ESPN College Football

Oregon's spring game will be televised Saturday at 2 p.m. ET -- 11 a.m. PT -- on ESPN3.

Go here and look at the schedule. Notice anything?

Yes, the Ducks spring game is the last televised college football before Texas A&M visits Louisiana Tech on Thursday, Aug. 30. So that's a reason to watch right there. It's going to be a long, hot summer. Reports on changes to the college football postseason are only so fulfilling.

Further, it's the only time anyone -- fans or media -- will get to see Oregon play this spring, perhaps even the only time before the season-opener against Arkansas State on Sept. 1. Ducks coach Chip Kelly opted to, for the first time in program history, completely close spring practices. So media reports have been unusually scarce.

The Ducks have been evenly divided into two teams via a draft -- Team Aliotti and Team Helfrich -- and they will play two 12-minute quarters, with a running clock in the second half. Obviously, that's defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti vs. offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich.

So, now that Kelly is letting civilians look at his super-secret football team, what's at issue?

• Quarterback! It's not only Aliotti vs. Helfrich, it's Bryan Bennett vs. Marcus Mariota. Team Aliotti has Mariota at QB and some key playmakers, including De'Anthony Thomas, Josh Huff and Colt Lyerla. Team Helfrich will feature Bennett and runnning back Kenjon Barner.
• Who replaces defensive end Terrell Turner and rover Eddie Pleasant? Those, really, are the only two questions on a defense that should be very good. Of course, with the teams split up, it might be difficult to figure out what the exact pecking order is.
• The Ducks most questionable position is receiver. Well, it's supposed to be questionable, at least until we see how much redshirt freshmen Devon Blackmon, Tacoi Sumler and B.J. Kelley have improved. If all three look good, well, then the position looks brighter. It also will be good to see how Josh Huff, Rahsaan Vaughn and Daryle Hawkins look.
• More than a few Ducks fans are eager to see how touted true freshman offensive tackle -- just kidding! -- defensive lineman Arik Armstead looks.
• Word is defensive end Dion Jordan and linebacker Kiko Alonso have looked good this spring. Will they -- both members of Team Helfrich -- dominate the spring game?

According to the official website, the game will benefit the local Food Bank as well as pay tribute to the U.S. Armed Forces. Admission will be three non-perishable food items, which will be donated to Food for Lane County

For those who are planning to attend, a Fan Fest starts at 9 a.m. PT. From the website: "Much of the pregame, halftime and postgame festivities will include participation from the armed services, including a joint service color guard and ceremonies to honor the men and women from the state and their families for the sacrifices of their time overseas, a halftime flag-folding ceremony and a pre-game fly-over by military aircraft."

The Ducks spring game drew a team-record 43,468 spectators last year.

EUGENE, Ore. -- While Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas' decision to enter the NFL draft a year early shocked many outside the football program, it didn't surprise many of those close to him, including his fellow Ducks quarterbacks. Thomas had brought up the possibility a number of times throughout the year, so backup Bryan Bennett and talented true freshman Marcus Mariota knew he was eyeballing a potential departure.

Though the news was greeted with more than a few gasps, many Ducks fans didn't spice their surprise with disappointment. Some had felt that Bennett -- despite Thomas' record-setting numbers -- was a better quarterback, or at least that he had more upside. They had seen what he'd done in limited action in 2011, coming off the bench in a big win over Arizona State and a start at Colorado.

Inside the program, not only was it not a big surprise, it also wasn't viewed as a perfunctory passing of the torch. There was a mystery man, an X factor, with whom fans and media weren't terribly familiar because Oregon has shut down access to practices: true freshman Marcus Mariota.

Mariota, a 6-foot-4, 200-pounder out of St. Louis High School in Honolulu, had shown enough in one impressive redshirt year to be viewed by his coaches and teammates as a legitimate threat to win the job.

"When DT left, I told Brian, 'You got to work for it. Marcus Mariota is a very good quarterback,'" said center Hroniss Grasu, Bennett's roommate and good friend. "It's going to be a great competition."

What you keep hearing when you ask players and coaches about Bennett and Mariota is that they are notably similar. Both are tall and fairly thin -- Bennett is 6-3, 205 pounds. Both are athletic and comfortable running an option attack. Both are capable passers. Both have low-key personalities.

"We feel real confident as a staff in our quarterback situation," said coach Chip Kelly, whose Ducks begin spring practices Tuesday. "They just haven't played significant amounts. I'm real confident in whoever ends up out of those guys pulling the trigger that we'll have a pretty good one."

There's good reason for that. Since Kelly arrived as the Ducks' offensive coordinator in 2007, Oregon has been good to outstanding at the position. He transformed Dennis Dixon from a guy who threw more interceptions than touchdowns in 2006 to a leading Heisman Trophy candidate before he got hurt. He made Jeremiah Masoli, an unknown summer junior college transfer, into a swashbuckling, dual-threat force. And under his tutelage, Thomas ended up throwing more TD passes than any previous Ducks QB.

