Tag: Holiday Bowl

Behind Enemy Lines: Previewing the Holiday Bowl with Tar Heels Wire

A comprehensive breakdown of Oregon vs. North Carolina in the Holiday Bowl with @Zack_Pearson from @tarheelswire

We are just a day away from the Oregon Ducks and North Carolina Tar Heels squaring off in the Holiday Bowl down in San Diego, California at Petco Park.

Despite the numerous transfers and opt-outs on both sidelines that have depleted each roster to a degree, this is still an incredibly intriguing matchup between Ducks and Tar Heels, and it will feature one of the best-looking jersey matchups as well.

The quarterbacks are going to be the main topic of conversation in this one, with Bo Nix going up against Drake Maye. Both were on the fringes of the Heisman Trophy conversation in 2022, and they’re expected to be among the favorites going into 2023.

To help us break down this game and learn a little bit more about the Tar Heels season, we talked with Zack Pearson of USA TODAY’s Tar Heels Wire for another edition of ‘Behind Enemy Lines.’

Here is that conversation:

8 major questions for Ducks to answer in Holiday Bowl vs. North Carolina Tar Heels

Bo Nix’s health, a Drew Mehringer/Junior Adams offense, and a defense that’s playing a few men down. There are a lot of things to watch for Oregon in this bowl game.

It’s been several weeks since the Oregon Ducks have been in this position, but with the Holiday Bowl against the North Carolina Tar Heels coming up on Wednesday afternoon, it’s time for Duck fans to get back into game week mode.

At long last, we are getting Oregon football once again.

While the matchup against the Tar Heels isn’t receiving as much fanfare as it would have had it come on New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day, watching these two squads square up down in San Diego should provide a lot of entertainment with a pair of elite quarterbacks and high-flying offenses. While both rosters have seen some attrition since the end of the off-season thanks to the transfer portal and opt-outs, there are still going to be countless great players to watch.

As we did every week during the regular season, it’s time to dive into some of the most important questions to answer for Dan Lanning and the Ducks during the Holiday Bowl.

5 Tar Heels Oregon needs to look out for in the Holiday Bowl

Even with all of the transfers/opt outs, North Carolina will still bring a formidable team to play the Ducks in the Holiday Bowl.

Believe it or not, the North Carolina Tar Heels will somehow field a team in order to play the Ducks in the Holiday Bowl on December 28.

The runner-up from the ACC has had many players transfer or opt-out to prepare for the NFL draft. The Tar Heels’ secondary has been especially decimated. Starting corners Tony Grimes and Storm Duck have each transferred, as has safety Cam’Ron Kelly.

Linebacker Raneiria Dillworth and backup quarterback Jacolby Criswell are also off the roster. However, the most important Tar Heel, starting quarterback Drake Maye, will be under center to lead UNC into the postseason game in San Diego.

Maye is an obvious one, but here he is plus four other Tar Heels Oregon needs to pay close attention to if the Ducks want to end the season on a high note.

Best bets for every bowl game, Pt. 2 (pre-New Year’s Six bowls)

Part 2 of our best bets for bowl season.

After a day off, bowl season picks right back up on Monday with the Quick Lane Bowl between New Mexico State and Bowling Green. That means its time for me to pick things up where I left off in Pt. 1 of my best bets for bowl season.

For those who tailed my previous picks, it’s been a good time. I’ve been picking a lot more winners than losers, and I hope to keep the good fortune on my side for 16 more bowl-game picks all the way up until the first NY6 bowl on Friday night.

Before we get into the picks, here’s a look at where things stand:

How to watch, listen, stream the Holiday Bowl – Ducks vs Tar Heels

The Ducks and Tar Heels will play for the first time on the gridiron in the first Holiday Bowl since 2019 and the first inside Petco Park.

It’s been a while since we’ve done one of these, but the Holiday Bowl is right around the corner. No. 15 Oregon is set to play North Carolina in San Diego.

