Oregon Football: Ranking 10 Best Ducks from 2014 Regular Season

After thoroughly destroying everyone in their path from Oct. 2 on, the second-ranked Oregon Ducks are now tasked with knocking off the defending national champions in the Rose Bowl in order to reach the College Football Playoff National Championship.

Before the Ducks get to play Florida State on Jan. 1, it’s worth our time to go back and look at one of the best football seasons in school history.

Not only did the Ducks wrap up their fourth Pac-10/Pac-12 title in the past six seasons, but they also were led by the first Heisman Trophy winner in school history. Regardless of whether or not the Ducks win the national championship this season, the 2014 season is one for the record books.

Here are the top 10 Ducks from the 2014 season.

10. Devon Allen

Devon Allen, the U.S. track and field 110-meter hurdles champion, is Oregon’s fastest receiver and may in fact be the fastest wide receiver in the entire country.

While his production slowed as the season progressed, partially due to the performances of Byron Marshall, Pharaoh Brown and Darren Carrington, he was Oregon’s best receiver through the first half of the year. His 41 receptions and 684 yards rank second on the team, and his seven touchdowns rank first.

The speedy receiver's breakout performance came in the second game of his college career against Michigan State. Allen caught three passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns, including a beautiful 70-yard TD reception (above). 

Allen is going to be an integral part of the game plan against Florida State, as he has been since the Ducks lost Pharaoh Brown in mid-November.

Allen’s speed is one of Oregon’s best assets and will be going forward. Remember, Allen is just a redshirt freshman. If he keeps improving as a wide receiver, he could be in the NFL and the Olympics.

9. Byron Marshall

TROY WAYRYNEN/Associated Press

Over the course of one offseason, Byron Marshall went from being Oregon’s best running back and the Pac-12 conference’s leading returning rusher to being the Ducks’ best wide receiver.

On the season, Marshall led the Ducks in both receptions (61) and receiving yards (814). The former running back also caught five touchdowns. Marshall also carried the ball 50 times for 386 yards—good for an average of 7.7 yards per carry—and scored another touchdown on the ground.

It was thought that the Ducks might struggle a bit without the presence of RB/WR De’Anthony Thomas, who departed the Oregon program for the NFL after his junior year.

However, Marshall filled Thomas’ role and may have actually been more effective this year, minus Thomas’ impact on special teams.

8. Hroniss Grasu

Brian Bahr/Getty Images

Despite missing Oregon’s last three games after suffering an injury against Utah, Hronnis Grasu was still named a Rimington Trophy finalist, first-team All-Pac-12 and second-team AP All-American.

Grasu, who started the first 50 games of his college career, is progressing toward being ready to start at center for the Ducks on Jan. 1.

"I'm just doing what I can every single day," said Grasu, according to Tyson Alger of The Oregonian. "I'm getting better every single day. I'm doing whatever they tell me to do, and I promise I'm doing whatever I can to get better." 

The Ducks have been able to survive over the past three games without Grasu. In fact, they’ve been rather dominant in those three games. However, nothing can replace experience, which is something that Grasu has in spades.

Oregon can only go so long without Grasu's presence, who was a stabilizing force for an offensive line that was ravaged by injuries this season. Having Grasu back and healthy for the Rose Bowl would be a huge boon to the Ducks’ chances of beating Florida State.

7. Pharaoh Brown

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When tight end Pharaoh Brown went down with a devastating knee injury against Utah, the Ducks lost one of their best offensive weapons and have yet to be able to replace his production.

Through 10 games, Brown was having his best season as a Duck and was quickly becoming one of Mariota’s favorite targets. In all, Brown caught 25 passes for 420 yards and six touchdowns—which ranked second on the team and No. 6 in the nation for tight ends.

Brown’s best game of the season was against UCLA where he caught five passes for 84 yards and a touchdown to help the Ducks score a 42-30 victory.

For his work this season, Brown was named first-team All-Pac-12.

Brown was an integral part of Oregon’s success this season, and the Ducks likely won’t be able to replicate Brown’s production with tight ends Evan Baylis or Johnny Mundt.

6. DeForest Buckner

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Oregon’s defense struggled through the first half of the season. However, the Ducks have only allowed an average of 17 points per game over their last five contests.

One of the players who has really stepped up over the past five games has been defensive end DeForest Buckner.