Kelly insists he has no preconceptions: "Our program is founded on competition," he said. Of course, many coaches throw the "competition" coaching platitude around. What actually happens on the depth chart demonstrates that most still favor seniority, particularly at QB. Coaches believe in the value of experience and they are more comfortable with players with whom they've built up years of familiarity. To win a job, a younger player must decisively demonstrate superiority.

But Kelly has shown he's not like that, and we need look no further than the last quarterback competition in Eugene between senior Nate Costa and Thomas, then a sophomore.

Costa was the feel-good story after Masoli's ugly departure. He was the one-time spread-option prodigy who'd been done in by bad knees, but heading into 2010 spring practices he was again healthy and ready to lead the Ducks with his moxie and still substantial skills. Thomas was a skinny guy from Houston with an odd throwing motion who lacked Costa's polish.

Just about everyone thought Costa would win the job, perhaps even by the end of spring practices. But a funny thing happened: Thomas was announced as the starter in late August.

Bennett was a true freshman observer of that competition, at least the fall camp portion. And, just as Thomas didn't surprise him when he opted to leave for the NFL, he also didn't surprise Bennett when he won the job.

"At first, I saw Nate as the older, senior, who kind of took control more," Bennett said. "I think it could have gone either way, but I wasn't too surprised. I thought it kind of started to lean towards Darron at the end."

Fair to say Bennett knows he can't expect his limited experience -- 369 yards passing, six touchdowns, no interceptions -- to give him a substantial advantage, at least not as baubles that will impress Kelly and offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich. But that experience could become a foundation or launching point that helps Bennett develop faster, which could provide a competitive advantage. The game should be slower to him than to Mariota. He knows how it feels when the lights are on for real, and how his teammates and coaches react. He knows how to prepare as a starter. And he saw how Thomas won the job over Costa.

"Since Darron left, I have taken it on myself to present myself as a leader of this team," Bennett said. "I would like to be the starting quarterback of this team. In my mind, I'm going to continue to tell myself that I need to get better and worry about the things I can control. It could come down neck-and-neck. It could be decided in spring ball. I really don't know. It's more a competition with myself, because I can control what I do. I can't control what [Mariota] does."

When fellow Ducks talk about Mariota, they talk about how quickly he's picked up the offense. Mariota, in a revealing moment of humility that supports that very point, said it took him "a week" -- a whole week! -- to feel comfortable running the offense in fall camp his freshman year.

"I feel we are going in evenly," Mariota said. "Bryan is a very good player. He's been in this system for a while now. I'm just going to take it day by day. We both are. And whoever wins, we'll be rooting for each other."

Mariota adds: "If Bryan wins the job, I will be behind him 100 percent. This is a team thing."

This "team" thing has changed at Oregon. Three years ago, the Ducks starting QB was only of local, perhaps regional interest. After three consecutive conference titles, it's now a position of national import. The last three Ducks QBs have been in Rose Bowl and national title hunts.

The expectations aren't any lower in 2012, even with Thomas' surprising/not-so-surprising decision.

"I know whoever the quarterback is, he will do a great job," Grasu said. "Hopefully even better than last season. I know last season was a great season, but I think with the team we've got coming back everywhere else, we can be very successful."

If you were to make a list of the top 10 coaches -- perhaps even top five -- in college football, just about everyone would include Oregon's Chip Kelly and Boise State's Chris Petersen.

And, in late January, when Kelly had a prolonged and invested flirtation with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, many in Eugene -- after wiping away tears over Kelly leaving -- sought consolation by eyeballing Petersen.

So, even though Kelly stayed and Petersen provided his annual round of "thanks, but no thanks" to various suitors, Ken Goe of The Oregonian took a jaunt up to Boise to visit with the man who could go just about anywhere but hasn't. Yet.

With his 73-6 record in seven seasons in charge at Boise State, Petersen is college football's most coveted commodity. When the annual firing-hiring season begins in December, Petersen's name seemingly appears on the short list of every coach-hunting athletic director in the land.

Petersen hasn't budged, hasn't been interested, apparently never has officially interviewed. And, yet there are many who believe it would be different if Chip Kelly leaves Oregon -- as he almost did over the winter -- and the Ducks turn in Petersen's direction.

First of all, there was credible evidence that if Kelly bolted the Ducks might turn to offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich. Some Ducks fans might not have been warm to that, but think of it this way: It's like hiring Petersen before he becomes Petersen. Helfrich has impressed more than a few folks who have some power in Eugene, some of the same folks who saw Kelly's potential.

But if Kelly one day leaves -- and some (though not necessarily me) believe it's a question of when, not if -- luring Petersen away from Boise State would be a PR home run, one that would resonate nationally.

Petersen knows Oregon. He was the Ducks' receivers coach for six years under Mike Bellotti before Dan Hawkins brought him to Boise State as offensive coordinator. So what does Petersen tell Goe about the Ducks?

Well, Petersen has been playing this game with the media for a while, and he knew why Goe stopped by for a chat.

Petersen sees the Oregon question coming. He braces for it, response prepared.

"I live this job year-to-year, because that is just how hard this job is," he says. "We really like it here. Until that changes, we don't really see anything else changing. I always tell our recruits this: There is not another job out there in the country that I go, 'Oh if that thing opens, that's the job I want.' I don't think like that. I don't have that place."

