T1B

Well, I guess I better get this party started myself. And excuse me because I'm pretty fuckin' rusty at this...But I guess I'd better call my shot.

Isn't fucking fitting that it comes down to Oregon and Washington.

I don't think I've felt this confident about a game since USC at Oregon in 2009, when Chip Kelly sent Pete Carroll looking for the eject button for college football. Yeah, we lost to them 2 months ago. On the road, by 3 points, on a missed last second FG, after missing conversions on three 4th downs in which we could have taken the points earlier in the game. I'm a homer through and through, but it didn't take green tinted glasses to see that the better team (TM) didn't necessarily win that game.

And that's why the Ducks are a 9.5 favorite, which in itself has to be some kind of record. I've never heard of an undefeated Power (4/5/whatever the fuck we are calling it now) team being a 2 score dog in a game like this before to a team with losses, let alone a team that they beat earlier in the year. I'm not quite as old as some of you geezers, but barring maybe some team some year with major injuries, I'm going to say this is pretty much a first.

The Huskies have been living on borrowed time for months. It's truly a miracle that they managed to get through without a loss, because they've been flirting with losses like they are Phoebe Cates in a John Hughes movie. Week after week, they've been Harvey Fucking Weinstein, sitting in his office, telling his assistant to send a loss up to his casting couch so they can get that nut, but week after week they've pulled it out at the last minute, so instead I'm the one with blue-balls here.

But hell, that's definitely for the best for the Ducks. That "perfect season" pressure is clearly getting to them and if they'd released that pressure with a loss a few weeks ago, we'd still be playing this game, but they might be loose coming into it as purely an underdog with nothing to lose. Somehow we find ourselves as the odds on favorite and still get to be the team with nothing to lose. It's a Christmas Miracle alright.

But Justin Timberlake isn't delivering Penix in a Box this year and this basketcase looks to be about one pick short of a complete mental breakdown.


Fucker is hiding on the sidelines, and being escorted off the field with a coat over his head like he's Michael Jackson.

Yeah, he's a picture of mental stability.

So, here we are Huskies. The end of an era. Our most hated rivals. #3 vs. #5. The biggest game in the rivalry's history. Probably the biggest game in the Pacific Conference history. It's THE GAME that the conference will be remembered by. You are undefeated. Win and you are in. All you got to do is not fuck it up. Good luck.

And for the rest of the end of the Pacific Conference...Well, I didn't ask for this and I didn't want it. I still don't like it. I spent over a decade with you all, shitting on the Big-10 the whole time. Never in my wildest nightmares did I imagine we could ever be a part of it.

Stanford: Fuck you for every time you ruined our season in both football and basketball. Fuck you for making me watch David Shaw's allergy to points. Fuck Chris Hernandez. And fuck you because my oldest daughter is a goddamned genius and might end up there soon making me take out loans to afford it. But I will miss you. Best of luck in the ACC, I guess.

Cal: The mid 2000's bridesmaid run you had was the pinnacle of your success in my lifetime. Which is pretty sad, but you gave this board quite the bitch in m2, which was fun. Every time we play it seems to be in a monsoon, so I won't miss never having to do that again. I don't even hate m2, so if you ever read this, good luck to Cal as well.

Arizona and ASU: These guys can fuck right off the Grand Canyon. I want nothing to do with the desert schools again. Just good enough to derail the season of whoever the snakebit Pac-10/12 champion is, and just bad enough to always embarrass the conference in Non-conference games. Have fun in your basketball conference and I will be glad to never think of you again.

Colorado and Utah: We barely knew thee. We barely care...buh-bye

OSU and WSU: I feel bad for Q West Coast Style and all my Coog fans out there. Truly I do. But I'd be lying if I said I don't find OSU's position to be a little funny and I know that Washington fan feels the same about WSU. Wow, the disrespect! Your in-state rivals ditch you and the world of college football relegates you to mid-major status in one fell swoop. And for it to end like this, which your rivals playing for all the marbles while you sit at home trying to keep players and recruits and failing to keep a coach. Oh man, if only there were a Beaver fan here to shit on.

