The Ducks are two weeks and a day from launching into their formidable non-conference schedule against #14 Boise St, unranked Purdue and #18 Utah. Let’s take a look at what’s going on in camp with each team.

Sept. 3, @ Boise St., 7:15 pm on ESPN

• The Broncos are sorting out their starting linebackers in a competition that involves six players for two spots.
• The preseason hasn’t been kind to Boise’s defensive line and it just got thinner with an injury to freshman DT Greg Grimes. They also recently lost an offensive lineman that was in the mix for a starting spot at guard for the season.
• WR Titus Young will apparently be a handful for the Oregon secondary. Hopefully, the Oregon coaching staff and players did a crash course in “Boise play action 101.” The same article says replacing Ellis Powers won’t be a problem. Two players are vying to replace the departed safety, but no mention is made about the ability of either player to deliver cheap shots to quarterbacks (yeah, I said it).
• In the Broncos lone scrimmage so far, returning quarterback Kellen Moore “looked sharp” and Boise St. managed to slip in two successful trick plays. No doubt, Oregon had better be ready for something, well, unconventional.
• From reading through the many reports, it’s hard to say which unit is faring better, but it does seem like Boise’s passing game is going to be tough to stop.

Sept. 12, Purdue, 7:15 pm on FSN (note: FSN might suck but we don’t have to listen to 4 hours of “Did you know Bob Griese played at Purdue?” this year)

• Only four coaches remain from long-time and now retired coach Joe Tiller’s staff. For a team that struggled in 2008, new blood is probably a good thing.
• New coach Danny Hope is high on his freshman class which makes sense considering it’s his first recruiting effort. Expect to see more than a few freshman on the field in Eugene.
• It’s not on-the-field news, but Purdue adding names to the backs of their jersey’s satisfies one of my biggest pet peeves. Teams that think they’re too good for names have always bugged me. USC, Notre Dame, you get the idea.
• Uh oh. The same article mentions two quarterbacks will play this season. That’s always a kiss of death for your season. The instability probably has a lot to do with the fact potential starter Justin Siller was dismissed for academic reasons in the spring.
• Not  much is expected of the Boilermakers, but from various articles, I get the impression coach Da nny Hope doesn’t care what others are saying. He seems to be bringing a new, fresh attitude and is promoting as much competition as possible. He’s been quoted saying “we can field a very good football team in 2009.”

Sept. 19, Utah, 12:30 pm on ESPN

• The most important position is still up for grabs in Salt Lake. Coming off the heels of its second scrimmage, Utah has two quarterbacks in a dead heat even though true freshman Jordan Wynn was previously named #1 on the depth chart. One thing  is certain – the starter won’t be last year’s backup Corbin Louks who has announced he will transfer to Nevada after getting demoted.
• A redshirt freshman is playing defense for the first time ever and is already listed on the two deep.
• The Utes have suffered a couple season-ending injuries in camp, one to a senior running back, the other to a freshman defensive back.
• Program turnover seems to be a major theme. Both the offensive and defensive coordinators are new, though both were hired from within the program. Three other assistants were hired to replace departed coaches. Additionally, the team has to replace the face of its offense from a season ago, quarterback Brian Johnson as well as two defensive players that were drafted by NFL teams.

I had a chance to spend a day at Oregon’s practice on Thursday while in town visiting for the week. It’s nice to again be surrounded by so much green and yellow. It’s easy to forget what that’s like.

Keep in mind that my observations below are not that of a journalist spending day after day getting familiar with the players and coaches. These impressions are from one day only so I don’t want anyone to draw any conclusions from this. You won’t find any secrets here (I wouldn’t even know them if I saw them) and I’m not getting into nuts and bolts of football strategy (again, wouldn’t know enough anyway). Much of the scrimmaging portion of practice was at times difficult to see just because of the way they lay out the field for spectators.

Still, all the disclaimers aside, it was fun being able to get a first-hand look at the team and I’d like to think my thoughts provide some insight to those who can’t attend a practice.

