Oregon was ahead of schedule this year

[OregonFan4Life]

This sucks, this hurts, the coaches were a huge disappointment, but Oregon will get better and Lanning will bring us a natty! It’s taken other coaches a long time. Day is a great coach but he took bad beats in the postseason too, this is Lanning’s first time and he will grow from it.

Ohio State had a roster advantage, it showed. It honestly was amazing Oregon went 13-0, it really says a lot about Lanning’s coaches. Ohio State is a result of years of consistent coaching and elite recruiting classes, Oregon only has 2 years of that and will get more. This takes time. But simply put, Ohio State is a much better team, and they deserve a lot or credit.

But this roster has holes

-patchwork secondary
-Weak interior OLine
-Thin LB with a walk on as a starter, granted a really good and fun walk on but he’s still a walk on
-Good QB but very limited, we have another QB with elite potential

This hurts, but don’t lose faith in Lanning! This process takes time.

[Greenblood]

I agree. This really hurts, but I think Lanning is really going to take this personally and double down on his commitment to making Oregon the greatest program he can make it.

[rockthief]

I am not sold on Moore. He barely played this year and at USC he was mediocre. I really really want to be wrong.

[Everythingsducky]

I am not sold on Moore. He barely played this year and at USC he was mediocre. I really really want to be wrong.

He played at UCLA, and was just ok, but he has an arm. Lanning and Stein have seen enough of Moore to know if he is the guy next year, as is expected.

[OregonFan4Life]

I am not sold on Moore. He barely played this year and at USC he was mediocre. I really really want to be wrong.

He’s a risk for sure, his ceiling is ridiculously high but we’ll see if he gets anywhere close to matching his potential. If he does though, he will be an all time great.

[StevensTechU]

I worry about our offensive line for next year. Our interior offensive line couldn't push a door open and isn't expected to improve next year, and the tackles will get worse. We see each year that you need dominant line play and I'm not sure we're going to get that in 2025.

[Greenblood]

I am not sold on Moore. He barely played this year and at USC he was mediocre. I really really want to be wrong.

He played at UCLA, and was just ok, but he has an arm. Lanning and Stein have seen enough of Moore to know if he is the guy next year, as is expected.

You might want to read the piece below regarding Moore and other players. Lots of enthusiasm.

https://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/2024/1 ... ecial.html

[droop10]

I am not sold on Moore. He barely played this year and at USC he was mediocre. I really really want to be wrong.

You’re judging a kid based on how he played as a true freshman on a team that wasn’t exactly loaded with talent. He’s going to be fine.

[GDuck]

I worry about our offensive line for next year. Our interior offensive line couldn't push a door open and isn't expected to improve next year, and the tackles will get worse. We see each year that you need dominant line play and I'm not sure we're going to get that in 2025.

I agree - I think the OL is my biggest concern going into next year.

[greenyellow]

Pretty good tweet from Geoff Schwartz about how long other NC-winning coaches took to win. Probably a little different now given the portal and NIL though.

Embedded Tweet

[OregonFan4Life]

I worry about our offensive line for next year. Our interior offensive line couldn't push a door open and isn't expected to improve next year, and the tackles will get worse. We see each year that you need dominant line play and I'm not sure we're going to get that in 2025.

Same, and LB I’m worried about as well. Lack of OL recruiting and losing McRoy really hurts. I really hope Conerly comes back but doubt he will.

[DmoneyDuck]

We recruited Platt and Williams last year, both highly regarded LBs. At a certain point this staff needs to trust their recruiting and develop them into difference makers. I'm all for the Portal but I don't think we need mass additions and certain positions are extremely hard to find high level difference makers at. Sooner or later, we need to let the recruits get their feet wet and see what we've got.

[OregonFan4Life]

We recruited Platt and Williams last year, both highly regarded LBs. At a certain point this staff needs to trust their recruiting and develop them into difference makers. I'm all for the Portal but I don't think we need mass additions and certain positions are extremely hard to find high level difference makers at. Sooner or later, we need to let the recruits get their feet wet and see what we've got.

Agreed, my biggest criticism of Lanning is the young guys aren’t getting enough playing time, that needs to change going forward. Portal is supposed to fill a gap or two, not meant to build a team.

[UOducksTK1]

I worry about our offensive line for next year. Our interior offensive line couldn't push a door open and isn't expected to improve next year, and the tackles will get worse. We see each year that you need dominant line play and I'm not sure we're going to get that in 2025.

This and our corner play worries me.

[wepto]

It sucks that it ended this way, but this was honestly an amazing season.

The playoff format also sucks, but so do excuses, so, whatever. I hope they fix it sooner rather than later.

I have been complaining all season about Stein being too predicable and calling way too many short swing passes and screens. And I still don't think he's good enough to get Oregon over the top. But, he's young, and I think the offense was much better this season than it was last season. And since Nix is probably a better QB than Gabriel, I think that makes the improvement look even more impressive. Maybe Stein is improving?

If Lanning can stick around and put together 10+ seasons with the Ducks, I feel good about our chances at a Natty.

As for next year, it's probably too early to really say, there are going to be more portal moves in the spring, but, for fun:

O:
QB - Moore has a lot of upside. But he's primarily a pocket QB and not much of a scrambler, will be interested to see what the offense looks like with him in there. QB is the hardest position to project, but you gotta pick somebody, and it looks like the coaches picked Moore.

RB - I am worried about this position. Whit has been inconsistent (and dropped the ball prior to making it to the end zone). Riggs looks promising. Limar doesn't look quick/fast enough. Harris looks solid, but has played very little. Really, really, hoping Makhi Hughes signs with the Ducks.

TE - Sadiq will probably be one of the top TEs in the country. Jamari Johnson transfers in from Louisville and he looks like an absolute unit--Louisville fans are very disappointed to lose him. Outside of those two guys though, not really anybody with experience.

OL - We didn't see what the backups looked like this year. Coaches brought in new tackles through the portal. Looks like Strother graduates, so we need to replace an interior guy as well. Might struggle here.

D:
DL - Really depends on who comes back. Seems like Caldwell and Harmon have the option to return if they want. Losing Burch hurts. Bear Alexander comes in, he has a ton of talent, but needs prove that his head is screwed on straight.

LB - Does Boettcher come back? Devon Jackson will be a monster if he can improve his instincts. Looks like we lose Bassa and Jacobs. If Boettcher doesn't get his waiver, this group could struggle somewhat.

Corner - Theran Johnson comes in from the portal, he's probably going to start. Who knows who the other starter is. Offord? Going to be new faces.

Nickle/Safety - Savage could take advantage of the weird Juco ruling and come back. Looks like Brandon Johnson, Tysheem Johnson, and Reed all graduate. Dillon Thieneman comes in from Purdue; Purdue fans give him somewhat mixed reviews. So, at least one starting spot is unclear at this point.


After going through the roster, I think making the 12 team playoff again is a very achievable goal. There are still a couple holes to fill, but there is a spring portal window available to fill those needs. Hope we can find a booster willing to roll up a Brinks truck and get Makhi Hughes.