Beschwerden » It makes for a complex system designed to max

BERKELEY, Calif. -- The last time Oregon traveled south to play California, the teams wound up scoring a combined 100 points.Two years later, its hard to imagine the scoreboard getting much less of a workout when the defense-challenged Ducks (2-4, 0-3 Pac-12) and Bears (3-3, 1-2) meet Friday night.Oregon is surrendering 41.8 points per game -- 125th nationally out of 128 FBS teams -- and is coming off a 70-21 loss two weeks ago to No. 5 Washington. Cal ranks 123rd, allowing 40.0 points per game, and has not held the Ducks under 43 in a game since 2010.Cal coach Sonny Dykes, whose Bears lost 59-41 to Oregon at Levis Stadium in 2014, can relate to the Ducks defensive downturn.Sometimes when you cant stop the run, it makes it hard to play good defense, he said. Weve dealt with that at times this year. Its hard the way people play offense now.For Oregon, which began the season ranked No. 24 but hasnt won since Sept. 10 against Virginia, getting a win over anyone would provide an immeasurable boost to the teams confidence, coach Mark Helfrich said.Helfrich wants practices to be tougher than games, convinced that will lead to success.Now its a matter of, `Hey, when youre going against this guy whos a fifth-year senior and youre a redshirt freshman, or theres 50,000 screaming people -- whatever the situation -- you execute exactly how you practice, he said. Thats all we need. Nothing more, nothing less.Cals tendency is to throw the ball, but the Bears ran for a season-high 317 yards two weeks ago at Oregon State. That has the Ducks attention.We cant stop the run very well right now, cornerback Arrion Springs said. Theyve got some really good running backs and theyre going to want to run the ball. Everyone wants to run the ball on us.Dykes is convinced there is a good Oregon defense waiting to show itself.They have a lot of players who have been successful. They know how to win, he said. Its a good football team that hasnt played their best. Im sure they will.Here are some things to watch when Oregon visits Cal:WEBB YES, HANSEN MAYBE: Quarterback Davis Webb, who leads the Pac-12 with 2,256 yards passing and has thrown 22 touchdowns, will start for the Bears. Webb injured the thumb on his throwing hand two weeks ago, but returned to practice Sunday after the bye week and said he is feeling fine.Less certain is the status of wideout Chad Hansen, the Pac-12s leading receiver, who sprained his ankle against Oregon State. Dykes said he expects Hansen to play, but acknowledged hes not sure how effective he will be.BEARS AFTER BYES: Cal is hoping the bye week finally provides some benefit. The Bears are 0-5 under Dykes after byes, including a 45-40 loss at San Diego State this season after getting an extra week to acclimate following a long trip to Australia to play Hawaii. Cal has allowed an average of 45.4 points in those five defeats, which included a 55-16 loss to No. 2 Oregon back in Dykes debut season of 2013.YOUNG DUCKS: In addition to using a freshman quarterback in Justin Herbert, who made his starting debut against Washington, Oregon is the only FBS school in the country that has started four freshmen offensive linemen in the same game. Oregon emerged from fall camp with four redshirt freshmen having secured starting spots: Calvin Throckmorton (right tackle), Brady Aiello (left tackle) Jake Hanson (center) and Shane Lemieux (left guard) all start for the Ducks. Three of the four have started every game, with Aiello in the starting unit four of six games.JUST THE NEXT GAME: No one has to tell Dykes how the Bears have fared on his watch against the Ducks.This is my fourth year and I know we havent beat them yet. We havent played particularly well against them, Dykes said.In fact, Cal is 0-12 against Oregon, Stanford, USC and UCLA during Dykes tenure. Oregon has won seven straight overall against Cal.ROUGH START: Oregon is 0-3 in the Pac-12 for the first time since 1996 and has lost four straight games overall for the first time since 2006. But the Ducks have some history on their side: They are 27-4 in conference road games since 2009, best of any Power 5 team. China Jerseys Cheap . On Saturday night, the normally free throw-challenged centre did just that. Howard scored 18 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, including 13 of 19 free throws in a 2 1/2-minute stretch, and the Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets 122-111. China Jerseys Wholesale .S. Open champion Justin Rose birdied the first hole with a blind shot he hit to a foot of the pin, and he stayed in front Tuesday until he completed a 4-under 67 for a two-shot lead over Jason Dufner in PGA Grand Slam of Golf. https://www.chinajerseyscheap.us/ . - The Washington Redskins have cut defensive lineman Adam Carriker and punter Sav Rocca. China Jerseys Stitched . Robinson finished with 17 points, all but two in the second half, and Lawson had 14 after halftime and finished with a game-high 