Not many people expected Oregon to be in this position after the second week of the season.
Least of all the media and most of the college football universe. The Ducks are now 2-0 with the biggest non-conference road win under their belt.
Most assumed Oregon would lose to the Buckeyes, going 1-1, and then climb their way back into the College Football Playoff discussion by running the table in conference with perhaps Utah being their biggest stumbling block.
But now the Ducks are squarely in the playoff picture with a downpour of accolades heaped in their direction.
They are No. 4 in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches polls.
Oregon’s next big game doesn’t come until Oct. 23 when they go into the Rose Bowl to face off against the surprise team of the Pac-12, Chip Kelly’s UCLA squad.
That’s over a month away with Stony Brook, Stanford, and California looming in the coming weeks.
Expectations are now through the roof.
One can imagine how difficult It’s going to be for the Ducks to block out all of the outside noise, not to mention, all of the publications and national cable outlets touting what giant-killers they are.
That’s an even more difficult task with social media at the ready.
Not only has Oregon’s national ranking jumped, but fans and pundits alike on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are also all raving about how good the Ducks are and how it would take an epic performance to beat them.
Their power ranking via ESPN.com sky rocketed up to No. 3 only behind Alabama and Georgia.
According to head coach Mario Cristobal, maintaining focus is going to be easy for the coaching staff.
THE DAY AFTER; MARIO CRISTOBAL TALKS ABOUT 35-28 WIN OVER OHIO STATE
“We watch the tape and there’s a ton to correct. It’s all over the place,” he said.
“Bottom line is that what’s not good enough in defeat is not good enough in victory as well. To us, our approach to reps, to our nutritional habits, our training habits in the way we practice … the way we approach this week will really determine if our trajectory points us to being a great football team or just being a good football team.”
No one can really blame the Ducks if they come out this weekend against FCS Stony Brook with an intensity not quite at the same level as it was against the Buckeyes.
But after that, the conference season begins with Arizona and even though the Wildcats are rebuilding, any Pac-12 team can bite the Ducks if they’re not careful.
But even with all the hype, Oregon most likely won’t stray because of the type of player Cristobal has managed to bring to Eugene.
Being part of a great football team is what every highly-touted recruit is looking for. Cristobal and his staff don’t recruit a player just because they had a lot of stats by their name. They recruit kids who have mental toughness as well, and included in that is not allowing outside influences that can make you stray from the path of greatness.
Unfortunately, however, one slip up and their hopes and dreams of a conference title and a playoff appearance can go straight out the window.
That’s just the world of college football.
After the upset over the Buckeyes, however, that world just got a lot more interesting.
THE DAY AFTER; OREGON OC JOE MOORHEAD DISCUSSES THE WIN OVER OHIO STATE
INJURY UPDATE
Injuries are a significant part of football. It happens to every team across the country.
Including the Ducks who themselves are a bit of a walking M.A.S.H unit right now.
The most notable injuries were those to DE Kayvon Thibodeaux, LB’ers Justine Flowe and Dru Mathis, as well as TE Cam McCormick. On Monday, Cristobal discussed each player and their status.
In regards to Thibodeaux, his injury is a sprained ankle that occurred in the Fresno State game and kept him out of the Ohio State win. According to Cristobal, Thibodeaux is improving and is healing but not enough to confirm he’ll be ready against Stony Brook on Saturday. It’s extremely likely Cristobal will give his star DE another week off to get him ready for conference play.
In regards to Flowe, Cristobal confirmed his issue is a ‘significant leg injury’ and will keep him on the sideline indefinitely. The status of Mathis was the same, but not as dire as Flowe.
The surprising news came when Cristobal confirmed TE Cam McCormick is once again out for the season with another significant injury that occurred in the Ohio State game while he made a first down catch in the first half. “Cam did sustain a pretty significant leg injury and he’ll be out for the season – it’s his other leg” explained Cristobal.
Also in the injury column are linebackers Mase Funa and Keith Brown who sustained ‘minor injuries’ against Ohio State. The status of their return to action wasn’t given, however, there was no indication they’d miss significant time.
“Mase and a bunch of other guys, they got nicked up, they got dinged up pretty good,” Cristobal said.
“But confident that Mase is good to go and will be OK. … (Brown) might have a minor strain but nothing of a large magnitude. He played well and physical and downhill.”