You are right. Hard to think anyone would honestly think Roper is an improvement over Masoli in this offense. Unlike Roper he represents a true dual threat qb and in the ducks offense that is so important.
Pac 10 player of the week
Masoli completed 17 of 26 passes (.654) for 147 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown pass vs ASU. He also led the Ducks in rushing with eight carries for 85 yards (10.6-yard average) and one touchdown.
Lane Kiffin interested in UW job
By GREGG BELL, AP Sports Writer 12 hours, 32 minutes ago
SEATTLE (AP)—Ex-Raiders coach Lane Kiffin has expressed interest in the opening at the University of Washington just hours after the school announced Tyrone Willingham will not return next season.
“The University of Washington is a great job, one that I’m sure a lot of people have an interest in,” Kiffin told The Associated Press while watching Monday Night Football at his home in the Bay Area.
It came open for 2009 on Monday afternoon when Washington announced Willingham’s dismissal, effective at the end of this season.
Kiffin spent six years as an assistant in the Pac-10 with Southern California, the last two as the Trojans’ offensive coordinator, before becoming the Raiders coach in January 2007.
Washington athletic director Scott Woodward said he would likely begin the search for Willingham’s replacement soon.
When asked if he might name a new coach before this season ends, Woodward said, “I would not rule that out.”
Naming a successor before Washington’s season finale at California on Dec. 6 would be a large step toward salvaging what is potentially a lost recruiting class this winter for the Huskies.
By GREGG BELL, AP Sports Writer 12 hours, 32 minutes ago
SEATTLE (AP)—Ex-Raiders coach Lane Kiffin has expressed interest in the opening at the University of Washington just hours after the school announced Tyrone Willingham will not return next season.
“The University of Washington is a great job, one that I’m sure a lot of people have an interest in,” Kiffin told The Associated Press while watching Monday Night Football at his home in the Bay Area.
It came open for 2009 on Monday afternoon when Washington announced Willingham’s dismissal, effective at the end of this season.
Kiffin spent six years as an assistant in the Pac-10 with Southern California, the last two as the Trojans’ offensive coordinator, before becoming the Raiders coach in January 2007.
Washington athletic director Scott Woodward said he would likely begin the search for Willingham’s replacement soon.
When asked if he might name a new coach before this season ends, Woodward said, “I would not rule that out.”
Naming a successor before Washington’s season finale at California on Dec. 6 would be a large step toward salvaging what is potentially a lost recruiting class this winter for the Huskies.
Well thank you for the complement Pags. It's hard work, but just a job to take pride in like anything else you want to do as good as you can.
And yes you pulled Kiffin out of the air... (with a little timely help from good old Al Davis?
)Now here's more info I just read up on -- Kiffin looks to be the most obvious choice available at this time.... but note some interesting ties to the Missouri football program.
<table class="t-body7p5-Sun" border="0" cellpadding="1"><tbody><tr valign="top"><td colspan="3">[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Rounding up a list of coaching candidates for Washington
[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Coach[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Current job[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Comment[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Jim Mora[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Asst. head coach, Seahawks[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Already signed on to be the next head coach of the Seahawks, but the Huskies might want to see whether that's ironclad.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Gary Pinkel[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Head coach, Missouri[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Former UW assistant has contract through 2012, but he's another one the Huskies might have to hear "no" from.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Pat Hill[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Head coach, Fresno State[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Long thought to covet the job and is well-respected by Nick Saban, whom UW president Mark Emmert hired at LSU.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Lane Kiffin[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Former head coach, Raiders[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Served six years in USC program; Oakland owner Al Davis fired him from first head job in September after 1-3 start.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Chris Petersen[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Head coach, Boise State[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Thought to prefer a lower spotlight in Boise, but UW could pay him a lot more than he's making there.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Will Muschamp[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Defensive coordinator, Texas[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Defensive coordinator when LSU won national title in 2003 with Emmert and AD Scott Woodward in charge in Baton Rouge.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Dave Christensen[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Off. coordinator, Missouri[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Everett native was a walk-on at UW from 1980-82. Knows the spread-option offense that would fit Jake Locker.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Jeff Tedford[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Head coach, California[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]It's thought UW tried to make a big run at him in 2004 but he wasn't interested. Might be more interested now.[/FONT]</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Mike Leach[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Head coach, Texas Tech[/FONT]</td> <td>[FONT=verdana,arial,sans-serif]Was thought to be interested last time and might be again. But his quirky personality might not fit well in a big market.[/FONT]</td></tr></tbody></table>
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Well how about that!
