Will Haloti stay or go to the NFL ? As he was walking off the field I asked him if this was the last time he would be wearing a Ducks uniform. He said probably not.

When a couple more reporters came in to join our conversation he backed off and said he wasn't sure what he was going to do.

After the hoopla of the game wears off and the realty of life sets in I think Ngata is gone. And with good reason.

Right now he's a top 10 pick. That's million of dollars. After tweaking his knee in the second half of the Holiday Bowl I would hope he realizes that a second major knee injury would make those millions of dollars disappear.

He's already said his family back in Utah isn't well off. His father died tragicially a couple years back. If he can follow his dream of playing professional football, while at the same time take care of his loved ones, the decision becomes pretty easy.

By the way it's pronounced Na-da, not Na-ta. How do I know. I asked him when he came to Eugne as a freshman.

One more note on Ngata. He played rugby in high school. That's scary.

I remember seeing Onterrio Smith after the Seattle Bowl a few years back when he was talking about turning pro. I asked him if he was seriously thinking of coming back like he had been saying all along. He said he wasn't sure. Then faster than you can say Whizzinator he was gone.

I think emotions get the best of you when you just finished a game and see your friends and teammates around you. Then when you get people talking about the pros and cons of staying in college versus the NFL (especially for a sure fire top 10 pick like Hgata), the decision becomes a no-brainer.

By the way keep your ears open for this story in the spring. If the Ducks don't keep Brady Leaf happy I hear he may want to transfer to a pass happy Division 1-AA school in the west.

Ron
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 10:24 AM | Permalink

Like I said before I left for the Holiday Bowl, the Ducks future is in the hands of Dennis Dixon, and the results are mixed.

Dixon and the Ducks ran into the quickest and best defense they had seen all year. At times Dixon looked a bit flustered during the game. I had a feeling he would pull the ball down and run when his first receiving option wasn't open and that's what happened.

But remember Akili Smith's first year. He did the same.

I was working in Eugene during Akili's time with the Ducks and he always talked about going through the progressions. If the first receiver isn't open go to option two, and then three. Dixon has to learn how to do this as well.

Dixon and Leaf will battle it out during the spring and summer for the starter's job. But I truly believe nothing will change. Dixon will start and Leaf will see spot duty. Someone with the Ducks actually told me Leaf was thinking of transferring.

Dixon needs to come back next year a more complete quarterback. He has to play with confidence. Something I don't feel he did in the Holiday Bowl.

Regardless of the quarterback position, the man next year will be running back Jonathan Stewart. Along with Jeremiah Johnson, the Ducks should have two of the best young running backs in the country.

Ron
RPivo

Posted by at 6:01 PM | Permalink

As I head down for the Holiday Bowl I firmly believe all eyes should be on Quarterback Dennis DIxon. So much is riding on this game for him.

If he goes out and puts on a masterful performance against Oklahoma, in the back of their minds, Duck fans will be thinking BCS next year and a run for the Heisman for Dixon.

However, if Dixon looks confused and tentative then he comes into next season with a big question mark on his jersey.

I know he's had a couple nice games filling in for Kellen Clemens. I know he will have an entire fall camp under his belt when he comes back next year. But confidence is a really big deal. Especially when you're 20 years old. That's why a big game against Oklahoma is exactly what Dixon and Oregon Duck fans need as they anxiosuly await 2006.

Oh by the way. Think about this. The Ducks open the season against Stanford. But then it's a road game at Fresno State and then back home against Oklahoma.

You can't have a question mark at quarterback when you start the season against two top 25 teams.

We'll see you from San Diego.

Ron Pivo
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 11:39 PM | Permalink

If I'm Ernie Kent I better take a close look at myself in the mirror. Because right now he and his team are close to unwatchable.

I was at the Chiles Center and watched as Michael Holton not only outcoached Ernie and the Ducks, but the Pilots backcourt tandem of Darren Cooper and Pooh Jeter stole the show.

I'm a huge fan of Michael Holton's. There isn't a classier coach in the northwest. He not only coaches his players well, but he teaches them how to be men.

Back to the Ducks. In the days of Luke Ridnour, Luke Jakson, and Freddie Jones the Ducks were a fun team to watch. They could play poorly and still score 85 points. This year's group doesn't have anyone besides maybe Malik Hairston and Aaron Brooks that I would pay to watch.

What's worse is the whining that Ernie and Jerry Allen were doing on the post game show. C'mon no one wants to hear coaches and broadcasters complain about the officiating. Funny how coaches who win games don't say a thing about the refs.

A 6-5 Oregon basketball team for a group of players that were supposed to learn from last year and also improve from last season.

So far nothing has changed.

Ron
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 11:07 PM | Permalink

Let me go "off the board" for this blog entry.

I'm at the U2 show and from behind me I hear this weird, shrill of a voice. I usually don't pay attention to anything around me at concerts. I feel it is simply 2 hours of people connecting with the band and I think it's great. But I glanced back and saw this lady. She had to have been about 75 years old. She had opera-type of binoculars and was singing. It was one of the strangest, yet beautiful moments I had ever seen.