My impression is Kelly really likes coaching at Oregon. He's also smart enough to be familiar with the whole "grass is always greener" thing that so many coaches learned the hard way. And if he sticks around for another decade, they'd name the football building after him. But he's also ultra-competitive. If, say, the Pac-12 blog told him he probably wouldn't enjoy coaching in the NFL, he'd tell the Pac-12 blog to go stick it.

Same with Petersen. He clearly loves Boise State. And he's seen what happened to Dirk Koetter and Hawkins, previous Broncos coaching savants whose jumps to AQ programs didn't go so well.

But let's be clear: You can't coach at a high level without being competitive. At some point, Petersen might feel an itch that he needs to scratch, and there are plenty of folks who believe Oregon holds some allure for him.

As Goe concludes:

Petersen won't completely close the door.

"I'm at the place I want to be," he says. "But that being said, you always hear these coaches say, 'I'm staying here forever.' And the next year they're out. I think they really believe it at the time.

"But things change."

Starters in, starters out. That's college football. Players' eligibility expires and they leave for the rest of their lives, whether that includes the NFL or not.

And they leave behind shoes of various sizes that need to be filled.

Our concern with this series? The biggest shoes -- in some cases Shaq-like size 23s.

Big shoes: WR Lavasier Tuinei

While De'Anthony Thomas was the Ducks' most dynamic receiver in 2011, Tuinei was the team leader in receptions with 48 and touchdowns with 10. And we all saw what he did in the Rose Bowl: eight receptions for 158 yards with two touchdowns. Oregon has plenty of holes to fill: quarterback, tailback, rover, defensive end and two spots on the offensive line. But in most cases you can say who will step in, or at least you can talk about how good the folks are competing at that position. You can't say that about who will replace Tuinei.

Stepping in: Josh Huff, Rahsaan Vaughn,Devon Blackmon, B.J. Kelley or Tacoi Sumler

If ability meets performance, the Ducks will be fine at receiver. But there are no guarantees that will happen based on the actual past performances of these five thus far in their careers. Huff? Forget for a moment his off-field issues. He's yet to prove he's a natural receiver, a guy ready to catch six or so passes per game. Vaughn is the same thing. He's a talented JC transfer but he, nonetheless, only caught 14 passes last season. And then there are the three redshirt freshman, whom we've previously noted. They each were touted recruits and have plenty of talent. But none were impressive enough to Chip Kelly or Mark Helfrich to drop their redshirt in 2011. The bottom line: There is no sure-thing here.

Welcome to the mailbag.

This is your brain. And this is your brain if you follow me on Twitter.

To the notes.

Peter from Tempe, Ariz., writes: I'm looking at your Top 25 list and I can see that you're not going to add any ASU players this year. I totally understand removing Vontaze from the list, he should've been removed from the team too. But not adding at least Osweiler seems a bit strange. Can you explain your rationale for not even a spot on the list? I know the guy didn't win any games in the second half but there are other QBs on the list from the same state who didn't exactly carry their team either.

Kevin from Eugene, Org., writes: you didn't really leave John Boyett out of your top 25 did you? C'mon man.

Jason from Seattle writes: You really going to leave the Pac-12's leading tackler - Cort Dennison - off the top-25 list?!?

Ryan from Eugene, Ore., writes: Ted, after reading your blog for years I feel there is probably a need to balance out the duck faithful. I think your top 25 is spot on! When you got into the teens I was slightly surprised I hadn't seen John Boyett's name but when it is all said and done (probably could have released the final 3 the same week, btw) I see that there were only a couple DBs in the entire top 25 and I agree that he would be left out. Just hoping to tip the Email scale away from the ones I'm sure you get that think... KNOW your top 25 should the O offense 1-11, the O-defense 12-22 + a few O ST players.

Ted Miller: Thanks Ryan!

When you make a list of the best 25 players -- 26 in the Pac-12 blog's case -- somebody really good is going to get left out. A lot of somebodies, in fact.

My first response to folks with "How could you leave out!" queries is, "Who would you take out?" Oregon fans, would you knock out Ducks tight end David Paulson in order to get Boyett on the list?

Boyett and Brock Osweiler were two of the last cuts on the list (Dennison is a hard-nosed, productive player, but he was not considered).

Lots of factors go into making the list. Production is at the top. NFL prospects do play a role for me. Winning teams get more players, in large part because I see more of their games in person. If your team, say, lost its final six games, that doesn't help a player's cause.

Boyett will be on the preseason top-25. The guy is going to be a four-year starter. Very productive. But USC's T.J. McDonald was the only safety on the list, at No. 19. He's a likely first-day NFL draft pick. So which player gets cut for Boyett?

Peter alludes to Arizona's Nick Foles at No. 18 in his note about Arizona State's Osweiler. It's interesting, because now it seems Osweiler might get drafted before Foles, something that is probably surprising to many of us. But Foles threw for 361 yards per game with 28 TD passes, and ranked fifth in the Pac-12 and 28th in the nation in passing efficiency. Osweiler threw for 310 yards per game with 26 TD passes (he also played one more game than Foles), and ranked sixth in the Pac-12 and 37th in the nation in passing efficiency.

