What is Oregon going to do with Charles Nelson?
After a freshman year in which he caught 23 passes for 325 yards and five touchdowns, the coaching staff decided to move Nelson to defense for the upcoming season.
“Where he plays for the upcoming season will be based upon depth on both sides of the ball,” Oregon head coach Mark Helfrich said. “He really is a fantastic football player — he’s like a little kid out there that’s really tough, smart and just loves football.”
Considering who the Ducks lost in the secondary and who they have returning at wide receiver, the move seemed reasonable.
After Nelson’s showing in the annual spring game, it seems that the idea he plays both offense and defense is reasonable, too.
The first play of the game Nelson tackled running back Thomas Tyner. Late in the first half, Nelson made a toe-tapping interception on the sideline for the first pick of the game.
Overall, he finished the day on defense with three tackles and one interception.
“They’ve kept me on defense throughout the whole spring because they want me to learn all the techniques and everything that goes along with it,” Nelson said. “I learned that I still have a lot of work to do.”
The reason Nelson’s move to defense was worth questioning on Saturday was because he was the best wide receiver on the field.
“I just went out there today with the mentality to be able to do both and do what I have to do whether it be on offense or defense,” Nelson said. ”
In the first half alone, Nelson had five catches for 144 yards and two touchdowns. On two separate occasions, Nelson caught the ball, made one move and out-sprinted the entire Oregon defense to the end zone. Another time saw Nelson take the ball to the right but then reverse field, make three moves to evade tacklers, and turn a 10-yard loss into an 11-yard gain.
While there’s no doubt that Nelson is a special football player and primed for a big sophomore season, the question is whether it will come on the offensive or defensive side of the ball? Or both?
“I think everybody would like to do that if they can,” Nelson said about being a two-way player. “They just have to go out there with the right mindset and want to do it.”
Either way, head coach Mark Helfrich and his staff have a decision to make. A good decision that is.
Follow Ryan Kostecka on Twitter: @Ryan_Kostecka
Charles Nelson shows off as a two-way threat during Oregon spring game
Ryan Kostecka
May 1, 2015
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