Oregon Ducks Football 2017 Preview

The new Ducks regime under first-year head coach Willie Taggart continues preparations for its Sept. 2 season opener with FCS opponent Southern Utah. Taggart and his co-offensive coordinators Mario Cristobal and Marcus Arroyo are pleased with the progress of an offense that welcomes back eight offensive starters. New defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt has also seen several positives from a defense that returns six starters from last year’s unit that finished 126^th in the nation in total defense yielding 518.4 yards per game.

One of the bright spots during camp and in Sunday’s practice has been the play of Kaulana Apelu, a junior inside linebacker from Hawaii. After starting two games last season, Apelu and 6-foot-4-inch, 225-pound Troy Dye appear to be two of the Ducks’ three starting linebackers in Leavitt’s 4-3 defense.

After consecutive FCS graduate transfers at quarterback, the Ducks will start Justin Herbert, a 6-6 sophomore who had 19 touchdown passes last season. Herbert scored on a 15-yard run in the very first series of plays in 11-on-11 drills. He concluded the session with a 42-yard touchdown pass to 5-8 senior Charles Nelson, who also happened to be the highlight of the special teams period. Nelson displayed his return talents by running back a kickoff for a score.

Senior RB Royce Freeman

The Ducks offense will also have senior RB Royce Freeman back running behind an offensive line that returns all five starters from last season. After consecutive 1,000-yard seasons to start his career, Freeman managed 945 yards on 168 carries last season. His touchdown total was down too with just nine scores last year, the first time Freeman failed to rush for double-digit touchdowns.

Leavitt Game’s Best Coorinator

The biggest questions to be answered for Oregon are on defense where Leavitt has gained a reputation as one of the game’s best coordinators. Leavitt will work with an experienced secondary, but an inexperienced front seven. The Ducks’ defense is going to have to establish an identity quickly. After the opener with Southern Utah, Oregon will face Nebraska and a very good Wyoming squad before beginning its Pac-12 schedule.