• I showed up intent on learning more about LaMichael James. I have a gut feeling this guy is going to be really good. Unfortunately, nothing sparked for me during the practice other than I remember him making a nice catch during a drill. I’ll just have to wait for Sept. 3 to see what he’s made of.
• Came away really impressed with Ed Dickson. In person, he’s a legitimately-sized tight end and I watched him make three completely different types of catches during drills. On one, he had to reach out and use his hands, on another he was covered (blanketed, really) by a defender and still managed to make the catch. The third I remember had him running down the field where he beat his man thoroughly and made a catch on the run. I really hope to see him more involved this year.
• The receivers as a whole seemed to have a little bit of the dropsies, but mishaps can add up over the course of two hours and seem like more than it really is. It’s tough to say as someone who lives out of town and doesn’t observe these practices regularly. It was a little discouraging to see many top receivers sidelined. Jamere Holland, Diante Jackson and D.J. Davis didn’t play. Jackson was suited up, but didn’t seem to get involved. Davis was sporting a boot on his foot.
• In one conversation I had about LaGarrette Blount, it was mentioned that he only caught two passes all of last year so it was notable to me that I saw at least two catches during end of practice scrimmaging.
• Watching Jeremiah Masoli was fun. He definitely doesn’t look the part of a quarterback, but plays it well. I’ve been skeptical of him given that his hype is largely based on three games from last season. However, he seems in command on the field and calm. He can look lethargic going through drills, but it’s clear to me that he is very comfortable this year. There was a nice pass on a deep route to the corner that fell right into Jeff Maehl’s hands. That was notable as I’ve also been concerned about his downfield passing. Of course, I should mention that my view was obscured making me less than 100% positive it was Masoli making the throw.
• It was cool seeing Rashad Bauman back on the practice field working with DBs. He was a fun guy to watch and it would be nice to see this gig take him into some coaching success.
• Everything that is being said about the quick pace of Chip Kelly’s practice is true. It’s noted in this article that they may have run more plays Thursday than any practice so far and I’d believe it. There isn’t a wasted moment on the field.
• Really enjoyed watching a drill that faced off defensive and offensive lineman. It’s fun to watch those guys compete, especially up close. It’s easy to see how things can get chippy when the “big uglies” go at it with each other. By far, the most interesting aspect was new defensive line coach Jerry Azzinaro. I think he’s completely nuts and I know for sure he has a ton of passion. I don’t know how a guy wouldn’t be motivated to work for him.
• Because fashion matters at Oregon, I’d like to start the campaign for adding Walter Thurmond III to Kirk Herbstreit’s all-uniform team for guys who look good in their gear. The guy looks like a playmaking DB and he proves it. He picked one pass and you could see him hit another gear as he headed toward the end zone.

Welcome Pac-10 newcomers Steve Sarkisian and Chip Kelly. You are the new representatives at this award ceremony for 2009. We hope you are honored to have such a prestigious award in your name.

The Dennis Erickson Award for “What, I’m Still in the Same Place? Why?”
…And the Winner Is: Taylor Mays, USC Safety. It’s shocking that he came back. Everyone assumed he would enter the NFL draft as a surefire first round pick. Instead, he’s at USC for his senior year and figures to anchor a raw, but talented USC defense.

The Chip Kelly Award for “I’m Destined For Greatness, So Why is Everyone a Little Unsure?”
…And the winner is: Whichever quarterback starts for USC in its opening game. Two Trojan quarterbacks have won Heisman Trophies under Pete Carroll and every time they break in someone new, the doubters quickly subside. Still, until Aaron Corp or Matt Barkley prove it, it’s all guesswork.

The Pete Carroll Award for “How Many Times Do I Have to Say It? This is Where I Want To Be”
…And the winner is: Markus Wheaton, OSU WR. Yep, Wheaton is a Beaver. Duck fans probably still can’t believe the cousin of Kenny Wheaton would do such a thing. We’re still waiting to hear it was a joke. The Ducks now just have to hope Oregon State doesn’t get a program-defining moment from Kenny’s cousin.

The Steve Sarkisian Award for “We’re Going to Be Awesome Because I Said So”
…And the winner is: The Arizona Wildcats. Anyone else feel like Mike Stoops’ bunch has been the next coming of greatness in the conference for the last five years? All they have is a 6-6 regular season and a Las Vegas Bowl trophy to show for it. Sure, the honor could have been given to Washington, but it was ineligible to win its coach’s own award.

The Paul Wulff Award for “Hi, We’re Still Up Here. Hey, over here! Watch for us, We’re Going to Be Better. Ah, Screw It, We’re Terrible.”
…And the Winner Is: Kevin Prince, UCLA QB. Okay, that’s not fair to the redshirt freshman Prince and “terrible” is too strong of a word, but the point is that even though UCLA is moving on from a disastrous year at the quarterback position, they undoubtedly have more growing pains ahead.

