When you look at the James court memorandum and how it was written, it becomes a case that could be interpreted in so many different ways. I mean, it almost seems as if it was meant to be written that way, too. If anything, I think it took great pains to be soft on James.

“The defendant admits he grabbed the victim by her collar and pushed her against his car,” it says. Well, that could be a pretty violent act, I would think. But on the surface, the way it’s written, it seems to me that the writer didn’t intend to portray it that way.

Much the same thing could be said about, “Defendant caught the victim, grabbed her waist and they fell to the ground in the bark mulch.” I mean, it didn’t read, “The very strong and quick college football player chased the helpless young woman down, tackled her and threw her to the ground.”

One thing the document seemed to make clear was that there was a serious previous relationship between the victim and James. I’ve heard it portrayed as a stalker thing, where she’d been hounding him but the document seems to make it clear this was a couple who had been having a long-term, “intimate” relationship. And that she found someone else staying in his apartment. And that she was angry. That’s pretty easy to understand.

I don’t know how to figure out actually what happened. Not sure we’ll ever know. But you can rest assured that James ought to consider himself a lucky man. And with that, be very careful about his actions in the future.

In the case of Jeremiah Masoli, it’s pretty obvious by now that he’s missing all of next season not because of his illegal activity — the burglary — but the way he treated his coach. It’s pretty apparent that when the accusations came out, he lied to the cops and to his coach. I don’t find this all that surprising, actually — it’s what people often do when accused of a crime. The prisons, they say, are full of innocent men.

And while I understand Kelly feeling very betrayed by that, I’m not sure if his reaction to it doesn’t turn this thing into something very personal. And should it be that personal? I guess. Perhaps. Again, I’m happy I don’t have to make these sorts of decisions.

But Kelly has to make them — just as he is supposed to face the media when he makes them. The fact that he didn’t yesterday, that he made a statement and then turned the questions over to his athletic director, is pretty amazing.

Maybe the media should take that personally. Don’t think that some of them haven’t.

I’ve said this previously on radio and television and I’m not trying to be a wise guy. He needs a media coach — immediately. Often I find myself agreeing with what he’s saying, but I have a hard time getting past the delivery. He comes off defensive, combative, arrogant, cocky, brash — take your pick — at various times and it’s not serving him well. This can be fixed — at least to a point.

There are people out there who could help him. He makes more money than the president of that school, he’s the CEO of a major state-backed corporation, in a way, and he’s got to start sounding like one. Nobody does this better, by the way, than his athletic director, Mike Bellotti. Yeah, it’s why they had Mike carrying his water Friday.

But that isn’t sufficient. It won’t work in the long run.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Chip Kelly, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, LaMichael James, Oregon Ducks

Be interesting to see what happens when the justice system finally weighs in on LaMichael James and Jeremiah Masoli. And I think it’s prudent in these cases that people wait for all the facts to come out.

In the James case, when men are accused of assaulting women, it’s one of those crimes where they’re sometimes treated as if they’re guilty before anything is proved. And in some domestic violence cases, that’s needed in order to protect potential victims from their alleged abusers. It’s a sticky situation and I’ve worried all along that James could have been a target there instead of an abuser. But again, we really don’t know and I don’t think it’s fair to talk punishment until we really know what has happened.

That’s not to say I wouldn’t, as a coach, have suspended him when he was accused of the crime. I think the serious nature of the charge, and the fact that James put himself in that position to be charged in the first place, means you suspend him pending a resolution. Then reinstate him immediately if you find out he is innocent of wrongdoing.

When it comes to Masoli, I’d lean toward saying the same thing. I don’t think I’d kick him off the team unless I knew for sure that he actually is guilty of felony burglary — which he is charged with. Given that Masoli has a history of such crimes going back to high school, when he was involved in strong-arm robberies, I’d suspend him, too, pending the outcome of his trial.

And in Masoli’s case, if he’s guilty I cut him no slack due to the nature of his previous indiscretions. If his record was clean, I’d be tempted to go with a suspension of a few games — maybe take the position that this was some sort of fraternity prank gone bad, a momentary mistake that shouldn’t cause the complete loss of a kid’s future. But I’m not sure he’s now entitled to another chance.