Are there elements that inspire second thoughts? Well, I'm not happy with myself for forgetting one of the Thomases in my original master list, which forced me to do a double-ranking of Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas and Oregon's receiver/running back De'Anthony Thomas at No. 12.

And, yes, there was a long pause over ranking Stanford linebacker Chase Thomas No. 5 ahead of Cal linebacker Mychal Kendricks, who was the coaches pick for Defensive Player of the Year. Well, I picked Thomas for Defensive Player of the Year on the Pac-12 blog, so it was partly to be consistent. And Thomas just made so many plays -- 17.5 tackles for a loss and five forced fumbles.

Some might have rated USC receiver Robert Woods higher. But let me put it this way: Washington State's Marquess Wilson had comparable numbers catching balls from three different quarterbacks against defenses focused on stopping him, because he was clearly the Cougars most dangerous weapon. Woods caught passes from Matt Barkley and had Marqise Lee keeping secondaries honest, not to mention a good running game for support.

But, in the end, it's all opinion. Make your own top-25. It's not easy.

We'll be reviewing our final top-25 next week, and perhaps looking ahead to the preseason version.

Of course, you'll all be waiting on pins and needles wondering who will be No. 1 on Monday, right?

---

Peter from Calgary writes: many way too early preseason polls have Oregon ahead of Stanford. Other than getting clobbered the last two seasons by the [Ducks] (which I admit is a big factor), why do you think this is? Given the losses both teams face from their respective offenses from last season, and that Stanford's defense (at least the front 7) is looking very solid, what gives?

Johnny from San Francisco writes: many people are saying Stanford is going to see a huge drop off with Luck, Decastro, Martin, Fleener, and Howell taking their talents to the NFL. With a redshirt sophomore qb in Brett Nottingham, do you expect Stanford to lean even more heavily on the run, and if so, do you think Stepfan Taylor has a chance to put up Toby Gerhart like numbers?

Ted Miller: Some benighted folks still believe Stanford was a one-man team the past two years: The Stanford Andrew Lucks.

Others, who are now aware that NFL draft boards are loaded with Stanford players other than Luck, believe the Cardinal was good over the past two seasons, but is now headed for a decline.

I don't see it. My guess is Stanford won't play in a third consecutive BCS bowl in 2012, but eight or nine wins and a top-25 ranking certainly seems reasonable. The defense will be good, even with some questions in the secondary. I think whoever wins the quarterback job will be a good enough passer to prevent defenses from completely ganging up on the run. And I think Stanford will continue to run well next fall, though, Johnny, I suspect the ball will get shared too much to allow Taylor to put up Toby Gerhart numbers.

Still, Stanford is not a traditional power, so it still has to prove itself to a skeptical nation. But if the Cardinal do well in 2012, post-Luck, you can count on more folks jumping on the bandwagon nationally.

---

Josh from Vancouver, Wash., writes: Oregon's receiving corps was a big weak spot last season. Tuinei was the Ducks' best receiver and he had one 100-yard game. Granted, there are a lot of options in Chip Kelly's system and DAT will get lots of touches, but he's going to get a lot of attention from opposing defenses unless some other receivers can step up. With Josh Huff probably being suspended to start the season and a new quarterback coming in, how much improvement or dropoff do you see for the Ducks' passing game this season?

Ted Miller: Huff is a good player, though he's never seemed like a pure, instinctive receiver to me. Losing him -- for however long -- would be a blow, particularly with questions at receiver.

But for some reason, I don't find myself that skeptical about the poor ole Oregon offense, and that woebegone coach of theirs, Chip Kelly.

From what I've seen of Bryan Bennett -- and what I hear about Marcus Mariota -- the Ducks are going to be talented, if slightly green at quarterback. Kelly's track record, however, is pretty strong at quarterback. After his work with Dennis Dixon, Jeremiah Masoli and Darron Thomas, I'm of the mind that I think the Ducks will get good quarterback play, because they've never gotten bad quarterback play with Kelly and offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich.

As for receiver, yes, there are unknowns. Rahsaan Vaughn flashed some potential last year, but the real question is which of the three touted redshirt freshman step up: Devon Blackmon, B.J. Kelley or Tacoi Sumler. You'd figure at least one or two will, right?

With or without Huff, I expect the Ducks' offense to keep humming along. Will it average 46 points and 515 yards again in 2012? Maybe not. But I'd be fairly surprised if it dropped off by much more than 10 percent, particularly with a more forgiving schedule.

---

John from Phoenix writes: Do you think UCLA's decision to ban parents from their Pro Day could have an affect on recruiting? It seems to me it would be something I would bring up if I was recruiting against them.

Ted Miller: My guess is UCLA folks have recognized at this point that closing pro day -- to parents and media -- was a clumsy mistake, and that policy won't continue to be in place next year. It's nonsensical, of course. And, yes, I'd bring it up if I were recruiting against them.

It's particularly bad when the school then acts like it has "exclusive" access on it's website. By doing that, bloggers like me who care about journalism are forced to ignore that web site and not provide links to it until that policy changes.

