Oregon Football: Breaking Down the Ducks Week 4 Game at Arizona

After finishing up their out of conference schedule, the Oregon Ducks will head to the desert to start their first conference schedule in the newly formed Pac-12.

This is the game that I believe Cliff Harris will be back for and this will be a huge lift for both the Oregon defense and the special teams.

Here is a look at how the two teams stack up on both sides of the ball.

Quarterback

For Arizona, Nick Foles has returned for his final season at Arizona and give the Wildcat offense some hope considering they are putting together a new offensive line. Should they give Foles time to lead the offense, Arizona could be ok.

Oregon returns Darron Thomas who is coming off one of the best first years by a quarterback. Thomas went 12-0 in the regular season and is perfect for Coach Kelly's read-option offense.

Advantage: Oregon

Running Back

As is the case with most opponents, LaMichael James is in a class of his own. James does an amazing job of continually putting pressure on the defense with his speed and agility and is on the short list for the Heisman Trophy.

Arizona does return senior running back Keola Antolin who should help take some of the pressure off of Foles but will not be enough.

Advantage: Oregon

Receivers/Tight Ends

While both teams have some replacing to do, Arizona has Juron Criner back for the 2011 season and he is an impact player that could end up being on most peoples All-American lists.

For Oregon, their is a lot of unproven talent that is there but David Paulson is the best tight end in this matchup.

Advantage: Oregon

Offensive Line

While many believe that Oregon will struggle to replace three starting offensive linemen, it could be worse, you could be Arizona.

This year, Arizona is starting from scratch and is replacing their entire offensive line. While Oregon does have some questions, they have an edge in this department.

Advantage: Oregon

Defensive Line

Both teams have some work to do on the defensive line as well. Both teams are replacing three out of four starters and will need their new starters to step up.

While both teams are looking for answers, Oregon has a bit more talent and depth and hold a slight advantage over the wildcats.

Advantage: Oregon

Linebackers

When looking at the linebackers, Arizona returns a couple of starters in their linebackers group and will lean on that leadership.

Oregon, on the other hand, will still be dealing with the loss of Casey Matthews and Spencer Paysinger. It will be interesting to see how they have come together as a group at this point.

Advantage: Oregon

Secondary

I believe that when Oregon heads to Arizona, they will be showing up with Cliff Harris who will be playing in this game.

With or without Harris, the Ducks have enough talented young players and experienced returning starters to hold an edge in this department.

Advantage: Oregon

Special Teams

With the return of Cliff Harris, Oregon not only becomes stronger on the defensive side of the ball but also improve in the special teams game.

With Kenjon Barner returning kickoffs and Harris returning punts, Oregon holds a clear advantage in the return game. Combine that with their starting punter and kicker returning, the Ducks are set.

Advantage: Oregon

Prediction

While playing a conference road game is never easy, Oregon has the talent and depth to get the job done in this game.

Arizona will struggle early in the season with replacing all of the starters on their offensive line and replacing three starters along the defensive line will not be easy as well.

Much like last year, this game could turn into a shootout.

Oregon 52 Arizona 31