Saturday is going to be a good day. Why? Well, everyone knows and is anticipating Thursday night’s game against Arizona, but by playing on Thursday, Duck fans can sit back, relax and watch other highly-ranked teams strive to keep their season goals alive. So go ahead, pull that lever to recline back and just enjoy the experience of a perfect Saturday.

When 9 a.m. hits, turn your channel to ESPN for No. 6 Texas A&M at. No. 12 Mississippi State. Of course Mississippi State is following its huge win over then No. 8 LSU, but now they have an opportunity to really make a statement in the SEC West.

Or will A&M somehow get into the top five following the Manziel era with freshman quarterback Kenny Hill? I can’t wait to find out.

As you start to feel ready for lunch at 12:30 p.m., one of Oregon’s conference rivals will be traveling to No. 9 Norte Dame for what looks to be one of the better games of the weekend. That rival is of course, No. 14 Stanford. This game could be the last ranked opponent before Stanford travels north along the I-5 to Autzen Stadium on Nov. 1.

But the great thing about this Saturday is that you, the master controller of your remote, can call an audible. In Oxford, Mississippi No. 3 Alabama will visit No. 11 Ole Miss. But this isn’t a trip to enjoy the sunshine.

This is going to be another SEC West game with many of implications. One of these two teams will pick up its first conference loss in a division where perfection is the standard. Take it easy on your stomach and your attention span because this is going to be a great time to watch some college football. I’d suggest a basic sandwich with your preferred veggies.

At 4 p.m., grab that controller and flip to ESPN for the match up between No. 15 LSU and No. 5 Auburn as the Tigers try and respond to their first test since losing to Mississippi State. During the game though, and especially at halftime, you have two options: Watch commercials (not advised) or watch No. 19 Nebraska take on No. 10 Michigan State at Spartan Stadium. That’s most definitely advised.

But what can you eat during these final games of this special Saturday? Well since lunch was smaller due to the heavy-weight match-ups you had to deal with, I suggest your favorite. Whatever it is, you deserve it. Because this Saturday has been perfect.

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

According to OddsShark.com Oregon has a -23 point line going into this game. But don’t count Arizona out quite yet. Here’s how Oregon and Arizona stack up:

OFFENSE:

Oregon: There’s no question that Oregon’s offense is the best in the conference when healthy. the team has scored more points (194) and averaged more points (48.5) than any other team in the Pac-12. But the achilles heel of the Oregon offense has been revealed. If the offensive line stays healthy they’re great, but right now they aren’t.

With the bye week giving the Ducks time to rest, get healthy and get on the same page they should improve from their performance against Washington State when quaterback Marcus Mariota was sacked seven times. However, with Mariota as quarterback and all the other weapons Oregon has, the Ducks can accelerate quickly.

Arizona: The new-looking Wildcats are surprising in how much success they’ve had so far, and for good reasons. Arizona averages 42.0 points per game, which ranks third in the Pac-12. Redshirt freshman quarterback Anu Solomon has been solid.

In his recent game against Cal, where he led the Wildcats to a come-from-behind victory, Solomon threw for 520 yards, five touchdowns, two interceptions and, of course, a hail mary at the end of the game. But it’s not just Solomon. Both senior Austin Hill and redshirt sophomore Cayleb Jones have been able to hook up with Solomon for big plays this season.

Freshman running back Nick Wilson ranks second in the conference in both rushing yards at 482 and average yards per game at 120.5.

Advantage: Oregon

DEFENSE:

Oregon: There is no denying that the Oregon defense has been less than spectacular. The Ducks currently rank fifth in the conference in rush defense and 11th in pass defense – only better than Cal. What makes this worrisome for Oregon fans is that the Arizona offense ranks second in both categories on offense. So the defense is going to have its hands full with the new-looking Wildcats coming into town. Though, to its advantage, it is coming off a win against Washington State where Connor Halliday threw the ball 63 times against Oregon, completing 43 passes for 436 yards and four touchdowns. They’ve seen it once, hopefully meaning they’ll be better prepared this time.

Arizona: The defense for Arizona is decent. It sits in the middle of most statistical defensive categories in the conference. The only problem is that it’s schedule has been rather weak this season. In the last game the Wildcats allowed 45 points against Cal and have allowed an average of 27.3 points per game and didn’t come up with many turnovers as a team — four so far this season (three interceptions, one fumble recovery). But Arizona is a good tackling team. Linebacker Scooby Wright III has 51 total tackles, seven for loss and four sacks so far this season. In addition, senior safety Jordan Tevis has 37 tackles on the year. Oregon’s leading tackler? Reggie Daniels with 28.