I glanced back at her a couple times and she was singing the songs word for word. After the show I asked her how many times she has seen U2 and she said, "Three, but I wish it could have been more."

I would have loved to sit and talk with her, but everyone was shuffling out of the show.

Music, like movies, has no age barrier, and it has no color lines. It also has no language barrier. U2's songs are just as powerful in English as they are in Japanese.

It was an amazing concert and Bono being named Time Magazine's person(s) of the year gave his words and lyrics that much more depth.

So to the lady that was sitting in section 215 row G I hope you enjoyed the show as much as me and I hope you "Rattle and Hum" forever.

Ron

Posted by at 1:01 PM | Permalink

With Dan Hawkins about to be named head football coach at Colorado let me tell you how close he came to getting the job at Oregon State.

Hawkins was on the list of candidates. However, Mike Riley was the guy that Bob DeCarolis wanted all along. DeCarolis went through the interview process but it was Riley's job to lose. In fact Fitz Hill, the former head coach at San Jose State was interviewed. Could you imagine selling Fitz Hill to your boosters ? He's a great story and as impressive a human being as you'll meet. He was in the Army and received a Bronze Star and Commendation Medals. But try selling Fitz Hill to your boosters. No one in Corvallis would have know who he was.

Hawkins wanted to bring his entire staff to Corvallis if he got the job. This is not unusual. What coach wants to come in and start working with assistants he doesn't know ? Just ask Dennis Erickson. Look what he had to go through in San Francisco.

Orginally I had heard that Hawkins even wanted to bring in his own secretaries. I am not sure it even got to that point.

But like I said it was Riley or bust.

This was DeCarolis' first hire and, in his mind, Riley was a good choice, and he was also a safe choice. Keep in mind the Raising Reser Project was in full swing and Mike Riley returning to Corvallis can get donors to write checks a lot easier than Dan Hawkins could. Donors would have had to see a few wins from Hawkins before they would start forking over the bucks. But with Riley, they didn't need that.

In the end Colorado and Hawkins are a great fit. Right now it's a mess in Boulder and Hawkins is as good as they come with the football stuff, and he is the boy scout type they need off the field.

As for Riley it's still wait and see. He signed a 7 year contract at $800k a year. DeCarolis wanted to make sure Riley wasn't going anywhere this time. But in doing so put himself in a bind. Because if the Beavs don't go to a bowl next season fans are going to be calling for Riley's firing. Quite frankly, the OSU Athletic Department doesn't have the 2 and a half million dollars it would cost to buy him out if there's another 5-6 season.

So for good or for bad DeCarolis and Riley are joined at the hip. How far they take this thing is anyone's guess.

Ron
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 5:54 PM | Permalink

I have a 2 and a half year-old daughter so I know a thing or two about flying objects. But this story takes the cake.

The 2 year-old son of Utah Jazz rookie center Robert Whaley threw a knife at him and Whaley had to go to the Emergency Room and is out for a few days because his hand is cut.

First off, knives and 2 year-olds should never be in the same sentence. Was Whaley planning on having the kid cut up some carrots ?

Raising a child is challenging. I thought potty-training would be easy. I was wrong. I've given my daughter so many M & M's for going to the bathroom, I just got a thank you note from our dentist.

Let me just give you a couple Pivo rules.

1) Kids under 10 shouldn't drive (check the story of the father who let his 7 year-old drive a car and they got into an accident)

2) Kids don't call their parents by their first name (unfortunately my daughter thinks it's cute to call me Ron)

Those are the rules for now. But they're always subject to change.

Posted by at 5:59 PM | Permalink

You got to love the Ducks for stepping up to the plate and doing a home and home with Tennessee. But the first game in that series isn't until 2010. Let's look ahead to next year when the Ducks start the season at Fresno State and then host Oklahoma.

Like I said on the news last night the Ducks and Oklahoma will play eachother 2 of the next 3 games. I don't know if I've ever heard of a scheduling quirk quite like that.

As Matt Zaffino mentioned to me, and he's absolutely right, it may have been a blessing in disguise that Kellen Clemens got hurt when he did. Could you imagine Dennis Dixon getting his first collegiate start in Fresno ? Would have been tough. Then coming home to play Oklahoma.

Now if you're an Oregon State fan you have to wonder why the Beavs can't line up these types of games ?

I asked Bob DeCarolis that question about a month ago. He said teams just don't like to come out of their comfort zone for a non-league game.

Teams are offering OSU 2 for 1 deals. You play at their place twice and we come to your place once. DeCarolis said no deal.

Financially it's just not worth it for a big time team to come to Reser Stadium. There's also not a lot of alumni in Oregon for a national team to come here. Also, the paycheck isn't big enough.

Reser holds 43,000. Tennessee will get that crowd for its Spring game next year.

Tennessee boosters use hundred dollar bills to wipe the steak sauce from their mouths.

Maybe with some more expansion teams will come to Reser.

But for now the Ducks are lining up the big boys while the Beavs stand on the side of the road.

