One of the most exciting and nerve-racking scenarios in football is third and long. You know your team has to put the ball in the air, and the opponent knows it too. Just how difficult is it to convert in these situations? To start, let’s put such a situation into perspective by looking at how difficult it is to convert any …
Is There Really a Marcus Arroyo Play Calling Problem?
It is no secret that Oregon fans are gnashing their teeth over the 2018 offense this offseason. Many critics blame Marcus Arroyo for one of the most bland attacks in recent Duck history. The offense looked so simple that, at times, it seemed like even a caveman could predict the plays. Fear not fans, I have faith that we will …
The Oregon Offense: Adding Firepower to the Playbook
Throughout a long off-season, I often find myself thinking of different plays I’d like to see added to a team’s playbook. Today I want to follow up on my last article with three new plays that I would love to see included in the Oregon Duck offense in 2019. Do I expect these exact plays to be added in the …
Oregon’s Quick-Strike Run-Pass Option: Three Plays in 2.2 Seconds
Anyone who has ever laced up or called plays knows that feeling – when a defense aligns itself as if it knows exactly what play is coming. Sometimes, opposing players and coaches even call out the play as if they were in the offensive huddle. And then there are times when everything is aligned just right, and it seems like the …
The Oregon Ducks Offense: Bolstering the Rushing Attack
For most of the season, we heard how the Pistol was the sole culprit of a dwindling run game. While I do not believe that the Pistol is responsible, I do believe that the manner in which it was used, is. It is possible to be creative with the formation. There’s more to the Pistol than the Inside Zone and …
The Oregon Offense: Differences Among the Inside Zone
The Inside Zone has been a play utilized by the Oregon Ducks’ offense for quite some time. Chip Kelly predominantly ran the play from the Shotgun, while Coach Mario Cristobal leaned a little more in the direction of the Pistol. Today we’re going to take a look at how the play works and how it is run differently from both formations. …
Duck Offense Loses in Santa Clara, Defense Wins Game
The Duck defense showed up for the Redbox Bowl in Santa Clara, but the offense, as happened several times during the past season, missed the team bus. In a first half that brought to memory the infamous 1983 0-0 Toilet Bowl tie with Oregon State, the mighty, physical Oregon offense was able to achieve four first downs in the first …
Three Times Marcus Arroyo Got Creative in 2018
Though the Oregon offense didn’t always fire on all cylinders this season, there were moments that showed us that Coach Marcus Arroyo can be a pretty creative offensive coordinator. The question remains, can he continue to evolve both as a play caller and in scheme? The final two games of the season showed movement in that direction, and the Red …
Expert Panel: Early Analysis of Oregon’s 2019 Football Recruiting Class
What are the “experts” saying about the recruiting class? Many of the most knowledgeable are part of the pay-sites of which most of you don’t have access to. (Which is why you are on this free site!) I was thinking about offering my early assessment of the recruiting class signed thus far for 2019, but the truth is–it is just …
The Oregon Offense: The Power Concept
One of a few aspects of the Oregon Ducks offense that seemed unusual to me, as the season progressed, was the lack of gap schemes. Not to say there weren’t any, but for a team that was thought to be a power run team, the scarcity of these plays was puzzling. That was until Oregon’s game against the Arizona State …
Ducks’ Ground Assault Breeches Beavers; Herbert Down and Out?
Head coach Mario Cristobal savored two Thanksgiving treats: dinner with his team and family, and the next day, for dessert, a 55-15 win over rival Oregon State in a Civil War game that was never as close as the final score indicated. The outcome revealed that Oregon could dominate the line of scrimmage and run roughshod over the worst Pac-12 …
Duck Offense Found, Then LOST AGAIN
Coach Mario Cristobal had a chance to see what his offense should always look like, scoring 28 points in the first half of their win over Arizona State. In the second half, the offense and their coaching staff were strangely absent. The freewheeling game plan, so successful in the first two quarters, was put away, or forgotten, in the vault. …