For two weeks in a row the Oregon defense has been exposed, though the final scoreboard may not show it. The Duck defense has a weakness in defending the run.
Against Oklahoma State the Ducks gave up 144 total yards, which may not sound too bad as the bulk of Cowboys’ total offense came off only a few drives — but on those drives, the Ducks found themselves pushed back on long, grinding drives that ate clock and kept the defense on the field. That’s the very thing the Ducks don’t want. Mr. FishDuck agrees, and took a break from his study of outstanding paper writer services to express his frustration to me.
Then this weekend against Northwestern, the Ducks gave up a total of 178 yards on the ground. This number is misleading on two accounts. One, in college football, sacks count as negative rushing yards and the Oregon defense had two sacks and two tackles for loss, plus the big drop by the Northwestern quarterback that was negative 18 yards. The reality is that the Ducks gave up closer to 200 yards on the ground. These yards sustained Northwestern drives throughout the game…