This will be the first Holiday Bowl since 2019 and the first one to be played inside Petco Park, the home of the San Diego Padres. This game was set to return last season, but Covid issues within the UCLA program cancelled its game with North Carolina State.

Since the game is going to take place in a supposedly baseball-only stadium, the configuration isn’t going to be the standard fare. One end zone will be in front of the Padres dugout down the first base line with the other side going out into the left field.

The Holiday Bowl will also feature a new television home. It had been on ESPN for many, many, years. But Fox bought the broadcast rights for the bowl game.

This will be the first meeting between the Ducks and Tar Heels in football. We all remember the 2017 epic Final Four matchup where the Ducks just missed out on defeating the eventual national champs.

Noah Sewell declares for the NFL draft, ends college career at Oregon

Oregon linebacker Noah Sewell announces he will leave the Ducks to prepare for the 2023 NFL draft, ending his career with the Ducks.

Oregon was hoping the opt-outs for the Holiday Bowl would be held to a minimum, but the Ducks received word that at least one more player has decided to go to the NFL draft.

It was recently announced that linebacker Noah Sewell would indeed opt out of the bowl game in San Diego and concentrate on preparing himself for the draft in April.

Sewell is projected to be an early-round draft pick in April, with some mock drafts having him taken as early as late in the first round.

Before coming to Oregon, Sewell was one of the highest-rated prospects to commit to the program and he has lived up to his 5-star billing.

He was the Pac-12 Freshman Defensive Player of the Year in 2020 and a Freshman Al-American where he led the team with 45 tackles in Oregon’s seven games during that pandemic season.

In 2021, Sewell played in all 14 games where he was a Pac-12 First-Team selection. He led Oregon and ranked second in the Pac-12 with 114 total tackles, 37 more than any other Duck, and four sacks.

This last season under Dan Lanning, Sewell’s numbers dropped with the new coaching staff. He accumulated just 56 tackles and 1.5 sacks. Sewell did intercept a pass and scored his first rushing touchdown in the rout over Colorado.

As the younger brother of former first-round draft pick and Oregon legend Penei Sewell, the legacy of the Sewell name will live on in Eugene for a long time.

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Bo Nix on draft valuation vs. NIL: ‘I don’t think I can make a bad decision’

Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix is weighing his options, with his NFL draft stock and NIL evaluation playing a major role in his decision.

The Oregon Ducks are still not sure who will be under center for the football team in 2023, with Bo Nix still undecided whether he will forego his eligibility and enter the 2023 NFL draft or if he will return for another go round in Eugene.

While Nix remains active in recruiting other players to join the Ducks next season, he acknowledged part of his decision revolves around the uncertainty of where he could end up going in the NFL draft – and how that compares to what he earns at Oregon through NIL deals.

“I think it’s tough because in my situation you can hear all sorts of things from where you could get drafted,” Nix told reporters on Friday. “I think that’s what kind of makes it, not confusing, but it makes you have a lot of decisions because you don’t know when you’re going to be drafted. And so then you got to compare your situation to college. And the value in the two decisions.”

If fans needed a reminder about the changing tides of college athletics in 2022, this certainly offers that. In previous years the decision a college athlete makes at this stage revolves around either making money in the pros, or staying in college and, well, not making money. At least not legally.

Now, players like Nix are trying to factor in NIL consideration along with potential draft stock to make the decision that best suits their needs, not just personally but financially as well.

Nix, who is still battling an ankle injury, is obviously a crucial piece for this Oregon team if he were to return for next season. A Heisman Trophy candidate before getting hurt against Washington, Nix would immediately put the Ducks in the conversation for a Pac-12 Championship and perhaps even a CFP spot next year should he return.

But, the allure of an NFL career is clearly tough to pass up, even without the financial aspect playing as big a role.

“There’s value in both,” Nix continued. “I don’t think I can make a bad decision.”

The Ducks take on North Carolina in the Holiday Bowl on December 28.

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Bo Nix gives injury update ahead of Holiday Bowl vs. North Carolina

Bo Nix says his ankle is getting better every day as the Ducks prepare to face the Tar Heels in the Holiday Bowl.

