Oregon
Centers split reps, receiver still absent: What we saw at Oregon football practice on Wednesday
EUGENE — The Oregon Ducks continue to practice with at least two centers taking first-team reps.
Iapani Laloulu and Charlie Pickard each took snaps at center and guard Wednesday morning at the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex, same as Tuesday. The rest of the starting offensive line rotation was also unchanged from a day earlier, with Marcus Harper II at right guard, Matthew Bedford participating in the drill again and Nishad Strother at left guard, and some shuffling of personnel with the second and third groups.
Receiver Gary Bryant Jr. (leg) was absent for a second straight day while Evan Stewart, who did not participate during early periods of Tuesday’s practice, worked with the punt returners and showed no apparent issue on Wednesday.
The opening period of special teams included a drill for most of the skill players who aren’t on the return units and running back Noah Whittington was with that group instead of the kickoff returners.
No. 9 Oregon (2-0) at Oregon State (2-0)
- When: Saturday, Sept. 14
- Time: 12:30 p.m. PT
- Where: Reser Stadium, Corvallis
- TV channel: Fox (KPTV 12 in Portland)
- Stream: Fubo (free trial) or DirecTV Stream (free trial). If you already have a provider, you can also watch this game live on FOX Sports Live with your cable or satellite provider login information.
The offensive and defensive line pods during the second period were:
- Right guard, tackle vs. defensive tackle, end: Marcus Harper II, Ajani Cornelius vs. Jamaree Caldwell, Jordan Burch | Matthew Bedford, Kawika Rogers vs. Derrick Harmon, Aydin Breland | JacQawn McRoy, Fox Crader vs. Breland, Caldwell | Austin Mims, Crader vs. Breland, Burch
- left guard, center, right guard vs. defensive tackle, nose: Charlie Pickard, Iapani Laloulu, Gernorris Wilson vs. Terrance Green, Jericho Johnson | Laloulu, Pickard, Wilson vs. Green, Johnson | Holden Whipple, Kanen Rossi, Ty Delgado vs. Green | Whipple, Rossi, Delgado vs. Johnson
- left tackle, guard vs. end, tackle: Josh Conerly Jr., Nishad Strother vs. Xadavien Sims, A’Mauri Washington | George Silva, Lipe Moala vs. A’Mauri Washington, Tionne Gray | Bailey Jaramillo, Trent Ferguson vs. Sims, Gray | Beau Cressallen, Devin Brooks vs. Sims, Gray
Other observations:
- Kickoff returners were Jordan James, Jayden Limar, Jay Harris, Nikko Reed, Rodrick Pleasant and Da’Jaun Riggs
- Punt returners: Tez Johnson, Ryan Pellum, Dillon Gresham and Evan Stewart
- Limited: offensive lineman Dave Iuli (toe) was in cleats, cornerbacks Jahlil Florence (right knee) and Timon Davis (unspecified)
- Absent/out: receiver Gary Bryant Jr. (leg), outside linebacker Ashton Porter (unspecified), defensive lineman My’Keil Gardner (right foot), cornerback Dakoda Fields (knee)
– James Crepea covers the Oregon Ducks and Big Ten. Listen to the Ducks Confidential podcast or subscribe to the Ducks Roundup newsletter.
Dillon Gabriel has led the Oregon Ducks to a 10-0 overall record and the No. 1 ranking the for the past four weeks. The Hawaiian native has thrown for 22 touchdowns (tied for No. 6 in the nation) on 2,848 passing yards (No. 8 in the nation) this season so far. His 74.1 completion rate (No. 1 in the nation) and 168.38 passer rating (No. 6 in the nation) are the stats that have stood out the most from his remarkable campaign.
Because of his efforts, he’s being considered as a candidate for the Heisman Trophy plus was announced as a semifinalist for the Maxwell Award, the Walter Camp Player of the Year award, and the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award. Adding to this long list of honors, he’s now being considered for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award which is given to the top senior at the quarterback position in college football.
Joining Gabriel as the finalists for this award are Ole Miss Running Rebels Jaxson Dart, Colorado Buffaloes Shedeur Sanders, Miami Hurricanes Cam Ward, and Indiana Hoosiers Kurtis Rourke. Gabriel isn’t the first Duck to be considered for the Johnny Unitas Award. Only Marcus Mariota in 2014 has actually won it, but Joey Harrington (2001), Kellen Clemons (2005), Dennis Dixon (2007), Justin Herbert (2019, Anthony Brown Jr. (2021), and Bo Nix (2022 and 2023) were all named finalists.
