PAC-12 Mid-Week Links: Ducks hanging with SEC, Mannion's impact and the passing of a legend

It's Wednesday and you know what that means. It means I really wish I had something more witty to say here other than just telling you that it's time for some links from our quality SB Nation sites that cover the Pacific 12 Conference.

The good fellas at Addicted to Quack ask a pretty good question but one I thought had an easy answer: can Oregon hang with the best of the SEC? My answer to that would be an emphatic 'yes' but I'm sure some fans of the ESS-EEE-SEE would beg to differ. But maybe the most ringing endorsement of Oregon's effectiveness is that Nick Saban has actually wondered aloud whether there should be rules to slow down the Oregon offense in the name of "player safety". To me, that reads a whole lot like "I don't know how the hell I'm going to stop them if we see them in a national championship so I need some help from some new rules." SEC is the land of defense (unless you're Georgia) and those fans love nothing more than the final score resembling a baseball game more so than a football game. If Nick Saban is actually scared of Oregon's offense, that tells me all I need to know about the Ducks' ability to beat an SEC team.

Some very bad news from Corvallis as quarterback Sean Mannion is out indefinitely with a knee injury. So the question Pacific Takes asked is whether Oregon State will be able to survive without him. Oregon State has enough talent at receiver with Brandin Cooks and Markus Wheaton that back up quarterback Cody Vaz should be in good shape. Additionally, the Oregon State defense is stout as usual. Mannion is, without a doubt, one of the most talented quarterbacks in the conference so his loss will be felt but Oregon State should be just fine. But am I just crazy? Have yourself a vote in the poll below.

We end on a somber note today as we're sad to report Iowa Hawkeye and Detroit Lions legend Alex Karras has passed away at the age of 77. Andrew Sharp does a great job highlighting why Karras was more of a 'legendary person' than a 'legendary player' despite his accolades. Personally, I never knew Karras' character on Webster but I do understand the impact he had on many television viewers of that generation. Where he had a larger impact on me was in his portrayal of Mongo in Blazing Saddles. The character barely said a world the entire film but he's still my favorite from the entire movie. Rest in peace Alex.

Enjoy the links.