How will the Oregon Ducks fair in their first season in the Big Ten conference? The Ducks have hit the weight room in preparation to play National Championship contenders in the Ohio State Buckeyes, Michigan Wolverines and other elite teams.

The Buckeyes are looking to win their first Big Ten Title since 2020, while Oregon also won it’s last (Pac-12) conference championship in 2020.

The Ducks and Buckeyes each have team total wins set at 10.5 and Ohio State has the best-odds to win the Big Ten Championship game.

However, Oregon is a “best bet” to win the Big Ten Championship game at +250 odds, according to FanDuel. The reasoning? Oregon’s favorable schedule and high-flying passing attack.

As far as tough Big Ten road games go, Ohio State’s slate is tougher than the Ducks, Ohio State plays at Oregon, Penn State and Michigan, while Oregon’s schedule appears slightly easier with home-field advantage vs. the Buckeyes and a tough road matchup at Michigan.

On offense, Oregon welcomes two of the top transfer portal athletes in quarterback Dillon Gabriel and receiver Evan Stewart. Both fill needs for Oregon, who saw quarterback Bo Nix and top-receiver Troy Franklin both drafted to the Denver Broncos on the 2024 NFL Draft.

Gabriel and Stewart have established chemistry this offseason and Stewart says Gabriel is the most-talented quarterback he’s played with.

“I’ve never really had a quarterback of his caliber, I’ll put it that way,” Stewart said. “As in years-wise, him being a senior, and him seeing a lot and playing with a lot of dudes who I’ve heard of and looked up to. It’s definitely a good thing to watch every single day of how he prepares himself and how he handles his business.”

Veteran wide receiver Tez Johnson and tight end Terrance Ferguson add explosiveness to Ducks offensive coordinator Will Stein’s exciting offense.

An exciting roster and innovative coaching staff equals high expectations and “best bets.”

The Big Ten expanded to 18 teams in 2024 – adding Oregon, Washington, USC and UCLA – making it the largest conference in college football. Another change to this season is the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff, opening up competition and creating more meaningful games later in the season.

If Oregon is to win the Big Ten Championship game, the Ducks would get a berth into the College Football Playoff.

The Ducks narrowly missed the CFP in 2023, suffering a loss to the Washington Huskies in the Pac-12 Championship game.

In 2024, expect the unexpected for Oregon’s offense.

“(Will Stein) has some crazy trick plays, always. He’s drawing up on a napkin somewhere in a restaurant,” said tight end Terrance Ferguson to Oregon Ducks SI’s Bri Amaranthus. “Coach Stein’s done a great job of being creative like that. And he really thrives in trying to get the players the ball in space. And I think that’s really the best thing you can do.”

Oregon kicks off the 2024 season vs. Idaho on Aug. 31 in Autzen Stadium (4:30 p.m. PT, Big Ten Network).

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It is the last week without college football on the television until January. Today, the University of Oregon football team wrapped up their final day of fall camp. For some, the feeling of anticipation for the season is like that of Christmas Eve or the day before a trip. For the Oregon Ducks, there’s still work to be done.

Oregon coach Dan Lanning spoke on this topic during the last fall camp media availability on Wednesday.

“Our goal is to improve every single day,” Lanning said. “Did we improve this fall camp? Absolutely. Are we where we want to be yet? No. Definitely not. We’re taking steps, there hasn’t been a day where we come out here and I didn’t feel like our guys didn’t want to work. So, I appreciate that.”

One area that Oregon needs to iron out is their interior offensive line. Currently, there’s no official announcements for starters at center and right guard. This is a total contrast to the exterior spots, as the starting right tackle job for Oregon is claimed by senior and Associated Press preseason All-American Ajani Cornelius and starting left tackle is claimed by junior Josh Connerly Jr. 

Lanning’s response on the potential depth for the line was also not very illuminating.

“What our best group is. Which goes out there and has the most efficiency and performs the best. Whoever performs the best – that’s who’s going to be out there,” Lanning said.

Looking to center, it seems junior walk-on Charlie Pickard has taken the most reps for the position. According to a previous interview with senior offensive lineman Nishad Strother, Pickard has become a leader in the o-line room. He also spoke to the other linemen taking reps for the position.

“Charlie Pickard, Iapani “Poncho” Laloulu, Kanen Rossi even. Yeah, I’m comfortable with all those guys [who] are really smart. Know the playbook in and out. So I think we’re solid at center as well,” Strother said.

Laloulu played the most snaps out of the three last year playing in all fourteen games with one start during the VRBO Fiesta Bowl versus Liberty. The now Sophomore played 111 snaps at center with a little over 300 snaps at both guard positions as well in 2023.

Lanning spoke specifically on Pickard attending the O-Line Masterminds camp in Frisco, Texas during the first weekend in July. Typically, athletes that have attended the camp on behalf of Oregon go on to play significant roles in the trenches. Though he didn’t decide for Pickard to attend, he spoke to the work ethic Pickard has displayed throughout his tenure with Oregon.

“I don’t really decide who goes there and doesn’t go there,” Lanning said. “But Charlie is a guy that does absolutely everything right in our program. He’s worked his tail off for every opportunity he’s gotten.”

“I think Charlie’s the leader of our room, honestly,” Strother said. “He’s been here for a long time. He runs a lot of our player-led stuff. I love Charlie to death. I think he’s really the backbone of our room. So Charlie is that guy for me, for sure. He’s a walk on, you know? So, I mean, he deserves everything he’s getting now. the recognition, you know, the rotations, Charlie, deserves it all.”