More and more schools are trying to control information by hiring their own "writers" and then having then provide the public with homogenized "exclusive news." Some, such as Colorado, seem to do a good job. Others are tightly monitored and are given bogus advantages that are played up as "exclusives." It's a lame trend that hopefully won't last.

---

Misbehaving from Parts Unknown: Why did you ban me from the comment section, please let me come back. And why did you delete my comment anyway?

Ted Miller: Kevin Gemmell and I have nothing to do with whoever gets banned after falling afoul of community rules in the comments section.

Neither Kevin nor I have access to any administrative functions in the comment section. Neither of us has ever deleted a comment. Not our territory.

---

Erik from Seattle writes: What's your best advice for a UW grad who will be marrying an Oregon grad in less than 4 months?

Ted Miller: First off, congrats.

Second, this is the 21st Century. Mixed marriages can work, though you'll certainly draw a fair share of disapproving stares if you go out to, say, Norm's in Fremont, you in Huskies purple and her in Ducks green. Be strong. Love conquers all!

You also might want to discuss some rules, such as limits to gloating when one or the other's team wins. And just how much green and/or purple can be part of the interior design of your living area. There also might have to be some negotiating over friends who could be deemed psychotic about their Duck/Husky hate.

And I'm sure our fine readers might have some ideas and advice here.

Oregon coach Chip Kelly told Eugene sports radio talk show host Steve Tannen Thursday that he never flip-flopped from the Ducks to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and back again last weekend, as reported in both Tampa and Oregon.

"The only decision I ever made was to not accept the job," Kelly said. "I never changed my mind. I never committed to the job and then flip-flopped."

You can listen to the full interview here.

First, response: Interesting, but it doesn't matter. He's still the Ducks' coach. End of story.

But as far as reading the entrails on this, there are four options you can choose from: 1) Kelly is telling the truth; 2) Kelly is lying; 3) Kelly is splitting hairs; 4) Kelly is shortly going to improve to 35-6 at Oregon and not 1-0 at Tampa Bay -- again, end of story.

Whatever Kelly said on the radio, lots of people believed Sunday night that he was headed to Tampa. It's possible -- and perhaps likely in some way -- that Kelly gave a strong indication to principals on both ends that he was leaning toward Tampa and away from Eugene, but when it came time to put pen to paper he got cold feet, likely considering the spiraling void of darkness that would ensue without regular chats with the Pac-12 blog. "Eeek," he said. "Can't do it."

Yes, no one can prove that Kelly didn't return to Oregon because the Pac-12 blog has very little interaction with the coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Just as no one can prove that Kelly said "yes" to Tampa before he said "no."

Why is it important whether Kelly flip-flopped or not? In either scenario, he turned down a hefty raise to remain at Oregon. So this flirtation wasn't about contract leverage, and it's reasonable to conclude that money isn't solely driving him. An interesting tidbit from the Eugene Register-Guard:

Kelly pointed out that his decision "obviously wasn't financial, because I turned it down and it was more than I got paid." The Register-Guard has reported that Kelly received a contract extension but that his deal with the Ducks wasn't otherwise dramatically overhauled.

Further, Kelly got to cite a heart-warming reason for returning: "... the relationships I have with the current coaches on our staff and the players was the underlying reason why I came back."

Oregon fans can look at this any way they like, but I'd rate it a win-win for Kelly and Oregon.

The football nation -- NFL and college -- got to see how highly Kelly is held in esteem. Multiple NFL pundits, including former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy, have said of late that Kelly would be a good NFL coach. Kelly's star, which is already high, just climbed a bit higher. That's good for him, of course, but it's also good for Oregon as long as Kelly is in Eugene.

Some have said Kelly's flirtation would hurt recruiting. They are not only wrong; the opposite is true.

Players respect superstar coaches. Recall that, in his heyday, Florida State's Bobby Bowden used to crush it the final week of recruiting with that last in-home visit. So did Pete Carroll. So does Nick Saban, etc. Oregon fans, not satisfied with winning three consecutive conference titles, want to move up the recruiting rankings. Lots of five-star guys -- in 2012-13 and beyond -- just learned a little bit more about Kelly.

The NFL banging on Kelly's door makes him more of a star, and that will play well in living rooms, much more so than the idea that Kelly might leave for an NFL job at some point.

Further, some have tried to diminish Kelly as a "system" coach. In recruiting, some coaches say that Oregon is a great program but it's not an NFL feeder with pro-style schemes. Well, now there's clear evidence the NFL thinks highly of Kelly and his systems.

The key thing on the Oregon end of things: It will be a huge mistake if the Ducks' top boosters -- Phil Knight, et al. -- want to get grumpy over this. Creating friction to make a point about loyalty or acting wounded will only hasten Kelly's exit. And hurt the program.

The most interesting aspect coming out of this was detailed in this column from George Schroeder: Oregon's potential succession plan would have made offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich the head coach.

Helfrich is highly respected, but I'd always thought he'd have to leave for another job -- and call his own plays -- to escape Kelly's considerable shadow and land a head-coaching gig. Schroeder's column shows that the same folks who quickly and accurately identified Kelly's rising star believe Helfrich is made of the same coaching stuff.