It does look like the Civil War will go on, so it's not goodbye, but how long until the money and recruiting turns this "rivalry" into just another bodybag game?

USC: You started this whole thing. You tried to get away from us. You pulled the escape hatch and as soon as you got a life-raft you tried to seal the door behind you, pressuring the Big-10 NOT to take Oregon. But like Deniro in Cape Fear we are here, holding on underneath the car. We know you are afraid of west coast competition. You can't escape us.


UCLA: Keep Chip

That's it. Pour one out for the Conference of Champions. Lets win one last one. See ya on the other side.

I guess we play BIG TIME POWER FOOTBALL now that we are in the Big-10, so greetings to my new brothers and sisters. I'm not sure how to root for the Big-10, but I'm not complaining too much about we stand when 4 of the Top 6 ranked teams are (next year) Big-10 teams. But it's going to take some getting used to. First off, can we get a fucking real name for this conference? No, we can't be the Big-10 with 18 teams and B1G is a fucking stupid logo.

Ducks 42 Huskies 24

Rack JD.

Jay, m2 is FiatLux now.

I hate to see the PAC8…er PAC10…er PAC12 disappear. I’ve always enjoyed the geographical aspect of conferences, lo all these years. The dissolution of the PAC is horrible.

I’m with you on your Ducks. Oregon-38, UW-21.

Although I’m not expecting my beloved Tide to sneak into the playoff (too many things have to happen), I think that, as of right now, the 2 teams I’d hate to face are Oregon and Alabama.

I’m supposed to read all that? OK I’ll bring it up tonight after I go to bed and finish Wordle and Spelling Bee, and before I break out the Kindle.

Rack your take, Jay. I figure the Ducks will scab dick a win over U Dub and be a one-and-done in the playoffs unless they are lucky enough to draw TTUN. The B1G is stupid. I think you are on to something. What about The Big Stupid?

Rrrrack JayDuck!

That was excellent. I laughed, I cried, I cheered and sighed.

Rack your take Jay!

Looking forward to the Buckeyes’ visit to Eugene next year.

It’s more fun when those games are rare and thus valued as a big deal. Conference realignment will ultimately dilute the rarity of these matchups and turns the regular season into college basketball— essentially worthless until the playoff starts.

Oh well. I like math so personally I think that the “Big 10+1+1+2+2+2” works as a temporary logo.

You all probably thought I was kidding, but I did read Jay's post just like I said I would, and now I'm adding another RACK.

BTW, I solved Wordle in two guesses so RACK me for that, but I didn't quite make it to "Genius" on the Spelling Bee, so a big UNRACK there.

As for me, I go back to the AAWU days. My first football memories are sitting in the end zone with my dad at the old Stanford Stadium and hearing "Lewis on a keeper" seemingly over and over. Then it was Plunkett to Gene Washington and Randy Vataha, and punking tOSU and Michigan in consecutive years in the Granddaddy of bowl games. Good fucking times for a young stoner.


My parents were both Stanford alumni and, growing up in Palo Alto, we naturally had family season tickets (six of us back then) when there was open seating in the end zone. The family across the street had kids our age and parents that both graduated from Cal. We were all best of friends except for one week of constant stinkeye out of every year. My father was actually president of the local alumni club for several years.

For two seasons when I was in HS I walked up and down the Stanford stadium steps selling canned sodas out of a big stainless steel bin hanging from my neck. Back then, even though Cal was the "traditional" rival, the real rival was USC. They would sell out the 90,000 seat stadium any time the Condoms came to town, and even for some other games. One of our proudest days was the time that John McKay said that the Stanford fans were the worst in the conference.

Those were fun days. When the cheering section would come out with something like "U-S-C - - - S-U-C - - - U-S, See?" Or the band would form a surfboard and drop trou showing all to be wearing baggies before playing Fun Fun Fun and a Beach Boys medley, or forming a big ray gun before playing a tribute to Governor Ronnie Ray Guns.

