» The way the Dodgers limped to the finish line during the regular season, I expected them to make an early exit from the postseason …
» So, of course, they go out and sweep the high-flying, pitching-rich St. Louis Cardinals in three straight …
» The come-from-behind victory in Game Two, when the Dodgers started a rally with two out that led to two runs in the bottom of the ninth, was one of the most exciting finishes I’ve ever seen …
» Dodger fans have a reputation, perhaps well-deserved, for being laid back, but they were anything but that for the two games of the National League Division Series played at Chavez Ravine …
» A friend attended Game Two and said, “It was incredible. The place was rocking in the late innings. Amazing comeback, and you couldn’t hear anything for minutes after the game. It was so loud.” …
» I had to be away from my television for the game, but I knew the result before I turned on the DVR. I fast-forwarded to the bottom of the ninth inning and have watched Mark Loretta’s game-winning single at least 10 times. I’m going to save that one for a while …
» It just might be time to start looking through rose-colored glasses at Oregon’s remaining Pac-10 football schedule …
» With the Ducks’ road victory at UCLA on Saturday, and a most favorable schedule, they would have to be considered the favorites for a trip to Pasadena on New Year’s Day …
» After the 19-8 setback at Boise State to open the season, the Ducks took advantage of home games on four consecutive Saturdays to build momentum heading out of town. Then they met an anemic UCLA offense at the Rose Bowl, got three touchdowns in the first four minutes of the third quarter (one a 100-yard kickoff return; another an interception return for six points) and pushed their conference record to 3-0 and its overall mark to 5-1 heading into a bye this week …
» The Ducks figure to be solid favorites in the rest of their games, too, beginning a week from Saturday at Husky Stadium. After that, it’s USC at home on Halloween night, at Stanford, Arizona State at Autzen, at Arizona and Oregon State at home for the Civil War on Dec. 3 …
» Am I the only one who’s less than impressed with UCLA offensive coordinator Norm Chow? I always thought he was a genius while at Southern Cal. But four straight runs between the tackles after 1st-and-goal from the 1-yard line? Really? …
» If Stanford has the Pac-10’s most physical team (which some had suggested), I sure didn’t see it Saturday in Corvallis, where Oregon State dismantled the Cardinal with precision. The Beavers scored points on their first five possessions (four of them touchdowns) to take a startling 31-7 halftime edge …
» It appears to be another Stanford team that disappears away from The Farm …
» It was nice to see my alma mater, Dos Pueblos High School, officially dedicate the school’s new football stadium and name it after the late Scott O’Leary, a longtime educator at the school. O’Leary, who died in 2003, was one of my favorite people during my years at Dos Pueblos and always kept everything in its proper perspective. Too bad the Chargers couldn’t post a win on the night the stadium was dedicated, 43 years after the school was built. They dropped a 21-7 decision to Rio Mesa.
— Noozhawk columnist Paul Yarbrough can be reached at pyarbrough@noozhawk.com.