So just as Kelly's star rose this week, and Oregon fans got a huge relief after it stayed in the Eugene sky, so did Helfrich's. Know that more than a few ADs at some AQ schools added his name to their list of coaches to watch.

Oregon offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich talks about 45 points and 621 yards for the Ducks in the Rose Bowl.

While the bowl games were big news over the weekend, UCLA and Arizona State continue to look for new head coaches.

Here's some skinny.

At UCLA, ESPN LA's Peter Yoon reported that interim head coach Mike Johnson would like to be considered for the job. Here's his update on other candidates:

UCLA has been turned down by Boise State coach Chris Petersen, according to a source with knowledge of the discussions, and eliminated Houston coach Kevin Sumlin as a candidate after meeting with him on Saturday, according to a source. Al Golden of Miami is considered the next top target, though Golden recently signed a four-year contract extension at Miami.

There's some chatter out there about former Atlanta Falcons and Seattle Seahawks coach Jim Mora, Jr. My take: That would be a good hire. While things went badly for Mora in Seattle, let's recall that he was the first choice to replace Tyrone Willingham at Washington. He's a charismatic guy with an NFL sensibility that would translate well at UCLA. Recall that the last time a team in LA hired a charismatic guy with an NFL sensibility who had folks scratching their heads turned out OK.

Here's Jon Gold's take in the LA Daily News.

Sources have said that UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero, who met with Sumlin in Houston on Saturday, is essentially rebooting the search and at this point, there are no clear-cut favorites. Miami head coach Al Golden, whom Guerrero interviewed for the job during the post-Karl Dorrell vacancy, is among the candidates, along with SMU head coach June Jones. Sources indicated on Saturday that there was minimal interest in former Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti.

UCLA has been the sort of job that more than a few folks thought might lure Bellotti back into coaching. But it doesn't seem, at least at this point, that he's high on the Bruins' list.

Meanwhile, at Arizona State, it appears that Sumlin might not be completely out of the picture, but that SMU coach June Jones' name is front-and-center at present. Still, there are plenty of other names in the rumor swirl. Writes Doug Haller:

Arizona State officials on Saturday met with SMU coach June Jones for more than three hours in Texas.

A report surfaced Sunday that ASU was in position to announce Jones' hire shortly after the university learned of its bowl destination. That wasn't true. According to a source, the Jones push slowed Sunday night. That doesn't mean it's over, but it could be an indication that ASU is having second thoughts.

Sources confirmed Sunday that Southern Miss coach Larry Fedora is still in the mix. Baylor coach Art Briles has emerged as a candidate.

I continue to hear ASU likes Oregon offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich.

Also, despite reports that ASU has backed off Sumlin, he still could be in play, especially if Texas A&M goes another direction in its quest to replace fired coach Mike Sherman.

In other words, neither coach search has moved -- at least according to reports -- decisively in one direction.

So stay tuned.

Death is always on the way, but the fact that you don't know when it will arrive seems to take away from the finiteness of life. It's that terrible precision that we hate so much. But because we don't know, we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well. Yet everything happens a certain number of times, and a very small number, really.

• A young defensive lineman gets an opportunity at Arizona.
• It's not only about catching the football for this Arizona State receiver.
• California is already getting ready for Oregon, and it's interesting that quarterback Zach Maynard thought Colorado's Folsom Field is louder than Washington's Husky Stadium.
• Colorado wide receiver Paul Richardson promises to break out of a mini-slump. A running back volunteers to help the secondary.
• Very sad: Mike Helfrich, the father of Oregon offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich, died before last Saturday's game at Arizona.
• What's wrong with Oregon State?
• Stanford's co-defensive coordinator Jason Tarver is an interesting guy who could have done a lot of other things rather than coach football. If Stanford safety Michael Thomas seems theatrical at times, there's a good reason.
• A young safety needs to step up for UCLA. Some notes and an injury update.
• Is George Farmer, one of USC's top 2011 signees, going to switch from receiver to running back?
• Utah's tough defense will be tested by Washington.
• It appears Washington has found its next great tight end.
• Washington State receiver Marquess Wilson is a difference-maker.

Defensive coordinator Greg Brown thinks Colorado is in for an "eye-opening" experience when the Buffaloes begin Pac-12 play. Or he might be playing a little possum.

Brown, who's beginning his third stint in Boulder after spending the 2010 season as Arizona's co-defensive coordinator, said this when asked about the Buffaloes move into the new conference.

"It's going to be an eye-opener," he said. "Colorado had a small taste of it playing one team: Cal-Berkeley, up there [a 52-7 California win]. Everybody saw the final score from that one. The thing that was just striking going into the Pac-10 that I had no idea of, was just how good the league is. Two things hit you between the eyes in the Pac-10 as a defensive coach. No. 1 is how innovated the offensive coaches are, how innovative those schemes are. Coming from the Big 12, I thought in the Big 12 we had all those quarterbacks that one year, with great teams across the board. So I said, 'OK, what else can the Pac-10 show you that I haven't seen in the Big 12?' Believe me: It was a lot. It was an eye-opener because the schemes and the quarterbacks. The second part would be how fast it is. There is a lot of speed in that league."