Ron Pivo
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 10:27 PM | Permalink

Had an interesting conversation with Derek Anderson prior to Sunday night's game with Houston.

First off, he's thrilled to be a Rocket.

However, he took some major league shots at Blazers General Manager John Nash.

Anderson accuses Nash of telling people he was hurt when he wasn't. Anderson says there were times last year when he could have played, but Nash wanted to play the youngsters.

Anderson says Nash made it personal.

He says Nash should stop playing this kind of game with Ruben and just make a business decision and trade him.

Here's my opinion. Derek is soft. Always has been and always will be.

It was a running joke in the media as to what injury Derek would have this week.

He was completely unreliable. So for him to start playing the blame game isn't right.

I don't know if John Nash put Derek on the injured kist when he was healthy. All I know is that there are athletes in all sports who play with all sorts of injuries and Derek Anderson was never one of them.

Ron PivoRPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 11:21 PM | Permalink

Continue reading "Sometimes spelling is the hardest part!!!" »

Posted by at 10:00 PM | Permalink

These days the supposed "off-season" is just as intriguing as the regular season. In any sport.

The Baseball's Winter Meetings just started and it seems like there's a deal going down every couple hours.

I had a friend call me from there and it sounded like he was in Times Square on New Year's Eve. Without Dick Clark of course. He also said besides a lot of front office personnel and players there are a lot of women there. If you get a chance to see HBO's Real Sports this month you will know what I'm talking about.

I love it when July 1st rolls around for the NBA. It's the first day teams can sign free agents, and it's always a frolicking good time.

The NFL is fun because with its hard salary cap even good players are shown the door.

That's what makes sports so interesting. There's never a dull moment... all year round.

Ron Pivo
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 11:10 PM | Permalink

So you think the Seattle Seahawks might get some respect, after the 42-0 drubbing of the Eagles on Monday Night Football. Think again. Nothing's going to change for the NFL's Rodney Dangerfield.
Last week, FoxSports.com listed Seattle 11th in their Power Rankings, a team with the NFC's best record. Come on people, they're at least 9th!
As for last night's win, most people will point to a "banged up" Philly team as the reason for the blowout.
No, I'm not going to whine about an East Coast bias. There are still plenty of people who don't think Chicago is for real either. And you can't blame them. The last time Seattle won a playoff game, I was collecting Garbage Pail Kids cards. I still have some, are they worth anything?
And don't think an NFC championship is going to do it either. For the Seahawks to get respect on the national stage, they're going to have to stun the world, and bring the Lombardi Trophy back to Seattle.

Evan Chevrier
Sports Producer
echevrier@kgw.com

Posted by at 10:59 PM | Permalink

With ESPN slowly taking over the world, television Sports Departments across the country have to stay local. That means people like myself have to give viewers what they can't get on ESPN, and that's local sports coverage.

For the past 4 days Adam Bjaranson and photographer Tim Jacobsen have been doing a tremendous job in College Station, Texas following the University of Portland Women's Soccer team and its run to the national title.

The interesting part is that KGW is the only station there.

What is more local and more exciting than the Pilots ?

It amazes me that the other stations in town didn't go. More power to us I guess.

But how do you not cover such a big story with a team in your own backyard ?

Along with Nate McMillan being hired by the Blazers this is the biggest sports story of the year.

Our management knew this was a big story the second I asked about someone from the Sports Department going on this trip.

In my opinion, this is one of the many reasons, that separates KGW from every other station in town.

Thanks for watching.

Your comments are always welcome.

Ron Pivo
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 4:39 PM | Permalink

I must admit I am a little disappointed that Tom and Katie haven't invited me to their wedding.

But I'm going to do the right thing and send them a gift anyways.

If you would like to do the same here's their registry.

http://justjared.blogspot.com/2005/12/tomkat-wedding-registry.html

Ron Pivo
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 8:34 PM | Permalink

Having grown up in Los Angeles I know a little bit about this USC-UCLA game. It seems to me that it's one of the only rivalry games that doesn't have a nickname. This year's game is the biggest I can ever remember. This article from the L.A. Times tells the story.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/college/usc/la-sp-tickets2dec02,0,2395348,full.story?coll=la-home-headlines
People around the country say Los Angeles is a bad sports town. I guess it's because it doesn't have an NFL team.

But the Dodgers get 3 million fans whether they are doing well or not. The Lakers are an extremely tough ticket. Now it's probably hard to get Clippers tickets. When Wayne Gretzky came to town the Kings were the hottest ticket in town. It goes on and on.

Yes there are a lot of other options in L.A. so that's why when teams aren't doing well people don't go.

But the traffic in L.A. is such a headache that going to a game is lengthy process. I remember going to Rams games at the Coliseum and my dad and I would leave at 10 AM and we wouldn't get back until dinner time. That's a huge investment in time.

This weekend's USC-UCLA game is more like an event, so when there is a happening in L.A. people want to be there.

Ron Pivo
RPivo@kgw.com

Posted by at 6:22 PM | Permalink