The Mike Stoops Award for “I’m a Star. No, Really, Ignore the Mediocrity Because I’m a Star!”
…And the Winner Is: Jake Locker. Sorry, Saint Locker of the Seattleites. It’s not that I want to give you this award, it’s just that you’ve never done anything to justify all the hype your fans are heaping on you. Feel free to prove us wrong.

The Rick Neuheisel Award for “We’re Coming For You No Matter How Ridiculous That Sounds”
…And the Winner Is: The Stanford Cardinal. Believe it or not, Stanford might be good this year. It’s even possible they creep into the top four teams in the conference. I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Cardinal make a leap to a bowl game for this first time since 2001.

The Mike Riley Award for “What Else Do We Have to Do to Prove We’re Good?”
…And the Winner Is: The whole gosh-darned (tribute to Riley-speak) Pac-10. A 5-0 bowl record in 2008 and stellar records this decade against fellow BCS teams just isn’t enough. Distribution of your product to the masses matters and the Pac-10 is lacking a national audience. Just keep on winning, I guess.

The Jeff Tedford Award for “How Did We Go From Underdog to Overrated?”
…And the Winner Is: Jeremiah Masoli. As a fan of the Duck’s quarterback, it hurts to put him here, but it’s a natural fit. Masoli still has a lot to prove as his hype is riding on the back of a three game stretch to end 2008. He’ll need to put together a full season of strong play.

The Jim Harbaugh Award for “We’re Borderline Geniuses and Oh, Yeah, We Can Play Too”
…And the Winner Is: Mike Nixon, ASU LB. Let’s see, Nixon carries a 4.05 GPA in Political Science and was an Honorable Mention All-Conference player in 2008. And this year, he’s tabbed as a preseason first team player by many. Yeah, he kind of owns this category.

View past Coach’s Awards: 2008

When you go into hiding for the better part of a year, you should have something really poignant for your first post. Well, I don’t. Instead, I’m going with the tried and true prediction entry that I mostly loathe. Might as well get it out of the way and move on to better things. Besides, I’ve gone all homer and made a prediction that will pretty much leave me (1) profoundly sad when it doesn’t come true and (2) looking like an idiot for picking something that hasn’t happened since Lindsey Lohan still had a career. On with it.

1. Oregon. Listen, you can laugh at it, you can mock it, but I’m sticking with it. I don’t care. I know it’s ridiculous, but I’ve fallen in line every year with everyone else and put “USC at No. 1″ on auto-pilot. I’m not going to do it this year. I have my reasons and they sound a lot better when you consider I’m rooting for it. USC doesn’t have that championship feel this year. I think 2 losses and even 3 is possible. With all of the Ducks toughest conference games at home, it’s not improbable (sure, a little unlikely). In 2007…no, forget that. I’m not discussing it. You know what happened. So do I. There’s no reason to relive it. Let’s just say I feel confident about this Duck team, even with the question marks.
2. USC. It would be fun to drop them lower, but that would have put my IQ in a class that scientists would liken to brain damage. I don’t know if it’s the quarterback situation or the wholesale changes on defense, but the whole thing doesn’t feel right for the Trojans this year. I even think they’re going to get a battle from Ohio State. No, not really. I mean, come on, it’s Ohio State. Ultimately, USC has to travel to Oregon and to Cal. Throw in the typical sleeper game that bites them and the Trojans could finish a very mediocre 10-2 or 9-3.
3. Cal. It’s pretty much a consensus this year that Cal and Oregon are USC’s main challengers (which means one of these two teams will probably tank). The Golden Bears haven’t seemed like a top-tier team in a long time but it was just 1 1/2 seasons ago that they rose to #2 in the national polls. If Kevin Riley gives them any semblance of consistency at quarterback (well, good consistency), I like their chances of making a run at the number one spot. Remember, they have beat Oregon three straight times including at Autzen in the year that shall not be named.
4. Oregon State. Other than my risky homerism, I pretty much agree with the Pac-10 media that voted these four teams at the top. With the Beavers, I’m doing it more on reputation. Everyone has been burned so many times by predicting a letdown season that no one will dare doubt them now. My problem with them is I wonder about playmaking. Jacquizz Rodgers is legit, but he’s more of a workhorse and at his size, injuries are a concern. His brother James is capable of some big plays, but across the board, I don’t see star power on offense. I won’t doubt the defense. They’ve replaced players before with ease.
5. Stanford. This is the team I see making the leap this year. I’ve grown tired of waiting for Mike Stoops to rage his way into the top half of the conference. It’s not happening. the Cardinal had a great season last year, but couldn’t finish with the home stretch against Oregon, USC and Cal. I envision a 6-2 start for this team before they run into the same year-ending triumverate from a year ago. The season ender at home against Notre Dame could give them their first winning season since 2001.
6. Arizona State. This team is better than what they did a year ago. A six game losing streak just demoralized them. I’m not saying they bounce back and topple the best teams, but a bowl game should be in the cards for the Sun Devils.
7. Arizona. Like I said, I’m done with the Wildcats impending rise that has been predicted for about four years now. Making a bowl game for the first time this decade was a positive step, but come on, it was still 6-6. Are we supposed to be impressed by that? Do I still just not like Mike Stoops (or Bob Stoops or Mark Stoops or whatever other brother they can find)? Yeah, that probably has something to do with it.
8. UCLA. It’s a strange world when schools in Arizona and UCLA can’t get to the top half of the conference. They have weather, location, and everything else that attracts an 18 year old college kid. The Bruins figure to be in for another rough season. They have a tough schedule and there seems to be a huge lack of legit playmakers on the team.
9. Washington. Moving from 10th to 9th is upward mobility. That’s what the Steve Sarkisian era brings. The record is likely to improve by about three, maybe four games. A team on the rise. Here comes the Huskies. Bow down.
10. Washington State. I can go the route of being nice to the consensus last place team. Might as well considering the opposition is going to provide enough humiliation. I just can’t, though. This program is in an awful state. Cutting the 60 point opponent outbursts to two would be considered improvement. I can’t believe this has happened to a school that finished in the top ten three straight times earlier this decade.