For example, Brown said this about the Wildcats 48-29 loss at Oregon, which came after both teams had a bye week.

"They did more with their bye week and came up with more innovative schemes that we had not seen," he said. "My hat is off to Chip Kelly and Mark Helfrich, their offensive coordinator. They put in things we hadn't seen. It was a hard go playing those guys up there."

This seems to be a common rhetorical path among the Colorado folks -- coaches and players -- by the way: Lots of praise for the new conference, sometimes at the expense of the old one. As linebacker Jon Major said, the Pac-12 has no "cupcakes." This may be tweaking the Big 12 on the way out or celebrating the Pac-12 on the way in. Perhaps a bit of both.

As for Brown's decision to bolt Tucson after only one season, his answer is fairly straight-forward.

This is is home. He was born in Denver and his father, Irv, a long-time Denver radio personality, is a a former baseball coach and football coach at Colorado. Being back in Boulder means his two young daughters get to see their grandparents regularly. He loves the town and knows new coach Jon Embree well.

"I knew what he would bring to the table as a head coach and I wanted to be a part of it," Brown said.

Oh, and there's no "co" at Colorado. This will be his defense. At Arizona, he not only shared the job with Tim Kish but he coached the secondary, which is coach Mike Stoops' specialty. And Stoops, you may know, is not a laid-back, hands-off head coach.

Considering Brown was the Buffaloes' secondary coach from 2006-09 under Dan Hawkins, he's fairly familiar with his talent. While he uses terms like "hungry" to describe his players, it's clear that there are some areas that concern him, starting with the departure of cornerbacks Jimmy Smith and Jalil Brown, who will be early-round NFL draft picks.

"That's going to be tough to replace," Brown said. "There is nobody on the horizon that looks like they are going to be able to step into those shoes immediately. We've got young guys who need to develop. It's going to take some time to do that."

And Brown suspects his defense is going to have to take some chances to pressure opposing quarterbacks, which often means a high-risk, high-reward scheme.

"If you don't have the automatic four guys who can rush the passer without help, then you obviously need to be creative and bring some extra guys and pick and choose your poison," he said. "Because the more guys you bring, the more you're exposed out there. And as I just stated, we've got a lot of young guys back there feeling their way."

Or to be more succinct, Brown said: "Somebody's band is going to play, either their band or our band."

Still, don't see this as Brown fretting about his players ability to compete. While he acknowledges that Oregon and Stanford have separated from the conference a bit -- at least based on 2010 and the 2011 preseason perception -- he sees 10 other teams with legitimate hopes to move up the pecking order.

Said Brown, "After the those two, the rest of the league is so balanced. Anybody can beat anybody."

Spring is a time of renewal. And change. But at Oregon and Washington, it's the same old boring thing.

At least in terms of coaching staffs. And that's typically -- not always, but typically -- a good thing.

While the other 10 Pac-12 teams worked through or are still working through some staff changes -- whether that's a single, non-coordinator assistant (such as Arizona State, Oregon State or USC) or a new head coach and staff (Colorado and Stanford) -- the Ducks and Huskies head into 2011 spring practices with the same staff that led them through the 2010 season.

We'll be highlighting some of these coaching changes as well as chatting with some new assistants in the coming weeks heading into spring practices, which really start to get cracking the second week of March, but first let's consider Oregon and Washington.

What does stability mean for these two?

As a general statement, it means Chip Kelly and Steve Sarkisian are happy with their coaches and their coaches are happy to be in Eugene and Seattle. Both staffs had a couple of flirtations, most notably Ducks receivers coach Scott Frost with his alma mater Nebraska and Huskies quarterbacks coach Doug Nussmeier with LSU, but neither ended up leaving, for whatever reason.

You could also conclude stability is a good thing for both programs. It's not hard to argue both were well-coached in 2010.

We don't have to spend much time with Oregon, right? It went undefeated in the regular season and played for the national championship. It was elite on both sides of the ball as well as on special teams. Is there an area that underperformed or wasn't sound? To answer that as Kelly would, no.

Washington is a bit trickier because after nine games it was one of the more obvious disappointments in the conference. But coaching isn't only about championships; it's also about getting better. And the Huskies found a way to get better after a 3-6 start, winning their final four games, including getting their first bowl win since 2000. While an easier schedule played a part, it's also fair to say the Huskies refocused and improved in all areas, particularly on both lines, as the season went on. The defensive improvement might have been most impressive due to numerous injuries which forced younger guys onto the field.

The verdict: These were two well-coached teams that are fortunate to keep their staffs intact.

Further, looking forward, no staff changes obviously means every position group jumps into spring practices knowing fully what to expect. While most good coaches like to keep their players on edge with some unpredictability, routine is a part of football: Do it 1,000 times in practice so it works well once in a game.

Both staffs will be on the proverbial same page. Scheme, general logistics and communication don't figure to be issues this spring.

At Oregon, that means full steam ahead rebuilding the offensive and defensive lines with coaches -- Steve Greatwood and Jerry Azzinaro -- who know the strengths and shortcomings of every player on their depth charts. (Hey, which coach seems happier to be in a coat and tie for his mug shot?) That means quarterback Darron Thomas gets Chip Kelly and Mark Helfrich, 2.0. That means thinking more about LSU than making sure every coach knows the scheme's terminology.

