Our Oregon football program has been rolling all year, but woah: WHAT a WAY to take down the Washington Huskies and get that monkey (or puppy, for that matter) off Dan Lanning’s back. The Ducks were dominant from start to finish, and it looks like Oregon’s on track to play the Buck- I mean Nittany Lions in the B1G Championship. Here are a few notes from the game:
- Jordan James is playing as well as any back in college football (Ashton Jeanty, you’ve got some competition entering the NFL Draft). Runs angry, gets his YAC yards, and is the best safety valve in the game for Dillon Gabriel. Expect to see him as a contender for the Ducks’ MVP in the College Football Playoff.
- Gabriel is just the tip of a bouquet of spears: The offense of our Oregon football program has so many threats all over the field, you’d think one rising star would have taken over by the end of a 12-0 season. Well, that isn’t the case. The Ducks just continue to find ways to win offense with James, Tez Johnson, Traeshon Holden, Terrance Ferguson, and others finding space to make plays in a crowded backfield – this Duck squad is going to be borderline unstoppable in the postseason.
- Matayo Uiagalelei may be our best pass rusher on the team. Jordan Burch has been a huge piece of this defense in his limited action this year, but Uiagalelei just continues to make plays and wreck games, becoming the perfect counterpart to an elite rushing attack that’s getting hot at the perfect time. Additionally, Derrick Harmon turned in a stellar performance that vaulted their defense into cruise control early in the third quarter (where they scored a touchdown, FINALLY!!!).
- Last week we did some superlatives of the year, and after a 12-0 start, one key superlative was missing from the roster: Who is Defensive Player of the Year? After a full regular season of dominant Oregon football, this is the question that brought us to 12-0; I believe the clear and definitive answer is that local kid who found his way onto the Ducks as the walk-on story of a superstar we all tip our duck bills to…
Boettcher has been suctioning in tackles all year with 80 on the season already – Photo Via Eric Becker
Bryce Boettcher: The True Defensive Leader of Oregon Football
Bryce Boettcher has embodied all that the Ducks are as a team in 2024. Tackling, coverage, the outfield? whatever you ask of Bryce: he’s been there for a squad that has desperately needed help from the inside linebacker spot. Even against the Huskies this past weekend, Bryce nabbed eleven tackles, a forced fumble, and one of the TEN sacks the Ducks mustered on senior night.
While Jeffrey Bassa has been a beast in the middle for Oregon, Boettcher offers the skillset of a rangy backer who plays sideline to sideline, often contributing serious impact in both the run and pass game. As the leading tackler on the Ducks, it’s no surprise he’s been dominating the line of scrimmage from start to finish this season.
Now, Bryce and the Ducks collectively turn their heads to the Nittany Lions and Penn State—a team we didn’t expect to see in the B1G Championship.
One of the cleanest form tacklers in all of college football… Photo Via Craig Strobeck
Big Ten Championship Offers a B1G Challenge for Bryce
Penn State took their sole loss of the season to the Buckeyes in The Shoe, and they have been rejuvenated ever since. They are a stout, tough, and stingy team that should not be taken lightly. Luckily, Oregon has gotten a lot better since they beat the Buckeyes, too. The Ducks played the Buckeyes close in a one-score game and weren’t anywhere close to their peak performance, but they should be at their highest gear in this game for a team that’s desperate to win the conference they’ve so often been the “Little Brother” of.
As for Bryce, I love what we’ve seen from #28 against similar rosters, and expect him to have continued success in the Big Ten Championship. Tyler Warren is Penn State’s best player, and he’ll need to be shut down if the Ducks are going to be able to hit 13-0. He has a similar skillset to Boettcher in the sense that he will do whatever it takes for his team to win, and has a range of abilities that go beyond numbers on the statsheet.
What do you expect of Bryce against Penn State? Will he be involved in coverage against Warren, or be more of a role player against the run in their biggest game of the year? After a HUGE recruiting weekend, was this the most dominant Oregon football win of the season? Let us know in the FishDuck Forum with decorum. And as always:
GO DUCKS!
Alex Heining
Los Angeles, California
Top Photo By: Eric Becker
Alex Heining is an Oregon alumni from the graduate class of 2021. After studying sports business and media studies, he has moved into the field of digital marketing as a copywriter and content manager in the Los Angeles area. Still, he loves his Ducks and goes to local high school games all over the Los Angeles and Orange County area to check out new recruits of the future (and a SoFi game or two with the pros). On any given Saturday, expect to find him doing martial arts, playing the guitar, or screaming at the tv over a missed holding penalty.