Oregon Ducks Football: Report Card from Game 3

Heading into their game against Missouri State the Oregon Ducks were a heavy favorite.  Despite looking shaky on defense early, the Ducks turned it around quickly and settled in.

As expected, the offense looked very good accumulating 56 points with almost 700 yards of total offense.  Duck fans were pleased with the return of LaMichael James who put on a show for the crowd at Autzen

With that said, Oregon still has question marks heading into this week’s matchup with Arizona.  Although Missouri State wasn’t a great team, it did give the Ducks an opportunity to give a lot of players meaningful snaps.

Here are the grades for the performances of every position on the Oregon team in their victory over Missouri State.

Quarterbacks

After an outstanding performance against Nevada last week, Darron Thomas was able to light up a weak Missouri State team.  Thomas looked very smooth in the pocket, especially on play action passes, as he totaled 206 yards passing on just 11 completions.

In addition, Thomas continued to get the ball into the end zone with three touchdown passes.

Because Oregon was ahead by a large margin early, backup Bryan Bennett got a lot of action.  He played well, going 5 for 6 passing and tossing two TDs.  If Bennett can learn to hang in the pocket longer and wait for his receivers to get open he could have a bright future with the Ducks.

Grade: A

Running Backs

Through two games this season, running back LaMichael James had yet to have a breakout performance.  That changed against Missouri State.

James rushed for 204 yards on only 12 carries.  Two of his carries were electrifying touchdown runs of 50 and 90 yards. 

Although Missouri State does not have the caliber of defense of some of the teams in the Pac-12, it was good to see James back in good form.  James wasn’t the only Duck to get carries as true freshmen DeAnthony Thomas and Tra Carson showed fans a glimpse of the future.  Thomas played early in the game and totaled over 100 all-purpose yards.

Grade: A+

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

As a unit the wide receivers and tight ends were very impressive on Saturday, as they were able to blow by the slower Missouri defenders.  Five different receivers had receptions of over 20 yards, including Rashaan Vaughn and Lavasier Tuinei who each caught passes of more than 40 yards.

The tight ends looked good too, with freshman Colt Lyerla getting looks inside the red zone.  Lyerla now has three touchdown catches through three games.

Grade: A

Offensive Line

For the first time all season the Oregon Ducks’ offensive line was able to open up big holes for their speedy running backs.  Because they were playing Missouri State this was not a big surprise.

What was encouraging was the depth the Ducks displayed when the first team was off the field.  It would’ve been nice to have a bigger test before facing Arizona but maybe a little confidence booster was all the Oregon O-line needed.

Grade: B+

Defensive Line

After getting beaten out of the blocks on the first drive of the game the Oregon defensive line dug in and held their own.  Pressure from the defensive line was a big reason why Missouri State didn’t score another point after that opening drive.

What is a little disappointing was fact the Ducks’ D-line wasn’t dominant.  They were bigger and faster than their opponents and although players may have played well individually, they didn’t excel as a unit.

Next week against Arizona, the Ducks will need to get pressure on Nick Foles, which should be manageable with the Wildcats’ inexperienced offensive line

Grade: B-

Linebackers

Against Missouri State the Oregon linebackers were by far the weakest unit for the Ducks.  With Michael Clay injured, the Ducks lack depth at the position and it showed on Saturday.

Kiko Alonso and Dewitt Stuckey were unable to hit gaps quickly and stop run plays in the backfield.  They also made sophomore quarterback Trevor Wooden run all over them.

The Ducks are hopeful that Clay will be back for Arizona, but if not, Oregon will need to have their linebackers do a better job at reading plays and blowing them up early.

Grade: C+

Secondary

Oregon probably showed the best looking defensive unit for the Ducks this season on Saturday, since they limited Missouri State’s passing game to almost nothing.  Combined, the Bears were 8 for 15 passing for only 104 yards and no touchdowns.

Cliff Harris played with the second unit this week but it is likely he will get his first start of the season against Arizona with their stacked group of receivers.

The Duck’s secondary is young and they are a group that should get stronger as the season progresses.  This Saturday will be a big test in Tucson

Grade: B+

Special Teams

Needless to say, the Ducks are a much faster team than Missouri State and it really showed on special teams.  DeAnthony Thomas had two solid returns where he displayed his dynamic quickness and ability to accelerate out of cuts.

Jackson Rice had a good day kicking the ball, putting both of his punts inside the 20.  With Rob Beard out, Alejandro Maldonado did a good job as the teams place kicker, netting all eight of his extra points.

All in all, the Ducks’ special teams has looked very solid since the LSU game, which should continue as the unit gets more experience.

Grade: B+

Coaching

Offensively the Oregon coaching staff did a great job calling plays that led to big gains. They were able to utilize the speed advantage of the Ducks’ receivers to move the ball down field quickly.

Against Missouri State, the Ducks had three consecutive scoring drives of one minute or less; I can’t remember the last time a team did that.

On the defensive side of the ball I thought we were too aggressive.  Don’t get me wrong, I like Nick Aliotti’s style of play calling, but against Missouri State Oregon’s linebackers were consistently blitzing the wrong gaps.

The Oregon defense will need to be a lot better to beat Arizona; luckily, Arizona isn’t a big running team.

Grade: B (Offense: A, Defense: C)