The coursework is probably no day at the beach, but the University of Oregon has long been associated with fun. Its mascot is a Donald Duck doppleganger. It’s the birthplace of Nike. Its football team is known for crazy uniforms and an equally crazy offense capable of regularly putting up 500 yards a game.
The Ducks didn’t have much fun Saturday night, though, committing four turnovers in a 40-27 loss to LSU at Cowboys Stadium.
The method the Tigers used to prepare for the Ducks’ frantic offense is unconventional, just the way LSU’s unconventional coach, Les Miles, likes it.
The drill was called “tempo,” according to Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel. LSU’s defense would practice against two offenses to condition itself for Oregon’s quick pace.
“One offensive unit would line up and run a play while the other huddled,” Wetzel writes. “When the play ended, the second offense would sprint into formation and snap the ball as fast as possible and the defense would have to scramble into position. Then the first offense would huddle and repeat the cycle.
“It caused defenders’ minds to spin and their muscles to burn. It also got them ready to stuff the Oregon offense and negate the Ducks’ usual schematic advantage.”
This is why LSU has stuck with Miles through all the late-game coaching gaffes and unintentionally slapstick comments to the media. His outside-the-box thinking enabled the Tigers to prepare for an offense that, as recently as last January, many believed could not be adequately prepared for.
It seems like the real fun takes place not in Eugene, Ore., but Baton Rouge, La.
PHOTO OF THE DAY
Respect the Hat.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“We were wrong for thinking coming in that they might be a cupcake team and they really ran it down our throat the first half. We got lucky with this one.”
— Auburn’s Philip Lutzenkirchen on the Tigers’ 42-38 win over Utah State on Saturday. The Aggies racked up 448 yards, including 227 rushing, and led by 10 points with four minutes left in the game before Auburn stole the victory.
TWEET OF THE DAY
Good luck. Hope everyone’s safe.
VIDEO OF THE DAY
Novak Djokovic and Maria Sharapova could be twins. Not twins of each other, of course, but twins of other people who look absolutely nothing alike.
