Happy Monday Cougs, and a much-belated Happy New Year to you and yours. After some time off, it's time to climb back into the chair and get after it, Morning Drip style, so here we go…..
So there were rumors-n-such floating about a certain WSU QB, and that he might be either transferring to another school or even quitting football altogether. It started late in the year, I guess the first I saw something about Connor Halliday was after the Utah game or somewhere in there? Anyway, some message board comments and a few tweets had raised some eyebrows, so, Cougfan checked it out, and went straight to the source. And what did Halliday say?
"I can't wait for spring ball and for the upcoming season," said Halliday.
So there you go, short and sweet and to the point. Connor Halliday will return, and will be in the fight for the starting job for 2K13 and beyond. Of course, nothing is promised to Halliday and he will have to go out and win the job and all that stuff. But here's hoping he's focused and ready mentally and physically to go out and get the starting gig. Not that Austin Apodaca might be a nice option, and there have been some raves about him already from his scout team work as well as his accuracy in the offense. But no matter what happens, from where we sit in early January 2013, it would be a very good thing for one of these guys to really shine in spring ball and go out and win that job! We already kinda/sorta had our own QB drama last fall, so let's just hope it becomes a no-brainer situation as to who is #1 on the depth chart by the end of spring.
Next up, Bud Withers at the Seattle Times asked a very good question – what's up with the Pac-12 investigation of Mike Leach? One would have thought we might have seen it all wrapped up at least a week or two ago, at least that's what the buzz was when WSU wrapped up their own internal investigation back on December 12th. But here we sit a week into the new year and still no announcement. Now that the "dead" period in recruiting is wrapping up and coaching staffs are in the home stretch on finishing their signing classes for this year, it would be a very good thing to get this stuff out of the way.
I mean it's not like Leach doesn't already have questions to answer about his past, from the incident at Texas Tech that led to his dismissal to the things we heard from last fall in the Leach Beach. But the last thing they could use out on the road in recruiting is to answer questions while not knowing 100% without a doubt that the Pac-12 will come back without anything to worry about. Silence and a delay can only lead people to fill in the blanks with their own imaginations, and it's easy to assume things the longer it drags on. So here's hoping we get word – quick – and everyone can put this behind them!
So did you all hear the news, that Chip Kelly is STAYING AT OREGON!?! Stunned, absolutely, was the feeling I had when I saw the first report come across the NFL Network crawl last night. After all the talk, all the interviews and analysts saying not only is he the hot name, but he will have his choice of NFL jobs, only to see him return to Nike U!?! I couldn't believe it, and was very prepared to see Mark Helflich taking over for Kelly on the Oregon sideline. But Kelly stays for another year, and we can only speculate at the reasons why, from not enough money to roster control/power at the next level.
But they are predictably thrilled at Oregon in regards to recruiting, as Kelly returns with a 46-7 record and two straight BCS bowl wins. Their 46 wins is second only to Alabama at the BCS level over the last four years, and one would expect another extremely strong Oregon team in 2013 with the young QB in Mariotta and of course, the amazing De'Anthony Thomas! Maybe probation is the only thing that can strike down the empire in Eugene??
Finally……we have to talk Seahawks, don't we? Personally I dreaded this game at Washington, and felt a sense of gloom as the first quarter unfolded and the Hawks looked like they barely got off the plane while the Redskins were clicking. I even texted by good friend Sutra and said it had a feeling of WSU-UTAH early on (yeesh!). But all of a sudden RGIII's knee started to flare up, and Russell Wilson and the rest of the team got their legs. After sleepwalking through the first quarter, the Hawks would absolutely dominate for the final three, outgaining the 'Skins 351-58 in total offense for the rest of the game! Marshawn Lynch ran angry, the defense dug in and took over, but most of all, how much more can be said about Russell Wilson??
After all the amazing talk of RGIII, Andrew Luck and Wilson all season long, it's Russell Wilson who is the only rookie QB to survive Wild Card weekend. Obviously he has the better, more complete team compared to Luck's Colts and RGIII's Redskins at this point in the year, but still it's just another step for a player who continues to grow before our eyes. I think back to early in the year when the Hawks were coming up short in close games, and I admit whole-heartedly that I wasn't sold on Wilson. But he has transformed into a force as the season has gone on, and it's been an incredible experience watching him excel in a such a difficult position. I don't know about you, but I'm just trying my best to enjoy the ride. I would love nothing more than to see them go all the way, but it's still awfully daunting when you think about what lies ahead. But you can't worry about any of that, you just have to live in the "NOW" as Wilson seems to be able to do at such a high level. He's a special player, Wilson, and these moments just don't come along very often.
That's it for now. Enjoy your Monday, and of course, GO COUGS/HAWKS!
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