Scouting Oregon's spring game
Dan Lanning is putting a lot of resources together in Eugene with a smart young staff. Can they build a title favorite?
The Oregon Ducks are one of the top four teams listed by oddsmakers with a chance to win the National Championship in 2024. I have issues seeing them take home the crown due to their being quarterbacked by Dillon Gabriel, a rather small if athletic and highly experienced signal-caller.
Then again, Stetson Bennett won back-to-back titles and Gabriel checks off a lot of boxes for a college passer. Gabriel overcame his small stature to grit his way through a number of injuries a year ago at Oklahoma, including a possible concussion that wasn’t clearly diagnosed or detailed. He finished the year throwing for 3,660 yards with 30 touchdowns and running for 373 and 12 more touchdowns. Of course they could also just play fellow incoming transfer Dante Moore…
I took in their spring game this weekend and found a few interesting dimensions to their team. They also recently added 6-foot-5, 330 pound Derrick Harmon this weekend, a Michigan State defensive tackle transfer who joins a D-tackle room already bolstered by the addition of 6-foot-1, 325 pounds Ja’Maree Caldwell from Houston.
Oregon’s overall roster assemblage this offseason makes them a pretty potent squad for evaluation. So I took a look at how some of these pieces are fitting together in the spring game.