I've had time to sleep on the Oregon Ducks late night victory over UCLA down in the Rose Bowl, and I still walk away from it feeling a bit weird.
The team is 4-0. Their last two games have seen the Ducks win by a combined score of 83-27. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel hasn't been sacked in 10 quarters after the offensive line 's very shaky start to the season, and Oregon now ranks No. 6 in the latest AP Poll. So why do I not feel confident?
On paper, everything looks great. Maybe the trepidation stems from Oregon's lack of competition through four games. Before the late night kickoff between Oregon and unranked UCLA in a Rose Bowl that looked to be less than half full, Alabama and Georgia squared off in a heavyweight fight in front of a packed stadium. Football fans were treated to an instant classic, with huge plays on both sides of the ball and a heroic late back-and-forth between two quarterbacks that are not only in the Heisman Trophy race, but are also building their resumes for next spring's NFL Draft.
Watching Oregon play so far has been frustrating. The offense seems to be relying on lateral passing to the sidelines, getting the ball out of Gabriel's hands to his playmakers so they can try to make people miss, to then set up a handful of deep shots per game.
Gabriel attempted 41 passes last night. 31 of them were either behind, at, or within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. The intermediate game is essentially non-existent – Gabriel attempted only five passes between 10-20 yards from the line of scrimmage. When they push it down the field, big things happen.
The game was seemingly out of hand early, with the Ducks up 28-3 right before halftime, until Gabriel threw a bad goal line pass to a slipping Tez Johnson that was taken the other way for nearly a 100-yard pick six. Even still, after halftime, the Ducks seemed content to play conservatively and try to just grind the clock and leave with a win.
Oregon's first two drives of the second half were run-heavy, with Oregon gaining only 27 total yards on nine plays, punting on both of them.
Maybe part of the weird feelings also has to do with the fact that something is seemingly always not right. Oregon's kicking drama continued last night, with a missed extra point along with a kickoff out of bounds. Then, with the offense playing conservatively to chew clock, the defense had it's softest spot of the game, allowing several chunk runs. For a good while, Oregon was only up by eight points early in the second half, and you simply can't take your foot off the gas when you're only up by one score. UCLA was one freak play away from flipping it on its head before Oregon pulled away.
The good news for the Ducks is that they're winning comfortably. Maybe Oregon fans should feel thrilled with the fact that the Ducks still haven't hit their ceiling. What's concerning is the impending matchup with Ohio State in Eugene in two weeks. You'd hope to see the team firing on all cylinders well before that test.
As Dan Lanning likes to say, Oregon's going to go to the doctor. Even after a big win, the team can always improve. We'll hope to see a complete game next weekend against Michigan State in Oregon's final opportunity before facing the Buckeyes.
Related: Ducks playmaker proves to be key to Oregon's success in first Big Ten victory
Follow along all year for more Oregon Ducks coverage on A to Z Sports. You can find me on X @JonHelmkamp , as well as follow our main page @AtoZSportsNFL for all the latest news.
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