I know you know the feeling. You get that tingle of anticipation like everything is coming together. There is a warmth in the air countered by a refreshing breeze that trips your senses and connects you to the space around you. You are dialed in and everything that is about to happen has already played out in your mind. Then, WHAM, the dots hit the fan and you get your face shoved into a pile of wombat dung. That wasn't supposed to happen, mate.

• First, a shout out to Mike Riley who not only has had a great first two games but also just flat out gets it.
  

  FYI ordered 200 double doubles w/ fries.It was a deal we made with players, you win you get In-n-Out. #GoBeavs

  — Mike Riley (@Coach_Riley) September 23, 2012

• Yesterday was a seminal day in the DTV / P12N standoff. By letting the USC/Cal game pass without a deal, the P12 gave up its one biggest card in this ongoing poker match. Jon Wilner has a very pro P12N take on this situation. I respect John's coverage in this and, thus, I wanted to post the link for you to review. Outside of Jon's obvious lack of understanding of business, I do feel the need to point out that Jon's position on DTV being "disingenuous" is somewhat short-sighted. I won't got into a three point debate on the subject, but I will say that Jon assumes that DTV should be willing to accept the same deal that DISH and the cables accepted because that is "the market". This is a somewhat absurd argument. DTV is very different than any other carrier that P12N has signed on with and has the potential to truly introduce the P12N to a national audience (nobody else outside of Dish's humble little footprint can make that claim). Now that the single biggest card P12N had on the table is gone - and don't think for a second that basketball is a good card - the P12N is going to have to go through the decision of either halting negotiations and trying to beef up their card for next year or capitulate to DTV's terms. I guarantee you that the hubris of those in San Francsico will lead to the former. Too bad. I'll miss watching Pac 12 basketball this year.
• On the gridiron, Scott Johnson has a nice profile on Tre Watson. I'm happy that Tre has completed his journey and now, quite frankly, I'm looking for him to step up. He's been picked on relentlessly through the first three weeks and, outside a play or two, hasn't been up to the challenge. It's a telling statement that Ducre hasn't had more time rotating in. We need Watson to be an aggressor in the coming weeks.
• Yes, Poasi Moala has flipped his commitment to UCLA ($). This is just another barb in what is erupting to be a full-scale recruiting rivalry between UCLA and UW. Apparently, Bruins Nation doesn't appreciate UW coming down to SoCal and cleaning up on the all the recruits who don't get USC offers.
• Speaking of recruiting, one time UW target, Johnny Stanton, tore his ACL in a game on Friday. Stanton had verballed to Nebraska.
• Husky Great, Dashon Goldson, now has 8 INTs in his last 14 NFL ball games and is quickly rising to "elite" status in the NFL ranks.
• Andrew Perloff of SI.com is jumping back on the Jake Locker bandwagon in Week 3.
• UT San Diego has a nice piece on Donald Butler and his "every-down" status for the Chargers. Also included is an interesting photograph that will resonate with Dawg fans.
• Tip of the Hat to SBN partner BlazersEdge.com for their transcription of a Brandon Roy interview on NBA TV. BRoy gives some nice nuggets here including the revelation that while his lift may be gone, he expects that his maturity and knowledge of the game will more than compensate. Good luck BRoy.
• The Lady Dawgs Volleyball team went on the road and won yet another game. They are undefeated, #5 in the country and looking to make a serious run at an NCAA championship.
• The men's Soccer Team was not quite as fortunate. They gave away a tough one to a surprisingly robust Brown team in OT.

While the Dawgs had yesterday off, it was a wild one in the Pac 12. Curiously, the Huskies are the only team in the conference to not yet have played a conference game. My thoughts on the day that was after the jump.

• With a huge win over Arizona, Oregon is now #2 in the nation. I watched almost all of this snoozer and came away totally impressed with the Ducks. A couple of observations. First, that Duck D is so damn fast, it is hard to keep up. They close gaps to the ball like nobody's business . . . BUT, they can be moved against. Arizona had a ton of dropped passes and misfires by Matt Scott - the primary reason for the shutout. Second, Mariota is the real deal. He has a weird hitch in his throwing motion that keeps him from getting the ball out super fast, but he has composure and smarts. He's better that Darron Thomas. Finally, I just have to say, De'Anthony Thomas is a one-trick pony. Of course, there is nobody in the nation more effective in space than DAT. But, despite a total effort to establish it, the Ducks couldn't get DAT going between the tackles against a pretty weak UA frontline. This is a great team, but not a perfect one.
• The Cougs? Well, uhhhh, no comment other than to say I'm pretty sure that Connor Halliday - a total wild-ass gunslinger - has beaten out Tuel.
• USC / Cal? Did they play? Oh yeah, they must have been on the Pac 12 Network. The good news is that nobody saw Matt Barkley put another nail in the coffin of his Heisman campaign.
  
• ASU whipped Utah and, frankly, they look like the real surprise team of the P12 this season. They have taught the Sun Devils the definition to the word "discipline" and, guess what, it works.
• Oregon State brought UCLA back down to earth in a game that many are going to laud as the return of the Beavers (as evidenced by the Beavs breaking in to the Top 25). I watched it and I don't know. While the D-Line - which was predicted to be sneaky good - looks great for the Beavs, I couldn't help but to notice the same types of issues as last season - some poor decisions by Mannion (not all of them got capitalized on), an inability to establish the run and some breakdowns in the defensive secondary. I'm taking a wait and see on the Beavs.