Taking a chill pill on those dire concerns

Bill Parcells used to like to say “you are who your record says you are” and the record says the Ducks are pretty good. They’re 3-0, 5th in the nation in scoring and 27th in scoring defense, the numbers that matter in the end result.

Analysts around the web and traditional media have expressed concern this week about injuries on the offensive line and the play in the secondary, but those will prove to be overblown.

The Ducks have plenty of depth on the offensive line, and they’re likely to get tackles Jake Fisher and Andre Yruretagoyena back over the next few weeks. Youthful players like Jake Pisarcik, Evan Voeller and Jamal Prater are ready for bigger roles. Walk-on Matt Pierson, who has overcome so much to win a starting role at left tackle, has the frame, work ethic and intelligence to succeed there.

But the biggest reason the offensive line will be all right is that Marcus Mariota is tremendous at making them look good. He wriggles out of a lot of trouble, reads the defense quickly and escapes when he has to. At the same time Oregon’s zone blocking scheme simplifies what the linemen have to do in the running game: a lot of time they are taking defenders where they want to go and letting the Ducks quick running backs choose a lane.

In the secondary, Rob Moseley’s practice reports for the last two days have featured a healthy Troy Hill leaping for an interception, active and apparently ready to go. John Neal has always excelled at developing his guys and creating an effective unit. They will improve as the season goes on. In particular redshirt freshman Chris Seisay got burned a couple of times against Wyoming, but Ifo and Hill got stuck in the toaster as freshmen also; it’s part of the apprenticeship in a perilous job where your every error is replayed four times on the Jumbotron and five times at home.

This week fans can expect them to give up a lot of yards to a tricky Washington State passing attack, but Neal’s crew will get their shots in and turn 3-4 balls the other way. Washington State tries to score completing a dozen passes for 8 yards a pop. That’s a high risk/low reward strategy against a fast, athletic secondary. Erick Dargan and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu are sure to win some battles, and the Cougar defense won’t stop Oregon’s running game.

Duck fans understand that the Quack Attack flips the script on traditional football. They’re not designed to win games 21-13 with a fumble recovery for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. At Oregon, the approach is, “just try and outscore us.” It’s a more entertaining brand of football, and it’s paid off with 50 wins in this decade. They’re highly likely to get another one this weekend, in spite of the concerns.