College Football Rankings: Top 25 after spring practice
Oregon Ducks
2016: 4-8,
The past two seasons for the Oregon Ducks have been quite the fall. A perennial elite in the college football world, 2015 and 2016 were both unforgettable outings for those in Eugene. That culminated with the 4-8 record last season that led to Mark Helfrich getting axed from his head coaching duties. Now, after not having a player drafted — another historic low — they bring in the enigmatic and exciting Willie Taggart to try to turn their fortunes back towards their standards.
One of the most noticeable things from this spring that Taggart brings to the table is an increased focus, and thus performance, on the defensive side of the ball. With a new staff in place and guys seemingly stepping up all over that side of the ball this spring, the Ducks’ path back to success is going to start with defense. That’s unfamiliar territory, but a positive step for this team under a new head coach.
Meanwhile, the offense remains a question mark for Oregon. Royce Freeman and weapons such as Darren Carrington are clearly in place. However, it’s hard to say how effective they’ll be if the quarterback play isn’t substantially improved from a year ago. Justin Herbert definitely wasn’t substantially better this spring, but he did show noticeable improvements from his hardships as a freshman a year ago.
This team is hard to peg at this point as Taggart still institutes his culture and way of thinking within the program. However, with his ability as a coach and the talent in Eugene, it’s hard not to be optimistic to a certain degree.