11 assists as the Nuggets handed Dallas its first home loss in eight games this season. J.J. Hickson led Denver with 22, and Kenneth Faried added 10 points and 10 rebounds. Fake China Jerseys . Roman Josi had a goal and an assist to lead the Predators to a 4-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Monday night. HOUSTON -- The quizzes began early.Houston Texans head coach Bill OBrien and offensive coordinator George Godsey sent Brock Osweiler?to the front of the team meeting room to stand on stage with five linemen during the first week of the teams offseason program. The offensive players he would soon lead sat in oversized office chairs behind rows of ascending desks. Oversized game photos adorned the walls on either side.Godsey and OBrien called out a play, and the dress rehearsal began. Osweiler barked out cadences for the room to hear, just like he would in a game. When he got it wrong, good-natured cat calls followed. But he didnt get it wrong often.I remember the first time that we did it, which was at the beginning, Texans coach Bill OBrien said. He had it.Most of the time, Osweilers response showed a mastery of the four pages of cadences he had been asked to learn before he set foot in the building for offseason meetings. Most of the time, Osweiler showed his commitment to the great expectations facing him.It has to work. The Texans are counting on him. The fates of general manager Rick Smith and OBrien are tied to Osweiler -- to whom they paid $37 million guaranteed and $72 million over four seasons -- whether their owner admits it or not. And Osweiler is counting on himself. He brims with confidence that hell bring the Texans exactly what they need to give their superlative defense a worthy complement.Its exciting. Its a new challenge, Osweiler said. Its something to wake up for and chase after, just to learn this new offense. ... Thats the playbook, thats getting to know your teammates. Understanding the ins and the outs and the operation and style of this building and how our strength staff operates.Its like the first day of school and going to a new school. Whos going to be my new best friend? Whats our teacher like? I cant wait to see the playground, maybe our weight room and cafeteria.To make this work, Osweiler has to know everything about the Texans offense. He has to master the contents of a 4-inch-thick binder that is the work of generations of brilliant coaching minds. That process began as soon as he walked out of the building for the first time March 10, armed with a tablet filled with film and terminology. It continued on a field at Arizona State, where his new teammates joined him. It crystallized over weeks of study in the facility during the Texans offseason program and in his office at his new Houston-area home.Indoor and outdoor learningThat first day marked a rare time that Osweiler followed instead of led.This is where we sit, a fellow quarterback told him. Osweiler followed his backups,?Tom Savage and Brandon Weeden, into their unassigned seating arrangement in the team meeting room. It ensured that the receivers, including Pro Bowler DeAndre Hopkins, sat right behind him.By then, Osweiler had memorized the basic information section of the Texans playbook, which includes four pages of cadences, and also huddle instructions, explanations of how the play is called, personnel groupings, the names of motions and shifts, and defensive terminology. The most extensive part of the playbooks opening section explains all the Texans formations. Its 18 pages.If you asked a player, thats probably one of the hardest things to learn, OBrien said. We probably have more formations than most any offense.They dont expect to spend more than a week on that.Since he signed March 10, Osweiler set daily goals for himself. One day, he challenged himself to learn all the Texans cadences. Another day, he tried to learn all the empty formations. He would say a formations name out loud, then draw it until he got it right.The receivers showed up in late March on Osweilers invitation to Arizona State, as did Savage. They ran routes, and he threw to them. Sometimes, they taught Osweiler a route signal, then surprised him later with a quiz.Whats the signal for a quick out?Whats the signal for an in-cut from the slot?He was like a student from the jump, receiver Cecil Shorts said. Very professional. I can see what he learned from 18 [Peyton Manning].Those extra sessions continued in Houston. Even when throwing at the Texans facility wasnt allowed, the group would get together somewhere off-site. Once the offseason program began April 20, finally Godsey and OBrien could help.One thing that weve learned as coaches: Were teachers, OBrien said. Hes the quarterback. If Im just talking to him, eventually theyll just see my mouth moving. Blah blah blah. We want them to get up there and actually do it.The coaches had Osweiler draw formations on a board in the Texans quarterback room, an often dimly lit space with walls covered