I know this for sure — it’s not good to have your football team spread across the front page of The Oregonian in the off-season. That almost certainly always means bad news. And in this case, damage has been done by the behavior of a few players. The fact that these players are among the team’s best ones hurts even more.

And it’s all falling on Chip Kelly’s shoulders right now, fair or not. This is the part about being a head coach that being an offensive coordinator just doesn’t prepare you for.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Chip Kelly, College football, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, LaMichael James, Oregon Ducks

After all the television and radio shows I’ve done talking about this matchup, I’m going to do my best to try to sum up my thoughts on this game, without being too repetitive and without leaving something important out. We’ll be doing a giant, two-hour pre-game show live from Pasadena on Comcast Sportsnet Friday morning, beginning at 10:30.

OK, here we go:

– I’ve picked the Ducks to win this game since the night they qualified to play in it, and I’m not going to switch my selection. But I do believe it’s going to be a much closer and tougher game than I originally thought it would be.

– From being down here in Los Angeles on media day I can definitely confirm for you that the Buckeyes are bigger than Oregon. And not only that, they appear to be in excellent physical shape — even their linemen. They are an impressive group of athletes — not only physically but in the way they handled the media day stuff.

– We sort of knew that already, didn’t we? Oregon’s strength in this game has always been about speed and guile. The Ducks need to fool the Buckeyes a bit — with play calling and the option. I still think that’s possible but I don’t think Oregon is just going to line up and have its way with Ohio State.

– Ohio State figures to be the most disciplined and physical team Oregon has played all season. Don’t forget, their annual recruiting classes are the cream of the crop and I expect them to use their discipline to make it tough going, at times, for that Oregon option. And they’re a physical enough bunch I believe Jeremiah Masoli is going to get hit harder by these guys than anyone else all season.

– You think Boise State was disciplined against the Duck offense? Just wait.

– I cannot see Terrelle Pryor being good enough to beat the Ducks with his arm. I just don’t see it — and it’s why OSU would be well-served to get a lead heading into the final quarter. If they’re forced into a passing situation, he’s not the guy who is going to be able to pull that off.

– The Buckeyes must run. The Ducks will sell out to stop the run, daring Pryor to beat them deep. I don’t think he can do that with any consistency. That’s why I believe it’s imperative Ohio State be able to run no matter what Oregon does.

– I’m not sure how well Oregon will run, either — at least not without setting it up first with the pass. These guys have one of the best run defenses in the country and you can figure they’ll play the gaps with discipline and intelligence.

– But the Ducks’ real strength all season has been their balance. Oregon, I think, has a better chance of putting together a passing attack than the Buckeyes. It’s possible the team with the most passing yards will win.

– First team to 30 will definitely win. Maybe the first team to 20. It’s going to be a low-scoring game and I know a lot of Oregon fans won’t agree with that. But this isn’t going to be easy.

– Yes, I’m bothered by the weak showing by some of those other Pac-10 “powers.” I thought Arizona was better than that. I thought Oregon State would lose but didn’t expect a blowout. The Arizona thing was a complete joke, by the way. How do you give up all those points to Nebraska?

– Chip Kelly. I’m just not sure what to make of the guy. He certainly goes his own way and seems to feel he can do whatever he wants at times. But he better keep winning. And winning big. Trust me, if he doesn’t he’s going to be on a lot of hit lists. He really upset a couple of major television networks Thursday, walking away from interviews with them that were a contractual obligation for him. Seriously, ESPN was reportedly very upset with him. He just walked right past a dismayed reporter and refused to do it. That’s not smart, Chipster — these guys pay a lot of dough for the rights to these games and it’s money all those Pac-10 schools bankroll their programs with. But hell, if you can win 11 or 12 games a year, you can do whatever you want.

– There are a lot of Oregon fans ready to  anoint Kelly a real savior. Well, perhaps. But I remember the first season of Charlie Weis at Notre Dame when everyone was so excited about him winning with another coach’s players they gave him a huge contract extension — which they recently bought out. Not saying Kelly is another Weis, but I’m just pointing out the dangers of judging a coach off one season — no matter how great it is.

