This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Kyle Whittingham has repeated it throughout the week: "They're still Oregon."
Are they?
http://bit.ly/2fWOpPO";>The Ducks haven't looked much like the program of the last decade, limping to a 3-7 record so far this year with a defense that hasn't hasn't offered much resistance. And yet with a new quarterback who looks like the real deal, and a number of playmakers who can attack the edge — well, http://bit.ly/2fQUe04";>parts of the team will certainly look the like the Oregon we all remember.
To get to the heart of the Ducks, I asked The Oregonian's Andrew Greif a few questions about the team. You can read http://connect.oregonlive.com/staff/agreif/posts.html";>his stories for The Oregonian by clicking here, you canhttps://twitter.com/AndrewGreif?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor"> follow him on Twitter by clicking here, and you can learn more about Oregon by continuing to scroll down, dear reader.
Here we go:
1. Let's just start with the ugly:http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.ssf/2016/11/oregon_ducks_spiraling_season.html";> Oregon's defense ranks next-to-last in the Pac-12 almost every major statistical category. What has gone wrong, how much of it has to do with the playmakers UO lost last year, and what is Brady Hoke trying to do about it?
Andrew Greif: What's gone wrong is that the defense was not overly talented or experienced to begin with due to the loss of first-round NFL pick DeForest Buckner and three experienced linebackers, and personnel losses have only riddled the depth chart further since. Oregon's top two tacklers are true freshmen. Half of the defensive two-deep are either freshmen or sophomores. The defensive line is missing five guys who will not play the rest of the season due to a mixture of medical retirements, suspensions and a dismissal. That doesn't include Drayton Carlberg, whose ankle injury has limited him to about two-thirds of the season, and defensive tackle Rex Manu, who's playing despite a broken hand. The losses up front have hampered Brady Hoke's transition to a 4-3, because he doesn't have the depth in the trenches to pull it off.
2. The injury situation on the defensive front looks dire. What is Oregon's hope to adapt to slow down the rushing attack led by Joe Williams — or is there one?
AG: Oregon will move its defensive ends inside to tackle more often against Utah to mitigate its losses of Austin Maloata and Canton Kaumatule, who left the team in the last two weeks for a dismissal and a medical retirement, respectively. Watch out for 6-foot-6 T.J. Daniel and 6-5 Henry Mondeaux to play more often inside. Mondeaux is very talented, but acknowledged this week he's never played primarily as an interior lineman.
3. The Ducks made the switch from Dakota Prukop to Justin Herbert mid-year. What's been the big differences with Herbert, and does it seem like Oregon finally has a four-year quarterback ready to hold on to the starting job?
AG: Oregon used unconventional and creative measures to fill its quarterback depth chart since Marcus Mariota left for the NFL in 2015, but in Herbert, the Ducks have a truly homegrown talent — http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.ssf/2016/09/the_tie_that_binds_at_oregon_t.html";>he's from Eugene, and a grandfather played for the Ducks — who seems in line to be the longtime starter UO has missed. Prukop wasn't playing all that poorly, but Herbert was an upgrade in his downfield passing partly due to his ability to see the field quickly. Coaches say he has an instinctual ability to understand where receivers can get open. It's not the first time he's wowed coaches with his mind; he had learned the playbook early into his first fall camp. Combine that with good size and sneaky speed, and they outweighed the game experience that was Prukop's strength.
4. Utah has struggled with defending playmakers on the perimeter this season. Has Oregon utilized both its running backs as well as its speedy playmakers in ways that might make Utah vulnerable?
AG: Even without Taj Griffin, the quick-burst running back who suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice last week, UO still has plenty of ways to get to the edge quickly. You're likely to see Oregon try numerous quick passes to the sideline, especially to some of their big, fast tight ends, to force Utah to respect the whole field's width. If that leads to success, it will open holes in the middle for running back Tony Brooks-James, who is the best bet to get to the second level of the defense and beat a defender to the corner out of the backfield right now.
5. While it seemed for a while that Mark Helfrich was safe despite struggling, http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.ssf/2016/11/pat_kilkenny_ducks_booster_and.html#incart_river_index";>there's obviously a lot of smoke in Eugene. What is the latest on Oregon's head coach hot seat, and do you sense it is a major distraction for the players?
AG:http://www.oregonlive.com/collegefootball/index.ssf/2016/11/paging_rob_mullens_oregons_mis.html#incart_river_index";> Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens has not granted interviews this fall, so what he's thinking is anyone's guess. Because he's an accountant by training, and UO tries to run a financially self-sustaining department that takes little to no funds from the school's academic side, there's no doubt Oregon wants nothing more than to avoid paying Helfrich a buyout worth $11.6 million. But public statements of support for Helfrich from boosters or the athletic department have been few or far between and Helfrich is certainly in danger of being the first head football coach fired at Oregon in 40 years. Ever since Helfrich's promotion in 2013, a perhaps small but vocal faction of UO fans has never taken to the former offensive coordinator, even during UO's run to the College Football Playoff. UO's struggles this season have only turned up their volume, and that's worrisome for an athletic department where football is expected to drive 68 percent of revenue in 2016-17. Players have been united in their messaging that it has not been a distraction, but take that at face value.
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There's the skinny. Thanks, Andrew.
We'll see you Saturday at noon.
kgoon@sltrib.com
Twitter: @kylegoon