Advantage: Oregon

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

Recovering from Tommy John surgery as a baseball player is a tough process. The time, the uncertainty and not even being able to play catch can on an off-day make a ballplayer go mad. But Oregon ace Cole Irvin, who’s 2014 campaign was cut short due to an injury that required his surgery, is now able to throw a baseball again. He talked to the Emerald about the status of his recovery and his feelings about the healing process.

How’re you feeling?

Feeling good. I’m coming back strong. Summer went well and rehabbing went really well over summer so everything looks up right now. But you never know, though. You have to prepare yourself for setbacks.

Have you been on a mound?

Yeah, I do a lot of dry work. You know the moment you get off a mound and are injured you just want to get right back on it. So even though I won’t be throwing or anything off of it, I do a lot of visualization. Just a lot of things that will help me get prepared for the season.

When did you first throw something?

I can’t remember. It’s on my Instagram. It was like 30 feet at the beginning of summer. The first throw was very tentative. Then the second throw was loose like, OK I can throw now, I’m OK, I’m comfortable. But the favorite thing of a baseball player is to play catch. There is nothing better than playing catch. That was exciting to play catch for the first time again.

Do you think there will still be some of that tentativeness when you first take a mound?

I’ve gotten to throw enough now where I’m going to be confident when I get on the mound. I know my limits and on my protocol it tells me I need to be at 75 percent or 50 percent, not full blown go for it. I need to progress and be patient and know that it’s going to take time.

What were the actual games like for you last year? 

The experience, and I did a lot of it over summer, was coaching. But I don’t coach my teammates, I help my teammates. That was the biggest thing I learned throughout this whole process was the fact I got to help my teammates which made our team better. Whether or not I pitched on the field, I still helped contribute to a team and what we did last year. I pride myself that I’m still able to be a veteran guy and still able to help our team get better.

Do you feel like you can be the guy you were your freshman year and even better next year?

I’m not going to live up to any expectations. Yeah, there is an expectation for myself, but coming off a surgery you can’t weigh yourself down with the expectations you had, especially for me off my freshman year. Because that was my freshman year, and this is a new year with a new group of guys and a new pursuit for a dream.

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

As the all-time wins leader in Oregon men’s basketball history, Johnathan Loyd caught his first career touchdown on the football field against Wyoming last Saturday. Emerald sports reporter Andrew Bantly caught up with Loyd after Monday’s practice and discussed his first touchdown reception at the collegiate level and his thoughts as he rolls along through the season.

What was going through your mind when you were lining up?

To be honest I wasn’t thinking about the ball at all. I really was just trying to line up right and do my job. If I was open it’s going to be on me fast. That’s all I really thought about.

It seemed that right when you turned your head the ball was on you, were you ready for that?

We practice all the time so I ran the play and he’s done it before like that. I was thinking and remembered that if this ball comes it’s going to be on me right away. When I caught the ball I didn’t even know if I was in the end zone or not, so I was going to turn up the field a little bit. Then I realized where I was.

You’re the all-time wins leader in men’s basketball and this is your first career touchdown, did you ever expect this kind of success when you first arrived as a freshman?

I definitely never thought I would be on the football field. I felt I could do it but I never thought I’d be on the football field and have success. I’m blessed to be in the position.

Did you ever consider before being a two-sport athlete?

Coming out of high school, if I didn’t get one of the schools I wanted for basketball I was going to play football and basketball, just because. But I ended up getting the school I wanted for basketball so I didn’t need to do the two-sport thing. But it’s always been in my mind that I could definitely do it.

How does basketball compare to your time on the football field? Is there anything you can take from the court to the field?

Definitely the physicality. You got to be in a different mindset for football. But it’s two different sports and I love them both. I just been playing basketball my whole life. I really enjoy both of them.

You’ve always been the passer setting up other players, now you’re on the receiving end. How does that feel?

It’s different. Not really controlling the rock like that is definitely different. But I’m under one of the best point guards in the country. He makes it easy on me.

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

A matchup against Wyoming (2-0) doesn’t quite intrigue Oregon fans when it comes to football these days, let alone after a win over No. 7 Michigan State. But a game is still a game and even though Wyoming isn’t going to threaten any chance at No. 2 Oregon (2-0) making the playoffs, the Ducks still need to execute.