At Washington, it means Sarkisian and Nussmeier should be fully in sync about how they want the quarterback competition to go between Keith Price and Nick Montana. It means defensive coordinator Nick Holt & Co. know what -- and who -- worked last fall and what (and who) didn't and what needs to happen to transform from improving to actually being good.

So if Ducks and Huskies fans are looking for something to be happy about between recruiting and spring practices, this is it.

And I'm shocked that you would be soooooo cynical as to think that grouping Oregon and Washington together in a story might yield some amusing back-and-forth among you kibitzers.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Oregon and Auburn are the same: They both thrive in the second half. And they are different: The Ducks have yet to trail in the fourth quarter and just one foe lost by less than 11 points. The Tigers have trailed in eight of 13 games and won six by single digits.

Both teams dominate the second half. Auburn has outscored foes 246 to 117 after the break, including 125-48 in the fourth quarter. Oregon has outscored foes in 277-77 in the second half, including 115-24 in the fourth quarter.

Oregon has trailed three times at halftime -- Stanford, California, Arizona -- and only Cal stayed close with the Ducks into the fourth quarter. Tennessee, Arizona State and Oregon State were tight with the Ducks at halftime but ended up losing by 35, 11 and 17 points.

The Ducks often looked like a completely different team after halftime.

"That's something we take a lot of pride in, in terms of having a second-half mindset, a finish mindset," offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich said.

Auburn trailed Clemson, South Carolina (regular season) and Alabama at halftime this year and was tied with LSU and Georgia. It trailed by double-digits at some point in four games. But the Tigers also were a different team in the second half. Not that they wouldn't like to be a good first-half team, too.

"We'd like to get that corrected before we run out of the tunnel to start the game," Auburn defensive coordinator Ted Roof said. "I even thought of blindfolding them before the game started and telling them it was the start of the second half."

But Roof did have a serious explanation, which is not unlike what Oregon coach Chip Kelly and defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti have said: We want to see what teams do against us, then adjust.

"We've seen several times teams doing things we haven't seen before in the first halves," Roof said.

Every team wants to own the second half and the fourth quarter. Finishing strong says something good about a team. But both Auburn and Oregon would prefer to be in top form for all four quarters, particularly when they meet Monday in the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game.

"There's a discrepancy there," Roof said. "And we can't afford to do that in this game against this bunch."

We already know that most college football players don't get a storybook ending. But each time we're reminded of that, it stings anew.

Nate Costa, Oregon's senior backup quarterback, who lost a tight race this preseason with Darron Thomas to become the Ducks starter, has suffered a knee injury that will end his season and his career.

Costa will always have his win last year at UCLA -- a gutty performance that coach Chip Kelly goes to great lengths to praise -- and his strong work coming off the bench when Thomas got hurt at Washington State.

This is not how Costa wanted it to end. This is not how anyone wanted it to end for him. But so it goes. He was hurt on a freak play when he mishandled a snap on a field goal against Washington last Saturday.

Costa's value to the Ducks is mostly unseen. A team captain, he was a leader in word and example. Thomas is surely a better quarterback today due to the tight competition with Costa. And Costa gave the Ducks a security blanket that most teams don't have.

If the Ducks had needed Costa to replace Thomas -- for whatever reason -- my feeling is confidence in the locker room wouldn't have slipped. I'm not sure that the Ducks wouldn't be where they are right now if Costa had been the starter and not Thomas.

Costa's message to his teammates today when the news broke? Don't worry. Keep winning.

"He told them not to feel sorry for him that he'll be with us," Kelly said. "He's just a classy, classy, classy kid. A real unfortunate loss for us."

Kelly also said the offense wouldn't change now that Thomas' backup is freshman Bryan Bennett, who will only play if Thomas gets hurt because the Ducks would rather redshirt him than get him some mop-up duty experience.

We'll see. It's likely that some awareness of not tempting fate with Thomas will be there for Kelly and offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich. There's too much at stake.

When a team has a special season, as it appears the Ducks are doing, there are always stars out front who win awards. But the foundation of special seasons is almost always built on the consistent dedication of lunch-pail guys who don't get the spotlight. And that includes guys who aren't often among the 11 on the field during games.

If Costa had been blessed with healthy knees, he may have become a star on the field. More than a few folks would rate it a near-certainty.

But he wasn't and he didn't. Yet if you listen to what his coaches and teammates say about him, you realize that Costa became a star in the locker room.

If you really think about it -- and we're not even being sentimental, Hallmark-cardy about this -- that actually is more important.

Adam Rittenberg talks with Oregon offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich about Ohio’s defense.

Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller

EUGENE, Ore. -- The Northwest Tour concludes Wednesday with a visit to Oregon.

On Thursday, I'll be in Tucson. Yes, my head is spinning.

Plan is to check in with Chip Kelly, new offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich and the new thunder-and-lightning backfield of LeGarrette Blount and LaMichael James.

Blount may not be around due to a personal issue, so we shall see.