There’s also the question of who will pick up the right guard position left open by senior starter Matthew Bedford who suffered a left knee injury with no return time stated and back-up junior Dave Iuli undergoing toe surgery during the off season. Senior Marcus Harper II seems like the go-to for left guard, as he started all fourteen games last season at the position. He’s also gone through a physical transformation over the off-season, something Lanning spoke on.

 “I just think ultimately what our players are recognizing is at the end of the day you don’t want to get ready for the combine three months out from the combine,” Lanning said. “Your best resume is your film. What’s your film say about you as a player and you’ve got this window of opportunity to put yourself in the best position to be a great player now. Why wait? It’s your film that’s going to determine your success at the next level.”

Given Oregon’s tendency to prep their offensive linemen in several different positions, it’s not irregular for athletes to shift to different positions based on team need. That means other candidates in the offensive line room have yet to be confirmed for the right guard spot. A few weeks ago before Bedford’s injury, we reported on Duck offensive line coach A’lique Terry’s thoughts regarding the position battle.

“You still got Matthew Bedford, you still got Nishad Strother, you still got Iapani Laloulu. You got even Gernorris Wilson. So a ton of guys there that are still competing for that right guard spot. And the beautiful part is that we still got two weeks left in camp. Those guys compete their tail off, may the best man win,” Terry said.

Though right guard and center are still two question marks for the Ducks, one of Lanning’s quotes from this last fall camp media availability gave some perspective to the team as a whole.

“Still evaluating who we are,” Lanning said.

That includes still evaluating the inside offensive line, as the Ducks hope to improve on the previous season, where only five sacks were allowed.

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After years of negotiations, Oregon’s Occupational Safety and Health Division, or Oregon OSHA, released a set of proposed changes that will tighten health and safety standards in farmworker housing.

Some farmworker advocacy groups say the proposed changes fall short of what they were asking for. At the same time, groups representing farm owners say the rules go too far, and will likely put an undue financial burden on employers and could lead to a reduced workforce during peak harvest seasons.

Oregon farmworker housing standards are “alarmingly outdated”, according to advocates. The last time Oregon OSHA received input from farmworker groups and growers was in 2008 during a rulemaking process.

The office did make adjustments to housing standards in 2018 and during the COVID pandemic, according to Mark Peterson, the public information and communications director at the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services, which houses Oregon OSHA. Farm owners usually recruit seasonal or year-round workers to harvest or do other labor that may not be possible with machine equipment. Martha Sonato, a state legislative and policy advocate for Oregon Law Center, said workers, many of whom are Latino, tend to live in owner-provided housing because it’s more affordable than renting nearby.

As of August, there were 508 registered farmworker housing sites, according to Oregon OSHA. Advocates say those housing units vary in living conditions, but they say a lot of the buildings lack flushable indoor toilets, proper food storage or cooking facilities. Sonato says some of them don’t have laundry machines and some tend to be overcrowded.

“Everybody deserves a place that is healthy and safe and that they can live with dignity,” Sonato said. “And unfortunately our housing market is so unaffordable that it really leaves a lot of people with very limited options.”

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Some of the improvements Sonato said they’ve asked for include updates to electrical, septic, water and plumbing systems in employer-provided housing. Sonato also said they’ve asked the agency to require that housing be located a certain distance away from fields and potential pesticide drift.

“In agricultural labor housing, we do have families with children that are playing outside and there is that possibility that they may be exposed to pesticide,” Sonato said.

Improvements aimed at protecting agricultural workers

Oregon OSHA attempted to address shortcomings of farmworker housing earlier this month, when officials released a draft of proposed changes. The draft updated requirements for farmworker housing, such as including private changing rooms near showers. The proposal would require farm owners to test drinking water for arsenic and nitrates and increase the number of sinks and toilets per person.

The office has also suggested creating a seasonal agricultural labor housing surveying program to increase Oregon OSHA’s ability to evaluate housing conditions. But that would hinge on a budget request from lawmakers during the 2025 state legislative session.

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While Sonato said she appreciates some of the changes, she said the proposed updates fall short of what she and other farmworker advocacy groups were asking for.

For instance, she takes issue with the number of toilets provided. The draft rules call for one toilet per 10 occupants, the rules also allow for portable toilets. Farmworker groups also disagree with the requirements around kitchens, which still allow for them to be outdoors, provided they are screened. There’s also no mention of requiring the houses be built away from fields.

“It’s a missed opportunity,” Sonato said. “As a state, we can always be more protective, even if in other states, we don’t see rules that are what we would consider strong.”

On the other hand, Jenny Dresler, a spokesperson with Oregon Farm Bureau, an advocacy group for farmers and ranchers, said farm owners see eye-to-eye with advocates on some of the changes.

“That was our goal throughout this whole process,” she said. “Our other goal was to make sure that this was feasible and could be implemented. And that we weren’t further shuttering family farms.”

However, Dresler said many of the changes are ambiguous. She said the requirements that are clear, like providing 50 square feet of space per bunkbed in a bedroom, up from 40 square feet, will be costly, and likely lead to a reduction in the available housing stock, which would lead to fewer workers.

“With Oregon’s regulatory landscape, it’s not like you can go and rebuild that housing, especially when you’re in an orchard or when you’re surrounded by other farms or when there is no community based housing available in the area,” Dresler said. “So it’s not like you just have an opportunity to go and rebuild that housing.”

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While Oregon OSHA will plan to make $5 million available through the Oregon Department of Agriculture to assist farm owners, Dresler said that’s a drop in the bucket.

“Five million dollars and as we know, in 2024 does not go nearly as far as you would need,” she said. “And so it’s going to be really important that the agency understands the total universe of costs that have been proposed in the draft.’

Oregon OSHA is making plans to hold a public hearing on the proposed changes both in English and Spanish, but the agency hasn’t scheduled it yet. If the proposed changes are approved, they will be phased in through 2027.