The Last Push, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. After two tough losses to end the regular season, the Duck's impressive win over Washington is keeping them alive in the PAC 12. With a trip to the semifinals on the line, Arsalan Kazemi scored 11 points in overtime to lead the Ducks to the victory. Up next, Oregon tries to redeem their loss to Utah after the Utes shocked Cal in the quarterfinals. Of the four teams left in the tourny, three of them are going to make the Big Dance regardless the outcome of a Conference tournament. With our recent struggles, I think it's important to head into the NCAA Tournament with momentum on your side.
The Western Conference is usually pretty tight this time of year, but the race for the final playoff spot is nearing the home stretch. The disappointment of the Laker's season isn't a lost cause just yet after taking over the eight spot for the time being. The difference between the six and nine seed isn't but only 3.5 games. Golden State, the sixth best in the west, are 7 games back of the red-hot Nuggets for the fifth spot. Not looking like any of these teams will be seeded higher than six, potentially five teams are scratching and clawing for postseason basketball.

The Lake Show, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. If you were to say the Lakers season has been a disappointment, that would be quite the understatement. Despite all the adversity, they sit at 26-29 and 3.5 games out of the last Playoff spot behind the Rockets. I don't think many people would say LA is a sure fire Playoff team, but Kobe Bryant isn't like many people. Kobe not only thinks they have a chance at the postseason, he says "It's not a question of if we make the playoffs. We will." And once they get there, Bryant isn't afraid of any team in a best of seven series. He's been criticized for his guarantee, but I think it was a good thing for the Lakers. It shows that the mere thought of missing out on the Playoffs isn't an option for Kobe and the city of Los Angeles.
The Ducks return to PK Park for their home opener, to face the Lions of Loyola Marymount today at 6. After sweeping the four game set over Hawaii, the Ducks have moved up to #5 in the NCBWA College Baseball rankings. First baseman Ryon Healy had a great start to the season, being named PAC 12 player of the week. He went 8 for 15 and batted in four runs in the first series of the year. Still a lot of ball to be played, but the Ducks are starting this season off the right way.

Ducks' Downslope, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. Twenty straight wins at home for the ducks ended with a disappointing loss to Colorado last night. Throughout the game, it seemed like the Ducks were going to put an end to its recent struggles on the court. They lead the entire game up to 29 seconds in the second half, when the Buffalo's 8-0 run ended with Andre Roberson hitting the game winner to give Oregon their third straight loss. The Ducks now sit at 18-5 overall and 7-3 in the PAC-12, looking like they will drop out of the top 25 polls.
Over the past few seasons the PAC-12 has been the laughing stock of the college basketball world, but 10 of the 12 teams in the conference are above .500 and five teams have 15 wins or more. So the strength of schedule should help the Ducks more than recent seasons where it could be the difference between the big dance or the NIT. The Ducks face off with Utah at home tomorrow, and will try to get back to their winning ways. The Utes are one of the two teams under the .500 mark, so this is a game that Oregon should win, especially at home.
Although they have been struggling as of late, it is great to see how Dana Altman has put this team back on the map. He took this program from irrelevant to contender in two seasons.

Kaepping off a season, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. With the Conference Championship Games over and done with, the Har-bowl is all set up. In just Kaepernick's ninth start as a pro, he put together an incredible performance to catapult the Niners into their first Super Bowl since 1994. At that time, Steve Young under center and Jerry Rice was still catching passes. What made Kaep's performance even more impressive, was that he played at that level just one week after his record setting game against Green Bay in the Divisional Round. For a young quarterback to have that kind of success and not read his own headlines really impresses me. I'll be honest, I was not supportive of Jim Harbaugh's decision to start Colin Kaepernick over Alex Smith midway through the season. Especially since Smith had the highest completion percentage in the league at that time, and I don't think you should ever lose your job due to injury. Obviously Harbaugh made the correct decision, and now he is rewarded with a trip to New Orleans to face his brother on the other sideline.
Ray Lewis and the Ravens punched their ticket to Super Bowl 48 last Sunday. It wasn't an easy task, but shutting down the Patriots offense in the entire second half of the AFC Championship Game did the job. Quarterback Joe Flacco has been inconsistent over the past couple of years to say the least, but he's been money this postseason. Flacco now has the most road playoff wins in NFL history. Not Montana. Not Brady or Manning. Not even John Elway. Joe Flacco has been the man when it comes to Playoff football on the road in his career. The next thing on his list is a Super Bowl ring on his finger. He has a chance to get it next Sunday, but he will have to get past the stout 49er defense in order to get that type of jewelry.

