Oregon Football: 6 Things to Watch for Against Cal

After getting this past week off, Oregon returns to the field on Thursday night and will welcome Cal to Autzen Stadium.

Not only will this be the ESPN Thursday Night game of the week, but Oregon will be wearing new retro jerseys, and for those of you fortunate enough to have a 3D television, it will be broadcasted in 3D.

As you watch Oregon and Cal go head-to-head, here are six things to look for. 

Passes to the Backs

One thing that Cal did better then anyone last year was shut down the Oregon offense. Cal held the Ducks to one offensive touchdown and turned the game into a defensive fight.

This year, the Ducks know that they have to combat the Cal Cover 0 defense, which means you can expect the Ducks to pass the ball to their backs a lot and put themselves in one-on-one match ups. 

More DeAnthony Thomas

While having Kenjon Barner back last week was nice, it did cut into the number of touches that DeAnthony Thomas received.

Against Cal, look for Chip Kelly to find a way to get Thomas some additional touches and put him into space, where he is most effective. 

Special Teams Being Special

Oregon has discovered their new found luxury, which is being able to put LaMichael James, Kenjon Barner, Cliff Harris or DeAnthony Thomas back to return kicks.

Last year against Cal, a Cliff Harris punt return was the difference, and there is certainly no shortage of options this year. 

Tighter Windows in the Secondary

There was a lot of criticism of the Oregon secondary after the Arizona game, and now that they have had a week off, look for the secondary to tighten up the throwing windows and make things more difficult on the Cal offense. 

Darron Thomas Will Shine

One thing that made Cal so effective last year was they were able to throw Darron Thomas off early, and he was never as sharp as he looked in other games.

After the Ducks game against Arizona, Thomas appears to be getting back into rhythm and should be able to make Cal pay for their defensive scheme. 

Chip Sends a Message

While he may not come out and say it, the offensive performance that Oregon posted against Cal last year was below the standards he has set for this program.

If Darron Thomas was things together and is passing the ball well, look for Kelly to set him loose and win this game big.