UCLA Football Preview: Oregon Brings a Very Potent Offense to Face the Bruins
Offensive Coordinator Will Stein and QB Dillon Gabriel have lots of different weapons to use against teams.
The Oregon offense is averaging almost 37 points per game this season. While that’s certainly concerning, what appears to be more concerning is the fact that the Ducks have increased the number of points they score each week.
First, they scored 24 against Idaho. Then, they put up 37 against Boise State in Week 2. In the first non-Pac-12 “Civil War” contest against Oregon State, the Ducks scored 49 two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, the UCLA defense is allowing an average of nearly 30 points per game.
So, with tomorrow’s game being a night game, the only question is whether the phenomenon known as Pac-12 After Dark will transition to the Big Ten and become Big Ten After Dark, especially considering that both teams playing tomorrow are former Pac-12 teams. That may be about the only hope that UCLA has of defeating the eighth-ranked Ducks.
Let’s jump right in and look at Oregon’s offensive personnel.
Quarterback
The Oregon quarterback room might as well be named after Chip Kelly. Why? Because not only is former Bruin Dante Moore now at Oregon, but also because the starting quarterback for the Ducks is Dillon Gabriel, who nearly transferred to UCLA. Of course, it should come as no surprise that Gabriel proved to be another of the many Chip Kelly recruiting failures.
The saving grace here is that Moore is riding the bench in Eugene this year. So far, he’s only played in one game and that was Oregon’s 49-14 blowout of the Beavers where Dan Lanning only allowed Moore to attempt three passes, making it hard for him to throw the ball right into the hands of any defenders yet.
Of course, Gabriel will start for the Ducks, and he’s been off the charts so far this season. He’s completed an unbelievable 84.04% of his passes, going 79 of 94 so far. He’s also thrown for six touchdowns with no picks yet. He’s also averaging 304 yards passing per game. If he can continue to maintain that percentage, he may just hear his name called as the next winner of the Heisman Trophy.
Running Game
It should come as no surprise that Oregon runs a well-balanced offense. Despite the fact that Dillon Gabriel is throwing the ball really well, the Ducks have actually run the ball a little more than they have thrown it. In fact, they have run the ball 51.72% of the time.
Of Oregon’s 105 rushing attempts, junior running back Jordan James has carried the ball on just under half of those attempts (44). As a result, James has run the ball on 21.67% of the Ducks’ offensive plays. When you factor in James’ six receptions, he touches the ball on almost 25% of Oregon’s offensive plays.
When he runs the ball, he averages 6.4 yards per carry as well. So, he’s going to get the ball. You know he’s going to get the ball. And, offensive coordinator Will Stein is essentially challenging defenses to try to stop him.
The only positive, if there is one, is that he isn’t averaging more yards per game than the 94.33 that he is.
Meanwhile, Noah Whittington, who is one of the team’s kickoff returners, will sub in to give James a breather. The good news here is that he is averaging a full two yards less per carry than James, even if he gets half the carries that James does.
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Gabriel can run in addition to throw. He’s carried 18 times and only netted 26 yards, it’s because, while he has gained 81 yards, he’s also lost 57 including yards lost on sacks which are considered rushing plays in college football.
Passing Game
While four of the Oregon receivers have made more than 10 receptions each, there’s one guy who really stands out as Gabriel’s favorite target. That’s senior receiver Tez Johnson. Through three games, Johnson has already made 22 receptions for 190 yards with two touchdowns. That’s almost as many receptions as the next two guys combined.
The guy with the next most receptions is senior tight end Terrance Ferguson. Through three games, Ferguson has caught 13 passes for 159 yards. So, he’s second to Johnson in both receptions as well as yardage. Despite that, he has yet to find the end zone this season.
Junior Evan Stewart’s eleven receptions is one more than senior Traeshon Holden, but Holden actually has one more receiving yard than Stewart. Holden’s 154 yards on ten catches gives him the highest average per reception on the team for guys with three or more receptions. Stewart isn’t far behind with an average of 13.91 YPC, In fact, these guys are even close in their longest catches of the year. Holden’s longest went for 59 yards which Stewart’s was a 67-yard reception.
The big difference between the pair appears to be Holden’s ability to find the end zone. He has two touchdowns this year while Stewart has only scored once.
Analysis
The Ducks have a lot of different offense weapons to use against opposing defenses. If they want to move it on the ground, they’ve got the duo of James and Whittington. If they want to go to the air, they have a host of receivers for Gabriel to choose from. As a result, it means that opposing defenses have a lot to be worried about when they take the field against the Ducks, and so far, no team has been able to adequate stop this offense in order to win.
To be sure, Boise State came close, but even in that game, the Ducks found the end zone when it mattered in order to win the game.
As much as I might want to believe in UCLA’s defense, it’s hard to do that after watching the last two games. Let’s hope I’m wrong.
Go Bruins!!!
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We are *4 score* dogs. Enuf said.
I think we can cover the spread at least.