completely in whiteboard. They showed a cut-up of film from one of the past seven years and asked Osweiler to identify the protection and middle linebacker.In the team meeting room, they practiced the cadences on stage. TThey asked Osweiler to explain what he expected from his teammates and from a defense on certain plays.ddddddddddddWhereas last years starting quarterback,?Brian Hoyer, might have given a less robust answer, Osweiler sometimes stood up, his 6-foot-7 frame overpowering the room, and verbally diagrammed an entire play. Sometimes in team meetings, he closed his eyes to imagine the play unfolding.If he sees something that he knows he can help us out with, then hell speak out, Hopkins said. Hes not the QB thats going to hold his opinion.Sometimes he turned around to Hopkins, who sat behind him, just above his left shoulder.Therell be times where hell probably say, Hey, Brock, I need you to do this for me, or Ill say, Hey, Hop, I need you to do this for me, Osweiler said. But for the most part its, Hey, Hop, whatd you see there? or Hey, Brock, whatd you see there? ... We work together, and its a partnership.Its also a partnership between Osweiler and the coaching staff. They want to call the plays the quarterback is most comfortable with, so theyll sometimes alter details to suit him.I see him as a colleague, and so we talk about things to, one, help him understand where this word or what the genesis of the term or situation were in, Godsey said. But theres also a little bit of information Im receiving from him that may enhance our own particular way of calling things. That I enjoy.When the on-field work began in organized team activities, Osweiler tested himself. He could see the offense he studied so long unfold. He could make the mistakes he hoped to not repeat in games, then talk with his teammates in the field about them.He had good days and bad days. During one practice, he threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown, and he chased the defensive back all the way to the other end zone. What was important then -- and will still be important in training camp -- is that hes learning.OTA days ended around 3 p.m., and Osweiler often stayed later to watch that days practice film. Each night, he went home to study for the next days practice. When he felt comfortable with what he learned, usually between 8 and 9 p.m., he called for his wife, Erin.My wife will act as the offensive coordinator at times during the evening, Osweiler said. Ill have her read the full play to me. Ill sit there and try to picture it, spit it back out to her, make sure Im verbalizing it the right way so that when I step into the huddle the next day in practice, things are coming out clear.Veteran wantedFor a rookie quarterback to come in and be able to run this offense would be extremely difficult, OBrien says. First of all, theyre getting adjusted to pro football. The time, totally different. From 7:30 in the morning to 5:30 at night, its all football. They have to get adjusted to that, get adjusted to a new city.Then they have to learn this. Some colleges dont even have a playbook.Sitting in the quarterbacks room, wearing Texans warm-ups, OBrien lifts a copy of the Texans playbook and flips through the pages to emphasize their number. This is the physical version of the digital playbook Osweiler and his teammates have.Colorful tabs separate the pages in the binder that holds a playbook whose roots go all the way back to Ron Erhardt, the offensive coordinator who helped Bill Parcells win two Super Bowls. It passed down to Bill Belichick, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and OBrien, among others. Now Godsey is adding to it. One personnel grouping is named Detroit because Belichick concocted it while coaching in Detroit. There are others created for former Patriots players. In their first season with the Texans, OBrien and his staff added a personnel grouping that could get running back Arian Foster on the field as a receiver.It makes for a complex system designed to maximize a teams roster. It also gives the quarterback near complete control at the line of scrimmage. That means he has to know the offense so well that, ideally -- and its a lofty ideal -- he never runs a bad play.Gary Kubiak, the Broncos head coach since 2015, runs a more streamlined offense, with less complication at the line of scrimmage. The quarterbacks in his system typically have less responsibility before the snap.But the Texans playbook is not completely foreign to Osweiler. The Broncos drafted him in 2012, a season after McDaniels was fired as their head coach, and some similarities remained with coordinator Mike McCoy and then-quarterbacks coach Adam Gase, both of whom worked under McDaniels.It might have been too much for a rookie. Thats part of the reason the Texans were delighted when that rare thing happened: A veteran quarterback they liked hit the market.So far, Osweiler has rewarded their faith, but the quizzes arent over yet. ' ' '