Because pre-season awards are every bit as important as pre-season rankings, it’s time to unveil my 1st Annual Pre-Season Coaches Awards, each named in honor of a Pac-10 coach.

The Dennis Erickson Award for “It’s Been Fun, But it’s Time to Move On”
…And the Winner Is: Taylor Mays, USC Safety. An overwhelming consensus first-round pick by every useless mock draft the internet has to offer, the junior is a season away from becoming an early entrant to the 2009 NFL Draft.

The Mike Bellotti Award for “If the Game Was Only 61 Minutes Long, I Would Have Won”
…And the winner is: Kevin Riley, Cal Quarterback. Some advice for you this year, Kevin: spike the ball, call a timeout, or run out of bounds.

The Pete Carroll Award for “I Don’t Care If You’re Good, I Just Don’t Like You”
…And the winner is: Rudy Carpenter, Arizona State Quarterback. I don’t feel like I should have to explain this. Actually, I’m not even sure if I can. I just don’t like him.

The Tyrone Willingham Award for “I Looked A Lot Better When I First Got Onto Campus”
…And the winner is: Ben Olson, UCLA Quarterback. He’s injured. Again. As a former “5-Star Recruit,” big things were expected and yet, it never happened.

The Paul Wulff Award for “Player You’ve Never Heard of and Probably Never Will”
…And the Winner Is: Jeff Bowen, Washington State Offensive Lineman. The criteria here was to find a guy on the consensus 10th place team that is a senior and listed 4th on the depth chart at his position. Hopefully, Jeff Bowen Googles his name someday and finds out about this prestigious award. Also, given that he is 100 lbs heavier than me at the same height, I would appreciate it if he has a sense of humor.

The Mike Stoops Award for “Biggest Douchebag”
…And the Winner Is: Mike Stoops, Arizona Head Coach. Congratulations, you just won your own award. I’d say the voting is rigged, but I think we can all agree, you earned it coach.

The Rick Neuheisel Award for “Player Most Likely to Get Penalized”
…And the Winner Is: Jeremy Perry, Oregon State Guard. He wins for two reasons: (1) He’s an offensive lineman and those guys hold on every play and (2) He’s quoted on ESPN.com saying, “I’m nasty, even if the whistle blows, I guarantee I’ll get the last shove.”

The Mike Riley Award for “The First Month Doesn’t Really Matter Anyway”
…And the Winner Is: Tie between Jake Locker (UW Quarterback) and Mark Sanchez (USC Quarterback). Both players have suffered injuries that could cause early season issues for their respective teams if they don’t come back healthy.

The Jeff Tedford Award for “Yeah, He Was Great When I Coached Him, But What About Now?”
…And the Winner Is: No, not Joey Harrington, Trent Dilfer, Kyle Boller, Akili Smith, AJ Feeley or Aaron Rodgers. The winner is Mitch Mustain, USC Quarterback. The hype is there for the heralded transfer from Arkansas. Will he deliver, especially if Mark Sanchez can’t go?

