In 2022 the Ducks fought their way to a 10-3 season under first year head coach Dan Lanning.
Heading into year number two, how does Oregon take that next step?
The program was seven points away from playing for the Pac-12 Championship for the fourth straight season, and with a shot at the College Football Playoff – and yes, had Oregon somehow pushed past both Washington and Oregon State, and then USC in the title game, at 12-1 with a Power Five title, the Ducks would’ve been in over Ohio State and/or TCU despite the 49-3 loss to Georgia to open the season.
Oregon won ten games or more in three of the last four years, and it won the 2020 Pac-12 title despite finishing 4-3 in the outlier year. The Ducks won ten games or more in ten of the last 15 seasons, nine in two other seasons, played in two national title games, six conference championships, played in another, and yet it still seems like the program is taken for granted.
Part of it is location.
Part of it is the annual biff-the-national-title-hopes-away-against-a-mediocre-team confounding loss. And part of it is because the team tapped out of the CFP chase well before the finish line in every season since losing to Ohio State for the national title in 2014.
The talent has been there, the recruiting has been exceptional, and the coaching has been more than good enough. And then there’s an odd performance at Stanford in 2021 – all but neutralizing the win at Ohio State earlier in the year – and the misfire at Arizona State in 2019, and the way it loses when people are watching like 49-3 to Georgia, like the 2019 collapse to Auburn, like the problems against Utah in 2021.
So what does Oregon need to do to go from amazing to that other unrealistic level reserved for the Georgia and Alabamas and Ohio States of the world?
Besides wait until 2024 when it has an easier path to win the Pac-12 title and get into an expanded CFP, it has to keep growing with its rising star head coach and do what it did last year, only with a little more defense.
Dan Lanning was nine years old when Rich Brooks took Oregon to the Rose Bowl in the 1994 season. He was working as a position coach at a Missouri high school when Chip Kelly almost pulled off a BCS Championship against Cam Newton and Auburn, and he was a secondary coach at Sam Houston when Zeke Elliott and the Buckeyes were running and rolling in the first College Football Playoff National Championship.
He’s still a very young coach – he’ll be 38 this October – going into his second season ever as a head man. He and his staff figured out the transfer portal in a hurry, he’s at a school with what should be a built-in NIL pipeline, and he won ten games last season with an offense that finished sixth in the nation and a D that … let’s just say could use some improving,…which is Lanning’s forte.
IN THIS PREVIEW, LET’S LOOK AT THE OFFENSE
The Duck attack was amazing last year – sixth in the nation overall, fifth in passing efficiency, tenth in scoring offense, and No. 1 in sacks allowed. Now the production has to be repeated even with a slew of replacements on the offensive front.
The experience might not be there on the line, but some of the decent 2s – like Steven Jones and Jackson Powers-Johnson for the inside – will be great with former Texas star recruit Junior Angilau taking over one guard spot. The tackles, though, should be the real stars. 6-4, 300-pound Josh Conerly was a huge get for the program last year and now should shine at left tackle, and 6-5, 310-pound Rhode Island transfer Ajani Cornelius could’ve gone to any team in America.
The running backs didn’t get to see much of the spotlight with everything the passing game did, but Bucky Irving, Noah Whittingham, and Jordan James combined for over 2,000 yards and 15 touchdowns in a rotation, and all of them can catch. Irving is the best of the bunch – four 100-yard games in the last seven outings – but the most dangerous runner is …
Bo Nix. Seriously, last year at this time you couldn’t get any SEC snob to stop snickering at the idea of Nix – who was good in three years at Auburn, but nothing amazing – being a legitimate Heisman candidate and NFL Draft prospect. That’s exactly what he is now after hitting 72% of his passes for 3,593 yards and 29 touchdowns to go along with 510 rushing yards and 14 scores. The receiving parts are there to do even more.
Troy Franklin has first-round draft pick upside coming off a breakthrough 61-catch season for 891 yards and nine scores, TE Terrance Ferguson has All-Pac-12 upside after making 32 grabs with five scores, and ready to roll are a slew of high-end transfers. Tez Johnson (Troy), Traeshon Holden (Alabama), and Gary Bryant Jr. (USC) will all make a whole lot of noise.
Ducks Key Offensive Player
Ajani Cornelius, OT Jr. The great offensive production last year started with a veteran line that was supposed to be among the best in college football, and it was. Stars Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, Alex Forsyth, and TJ Bass are gone, but talent-wise there’s a shot the Ducks just upgraded upfront. Josh Conerly has every tool in the bag at one tackle, and getting Cornelius for the other side was massive.
The 6-5, 310-pounder out of New York City started his football career late in high school life, but the late bloomer still received offers from a slew of HBCUs and FCS schools. He ended up at Rhode Island, needed a year to get his feet wet, and turned into a whale of a pass blocker over his next two seasons. Oregon needs him to be ready for prime time right away at right tackle to help fill out the reworked line.
SUCCESS REVOLVES AROUND THE HEALTH OF QB BO NIX
With a solid offensive line, veteran tailbacks, and an incredibly talented wide receiving corps, the Ducks offense is once again poised to be one of the best in the country.
But to be one of the best in the country and to compete for the conference title and a spot in the newly enlarged CFP playoff system, the Ducks must stay healthy at the quarterback position. If you need proof of that, just look at the teams production after Nix injured his ankle in the latter part of last seasons schedule.
Yes, the Ducks beat a good North Carolina team in the Holiday Bowl, but the season could have had a much different ending had Nix remained healthy.
That’s the key question for the Ducks this season.
Can they keep Nix upright and free from injury?
UP NEXT, A LOOK AT THE DUCKS DEFENSE.