Oregon’s defense vs. Wyoming’s offense:

In the season opener Oregon gave up 13 points during its blowout over South Dakota State, which isn’t terrible by any means. But with the Wyoming Cowboys soon to be in town, the Ducks need to keep them in check. As a team that has only scored 34 points in its two games this season against Montana and Air Force, it seems that Oregon’s defense should be able to keep the Cowboys off the scoreboard.

But Oregon’s defense allowed 19 first downs against South Dakota State including two in the Coyotes’ first drive and five in the first quarter for a total of 11 in the first half. At that point, the Oregon defense was no longer filled with the starters with the score 41-13 at the half.

To the Ducks’ credit, they held the Coyotes scoreless in the second half and kept a No. 7 Michigan State team in check. But it will be important for the Ducks to have dominance on both sides of the ball.

Oregon needs to fine tune before Pac-12 play

Even though Oregon’s first Pac-12 oppenent is Washington State, the Ducks should still try to get as ready as they can for conference play. Last season, the Ducks lost their final two conference road-games (Stanford, Arizona) and winning on the road this season against teams like UCLA and Oregon State will be critical for the Ducks’ success this season.

Freshmen continue to stand out

With redshirt junior Tyler Johnstone out for the season after re-tearing his right ACL and Andre Yruretagoyena out from an injury during the Michigan State game, Tyrell Crosby was called upon to hold the line against a tough Michigan State defense. And he did exactly that.

“Nothing phases him,” said offensive line coach Steve Greatwood. “I thought he did very well. For a true freshman to go in there in that situation and perform against a caliber of opponent that he did, I was very pleased with his performance.”

After 73 impressive minutes against Michigan State, the true freshman from Henderson, Nevada will be with the starting O-line against Wyoming.

Redshirt freshman Devon Allen and true freshman Royce Freeman scored four of the six touchdowns against Michigan State, two apiece. Allen is stepping up for the major target Heiseman candidate Marcus Mariota, in a position that is missing key receiver Bralon Addison. Freeman, on the other hand, is earning playing time with the Thomas Tyner, Byron Marshall tandem. Freeman, who stands at 6-feet, 229-pounds, has been as advertised out of Imperial High School. Freeman has racked up 164 yards along with four touchdowns on just 23 carries so far this season.

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter at @abant3 

Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota was named the Pac-12′s offensive player of the week on Monday. Mariota led the No. 3 Ducks against No. 7 Michigan State in their 46-27 win on Saturday. In the win Mariota threw for 318 yards with three touchdowns and no turnovers.

This is Mariota’s first player of the week honor this season and his first since he earned player-of-the-week honors for two consecutive weeks in 2013 against Colorado and Washington, which was the first time an Oregon player earned consecutive Pac-12 player of the week honors since Paul Martinez in 2005.

USC’s defensive end Leonard Williams and kicker Andre Heidari were the others named Pac-12 players of the week honors for defense and special teams.

Mariota and No. 2 Oregon will play next Saturday Sept. 13 against Wyoming at 11 a.m. at Autzen Stadium.

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

Two Thursdays ago you may have been asked if “you love your melon” around the Erb Memorial Union. What happened after that was up to you, but the result of that single question nearly two weeks ago was that 142 hats were donated to kids with cancer.

The Love Your Melon Foundation donates a hat to a child in need for every hat sold. It all began at St. Thomas University in St. Paul, Minnesota as an assignment to create a business. One of the founders, Brian Keller, is friends with Katie Gruys, a sophomore forward on the Oregon women’s basketball team and a Maple Lake, Minnesota native.

When Gruys heard that Love Your Melon was going on a West Coast tour, she jumped on the opportunity to have them stop by Eugene. A week before Gruys called Keller and told them they should stop by Eugene, he then asked her if she thought an event could be put together.

“Yeah, we could do it,” Gruys said. “I just thought it was a good opportunity for student-athletes to host this event.”

In the following days she showed the O Heroes organization videos of Love Your Melon and what they do. They were immediately on board. But she didn’t want to limit this event to just student-athletes. To get students more involved, Gruys and O Heroes teamed up with the Pit Crew.

“They helped a lot with getting the word out,” Gruys said. “They had their own people show up and support any way they could.”

Former wide receiver for the Oregon football team Eric Dungy was one of the many students to help the cause.

“I’m kind of a shy person so it was hard to ask people on campus if they had a second to look at the product,” Dungy said. “I felt like I gave them a little help.”

