The past two seasons the Oregon football program has primarily used zone blocking schemes to run the football, and this blocking concept usually has the offensive line moving in unison at the point of attack. These schemes take advantage of a defense by using double teams initially, then having one of the two blockers peel off to attack a linebacker …
The Pistol: Just a Formation or an Entire Offense?
There’s been speculation about just how much, if at all, the pistol will or should be used by the 2020 Oregon Ducks’ offense. A few have hoped that the pistol will be mothballed with the introduction of Coach Joe Moorhead as offensive coordinator. But if the few spring practices that Oregon was able to complete is any indication, Coach Mario …
The Joe Moorhead Offense: The “Duo” Run Play
Sometimes in football, the best plays are the most simple plays. That just happens to be the case for a run scheme called “duo.” Coach Joe Moorhead has utilized the duo concept during his time with the Penn State Nittany Lions and the Mississippi State Bulldogs. He will almost certainly bring the play to the Oregon Ducks offense. Duo is also …
Oregon Offense Analysis–The Tunnel Screen
This past season was historic as the Oregon football team was able to capture the Pac-12 Championship and win the Rose Bowl. This was not, however, a season that saw Oregon overwhelming opposing defenses with big plays, tempo, and dynamic playmakers as in years past. Rather, it was an offense without an elite wide receiver that utilized creativity in the …
Will Coach Altman Ever Claim a National Championship?
Head Coach Dana Altman is the all-time coaching wins leader for Oregon Basketball. One of the winningest active coaches in NCAA Division 1 coaching, Altman has led his teams to 669 victories, ranking him in the Top Ten of active D-1 coaches. His combined record is 259-103 (.715) over 10 seasons at Oregon, surpassing prior leader Ernie Kent‘s record of 235 wins. Coach …
Joe Moorhead’s Portland Concept
In one of his first interviews as Oregon’s new offensive coordinator, Coach Joe Moorhead touched on some of the similarities between his and the 2019 Ducks’ run game. He also mentioned that the most obvious differences in scheme would be in the passing game. The new Ducks air attack will be rooted in the West Coast pass concepts that Coach …
QBs Running MORE in 2020: Can the Oregon Coaches Achieve the RIGHT Balance?
It is going to drive me crazy, like Willie Taggart running Justin Herbert between the tackles and the predictable injury (I called it a week in advance) occurring in 2017, trashing my season tickets. Injuries to QBs ruined seasons in 1988, 1991, 1993, 2005, 2007, 2015 … and then 2017, too? Going into 2018 and 2019, we fans did not want to see …
Payton Pritchard: NBA Journeyman or Future Star?
Last offseason, Payton Pritchard postponed his NBA career to come back and play one more season for the Ducks. Four-year seniors are hard to come by nowadays in college basketball, especially ones that start all four years at one school. It is safe to say that Pritchard has earned himself the honor of being an all time Duck, for any sport. …
Joe Moorhead’s Power Dart Read and Power Dart RPO
Imagine being a linebacker tasked with making a split-second choice between taking on Outland Trophy winner Penei Sewell as a pulling tackle or trying to cover a speedy receiver like Mycah Pittman or Jaylon Redd out of the slot. The RPO (Run, Pass, Option) is an offensive scheme that mixes together different run and pass options based on defensive alignment …
The Joe Moorhead Offense: The Inverted Veer
Throughout the off-season, those of us wondering what exactly a Coach Joe Moorhead offense at Oregon will look like can find hints in the form of play selection from his previous stops. Though there will be collaboration with the other Ducks offensive coaches, there are a few staple plays that I’d be willing to bet Coach Moorhead calls next season. …
Andy Avalos’s Lethal Weapon: The Five-Man Front
Before Andy Avalos introduced his brilliant defensive schemes last fall, Oregon’s glaring weakness was its inability to defend players in space. Ducks defenders often looked like ghosts pursuing pac-men all over the football field. Former defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt shored up some of the weaknesses, but it was Avalos who put a stop to the flow of embarrassing big plays …
What Makes Dana Altman’s Defense so Successful?
Dana Altman is known for his spread offense and his match-up zone defense. While the offense gets adjusted every year to fit personnel, the defense has remained the same and is a key to Oregon’s success. Altman’s zone defense is different than most generic 2-3 zone defenses that teams face. It uses a lot of man-to-man principles to cover holes and …