With no other options, Wulff removes QB Levenseller's redshirt
October 28, 2008 7:21 PM
Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller
Washington State coach Paul Wulff didn't make the decision to yank freshman quarterback 's redshirt lightly. If this were a thoughtless, off-the-cuff move, it wouldn't be easy to look across the table during staff meetings. That's because Levenseller's dad is Mike Levenseller, the Cougars receivers coach, who played for Washington State and has been an assistant with the program for 17 years through three different administrations.
Wulff even admitted that Levenseller's professionalism made it hard to measure his thoughts as a father. "[We talked about it] a little bit, but Mike does a great job of staying out of it -- he really wants everyone else to make the decision without his influence," Wulff said. "Sometimes I've got to force a dad question out of him. "The kid really wants to play, so [Mike Levenseller] doesn't fight that at all."
Fact is, Wulff doesn't really have a choice. With five games remaining, he's already lost two quarterbacks for the season. Kevin Lopina will start at Stanford on Saturday, but he's still nursing a back injury and is not 100 percent. And the Cardinal defense loves to blitz (see: 26 sacks) which ranks second in the Pac-10.
If Lopina goes down, the only other quarterback available would be walkon Dan Wagner, who's looked overwhelmed during previous action. The plan is to play Levenseller no matter what at some point in the first half to get him some game experience, so if he's needed later he won't be so wide-eyed. And knowing Washington State's luck with injuries this year, Levenseller will be needed: 16 of the Cougars 43 players to start this season have combined to miss 39 games.
If Lopina goes down and Levenseller is forced to start a future game, he would be the fourth Cougar quarterback to make his first career start this season. That would have to be some kind of record.
Prior to this season, two WSU quarterbacks have made their first start in the same season six times, but never three and certainly never four. The younger Levenseller (6-foot-1, 190) was born to be a Coug. "J.T." stands for Jack Thomas, and he was named for former WSU quarterback Jack "The Throwin' Samoan" Thompson. He also starred in baseball at Pullman High School.
Wulff said that Levenseller is a good athlete with a good arm but is "very green." And he will doff his redshirt and make his debut at Stanford. Said Wulff, "If we're going to do it, we're going to play him."
With no other options, Wulff removes QB Levenseller's redshirt
October 28, 2008 7:21 PM
Posted by ESPN.com's Ted Miller
Washington State coach Paul Wulff didn't make the decision to yank freshman quarterback 's redshirt lightly. If this were a thoughtless, off-the-cuff move, it wouldn't be easy to look across the table during staff meetings. That's because Levenseller's dad is Mike Levenseller, the Cougars receivers coach, who played for Washington State and has been an assistant with the program for 17 years through three different administrations.
Wulff even admitted that Levenseller's professionalism made it hard to measure his thoughts as a father. "[We talked about it] a little bit, but Mike does a great job of staying out of it -- he really wants everyone else to make the decision without his influence," Wulff said. "Sometimes I've got to force a dad question out of him. "The kid really wants to play, so [Mike Levenseller] doesn't fight that at all."
Fact is, Wulff doesn't really have a choice. With five games remaining, he's already lost two quarterbacks for the season. Kevin Lopina will start at Stanford on Saturday, but he's still nursing a back injury and is not 100 percent. And the Cardinal defense loves to blitz (see: 26 sacks) which ranks second in the Pac-10.
If Lopina goes down, the only other quarterback available would be walkon Dan Wagner, who's looked overwhelmed during previous action. The plan is to play Levenseller no matter what at some point in the first half to get him some game experience, so if he's needed later he won't be so wide-eyed. And knowing Washington State's luck with injuries this year, Levenseller will be needed: 16 of the Cougars 43 players to start this season have combined to miss 39 games.
If Lopina goes down and Levenseller is forced to start a future game, he would be the fourth Cougar quarterback to make his first career start this season. That would have to be some kind of record.
Prior to this season, two WSU quarterbacks have made their first start in the same season six times, but never three and certainly never four. The younger Levenseller (6-foot-1, 190) was born to be a Coug. "J.T." stands for Jack Thomas, and he was named for former WSU quarterback Jack "The Throwin' Samoan" Thompson. He also starred in baseball at Pullman High School.
Wulff said that Levenseller is a good athlete with a good arm but is "very green." And he will doff his redshirt and make his debut at Stanford. Said Wulff, "If we're going to do it, we're going to play him."
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Another long article about wsu/levenseller
There's a lot more to the story than I figgured, but all good information. I doubt this will put the brakes on WSU's getting pounded on a weekly basis, but I'm thinking that if the team can rally around a promising QB, it might take the edge off and they will get a cover one of these days.