Dungy didn’t only help during the event, but he also helped spread the word via Twitter. In addition, he convinced his father and former NFL coach Tony Dungy to spread the word.

For Dungy, it was just him wanting to give back to the community.

“As a kid growing up you have people who give back to you,” Dungy said. “When you have the same chance, it’s only right to for children growing up.”

The event also had a competitive side of it, which only helped the cause. As Love Your Melon was prepared to enter Eugene they had just stopped by the University of Washington where they sold 112 hats. During the event outside of the EMU there was a sign that read: “Can the Ducks beat ‘em?”

Well, the Ducks did and surpassed the previous record of 140, by selling 142.

“I think Katie did a great job getting it done,” Dungy said.

Gruys hopes to become a team member this summer and go to some events or hospitals to “make a wish come true.” Even though this started as a class project, Gruys doesn’t expect Love Your Melon to go away any time soon.

“I think this could blow up,” Gruys said. “I really do.”

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

The Oregon baseball team (44-20, 18-12) finished short of their goal: Omaha. But with all things considered, the actuality of attaining that goal was slim.

However, they shouldn’t hang their heads.

The Ducks finished fourth in one of the most difficult conferences (Pac-12), if not the most difficult, in the country. They were just five games out of first place. They proved that their younger players, especially freshman, will lead this team down the road. They proved that their offense is good enough, along with a healthy pitching staff, to make them a Pac-12 powerhouse. They proved they could win with some of their star players injured and that anyone on that team is capable of stepping up.

Unlike any other game, baseball can’t be predicted. Oregon could have gone to the Super Regionals this year, even to Omaha. What can be predicted though, is that Oregon’s flight to Omaha isn’t going to surprise anyone when they do go.

A year in review, here’s what happened:

The Oregon baseball team had a lot of hype heading into the 2014 season. The then No. 11 ranked Ducks had a dominate starting rotation in the making. Headlined by junior Tommy Thorpe and a bullpen that was expected to be just as strong even with former starter Jake Reed replacing All-American Jimmie Sherfy as the team’s closer. They had a lineup that saw Kyle Garlick return, after missing much of the 2013 season, due to injury, as well as a group of freshman who were trying to earn a starting job.

But as soon as the Ducks started practicing, a key player went down with a season-ending injury. Last year’s win leader Cole Irvin, just 11 days before their opener against Hawaii, needed to undergo Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2014 season.

Irvin on the bench was no doubt a big loss for the Ducks, but if there was one thing Oregon had, it was depth in their staff. Matt Krook became the Saturday starter and Jeff Gold became a Sunday man, who proved to be one of the Pac-12′s best pitchers.

Just 20 days after the news about Irvin broke, Scott Heineman strained his shoulder on a swing at Loyola Marymount. He did return within a month, but wasn’t the same and surgery was required. The injury allowed freshman AJ Balta to get some time in the starting lineup, and he became a powerful force early in the season – Balta finished with three home runs, 29 RBIs and 12 doubles.

Once again, it was Ducks pickin’ up Ducks.

At the end of February the Ducks were undefeated and ranked No. 9, with No. 5 Cal State Fullerton coming into town. This series was a chance for the Ducks to test themselves and see how they could do against one of the best programs in the country. Oregon got swept. But with the series so early in the season, it allowed Oregon to learn what they needed to improve upon before conference play began.

The Ducks won all but one of their remaining five games before conference play began against USC. This included a 20-4 victory over Ohio State, which set the record for runs in a single game since the program was reinstated in 2009.

After a tough road trip down south during the school’s spring break, the No. 19 Ducks went to Seattle to play a key series against their rivals. Washington sat atop the Pac-12 standings and Oregon was looking to make a statement. Oregon took game one but lost the remaining two games – including a extra inning game where Oregon had a two run lead in the top of the final inning.

Then Oregon got back on track with a nine-game winning streak heading to the Oregon State series. But, just days before the teams met in Corvallis, Krook – who had been dealing with a nagging injury – finally had a decision on his throwing arm: Tommy John surgery. Heading into the biggest series of the year, freshman Trent Paddon, who was pitching well while freshman Krook was getting medical opinions, was given the ball. He didn’t make it out of the second inning and Oregon got swept.

The Ducks finished their season 11-5, but their final series with California was thought to give the Ducks a chance to host an NCAA Regional tournament with an eight-game winning streak. Oregon dropped the final two games.

