Rose Bowl 2012: Oregon Ducks Will Be Doomed by Porous Defense

This season's Rose Bowl game between the Oregon Ducks and Wisconsin Badgers is likely to be a shootout of epic proportions since both teams have offenses that rank in the top four nationally.

As is usually the case in shootouts, the game will come down to which team can make more second-half stops, and that's where Oregon's shaky defense will come back to haunt them just like it did against LSU and USC earlier in the season.

The Ducks are giving up more than 380 yards per game and haven't faced many offenses as potent as Wisconsin's unit led by Russell Wilson and Montee Ball. That's a scary thought for Chip Kelly.

Everybody knows how much damage Oregon's offense can do. LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner are one of the top running back duos in the country, and quarterback Darron Thomas, who survived a brief challenge from Bryan Bennett, does a terrific job of utilizing the space opened up by the running game.

Then there's freshman De'Anthony Thomas. His production was overshadowed by those aforementioned players, but his contributions were equally important. He led the team in receiving and finished third in rushing while also showing off some tremendous explosiveness. In other words, he fits right in.

The overlooked factor is how much of a toll the offense's efficiency has on the defense. Since the Ducks usually score relatively quickly, the defense doesn't get much time to rest in between drives and tends to wear down. And they don't have enough depth like an Alabama or LSU to make up for it.

Perhaps the best comparison would be the Indianapolis Colts when Peyton Manning was healthy.

Their defense was only successful when Manning would build up a big lead so that Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis could pin their ears back and attack the quarterback.

Dion Jordan and Josh Kaddu lead a solid Oregon pass rush, but if they have to worry about Ball carrying the ball 25 or 30 times, they won't be able to be quite as aggressive.

The Badgers' ability to be successful in both facets of the offensive game will cause enough problems for Oregon, especially in the second half, to put up a boatload of points.

Their sixth-ranked defense will do the rest as Wisconsin pulls off a minor upset.