The Jim Harbaugh Award for “I Probably Shouldn’t Have Said That, But I’ll Go Ahead and Back It Up Anyway”
…And the Winner Is: Carson Palmer, former USC and current Cincinnati Bengals Quarterback. All’s quiet among current players so far in 2008 so we turn to Palmer’s ill-advised diatribe against Ohio State. Sure, he’s right and his alma mater will back him up, but that doesn’t endear you to your current Ohio fan base.

You can’t have a blog, run a website, post in forums or basically breathe oxygen without at some point sitting down and doing your pre-season predictions. As such, I might as well do mine. But before I get to that, I’d like to remind you that I did get 1 out of 10 exactly right in 2007 so you can pretty much go straight to Vegas (or your favorite off-shore betting website, ahem) with the following:

1. USC
What can I say, I like to live dangerously. If anyone picks any other team here, they should apply for a job on ESPN. I’m not saying the network employs an overwhelming number of people who say stuff they don’t mean for attention, it’s just…no, that’s exactly what I’m saying. Just pick USC and get on with it.

2. Oregon
“Hey, homer! Nice pick!” Thank you, whoever just said that. I do think it’s a nice pick. Look, tell me which team in the Pac-10 you feel absolutely, positively comfortable declaring is the second best team behind USC. Arizona State? Cal? Oregon State? Given this uncertainty I feel, I’m going with the homer pick. The secondary has three sure-fire NFL guys starting and the offense is a quarterback away from being dominant again. They have five guys to choose from, so whoever becomes the starter has to be great. I mean, that’s how the lottery works – you buy five tickets instead of one and your chances of winning are 500% better. It’s just math, people.

3. Arizona State
I’m just not sold on ASU as a great team. Everyone got all excited over their 8-0 start last year, but only one of those 8 teams finished with a winning record in their respective conference. And that one team – Oregon State – is notoriously bad in September. Eventually, they lost easily to Oregon, USC and Texas. Maybe year two of the Dennis Erickson experiment, otherwise known as the “time to look for a new job phase,” will see them elevate to another level but I don’t think so.

4. Oregon State
Yeah, I said it. Oregon State. I was going to do this whole hate rivalry thing and put them last, but then I realized they’re not actually that hated. Hey, don’t blame me. Ted Miller wrote it. Or should I say, didn’t write it. Do I actually believe Oregon State is the fourth best team in the conference? No, not really, but they have been consistently finishing in the top half of the conference lately, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to have to listen to my dad bitch about getting no respect.

5. Cal
I’m giving the Bears the benefit of the doubt here, simply because they’ve earned it under Jeff Tedford. Last year is an anomaly in his tenure and you have to imagine they will bounce back. Plus, when previewing the Oregon-Cal game last year, I learned that Jack Bauer got his degree at Berkeley. There’s no way you bet against Jack Bauer, especially when he hasn’t saved the world in two years.

6. UCLA
Yep, it’s Slick Rick, Norm Chow and Dwayne Washington, the three greatest coaches that ever lived, the saviors of Westwood, the end of the USC dynasty. Yep, it’s all of that. I need to stop listening to LA radio.

7. Arizona
Not going to do it – not this year. Picking Arizona to have a good season is like waiting for Kevin Costner to make another good movie. Whoops, I’m not supposed to say that about Oregon’s newest baseball fan. Seriously, if your leader is capable of getting a 15 yard penalty that proved costly in a two point loss to New Mexico, you might have a volatile, irritable, whiny, obnoxious, annoying, pouting, crying Stoops brother for a head coach.

8. Stanford
Three wins last year was the first real miracle we’ve seen since baby Jesus. That stunt they pulled at USC was unspeakable. I still don’t know much about them, can’t name a player other than Tavita Pritchard, and still have never met a Stanford football fan, but dammit, they are better than anything in the state of Washington.

9. Washington
I continue to be saddened by the demise of this program. I may be the only Duck fan to say that, but football was just more fun when they mattered. Saint Locker of the Seattleites is going to try his hardest to lead them back, but unfortunately, he still doesn’t know how to throw a football – truly unfortunate when he’s your quarterback.

10. Washington State
Alphabetically and for lack of talent, the Cougars come in last. There is literally nothing to be excited about with this team and I’m as sure that they will finish last as I am that you have no idea who Paul Wulff is.

Note: The FOTB makes her debut with picks sometime this week.