– It should be a wonderful game, perhaps the best matchup of the bowl season. A study in contrasts. Let’s make it Oregon 24, Ohio State 21.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Chip Kelly, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, Ohio State Buckeyes, Oregon Ducks, Rose Bowl, Terrelle Pryor

What a great game. As a guy once said around here, “Both teams played hard.”

By playing so well, the Beavers gave the Ducks even more credibility as a powerful team. Sean Canfield was terrific, but I felt the Beavers wore down on both sides of the ball as the game went on. Oregon seemed to be the better conditioned team and you must credit Chip Kelly’s practice regimen for that.

Jeremiah Masoli’s skill at the helm of the option is a beautiful thing to see and really, LaMichael James was the best running back on the field.

I have to say one other thing — it took a ton of guts to run LeGarrette Blount onto the field in the second half of that game. I know I wasn’t the only person whose first thought was, “Man, he hasn’t had game contact in months, it’s cold out and the chances of him fumbling …”

Well, all I can say is that it was a very gutsy move to use him.

Now, sit back and glory in your Pac-10 title, Ducks. And make your arrangements for Pasadena early. After all those years loyally showing the colors at those lousy secondary bowls Oregon has attended, you deserve this trip.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Chip Kelly, Civil War, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, LaMichael James, LeGarrette Blount, Oregon Ducks, Oregon State Beavers

This story in the Eugene Register-Guard uncovers some things about the Duck quarterback’s background that haven’t been reported before:

Masoli is unwilling to discuss the details of his guilty plea for the robberies in and around San Mateo, Calif., in 2005, which resulted in his expulsion from Serra High and a stint in the juvenile detention center.

But, speaking in general terms, Masoli acknowledged the significance of his experience in the detention center.

“I definitely grew up quickly,” he said. “Once you go inside, you definitely have to grow up quickly.”

Juvenile court records are closed, but media accounts and a source close to the school confirmed that Masoli was one of several Serra football players arrested in June 2005, and subsequently expelled, for targeting individuals at San Mateo’s Hillsdale Mall and isolated bus stops in the area, muscling them for money.

A respected student and a team captain, Masoli pleaded guilty to robbery, according to the San Francisco Examiner.

Citing California student-privacy laws, Serra football coach Patrick Walsh wouldn’t discuss specifics about Masoli’s involvement with the crimes but did say it had a tremendous effect on the school and the football team.

“Very shocking,” said Walsh, now in his ninth season as the coach at the private, all-boys Catholic school. “It was very difficult on all of us. He was an all-league quarterback, and he just got caught up in something he shouldn’t have.”

Masoli said his family and his faith helped him get through.

“It’s one of those things I was taught when I was little, just to persevere no matter what,” he said. “You just gotta lean on God. That’s really what I was brought up on. Everybody has their bad days, bad weeks, whatever. I just feel like I’m such a strong person because of the people who raised me that I could get through anything.”

He admitted, though, that there were moments his faith waned, moments when he wasn’t sure if he’d be given another chance to play football.

“It’s always tough. There’s temptation everywhere,” he said. “I’m just like any other person on the street.

“It is what it is,” he added. “It’s life, and that’s what happened. And now I’m here and doing this.”

Tweet This Post

Tags: College football, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, Oregon Ducks

It seems to me something is going a little haywire down in Eugene, where quarterbacks are suddenly jumping ship. Normally, that’s probably not cause for a major alarm, because Oregon has starter Jeremiah Masoli coming back and he’s going to be pretty good.

But what makes it a little scary is that Coach Chip Kelly’s offense  burns through quarterbacks the way an Indy car goes through tires on a hot day. Do you actually think Masoli, as much as he likes to run the ball, will get through next season unscathed? If so, he’ll be the first of Kelly’s QBs to pull off such a feat.

Justin Roper was the real loss here. He was a proven quarterback with a big arm who might someday play on Sundays. He was a quality backup who could have started at some other Pac-10 schools. And the dropoff from Roper to whoever assumes the backup role now is enormous.

And what bothers me the most is what Kelly has said about it:

“I’ve met with everybody – we’ll see,” Kelly said Tuesday. “I think everybody knows where they stand. I didn’t want any of them to transfer, but if they’re not happy not being the No. 1 guy at that position, then I can’t predict how that’s going to happen.”