For future reference. I've read it and filed it away for next year. Enjoy. There isn't much to like about WSU but this is an interesting development.
Cougs take wraps off Levenseller
<!-- end HEADLINE --> <!-- SUB HEADLINE --> <!-- end SUB HEADLINE --> <!-- BYLINE --> RYAN DIVISH, for The Express Tribune
Published: October 29th, 2008 12:30 AM
<!-- end BYLINE --> <!-- Dateline --> <!-- End Dateline --> Paul Wulff was explicit. During Tuesday’s conference call, the Washington State coach made sure that those listening understood that Kevin Lopina is still Washington State’s starting quarterback. And Lopina’s going to start Saturday at Stanford.
But Wulff confirmed the speculation that Lopina won’t be the only quarterback to play against the Cardinal.
As expected, Wulff confirmed that freshman quarterback J.T. Levenseller will see some action against Stanford.
“Kevin Lopina is our starting quarterback and he’s going to be our starting quarterback,” Wulff said rather emphatically. “But J.T. is going to go in on Saturday.”
While it may seem like a reversal from Wulff’s position on redshirts, the circumstances surrounding Levenseller and the depth issues at quarterback made the change in thinking necessary.
With Marshall Lobbestael lost for the season with reconstructive knee surgery, WSU was left with four healthy quarterbacks – Lopina, Levenseller, walk-on freshman Daniel Wagner and scout team quarterback Peter Roberts, who had to be added from a tryout a few weeks back.
Also, Lopina isn’t completely healthy. He returned to action two weeks ago against Southern Cal out of necessity. But after suffering a broken vertebrae in the second game of the season, Lopina was supposed to make his return this week.
“He’s closer,” Wulff said of Lopina’s health. “You can tell he’s feeling better and moving better.”
But in football an injury is only one play away, and with five games left this season, Wulff decided it was better to have Levenseller prepared for such a possibility by starting to play him.
“Just because the No. 1 guy is healthy at this point, and really not even completely healthy, to expect him to take every snap for the rest of the season would be a little presumptuous,” Wulff said.
Levenseller will likely come in for a series during the first half.
“We like to have a set series, maybe the third or fourth series,” Wulff said. “We’re not certain.”
Any additional series would be determined by how well Levenseller is playing or how the game is going.
“We may give him another one,” Wulff said. “But Kevin will play the most.”
As for Levenseller, he was giddy with anticipation.
“Ever since I was a little kid setting foot on Martin Stadium, this has always been what I’ve wanted to do,” he said. “It’s finally here. It’s kind of surreal right now.”
Perhaps no player on the Cougs roster has an emotional and personal attachment to the program like Levenseller. As the son of Cougars standout and longtime assistant coach Mike Levenseller, J.T. grew up with the program and played his high school ball at Pullman High, where he was two-time all-state quarterback. Mike Levenseller, a star receiver for WSU, graduated from Curtis High.
Heck, even his name drips of Cougars football. He’s Michael Jack Thomas Levenseller. The Jack Thomas is in honor Coug QB great Jack Thompson, who played with Mike Levenseller.
“It’s Jack Thomas, but my dad would give the name completely to Jack,” J.T. Levenseller said.
But when anybody asks him what the J.T. stands for, he replies, “Jack Thompson.”
“He’s been such a huge influence in my life,” J.T. Levenseller said.
It was Thompson who made Levenseller want to play quarterback.
“He led me down the right path, and turned me into the quarterback I am today,” Levenseller said. “Any time he’s in town or any time I’m on that side of the mountains, I throw with him.”
Perhaps it was Thompson’s legendary competitiveness that has rubbed off on Levenseller. Even though the season is half over, he has embraced the opportunity to get out on the field.
When asked when he wanted to start playing, he replied, “Honestly, the entire year.”
Levenseller, who graduated from Pullman in 2007, understands the benefits of redshirting this season, but he also couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play.
“There wasn’t a thought in my mind otherwise,” he said.
And that’s what Wulff likes most about Levenseller.
“He’s got that competitive nature, which is always great to see,” Wulff said. “We can’t have enough of that right now.”
Wulff is cautious, though.
“He’s just trying to learn the system,” Wulff said. “Things aren’t going to come as natural compared to somebody that’s been in it.”
It’s why Wulff decided not to play Levenseller against USC two weeks ago because the coach didn’t think he was ready.
But with the bye week and some extra practices, Wulff is ready to see what Levenseller can do.
“It will be interesting to see how he responds and how he does,” Wulff said.
For future reference. I've read it and filed it away for next year. Enjoy. There isn't much to like about WSU but this is an interesting development.