On the season, Buckner ranks fourth on the team in tackles (69), first in tackles for loss (12) and third in sacks (4). Moreover, Buckner has been the most consistent lineman in terms of putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

The Ducks will need a big performance in the Rose Bowl from Buckner as they try to bring the heat against Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston. As Oregon’s most reliable down lineman, Buckner will be expected to lead the charge against a FSU offensive line that has allowed 21 sacks this season.

5. Ifo Ekpre-Olomu

Oregon has suffered numerous injuries on both sides of the ball this season; however, none may be more costly than the knee injury suffered by Jim Thorpe Award finalist and AP first-team All-American cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu.

Despite the fact that Ekpre-Olomu struggled some this season, especially against taller wide receivers, he was one of Oregon’s best defensive players. More importantly, opposing quarterbacks were scared to throw to his side of the field due to his playmaking abilities.

On the season, Ekpre-Olomu only intercepted two passes. However, his interception of Michigan State’s Connor Cook was magnificent (video above) and more or less sealed a huge victory for the Ducks.

Now, without Ekpre-Olomu, the Ducks will depend on senior Troy Hill, who led the Pac-12 in passes defended and pass breakups, and redshirt freshman Chris Seisay.

Ekpre-Olomu’s injury is a huge loss for the Ducks. That being said, the Ducks wouldn’t be in contention for a national championship without the contributions of their senior cornerback.

4. Jake Fisher

Ryan Kang/Associated Press

Outside of Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota, left tackle Jake Fisher may have been Oregon’s most important player this season.

After suffering an injury against Wyoming, Fisher missed conference matchups against Washington State and Arizona. His presence was severely missed as the Ducks ended up going 1-1 in those contests and averaged 31 points per game, a paltry number by Oregon’s lofty offensive standards.

With Fisher in the lineup this season, the Ducks have been a completely different team. In 11 games with Fisher, the Ducks are 11-0 and have averaged over 49 points per game.

For his efforts this season, Fisher was named first-team All-Pac-12 and third-team AP All-American.

3. Erick Dargan

Ryan Kang/Associated Press

Cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu was a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award and a first-team AP All-American. That would lead you to believe he was Oregon’s best defensive back this season. You would be wrong. Very wrong.

Senior safety Erick Dargan was far and away the Ducks’ best defensive back this season.

Not only did Dargan lead the team in interceptions this season with six—ranked No. 7 in the country and No. 1 in the Pac-12—but he also led the team in solo tackles (51) and total tackles (82).

Dargan has had some spectacular games this season, most notably his two-interception performance against Michigan State this season. But, more importantly, he’s been the backbone of Oregon’s secondary.

For his play this season, Dargan was named second-team All-Pac-12.

2. Royce Freeman

Oregon’s offensive engine isn’t Marcus Mariota, it’s true freshman tailback Royce Freeman. Without his production this season, who knows what bowl game the Ducks would be playing in right now? One thing is for sure: The Ducks would not be in the Rose Bowl without Royce Freeman. 

On the season, Freeman has rushed for 1,299 yards—ranked No. 24 in the nation—and has scored 16 rushing touchdowns—No. 13 in the country.

Freeman proved early on that he was something special and would eventually come Oregon’s featured back. However, over the past eight games, all Oregon victories, Freeman has rushed for an average of over 119 yards per game and has scored 11 rushing touchdowns.

Freeman was named second-team All-Pac-12 for his season and became the first Oregon true freshman to ever gain over 1,000 yards in a season.

If this season was only the beginning for Freeman, the rest of the college football world better watch out. We may be getting an early glimpse at a future Heisman Trophy winner.

1. Marcus Mariota

What more can you say about the first Heisman Trophy winner in school history? 

Redshirt junior quarterback Marcus Mariota swept the national awards this season after putting up numbers that would be downright unbelievable by video-game standards.

Mariota was named a unanimous All-American selection, first-team All-Pac-12 for the third consecutive year and won the Maxwell Award, Davey O’Brien Award and Walter Camp Award to go along with his Heisman Trophy.

On the season, Mariota has scored 53 touchdowns (passing, receiving and running)—eighth in NCAA history—and only threw two interceptions, per Sports-Reference.com.

Not only was Marcus Mariota the best Oregon player this season, he was the best player in the entire country and it wasn’t particularly close. In fact, Mariota’s 2014 campaign will go down as one of the best seasons in the history of college football.

What Mariota has done for the University of Oregon and the Ducks football program is incalculable.

Quite simply, he’s one of a kind.

Statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com unless otherwise stated. All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise stated.

Jason Gold is Bleacher Report’s lead Oregon writer. Follow Jason on Twitter @TheSportsGuy33.