When Oregon was selected to head to Nashville, Tennessee on Vanderbilt’s campus, the Ducks were going to go as far as their pitching staff could take them. Oregon came out with a bang in an 18-1 win over Clemson, led by back-to-back home runs from Shaun Chase and Tyler Baumgartner. But when Oregon played the host, Vanderbilt, they could only come up with two runs in a 2-7 loss. Oregon beat Xavier in extra innings to send Oregon to the finals, where they would need to win two games to move on to a Super Regional. But Vanderbilt advanced in just one game.

When it was all said and done the Ducks finished 44-20 and 18-12 in conference.

Follow Andrew Bantly @abant3 

Six Oregon baseball players made the all-Pac-12 team, the conference announced Wednesday. The Ducks have four players on the all-conference team and two players who received honorable mention.

The four who earned spots on the all-conference team are starting pitcher Tommy Thorpe, closer Jake Reed, catcher Shaun Chase and infielder Mitchell Tolman. Second baseman Aaron Payne and starting pitcher Jeff Gold earned honorable mentions.

For Thorpe, this is his second straight all-conference team honor. Thorpe finished the season with 10 wins and a 2.20 earned-run average in 98.0 innings of work while holding opponents to a .216 batting average.

Of his four years of eligibility, Jeff Gold pitched his best season as a redshirt senior. Gold also finished the season with 10 wins along with a 3.14 ERA while walking just eight batters all year — fewest among Pac-12 starters.

Shaun Chase became the everyday catcher for the Ducks and posted career-high numbers. This season, Chase hit a Pac-12 leading 12 home runs, along with eight doubles, posted a .625 slugging percentage while knocking in 30 RBIs — all career highs.

Mitchell Tolman led Oregon with a .315 batting average and 46 RBIs and led the Pac-12 with 17 doubles. The sophomore spent time at both first base and third to fill the holes left by Scott Heineman, who missed most of the season due to an early injury.

The Ducks begin NCAA Regional play against Clemson in Nashville, Tennessee on Friday at 10 a.m.

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3

After beating the University of Texas to win the 2004 College World Series, Cal State Fullerton dog-piled on the field. Near the heap of players was Fullerton bat boy Aaron Payne, who just stood there.

“Even though he didn’t say a lot, you could see it in his smile,” Payne’s dad, Ron, said. “He was so proud to be a bat boy.”

That former bat boy is now Oregon’s senior second baseman playing under George Horton — the same head coach of the 2004 Cal State Fullerton baseball team.

Payne grew up as a fan of Cal State Fullerton after his dad introduced him to the team. When Payne was 9 or 10 years old, he went to a summer baseball camp at Fullerton.

During the camp Payne caught the attention of the Fullerton coaching staff and was invited to be a bat boy for the upcoming season.

“I noticed his attention to detail and his level of focus,” Horton said. “You can kind of tell at that age.”

Panye would be a bat boy for Horton for two seasons.

Payne didn’t talk much as a bat boy, he just focused on doing his job. Payne was Horton’s catcher when he hit ground balls during batting practice and Payne payed attention to what the players did.

“He and I would always have short little conversations,” Horton said. “He didn’t say hardly anything.”

But Payne was learning. He used what he learned from the Fullerton players when he got to little league.

“You got to see how hard those guys work and play,” Payne said. “You’ve got your role models on their team and you tried to play like they did.”

But Payne was getting more than just knowledge from Horton and his team: he was getting noticed.

“Sometimes the genetics don’t catch up to a guy to make him a college-level baseball player, but I can usually tell if their aptitude is at a level that I want to be around him and coach him,” Horton said. “Aaron certainly passed all of my criteria.”

In high school, Payne realized Cal State Fullerton wasn’t for him.

“Growing up I always wanted to go to Fullerton,” Payne said. “Once I got into high school I kind of wanted to go somewhere else.”

When Horton began coaching at Oregon in 2009, Payne was a junior at San Clemente High School. Horton never forgot about the bat boy that passed his criteria years ago.

“He had a late-blooming high school career,” Horton said. “Because of my feeling about him as a young man, that led me to encourage our guys to recruit him.”

Payne has proven Horton right since being recruited to Oregon. Payne holds Oregon career records for runs scored (128), stolen bases (44) and hit by pitches (68).

“We hit the jackpot on him,” Horton said.

Now being a collegiate baseball player for Horton, Payne has come full-circle. But the senior has since corrected an incorrect observation about Fullerton’s players when he was a bat boy.

“I remember being a bat boy and feeling like these were professional athletes,” Aaron said. “Now being one of them, we’re just kids playing the game.”

Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @abant3