Cougs take wraps off Levenseller
<!-- end HEADLINE --> <!-- SUB HEADLINE --> <!-- end SUB HEADLINE --> <!-- BYLINE --> RYAN DIVISH, for The Express Tribune
Published: October 29th, 2008 12:30 AM
<!-- end BYLINE --> <!-- Dateline --> <!-- End Dateline --> Paul Wulff was explicit. During Tuesday’s conference call, the Washington State coach made sure that those listening understood that Kevin Lopina is still Washington State’s starting quarterback. And Lopina’s going to start Saturday at Stanford.
But Wulff confirmed the speculation that Lopina won’t be the only quarterback to play against the Cardinal.
As expected, Wulff confirmed that freshman quarterback J.T. Levenseller will see some action against Stanford.
“Kevin Lopina is our starting quarterback and he’s going to be our starting quarterback,” Wulff said rather emphatically. “But J.T. is going to go in on Saturday.”
While it may seem like a reversal from Wulff’s position on redshirts, the circumstances surrounding Levenseller and the depth issues at quarterback made the change in thinking necessary.
With Marshall Lobbestael lost for the season with reconstructive knee surgery, WSU was left with four healthy quarterbacks – Lopina, Levenseller, walk-on freshman Daniel Wagner and scout team quarterback Peter Roberts, who had to be added from a tryout a few weeks back.
Also, Lopina isn’t completely healthy. He returned to action two weeks ago against Southern Cal out of necessity. But after suffering a broken vertebrae in the second game of the season, Lopina was supposed to make his return this week.
“He’s closer,” Wulff said of Lopina’s health. “You can tell he’s feeling better and moving better.”
But in football an injury is only one play away, and with five games left this season, Wulff decided it was better to have Levenseller prepared for such a possibility by starting to play him.
“Just because the No. 1 guy is healthy at this point, and really not even completely healthy, to expect him to take every snap for the rest of the season would be a little presumptuous,” Wulff said.
Levenseller will likely come in for a series during the first half.
“We like to have a set series, maybe the third or fourth series,” Wulff said. “We’re not certain.”
Any additional series would be determined by how well Levenseller is playing or how the game is going.
“We may give him another one,” Wulff said. “But Kevin will play the most.”
As for Levenseller, he was giddy with anticipation.
“Ever since I was a little kid setting foot on Martin Stadium, this has always been what I’ve wanted to do,” he said. “It’s finally here. It’s kind of surreal right now.”
Perhaps no player on the Cougs roster has an emotional and personal attachment to the program like Levenseller. As the son of Cougars standout and longtime assistant coach Mike Levenseller, J.T. grew up with the program and played his high school ball at Pullman High, where he was two-time all-state quarterback. Mike Levenseller, a star receiver for WSU, graduated from Curtis High.
Heck, even his name drips of Cougars football. He’s Michael Jack Thomas Levenseller. The Jack Thomas is in honor Coug QB great Jack Thompson, who played with Mike Levenseller.
“It’s Jack Thomas, but my dad would give the name completely to Jack,” J.T. Levenseller said.
But when anybody asks him what the J.T. stands for, he replies, “Jack Thompson.”
“He’s been such a huge influence in my life,” J.T. Levenseller said.
It was Thompson who made Levenseller want to play quarterback.
“He led me down the right path, and turned me into the quarterback I am today,” Levenseller said. “Any time he’s in town or any time I’m on that side of the mountains, I throw with him.”
Perhaps it was Thompson’s legendary competitiveness that has rubbed off on Levenseller. Even though the season is half over, he has embraced the opportunity to get out on the field.
When asked when he wanted to start playing, he replied, “Honestly, the entire year.”
Levenseller, who graduated from Pullman in 2007, understands the benefits of redshirting this season, but he also couldn’t pass up the opportunity to play.
“There wasn’t a thought in my mind otherwise,” he said.
And that’s what Wulff likes most about Levenseller.
“He’s got that competitive nature, which is always great to see,” Wulff said. “We can’t have enough of that right now.”
Wulff is cautious, though.
“He’s just trying to learn the system,” Wulff said. “Things aren’t going to come as natural compared to somebody that’s been in it.”
It’s why Wulff decided not to play Levenseller against USC two weeks ago because the coach didn’t think he was ready.
But with the bye week and some extra practices, Wulff is ready to see what Levenseller can do.
“It will be interesting to see how he responds and how he does,” Wulff said.
