Saturday is Oregon’s last tune up game before facing #24 Arizona next week in their PAC-12 opener. Tennessee Tech, a division 2 team with a 0-28 record against division 1 teams, comes to town to take a beating and will get $500,000 for their trouble.
It’s tomato-can football to rival an SEC nonconference schedule, but it all happened because Kansas State backed out of a home and home with the Ducks.
Oregon would have to have a team-wide outbreak of botulism to lose this game. It’s a scout team scrimmage with officials and rally girls, but even a scout team scrimmage can reveal some important things about a team and its progress. First, how do they handle themselves in one-sided game? Where is their attention, and do they execute properly?
Particularly important is how quarterback Marcus Mariota, the offensive line and receivers handle the blitz. Last week Fresno State had huge success in the second half overloading the line of scrimmage with stunts and run blitzes. They sent seven and eight shooting the gaps in the spread, and it completely destroyed Oregon’s rhythm in the third quarter. In fact, the Ducks gained just 23 yards in the third period, and Mariota had a 28-yard scramble on the last play of the period. That’s negative-five for the first 14 minutes if you’re scoring at home.
The Ducks will get a steady diet of the overload blitzes until they show they can handle them. The quarterback has to recognize them, the line has to adjust, and a receiver has to see that he is “hot” and cut off his route to help his passer.
Against Tennessee Tech, look for the Ducks to try and do a better job in this crucial concept of team offense.
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