Unbelievable Oregon vs. Boise St. game
(Written by kencraw)
I thought as a Cal fan I had seen some huge non-conference eggs laid, but Oregon takes the cake. Tennessee ’06? Maryland ’08? Air Force ’02? All were noble efforts compared to Oregon today. ZERO 1st downs in the 1st half? Only one TD? Remarkably bad performance.
But mark my words. Just as Cal went on to win 7 straight after Tennessee ’06, don’t count Oregon out yet. This could be a huge motivator for them. There’s still talent on this team and we’re about to find out if Chip Kelly knows how to be a head coach.
One final thing… I think what LeGarrette Blount, Oregon’s running back did at the end of the game was completely inexcusable. That was not some off-hand punch, that was a hard, completely intentional punt that was just BARELY provoked. Completely unacceptable. Then he can’t even get himself under control after that and lets the ribbing from the fans get so under his skin it took at gang of staff to hold him back, and not just for a few seconds, for MINUTES!?!
Blount should be suspended by the NCAA for at least a few games and I think Chip Kelly should seriously consider kicking him off the team permanently. What does everyone else think (answer the poll)?
UPDATE on 9-4-09 at 2:45 PM: Blount has been suspended for the season. He’ll get to practice with the team and participate in team activities, but won’t be able to dress/play. I think that’s a sufficient penalty. It might be a mistake to let a cancerous person stay around the team, but the penalty is reasonable. It shows the University doesn’t take this lightly.
September 4th, 2009 at 12:21 am
I don’t think one punch should have to ruin Blount’s entire career. I mean sure, it was completely inexcusable, but this is football. It’s not like he permanently injured the Boise St. DE or anything– it was just really really bad sportsmanship. He should be disciplined severely, of course, but he deserves to be allowed back out on the field eventually.
September 4th, 2009 at 12:35 am
i think he should be kicked off the team. The punch to the other player was bad, but going after fans is absolutely inexcusable. The only reason the situation didn’t get uglier is because he was held back by a coach, teammates and the police. If he had gotten to those fans and punched them too, would Oregon want him representing their university?
September 4th, 2009 at 6:59 am
He should be suspended for a few games at the most, but nothing more. It’s football. It gets emotional out there, and these guys are little more than teenagers. It was a classless move and he deserves punishment but it shouldn’t be as severe as kicking him off the team.
On a more serious note, my pick ’em got off to a horrible start! I expected much more offense than this.
September 4th, 2009 at 8:38 am
Yeah, you did even worse that me… and I stunk the joint up. That’s the risk of having a co-worker who’s a big Oregon fan.
September 4th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
Not to gloat, but I picked a 10-point Boise win…
Still, I thought they’d both score more.
September 4th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
I saw that… bold, Jason, bold. I guess you really did stick behind your statement that you’re not really convinced about Oregon yet (and you’ve got a whole new choir of believers too).
September 5th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
New coach, new scheme. Even if they jell, it might take a while for it to happen. And now you’ve got to wonder if they’re going to recover. Depends on the (unproven) coaching.