Recap so far:
Season: 30-17 (64%) + 18.5 units
Oregon St. -10/ASU** (best bet)
Stanford-27/WSU*
USC-43/UW*
Oregon+3/CAL*
These lines are from Sunday right close to the openers when I bet them. Anyone who wants these plays earlier to make the most of the early value can catch me here between 6-7PM Eastern time Sundays when they are put up. I usually use CRIS (Bookmaker) but sometimes I use the Greek. The best value evaporates within 15 minutes of when the openers are posted but (as in the case of Oregon State) it can take up to a day for the rest of the early action to settle down.
Season: 30-17 (64%) + 18.5 units
Oregon St. -10/ASU** (best bet)
Stanford-27/WSU*
USC-43/UW*
Oregon+3/CAL*
These lines are from Sunday right close to the openers when I bet them. Anyone who wants these plays earlier to make the most of the early value can catch me here between 6-7PM Eastern time Sundays when they are put up. I usually use CRIS (Bookmaker) but sometimes I use the Greek. The best value evaporates within 15 minutes of when the openers are posted but (as in the case of Oregon State) it can take up to a day for the rest of the early action to settle down.
Recap so far:
Season: 30-17 (64%) + 18.5 units
Oregon St. -10/ASU** (best bet)
Stanford-27/WSU*
USC-43/UW*
Oregon+3/CAL*
Adding: Stanford/WS U U54.5*
These lines are from Sunday right close to the openers when I bet them. Anyone who wants these plays earlier to make the most of the early value can catch me here between 6-7PM Eastern time Sundays when they are put up.
Season: 30-17 (64%) + 18.5 units
Oregon St. -10/ASU** (best bet)
Stanford-27/WSU*
USC-43/UW*
Oregon+3/CAL*
Adding: Stanford/WS U U54.5*
These lines are from Sunday right close to the openers when I bet them. Anyone who wants these plays earlier to make the most of the early value can catch me here between 6-7PM Eastern time Sundays when they are put up.
I've been reading up on Masoli some and I've seen more than just improvement on the field and in his execution of the spread. He's also become a team leader very outspoken, hard worker, hits the film room and has gained a lot of respect from his team mates. This is good. He happens to be the youngest of all the QB's on the roster. I forget off hand what year Nate Costa is in but from the looks of things as of now, Masoli has himself a very good future as leader of the Duck offense.
Interesting note about the QB's in the Cal game.... Masoli is a NCal. native and Riley is from Portland, OR. Riley may have a slight grudge against Oregon because he wasn't recruited very strongly. Masoli was recruited by many, including Auburn, ASU and Nebraska. In a way it's a homecoming for Masoli here with many of his friends and family attending the game.
Interesting note about the QB's in the Cal game.... Masoli is a NCal. native and Riley is from Portland, OR. Riley may have a slight grudge against Oregon because he wasn't recruited very strongly. Masoli was recruited by many, including Auburn, ASU and Nebraska. In a way it's a homecoming for Masoli here with many of his friends and family attending the game.
Arizona State quarterback Rudy Carpenter http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/player/profile?playerId=160303will make his 39th consecutive start at Oregon State with a bum ankle, no running game and a decimated receiving corps. Last year, he was brilliant in leading the Sun Devils back from a 19-0 deficit against OSU, passing for 361 yards with four touchdowns in a 44-32 victory. It's hard to imagine things will go as well in Corvallis against a high-pressure Beavers defense that probably wants redemption.
USC quarterback Mark Sanchez has been inconsistent this year, particularly on the road -- see his uneven effort at Arizona. But he's not on the road Saturday, and visiting Washington will offer him the most inviting pass defense of any BCS conference team. Moreover, the Huskies probably will be missing injured starting cornerback Mesphin Forrester. Sanchez should put up big numbers and then sit out the second half.
Conan, much respect for your Pac 10 thoughts but just don't see the value with Oregon this week. ASU is not good, so the points the Ducks put up on them is not impressive (to me at least). I see the value with Cal in this game. Oregon 2nd straight road game, public perception of this team is very high (blow out win vs "named" school ASU, ranked and in the minds of the public). Cal is not ranked, under the radar, and IMO getting some good value only being -3. I won't be surprised to see the %'s coming in on Oregon but the line move up to 3.5 come Saturday. Not that I'm a trends guy, but there's always the unranked home fave vs. ranked team. GL with your plays!
Thanks SK, GL to you too.
There's been a lot written up on this game in Ducks thread. I posted a lot there because of the conversation. Maybe you'd like to read it and work some of that info into your thinking.
I'm not saying it's going to be an easy game for anyone, but in my mind, the Duck secondary would have to have a horrible day for them to lose. Their spread offense has looked sharp since their bye week as Masoli gets it down pat, and the extra time off has helped the players heal up too. Meanwhile Cal is pretty banged up. Those are my thoughts.