I'll have to say, over the past 15 years or so during the Jim Harbaugh / David Shaw era, the my favorite opponent overall has been Oregon. Some absolutely classic games. I really liked watching Marcus Mariota (too bad he sort of flamed out in the NFL) and Justin Herbert (the Chargers are dead to me but I still like Herbert).

Those fun days, unfortunately, are long gone. Nowadays, I think, the new stadium holds about 50,000 and they're lucky to put 25,000 asses in the seats for any game. I don't think Stanford is set up to be competitive any longer in BTPCF, with the demise of the PAC8-10-12-10-6-2 or whatever; the new rules around NIL, early admissions, and the transfer portal; plus their small student body and academic requirements. I don't think the ACC thing is going to work out long term and I really wouldn't be surprised to see them eventually drop out of FBS, though pride and tradition might get in the way of that. Not much tradition left in FBS anymore anyway. They could possibly be competitive in a conference like the Ivy League but there's nothing like that on the west coast.

Oh well...nothing lasts forever.

I still hate USC with a passion, even though my brother and step daughter both graduated there. I guess some things do last forever.

And, oddly enough, I'm hoping the Ducks can pull off a win in the final conf championship, and go all the way for one last shot of glory for the PAC.

Excellent diatribe Jay....good to see you back. I'm bummed about the Pac 8-10-12 etc....going the way of the phone book. Lots of great rivalries and great games. What will become of the Rose Bowl game? Mikey, I love the new stadium at Stanford and you're right about everything. Their recruiting base is small due to academic standards. Both $C and UCLA are in for huge troubles as they navigate the Big 10...12? 14? 18? IMO NIL and the portal are ruining the sport.
Mikey I got wordle in 4. Baseball immaculate grid score of 241, not my best. Got connections in 6. spelling bee was solid....

Laxplayer wrote: ↑Fri Dec 01, 2023 7:34 pm Excellent diatribe Jay....good to see you back. I'm bummed about the Pac 8-10-12 etc....going the way of the phone book. Lots of great rivalries and great games. What will become of the Rose Bowl game? Mikey, I love the new stadium at Stanford and you're right about everything. Their recruiting base is small due to academic standards. Both $C and UCLA are in for huge troubles as they navigate the Big 10...12? 14? 18? IMO NIL and the portal are ruining the sport.
Mikey I got wordle in 4. Baseball immaculate grid score of 241, not my best. Got connections in 6. spelling bee was solid....

LOL I do connections also. Not familiar with baseball immaculate grid, so now I'll have to look that up.

The Rose Bowl lost its luster IMO when they went from PAC12 champs vs Big 10 champs every year to probably the PAC12 champ against maybe a B1G team. Now it'll be just another bowl game. Probably USC or UCLA, if they're not in the playoff, vs some other team from somewhere. Used to be the Midwest fan base wanted to win the Big 10 so they could come out and enjoy some nice weather for New Years. And it's almost always nice in Pasadena on Jan 1. Now it's all about the $$.

Am I bitter? Not really. It is what it is. Funny, I wish only the best for Oregon and Udub in their new home. No offense, but it would make me happy to see USC and UCLA crash and burn. Especially SC after they tried to buy a MNC by bringing in Riley and half the OU team along with a few dozen other transfers. This season has actually been fairly satisfying on that account. Utah, Prime Time and the 'zonas? Don't really GARA. OK maybe I'm a little bitter.

Wordle
Quordle
Waffle
Connections
Squardle

Every fookin day.

I had a 99 day streak broken on Wordle earlier this year (94 days ago) on a day that I was positive that I had solved it. I’m up to 94 today and being extra observant in my quest for triple digits.

Watching $C crash and burn this year was so much fun. Their fans are still the most myopic in all of CFB. I'll still root for UCLA because mdy daughter was a student athletic trainer with them two years ago and I know so many kids from So Cal that are there. Granted I know a lot that are at $C but I just can't root for them. It's a DNA thing.
I used to do quordle then went to octordle....it was fun. Immaculate grid is for all sports just match up the pairs....so it may be who played for each team, who had these stats for this team etc....kind of fun. Played 534 wordle games. current streak is 100. 98% wins.....missed one a while ago.

