ESPN SportsNation NCAA FB with Ted Miller

Ted Miller

Greetings... hope everyone is well. Fire away.

KL (Washington, DC)

How does moving the WSU opener against BYU to Thursday night impact the game? Does it put increased pressure on a coach like Mike Leach - or has he been around long enough that this sort of move has little/no impact on his Cougar debut? I would guess Leach looks at such games as opportunities ot market his offense and WSU...to potential recruits.

Ted Miller

Well, it puts the Cougs and Leach on national TV against a quality opponent. A bigger stage means more pressure. A win would certainly get things off to a nice start, a quality reintroduction for Leach. But a loss wouldn't end the world. It's the first game for a new coach with new systems. Probably would have been nice to have a warm-up vs. a directional school. There is both opportunity and risk here but nothing that establishes a permanent trajectory -- either way.

Tony (Richmond, CA)

Will the well traveled Brandon Willis make an impact this year in Westwood under new defensive minded head coach Jim Mora?

Ted Miller

Yes.. no doubt. He's listed No. 1 at NT on the post-spring depth chart. While Mora downplayed the value of that depth chart -- comically so -- it certainly shows that Willis is going to see lots of action next fall. From what I heard, the guy can help the Bruins up front.

Allan Neil (Portland)

I read that in the Chip Kelly era there have been no special team TD's scored against Oregon. I thought that this was an amazing stat so I did a little research and also discovered that Oregon makes their opponents work TDs.2009? 10 of 15 rushing TD's were 5 yds. or less and no rushing TD was over 20 yds.? 11 of 16 passing TD's were from inside the red-zone and only one was over 31 yds. (Arizona 71 yds.)2010? 8 of 12 rushing TD's were 10 yds. or less and only 2 were over 30 yds. (ASU 44 yds. and Stanford 53 yds.).? Of the 15 passing TD's 14 were 36 yds. or less and 9 were from inside the red-zone. (Arizona 80 yds.)2011? 13 of 14 rushing TD's were less than 10 yds. with the longest rushing TD being only 16 yds. by LSU.? Of 25 passing TD's 20 were 25 yds. or less and 17 were from inside the red zone with only 2 reception for TD over 40 yds. (OSU 58 yds. and USC 59yds.).This could also be called the John Boyett era as he has been the free safety responsible for keeping plays in front of him for the last three years. During the Boyett era there have only been 3 rushing TDs outside the red zone and four passing TDs over 40 yards.

Ted Miller

OK... I feel you deserve to be rewarded for all that work. Of course, 34-6 speaks for itself. Ducks have been doing a lot of things well in all three areas.

Mac (Portland)

Ted, who has the best logo in the Pac-12?

Ted Miller

Washington State... seems like most folks agree, if begrudgingly.

Jake (Montreal)

Hey Ted, who do you believe will be the future quarterback after Matt Barkley is gone? Who do you see the most prepared skill wise to take over the offense?

Ted Miller

USC has been consistently good at QB for a decade. That track record speaks for itself. Of course, when you have your pick of QBs from across the nation, but particularly in southern California, well, let's say that helps. As for who wins the job, I really have no idea. Neither Wittek nor Kessler separated himself this spring. Wittek is the guy with big upside, while Kessler is the swashbuckler. And then of course you have hotshot incoming freshman Max Browne, and even Jesse Scroggins if he gets his academics together. My feeling is you can't really handicap the QB competition until the stakes are real, and that won't happen until Barkley leaves.

Mike Leach (Hunting bears in Canada)

Hey Ted, checking in from Canada while I'm hunting bears. Let Lintz know I'm taking video footage for him so he can improve his hand technique.

Ted Miller

Don't get eaten.

Rebel (A few miles from you..)

Ted...starting to warm up huh ? That being said you hear anything more on the Oregon case ? Also what's your take on Oregon this year, all the hype is USC.

Ted Miller

It's certainly not chilly here in N. Scottsdale. As for Oregon's NCAA case, nothing new to report. If there is, I promise I -- and the beat writers in Oregon -- will be on it. If you read something on a messageboard, just know it's almost certainly someone just making something up. As for Oregon: There is good reason that USC is seen as the Pac-12 frontrunner. But keep in mind that just about everyone is ranking the Ducks in the preseason top-10, most in the top-five. That's really not a place where you can complain about hype. And all the Ducks need to do to shut folks up about USC is beat the Trojans on Nov. 3.

Brian (Denver)

What are the odds Andrus Peat starts at left tackle from the get-go? Any other Stanford O-line spots you think could go to one of the heralded freshmen?

Ted Miller

David Shaw essentially said he expects the incoming freshmen to be in the mix on the O-line, and Peat is the most likely to get into that primetime slot. It wouldn't surprise me if he started at OT. Or if one or two others get into the rotation. But the returning guys are fairly solid. It won't be a cakewalk to win a job, particularly for a freshman.

Joe (LA)

Did you ever think you'd see the day when Tedford was ranked the 9th coach in the conference! Is he out if he doesn't reach a bowl game this year?

Ted Miller

That certainly is the negative way to look at it. Yes, if the Bears finish with a losing record, I think his seat will be very hot. That said, I don't think Cal will finish with a losing record. There are plenty of positives with the Bears at present: Stadium remodel, good recruiting being the chief upticks. I'm not counting Tedford out just yet.

Darron Thomas (What was I thinking Land?)

Where am I and what are the odds of me getting picked up by an NFL team? Or should I be looking at the Canadian Football League?

Ted Miller

Thomas had a tryout with the Browns but wasn't signed. I feel bad for him, but can't say I didn't see this coming. The CFL or Arena League is his best bet.

Stella (Aspen)

In 1973 when Stanford was looking to replace the un-PC nickname "Indians", the administration unwisely over-ruled the winner of the student vote - "Robber Barons", an homage to the university's railroad magnate founder in favor of the incredibly lame "Cardinal." With Stanford thus out of the running, which PAC12 school has the best nickname?

Ted Miller

That's a hard one. I really like the Buffalo. And Tommy Trojans' pregame routine is pretty cool. I like the Stanford Tree, but he sort of operates in his own world. Robber Barons would have been cool, for sure.

Duck Fan (Cabo)

Just noticed the Thomas comment. Hate to say this but I think the Ducks are better with whoever win's the QB job and the running game should be just as lethal once they get a look at the freshmen that are incoming, because of what the two guys competing for the position will bring to the field

Ted Miller

Maybe. But it was a pretty good run with Thomas, who's shaping up to be one of those "Good college QB but game doesn't translate to NFL" guys. Let's keep in mind we won't really know what Oregon has at QB until he faces a tough Pac-12 game. There's reason to be encouraged, but our sample size is too small to pass judgment.

Don (Berkeley, CA)

Will Zach Kline be the starting quarterback my midseason?

Ted Miller

I don't think so.

Kyle (Bellevue, WA)

If you were a Vegas oddsmaker, how many wins would you set the over/under at for the Huskies this year?

Ted Miller

Rebel (A few miles from you)

ok...go out on a limb and predict that game, right now? 11/3/12 who wins? I think the Ducks will be ready to take it to the Trojan's...

Ted Miller

At this moment, I like the Trojans... home stadium being a key reason.