Oregon Football: 10 Things to Work on over the Summer

Another season under head coach Chip Kelly, another BCS bowl, and a double-digit win season. Fans expect nothing less of the extremely talented Oregon Ducks, especially in the watered-down Pac-12.

This season, Oregon returns a total of 14 starters, including eight on the defensive side of the ball. But life isn't so sweet in Eugene, as the Ducks do have a few issues to straighten out before they can contend for a national championship. Their Heisman finalist running back is no longer on the roster, and they watched their quarterback leave at the last minute.

The good news is that they will have fall camp to figure things out. The spring only provides so much time to work on things and answer a few questions.

Here are 10 things that the Ducks need to work on heading into the summer.

True Freshmen

The Ducks put together a very deep and talented 2012 class, and several players should help contribute right away. 

Many are most interested in defensive end Arik Armstead. He was the Ducks only 5-star recruit, and is likely to see the field quite a bit this season. He's absolutely huge at 6'8", 275 pounds, plays with a very aggressive style, and straight-up bullies the man in front of him.

Another player that could contribute is 4-star running back, Byron Marshall. With question marks in the offensive backfield, the speedy back could get a few touches. He has great vision of the field, quickness in and out of his cuts, and could instantly provide Chip Kelly with another offensive weapon.

Oregon landed a total of 21 players in the 2012 class, and this fall, everyone will have a chance to prove themselves to the coaching staff.

Who Steps Up at WR?

Oregon had a passing game that was ranked 10th in the Pac-12 last season and should be searching for a few playmakers at the wide receiver position. De'Anthony Thomas was the leading receiver last year, with 605 receiving yards, but with LaMichael James in the NFL, he may have to handle more of the running back duties this time around.

Both Josh Huff and Justin Hoffman return, but combined they have 63 receptions in four years. The Ducks did pickup three wide receivers in the 2012 class when they signed speedy Bralon Addison, and bigger receivers in Dwayne Stanford and Chance Allen.

The bottom line is that this team has oodles of wide receivers on the depth chart—some of them have to step up and start making plays for this offense.

Carson York

Offensive lineman Carson York suffered a right knee injury that required surgery in the BCS bowl game against the Wisconsin Badgers. He missed all of spring practice, but he has been working out and trying to make a speedy recovery to get back onto the field.

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“I’m doing pretty extensive workouts and trying to play a little catch up right now,” York says. “There are certain things that I’m stronger at right now than I ever have been in my whole career just because I was able to focus on those things. I’ve got to play catch-up with the other stuff and I’m starting to do more stuff right now.” (via The Portland Tribune)

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Considering the Ducks lost a couple of offensive linemen to graduation, missing York could be another big blow to this team. It's going to be interesting to see if the senior guard can get back on the field by the time fall arrives.

Who Replaces Eddie Pleasant?

Eddie Pleasant played the rover position last season and finished fourth on the team with 61 tackles, three interceptions, and broke up eight passes. Now that he has graduated, somebody has to step up and replace him. According to defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti it's not going to be an easy task. 

"I think Eddie Pleasant in his second year at rover was very, very good for us. That's a battle between Patterson, Brian Jackson, and Erick Dargan. And it's still a battle." (via ESPN)

It appears that both juniors Brian Jackson and Avery Patterson are the favorites to land the starting position. While it's not clear out of these two who will see more playing time, don't be surprised if you see these two rotating in and out. Jackson is the tough, physical player, while Patterson has terrific hands and can make plays on the football.

Running Back Depth

With LaMichael James out, Kenjon Barner will become the starter. He's been a backup the last three years, but has been terrific, averaging over six yards per carry each of the last three seasons. We also know all about De'Anthony Thomas and what he's capable of with his world-class speed.

But who provides depth after them? Beats me.

The most likely scenario is true freshman Byron Marshall coming in and contributing. Like I said before, he's a quick back and seems to have a positive attitude about his future in the Oregon program.

“Coach (Chip) Kelly won’t hesitate to play you as a freshman,” said Marshall. “So I want to prove myself and show all the coaches that I’m ready to play and able to play. I’ll be willing to play anything, wherever they need me.” (via Scout)

Kiko Alonso

With the Ducks losing a couple of linebackers, it's critical that certain players step up to try and fill the void that others have created. One player that really stood out during the BCS bowl game was linebacker Kiko Alonso, finishing the game with two and a half sacks and an interception. According to defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti, it wasn't a fluke, and he's done a great job throughout the spring. (via ESPN)

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"That's another guy who is easy to go over. You hit Kiko on the nose. I think Kiko has continued to grow off of his success in the Rose Bowl at the end of the year. Kiko has had a great spring. Those two guys have probably been our most dominant players on defense." (Also referring to defensive end Dion Jordan)

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Alonso wasn't much of a playmaker until the end of the year. Now that he enters his senior season, the Ducks would appreciate it if he can play consistent for an entire year.

Secondary Shape Up?

Besides replacing Eddie Pleasant, the Ducks return three of four starters in the secondary. The problem is that this is a unit that should have been a lot better than they were last season. Sure, off-the-field issues and a couple of injuries didn't help, but giving up 25 passing touchdowns is inexcusable, especially if this team would like to compete for a national championship.

With 2011 all-conference player John Boyett and young corners getting a year of experience under their belt, this unit may be the X-factor in seeing just how far this team can go.

You should keep an eye on the defensive backfield when the fall camp arrives.

Who's the Starting QB?

Darron Thomas surprisingly left early for the NFL, creating an interesting quarterback battle for the Ducks this offseason.

Sophomore Bryan Bennett was expected to be the front-runner for the position, considering he was the backup last year. But it was freshman Marcus Mariota who had a ridiculous spring game, throwing for 202 yards, rushing for 99, and scoring three total touchdowns. Bennett also played well, throwing for over 200 yards and a touchdown himself.

This is a battle that should be extremely interesting. Bennett has the experience and is probably the more traditional quarterback, but it's Moriota who is the dual-threat and would fit perfectly in this high-flying offense.

It's the question that everyone wants to know the answer to, but won't receive until the Ducks hit the field again in August.

Who Plays Tight End?

With questions at the receiver position, lack of depth at running back, and an unknown at quarterback, the Ducks may look to the tight end position to help balance this offense out. Colt Lyerla finished last season with seven receptions, five of which went for touchdowns. You would assume he would be the starter once again, but for whatever reason, he didn't participate in the spring game.  

Oregon also has talented players in redshirt freshman Christian French and true freshman Evan Baylis, both of whom were highly rated recruits coming out of high school.

Lyerla is the only player out of the three that has experience, but him not participating raises a few questions. French dropped a few passes in the spring game, while Baylis remains a true freshman that still has to prove himself to the coaches.

This situation needs an answer in the next few months.

Get off to a Fast Start

Sure, the Ducks don't play anybody worth mentioning until Washington in October (maybe Washington State beforehand, but who knows?). Regardless of the weak schedule for this team, it's important that they still get off to a fast start and try to get rolling before the games against tougher teams take place.

There's no question the Ducks have what it takes to win the Pac-12 and possibly reach the national championship, but in order to do that, they'll likely have to run the table. That means taking every game seriously and not looking ahead to the big showdown against the USC Trojans.