Farewell Chip, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. As the clock expired and Chip Kelly was doused in yellow Gatorade, it seemed that would be the last time we would see Coach Kelly with the Oregon visor upon his head. Chip had lead the team to four consecutive BCS Bowls in four years, and won the last two trips. Arguably the most successful head coach Oregon has ever seen, looked poised to head to the NFL. When word got out that Chip would be returning for another shot at a Natty, you could almost hear the entire city of Eugene sigh in relief. Although it was thought he would be returning, I knew that it was just a matter of time before he headed to the Pros. That time ended up being sooner rather than later, as the Philadelphia Eagles announced their new coach would be none other than Chip Kelly. Even though I was a little dissapointed, I could not say I was surprised nor angry. For people to question the character of Kelly really gets on my nerves. Sure, I'm not happy with his decision to leave, but you have to be able to see where he is coming from. He has spent his four years in College and is now heading for the ultimate challenge. Coach Kelly has elevated this program to a level that we have never seen before, and left us in a pretty good situation (disregarding possible sanctions). Next season will not be the year to see if we can survive without Chip. There is so much returning talent on that Duck roster, the true test will be a few years from now when the new recruiting class must take over. To me, Mark Helfrich makes the most sense to be the head guy, instead of going out and chasing after Chris Peterson or somebody else. Oregon Football will live on, but Chip Kelly will surely be missed.

Breaking the Bank, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. With all of the big name free agents on the market this time of year, you see some front office brilliance but more often than not, you see a lot of mistakes. Yesterday's signing of Josh Hamilton by the Angels was not a good move in my opinion. They had all kinds of talent on that roster last season, and just barely missed out on the postseason. Why not just stick with your guys, use the 25 million dollars a year to pick up a couple of quality players, and not have a bunch of overpaid big shots in the clubhouse? And if you think they are a sure playoff team in 2013, remember they had Trout, Pujols, and the best rotation in the AL in 2012 and couldn't squeak their way into the playoffs. This move could pay off for them, but for now, I'm not buying into it.
Another team that just doesn't get it are the Los Angeles Dodgers. This Zack Greinke deal really bothers me.  Greinke is a damn good pitcher, and I think he will increase the Dodger's chances of winning the west, but in no way is he worth $147 million. This is the most money ever paid to a right hander, and there are a handful of righties I would rather have than Greinke, who aren't getting nearly as big of a paycheck. And haven't they learned from what happened to them last year? After acquiring Gonzalez, Beckett, Ramirez and Victorino, they just went down hill from there. It's not like they aren't getting good players, they are just overpaying everybody who has decent numbers but a big name.

Not So Civil War, by Casey Mitchell

This is Casey Mitchell guest blogging for ST today. Last week's heartbreaking loss to Stanford really put a spin on the Ducks' season. We are in a very similar spot as we were last season after the USC loss, except we had a PAC 12 Championship game to fall back on last year. Now the Ducks are in need of a UCLA win over the Cardinal for a shot at the Rose Bowl. However, there is a scenario where Oregon does not want a championship game. There's a chance that Oregon can still make it to the Natty without winning their conference.
I know that USC is without Barkley, but that doesn't mean Notre Dame is just going to steamroll over the Trojans in Los Angeles. Keep in mind, SC quarterback Max Wittek was a top five recruit in his class, and he has two tremendous receivers to throw the ball to. The Irish have been having some troubles in their secondary as of late, and the Trojans have the type of firepower to exploit those weaknesses. So if USC can upset the Irish, that makes Oregon's road to Miami a little bit easier.
They would still need Florida State to beat Florida, but I don't think that will be much of a problem. Gator QB Jeff Driskel is probable to play with his ankle injury, but he is on the road against a very talented Seminole team, and the Noles should win with no issues. If both Notre Dame and Florida drop their rivalry games, all the Ducks need to do is take care of the Beavs in Corvallis, which will be no easy task.
Oregon State is looking for an At-Large bid for the BCS, and a win over the Ducks would make them very attractive to a game like the Fiesta Bowl. The Ducks are not only playing for a Rose Bowl or a possible National Championship, but they want to lock up a spot in the BCS. If Oregon doesn't want this season to be a complete bust, they need to beat the Beavers in the Civil War.