It might be the most famous ankle injury in the history of the state of Oregon.

A collective gulp could be heard inside Autzen Stadium when Duck quarterback Bo Nix had to be helped off the field toward the end of the game against the Washington Huskies.

Nix made an heroic effort to come back into the game and he tried to lead the Ducks to a late victory, but the injury was just too much to overcome.

It was an issue the following week against Utah as the offensive game plan was tooled to Nix’s immobility. Although Oregon won the game 20-17, Nix wasn’t near 100 percent.

Now nearly a month later, Nix is still doing his best to get that ankle as healthy as possible. Oregon faces North Carolina in the Holiday Bowl Dec. 28. It’ll be 32 days in between games.

“It’s getting better,” Nix said when asked on Friday. “Trainers are still doing a really good job. I’m in there a lot for treatment. It’s doing a lot better than it was.”

The Ducks will need Nix to be somewhat close to what he was when he was close to being a Heisman candidate. Although the Tar Heels will be without some key personnel in the secondary due to transfers and opt-outs, the Ducks’ offense needs to be as dynamic as possible to come out victorious inside Petco Park in San Diego.

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Notable Quotes: Dan Lanning talks recruiting, Will Stein, and Holiday Bowl vs. North Carolina

With recruiting winding down and Holiday Bowl prep ramping up, there was a lot for Dan Lanning to talk about on Friday.

It’s been quite a while since we had a chance to talk to Oregon Ducks’ head coach Dan Lanning, and a great deal has transpired since.

It’s a busy time of year for any college football coach with the early recruiting cycle rolling on and prep for bowl games taking place. In addition, the Ducks were faced with an offensive coordinator hire, choosing UTSA’s Will Stein to run Oregon’s offense after Kenny Dillingham’s departure for Arizona State.

The Ducks are in full bowl-prep mode. They face the North Carolina Tar Heels in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 28. After practice on Friday, we had a chance to talk to Lanning and select student-athletes.

Here are some of the most notable things that Lanning had to say.

Oregon QB Bo Nix still undecided on NFL future or return to Ducks

Oregon fans have been patiently waiting for the Bo Nix NFL decision. They’re going to have to wait a little bit longer.

Oregon Duck fans have been waiting patiently for several weeks now, and it looks like they will have to continue to wait for the ultimate decision from quarterback Bo Nix.

On Friday after Oregon’s Holiday Bowl practice — the first time media members have had an opportunity to speak to Nix since the Oregon State game in November — the Ducks’ QB stated that he is still undecided on whether or not he will return for another year in Eugene or head off to the NFL. Nix will still play in the Holiday Bowl with the Ducks on December 28, but beyond that, his future at Oregon is unclear.

Nix, who has played four collegiate seasons, has one more year of eligibility thanks to the COVID season in 2020. In three years with Auburn Tigers, Nix threw for over 7,200 yards and 39 touchdowns with 16 interceptions. He also added over 3,300 yards and 27 touchdowns with 6 INT in his one season with the Ducks.

There have been a lot of questions about whether or not Nix will return for his final year of eligibility or not, and a lot of factors that will likely go into his decision. After finding such success in Eugene following his transfer, many believe that he will take advantage of his boost in draft stock and declare for the NFL Draft. With that option, plus the departure of former offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham, the person who brought Nix to Eugene in the first place, it’s entirely possible that No. 10 will only play one season with the Ducks.

However, the other factors hold a lot of weight. as well. After an incredibly hot start to the season, Nix saw his name floated in the Heisman Trophy conversation, and the Ducks were on the doorsteps of a College Football Playoff appearance. In the end, an ankle injury suffered against the Washington Huskies derailed the end of Oregon’s season and may have left a sour taste in Nix’s mouth.

Might he think that with another healthy year in Eugene, this time with OC Will Stein, they could reach the heights that we believed were possible in 2022?

It’s a very real option and one that Nix might choose to ultimately exercise in the end. However, it appears that we won’t know what he decides for at least a little while longer.

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