I've talked with so many USC fans that are convinced the only thing that's been holding them back is the conference. That's why they were so overjoyed to go to the Big-10. Its crazy. If Oregon wins tonight it will be the 3rd time in a decade playing in the National title game or the playoff. If Washington wins, it would be their second playoff appearance. The conference isn't holding USC back, it's the coaching since Pete Carrol bailed. If they think they are going to have an easier time getting there adding Ohio St. and Michigan to their conference to compete against, they are truly insane. But it has to be someone else's fault. It couldn't possibly be that they've been mediocre for 15 years.

Washington left tackle playing in shorts and a crop-top tee shirt.

Looks like he’s playing a pickup game on the local elementary school’s field.

Except he’s probably 6’6” and 330.

Bo is choking hard. Game over if he doesn’t put his big boy pants on

Mikey wrote: ↑Fri Dec 01, 2023 9:00 pm

I had a 99 day streak broken on Wordle earlier this year (94 days ago) on a day that I was positive that I had solved it. I’m up to 94 today and being extra observant in my quest for triple digits.

Me and Mrs. 88 do those games first thing in the morning, before we get out of bed. We've taken it for granted that we will get them right. We fucked up the other day on Wordle. First time in like a year. Then we fucked up on Quordle. And recently we blew Connections. Still haven't fucked up Waffle and Squardle. But the latter is just a battle of will.

Looks like the O line didn’t show up either. Merry Christmas Huskies. Enjoy the playoffs

Huskies dominating. This is not what I expected at all.

Ducks late TD is huge.

Need to score out of the half or it’s over. Looks like they really thought they could just show up and win. Hasn’t been a problem yet this year, so hopefully he can light a fire under them at half. Lanning might have to do some maturing himself in the coming years.

It’s a game now.

Still a lot of own dicks to step on. This is the Pac12.

Nice call.

I think Oregon is more talented, but also more historically prone to self immolation.

Yeah, going to come down to whoever shits themselves worse in the 4th

The line splits in this game are yuge.

Another 3 point game. Kill me now

Defense travels. Bad defense does too.

Congrats to the Huskies. Winners of the final conference game and championship. Time to get drunk

Both O and D line looked terrible. They should be embarrassed. Bo redeemed himself a bit, but clearly came out rattled. Too much in their own heads it seems

The Ducks had a good season. Just a couple of stumbles against a team that is wearing glass slippers.

Yeah. I’m happy with where we are at. So long PAC 12.

Nice game. Very entertaining.

JayDuck wrote: ↑Thu Nov 30, 2023 5:56 pm Arizona and ASU

As we reminisce the end of the Pac with Bill Walton, here’s some food for thought.

Arizona State made it to the Rose Bowl twice in its time as a conference member, in ‘86 and ‘96 seasons.

Head coach John Cooper won the Rose Bowl in both of those seasons (following losses to underdog arch rivals).

Jim Harbaugh lost in the first of those (as a player). Hasn’t been back since as a participant.

U of Arizona never appeared in a Rose Bowl game.

JayDuck wrote: ↑Thu Nov 30, 2023 5:56 pm I guess we play BIG TIME POWER FOOTBALL now that we are in the Big-10, so greetings to my new brothers and sisters. I'm not sure how to root for the Big-10, but I'm not complaining too much about we stand when 4 of the Top 6 ranked teams are (next year) Big-10 teams. But it's going to take some getting used to.

Oh, in the Big-18 you'll get used to whuppin' my MD Terrapins up-n-down the field. For another couple years, anyway... So watch- ah crap. So how's your lacrosse team?

First off, can we get a fucking real name for this conference? No, we can't be the Big-10 with 18 teams and B1G is a fucking stupid logo.

RACK. it's like a fucking poker in the eye every time I channel surf. Seeing it stenciled onto EVERY field and court for EVERY game is stomach-churning. Make it stop, B1G! <--- Oh fer Chrissakes.

Great original post, btw.