Oregon Football: Winners and Losers from Ducks' 2016 Spring
After a 9-4 finish to the 2015 season, Oregon is hoping for something a bit fresher in 2016. With the hiring of Brady Hoke as defensive coordinator, it's clear that head coach Mark Helfrich wants to fix an ailing defense. With Oregon's 2016 spring practices in the rearview mirror, we can now take an honest look at where the defense—and the rest of the team—stands.
It's been nearly a decade since the Ducks didn't put up double digits in the win column. With just four months remaining before the beginning of the 2016 season, the team still has a lot of work to do to ensure Oregon doesn't put up back-to-back single-digit-win seasons since 2006 and 2007.
Oregon still needs a starting quarterback, but the biggest task will be to transform that defense from the 117th-ranked squad in total defense in 2015 into something a little more serviceable—all with just four returning starters.
On Saturday in the spring game, the Mighty Oregon squad beat the Webfoots 21-20. We'll try to clear up the picture a bit with our list of post-spring winners and losers.
Winner: Pharaoh Brown
1 of 6
The last time we saw Pharaoh Brown on the football field for Oregon, it was 2014 and he was being carted off with a wicked leg injury. That injury caused him to miss all of 2015, so it wasn't a huge surprise to see him get a nice ovation when he caught his first pass in the 2016 spring game.
It wasn't long before we began to see what Oregon missed so much about Brown.
Not only was Brown doing a fine job of blocking on the edge, but he also managed to make several good receptions in traffic. Oregon isn't necessarily a team with a shortage of receiving targets, but adding in a sure-handed tight end adds a whole new dimension to the passing game.
Loser: Terry Wilson
2 of 6
When you're a true freshman competing for a starting quarterback position at a school like Oregon, the absolute worst thing you can do is showcase your youth and inexperience in the spring game.
That's exactly what Terry Wilson did Saturday. In the fourth quarter, he lofted the ball, and defender Ty Griffin came away with the interception.
A freshman mistake, sure, but a costly one. The Mighty Oregon team marched down a short field on the ensuing possession and scored what turned out to be the winning touchdown as a result.
Winner: Dillon Mitchell
3 of 6
One of the positive freshman performances turned in was by wideout Dillon Mitchell. He made two particularly nice receptions, one for a touchdown.
Mitchell was able to make mid-air adjustments and off-balance receptions, proving once again that Oregon is a school that seems to be a magnet for some of the nation's top receiving talent. Mitchell could make an instant impact this fall.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Loser: Travis Jonsen
4 of 6
Travis Jonsen, the other freshman quarterback vying for the starting spot, also didn't do himself many favors in the spring game. While he had a solid enough spring to keep himself in the race until the fall, and his extra redshirt year of experience might give him a (very) slight edge over Wilson, throwing up a head-scratching interception in a nationally televised spring game won't help his case.
Jonsen did mitigate his error with a nice touchdown connection to Dillon Mitchell as time expired in the first half, and his footwork could make him a potential threat down the line. However, like with Wilson, we saw enough errors to make us wonder if Mark Helfrich and quarterbacks coach David Yost won't opt for experience to give both freshmen an extra year to battle it out for the starting spot in 2017.
Winner: Brady Hoke
5 of 6
Brady Hoke landed on his feet after losing his dream job as head coach at Michigan.
If you ask Michigan fans about things Hoke doesn't do well, they could (and would) talk your ear off with a litany of bullet points. One thing that would not be on that list, however, would be his ability as a position coach or coordinator.
Throughout his collegiate coaching career, Hoke has had seven different assistant positions before landing at Oregon in 2016 as defensive coordinator. Getting his start at Division II Grand Valley State in 1983 as defensive line coach, Hoke has 20 combined years as either a position coach or coordinator—all on the defensive side of the football.
And if there is one area in which Oregon needs plenty of help, it's on defense. The Ducks ranked 117th in the nation last season in total offense, giving up 485.3 yards per game. Just imagine how good Oregon could be if its high-octane offense didn't have to contend with opponents who could walk all over the defense.
Hoke had just four starters returning, which can be a scary thing. But then again, if you're the worst defense in the Pac-12, maybe a squad full of fresh faces isn't so terrible after all.
The defense looked solid all through the spring, including in the spring game. The defensive line was getting penetration, and the backs were sticking with Oregon's wide receiving thoroughbreds. Oregon may not be one of the best defensive teams this fall, but it should be noticeably better.
And that should scare the heck out of the opposition.
Winner: Royce Freeman
6 of 6
Royce Freeman has already begun to rewrite the record books at Oregon, and if all goes according to plan, he'll need some more ink in 2016.
There's little doubt that Freeman will be the featured back this season in Eugene, and with his abilities, he should be. Sure, the Ducks will use a number of ball-carriers, and there will be plenty of highlights to go around—especially with guys like Kani Benoit on the roster.
But Freeman is something special.
He is that rarest of running backs: fast, agile, big and strong. He can literally do it all when it comes to the running game. He will beat a defense to the edge and cut upfield with ease. He can plow through the middle, pushing past linemen and linebackers. He can even find his way into the receiving game, adding an extra wrinkle for defenses.
It's way too early to put him on any kind of award lists, but don't be completely floored if you see his name mentioned as a successor to Marcus Mariota's hardware haul.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
