rising as he was a late scratch, Utah had all the reasons in the world to lose on the Palouse and somehow, someway they got through it and won. Utah exhibited the grit we know them for today and held on for dear life to beat Washington State 21-17. Led by backup Bryson Barnes, Jaylon Glover, and Ja’Quinden Jackson, the Utes kept it together thanks to the poise and powerful running of each of these three players. I was most impressed with Jackson, the Texas quarterback turned running back transfer, who is 4th on the depth chart but runs really hard and effective behind the Utes offensive line. He may have stretched the ball over the goal line which drew the ire of his coaches but he seized his opportunity like others before him and might have earned himself some more snaps with the unknown status of Thomas. From the versatility, to the discipline, I love the way Utah has coached up Jackson and the rest of the backups, because it takes a lot of preparation for this last minute timing, especially for a conference road game.
That will do it for this week’s coverage, now it’s time for the last third of the season!
Hire Bryan Harsin for OC.
Harsin coached with Wilcox at Boise State 2001–2002 and 2006–2009. Harsin is a QB coach at heart, has won championships, was a poor fit at Auburn, and I'm sure has buyout language that makes the financials work. Just gonna keep posting this till it's done.
Hard to believe we are in week 9. The season seems to have flown by, unfortunately the Bears have had a mid-season swoon against tougher competition ( not including Colorado). Hopefully they can right the ship before it's too late. But all indicators seem to show an unsatisfactory season at this point.