"I can't believe you're even asking that question," TE George Wrighster says when you try to get him to predict how the Pac-10 race will shake out. It doesn't matter to Wrighster or any other Duck that Oregon lost 11 starters, including QB Joey Harrington, RB Maurice Morris and CB Rashad Bauman, from a team that finished with a No.2 ranking and a second straight Pac-10 title. "We're going for a three-peat," says OT Corey Chambers. "No co-champions. No co-nothing. We're going to the Fiesta Bowl." Oregon knows the way. Squeezed out of the national title game in the Rose Bowl, the Ducks waxed Colorado 38-16 in the 2002 Fiesta. Now they want a return trip to Tempe, site of this season's BCS championship. Oregon has improved by one win in each of the past six seasons. Their nonconference schedule is manageable, and eight of Oregon's 12 games are at raucous Autzen Stadium. Though depth-chart sinkholes are hard to ignore, coach Mike Bellotti, who stiffed an offer from Notre Dame in December, likes what he sees. He generally judges a team by four main components: QBs, TBs, WRs and defense. Bellotti figures he has at least two of the four -- stud TB Onterrio Smith and WR Keenan Howry. If junior QB Jason Fife proves himself early, and Justin Phinisee and Steven Moore don't gag as the starting corners, Oregon may not have any questions to answer until January.

HOT WIRE

A guy trying to establish his bona fides while replacing a local legend could use a helping hand, and Jason Fife will have a pair -- the sure mitts of senior WR Howry, the latest Duck to get the New York City billboard treatment. Last year Howry had a nine-catch, 152-yard performance in Oregon's lone loss to Stanford, and he burned Arizona State for 4 TDs. He also ranked eighth in the nation in punt returns (14.5 ypr).

TRIP WIRE

Fife is the only Ducks QB who has taken a college snap. If he bombs, redshirt freshman Kellen Clemens will see defenses that put eight and nine men in the box to stop Smith. That's not what new offensive coordinator Andy Ludwig, who tutored David Carr at Fresno State, wants to see.

WIRE TAP

"They rely heavily on the big play. They're probably not going to be able to move the ball on sustained drives and eat up the clock. And they're not really all that physical -- it's not like you look at them and go, 'Oh, my god.' Defensively, the corners are always good. What you've got to be able to do to beat them is control the line of scrimmage and run the football."

BRISTOL WIRE

Kirk Herbstreit: "Too many people are writing off the Ducks since the loss of Joey Harrington. Remember, Mike Bellotti won before Harrington, and he'll win after Harrington."

The ESPN Power 16
1	Oklahoma	9	Colorado
2	Florida State	10	Washington State
3	Miami	11	Washington
4	Texas	12	Oregon
5	Tennessee	13	Nebraska
6	Florida	14	Michigan State
7	Georgia	15	Virginia Tech
8	Ohio State	16	LSU

This article appears in the September 2 issue of ESPN The Magazine.

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