Gabriel recently broke the NCAA’s all-time record for total touchdowns with 180 total throughout his career spent with the UCF Golden Knights, Oklahoma Sooners, and Oregon. He passed Houston’s Case Keenum previous record of 178 total last week during the 39-18 victory over the Maryland Terrapins.
Gabriel is on the precipice of two major NCAA awards. Gabriel is just three starts by a quarterback away from breaking former Duck Nix’s all-time record at 61 which he should have full control of at some point this season. Gabriel will now set his sights on Keenum’s all-time record for touchdown passes of 155, entering Saturday with 147 in his career.
“You can’t go through that game without recognizing, you know, having the all-time NCAA touchdown record for Dillon Gabriel and what he was able to accomplish there. He’ll be the first one to tell you he doesn’t care, but he should, because that’s a really special moment for him.”
– Coach Dan Lanning after Maryland-Oregon
Coach Dan Lanning and his quarterback have bigger things to worry about than individual awards and records. Oregon will play at Wisconsin this Saturday, Nov. 16 at 4:30 p.m. PT.
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Tonight, Wayne Tinkle’s Oregon State Beavers notched their fourth win of the season by beating Cal State-Fullerton, 70-51, at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis. The winless Titans fought hard and held a halftime lead, holding onto their advantage until just past the 12-minute mark of the second half before Oregon State went on a run to break the game open.
After the second media timeout of period two, the Beavers locked in, outscoring Fullerton 25-6 over the last eight minutes of the contest to create a 19-point lead. Before that, Fullerton defended their 32-25 halftime lead admirably against a much more talented Oregon State squad, but eventually, the talent took over for the Beavers.
Oregon State finished with three players in double figures, led by Nate Kingz, who scored 22 points on 6-for-9 from the field, all of which were from beyond the arc, and also recorded eight boards. Michael Rataj had 18 points and 10 rebounds on 7-for-13 shooting, while Lithuanian wing Liutauras Lelevicius, who was cleared to play by the NCAA just before the season started, added 12 points on 4-for-8 (3-for-6 from deep). Guard DaMarco Minor struggled with efficiency, but managed nine points and five assists with zero turnovers, playing the lead initiator role effectively in facilitating the offense.
For Fullerton, just one player scored 10-plus: Davis Bynum put up 12 points on 55% shooting and 40% from three on five attempts. No one else scored more than eight; their leading scorer entering the game, Donovan Oday, had a particularly tough evening, shooting just 2-for-11 overall and 0-for-2 on threes.
Though it was a very shaky start for Oregon State, they demonstrated what they can look like when they focus in on an inferior opponent, evident in their 19-point swing over the last eight minutes of the game. They held the Titans to 22.7% from beyond the arc, and only allowed them to get to the line 13 times compared to their own 24 attempts.
Their next game, on Thursday, will be by far their biggest test to date as they host cross-state rival Oregon, giving them an opportunity for an early-season victory that could help define their 2024 campaign.
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The No. 1 Oregon Ducks hit the road for the final time in the regular season as they travel to Madison, Wisconsin, to take on the Wisconsin Badgers in Camp Randall Stadium.
Badgers’ coach Luke Fickell spoke at length about how the Ducks may be the best team that Wisconsin has lined up against this season.
Fickell said on Monday that the Badgers are going challenged by the explosive offensive that the Ducks possess.
“They are going to be challenged in different ways,” Fickell noted. “You can be challenged each and every week in a lot of different ways. This one will be one we maybe haven’t seen the entire year. The ability for them to throw the ball down the field, the dynamic of the wide receivers they have and the quarterback’s ability. . . to make plays both with his feet and through the air.”
It’s been a tough year for the Badgers as their season hasn’t gone exactly to plan. They sit at 5-4, currently in the middle of the pack in the Big Ten. Despite the adversity, Fickell remains adamant that his team hasn’t lost hope for the season and knows that a win over the Ducks could put some juice back into the program.
“You continue to remind them that this is what we signed up for. We recognize that this league, and college football in general, is evolving. This is what you play for. You have every opportunity to go out there and earn the respect that you want,” Fickell said.
The Badgers are going to have to play better defense than they did in their last outing, giving up 42 points to Iowa in a 42-10 loss on Nov. 2. Fickell, a defensive-minded coach, knows his unit needs to play better, but he has faith in his team to get the job done.
“We’ve got guys who we believe are really good football players. They’re gonna be put in some positions to be challenged. . . . I’ve got the utmost confidence they’ll step up to the challenge,” Fickell said.
Oregon is currently favorited by 13.5 points heading into Saturday’s showdown with the Badgers. The game will be broadcasted on NBC and kickoff is at 4:30 p.m.
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