Kelly said Harper, who reportedly became interested in Kansas State when the Wildcats brought back coach Bill Snyder, said he wants to be closer to his hometown of Wichita, Kan. He requested his release be forwarded to three schools: Kansas State, Kansas and Oklahoma State.

“The one thing we can’t do is we can’t move Eugene, Oregon, closer to Kansas,” Kelly said.

So, in other words, you want the guys who aren’t No. 1 to be happy about it? Obviously, they never will. Your job as a coach is to keep them around, anyway — either through a realization that they’ll probably eventually get a chance to play due to injury, graduation or whatever reason. That’s what coaches do, you know — they keep the 40 kids who aren’t starters around somehow, so that they have depth.

And as far as moving Eugene closer to Kansas, come on, pal,  if distance from home is going to start becoming a problem — as is being said about both departing signal callers, Chris Harper and Roper — then you better stop recruiting players from outside the Pacific Northwest, which you’re obviously not going to do.

Look, I’m never happy to see someone with NO previous head coaching experience be handed a head coaching job at this level. The head guy has responsibilities that coordinators don’t even know exist. One of them is keeping kids from transferring. Another is media relations, which I hear Kelly has flubbed grandly with a policy of making reporters request interviews with players 24 hours in advance.

Don’t get me wrong, if he wins games the guy can get away with whatever policies he wants. That’s the American way these days. But if he doesn’t win down there — and win big — he’s going to look like the dumbest hire in the school’s history.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Chip Kelly, Chris Harper, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, Justin Roper, Oregon Ducks

Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli came along about 40 years too late. I don’t know when I’ve seen a kid lately who looks more like an old-fashioned, single-wing tailback. Great runner, not very comfortable passing — even on fourth down with the game on the line. The Ducks might be better served to dump those wide outs — they drop a lot of balls, anyway — put in a couple of tight ends and just go to the old run-oriented single wing. Let the two Jeremiahs run on every down.

Uh, just kidding. These days, if you can’t throw, you can’t win. I mean, rain or no rain, 7 for 21 for 44 yards from your starting quarterback won’t win many Pac-10 games.

An ugly loss for Oregon — a game the Ducks could have won. But you must remember, this is November, a month that hasn’t been kind to Oregon in recent seasons.

Tweet This Post

Tags: California Bears, College football, Jeremiah Masoli, Oregon Ducks, single wing

A while back I wrote about cause and effect and what it has to do with Oregon’s quarterback situation. But still, I’d always thought the Ducks did a decent job of getting their signal callers ready to play.

Until Saturday afternoon. Wow — did the coaching staff really think Oregon was so much better than Boise State that it could slide through the game by just lining up and shoving the ball down the Broncos’ throats? Forget about injuries to the quarterback, what in the world was Oregon’s game plan? If you really want to play smash-mouth football, get out of that spread offense, put a couple of tight ends on the field and hand it to a fullback 30 times. Otherwise, use the spread to get your receivers isolated in space and throw the ball up the field! Don’t bring a baseball bat to a tennis match.

That was an expensive mistake for the Ducks, who couldn’t afford a nonconference home loss. But neither starter Jeremiah Masoli nor backup Chris Harper seemed capable of making anything but the most elemental of throws and while they were in the game, the capable Oregon receiving corps was totally wasted. Sure the fourth-quarter comeback behind Darron Thomas (finally, a quarterback who can throw!) was nice but for most of the day, that was a very ugly Duck effort.

And speaking of ugly efforts, my goodness — wasn’t Portland State-Washington State one of the worst games ever played? I realize the Vikings need every penny but $225,000 wasn’t enough to justify that whipping against the worst team in one of the worst major conferences in the country. Honestly, I think there are Big Sky teams that could give the Cougars a go — but not PSU. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen Mouse Davis quarterbacks look so inept.

By the way, this just in — the Pac-10 stinks. And after a full season of playing in the Pac-10, USC will be hard-pressed to keep its edge for the BCS playoff to come.

Tweet This Post

Tags: Big Sky Conference, Boise State Broncos, Chris Harper, Dwight Jaynes, Jeremiah Masoli, Mouse Davis, Oregon Ducks, Pac-10 Conference, Portland State Vikings, USC Trojans, Washington State Cougars