Mark Helfrich: "That's the billion dollar question"

Coming off their first loss of the season, Mark Helfrich and the Oregon staff were impressed with the focus that the team exhibited the first day back out on the field.

Helfrich was asked after practice yesterday if it takes a greater effort from the players to maintain a sense of consistency after a loss rather than after a win.

"That's always the billion dollar question," Helfrich responded. "How hard is it to deal with everything that goes along with being undefeated, and being in those situations and the pressure, and the outside influences that our guys have to deal with versus taking one on the chin?"

"I don't know. For some people, that may be a sigh of relief that some of that pressure is now off...but it's not really off, and that's why we always try to handle things, good, bad or indifferent, the same way. It's how you build up to a perceived 'bigger game' and 'lesser game' the same way." Helfrich responded.

Chip Kelly has always maintained the perspective that you prepare for your biggest games the same way that you would against an FCS opponent, and theoretically, that mentally prepares you for the grind of a season. It sounds like the focus was right back where it needed to be yesterday, as they prepare for their big rivalry game with Oregon State.