Oregon’s situation at quarterback has been well-documented for the past several months, but the issues have certainly magnified the last three weeks. Using a quarterback rotation with Jeff Lockie and Taylor Alie in back-to-back games, the Ducks passing attack has generated just 25 completions and 260 yards.
It is a reason why playmakers such as Devon Allen and Dwayne Stanford have seen such a fierce drop-off in their production this season. Simply put, their aren’t as many passes to come by, and Oregon has become increasingly predictable and less flashy because of it.
“We’ve been heavily dependent on the run the last two weeks and that gets people tight into the box,” offensive coordinator Scott Frost said after practice Monday. “We just haven’t been able to make any of those throws for two weeks. It’s definitely a part of our offensive game that needs to improve.”
That much is clear. On Saturday, the Ducks gave up a 10-point advantage in the fourth quarter and lost in double overtime to Washington State, 45-38. Once again, the lack of an efficient and consistent offense became a key decider in an Oregon loss.
“Usually in games like that, we find ways win to them,” Frost said. “We found ways to lose on Saturday.
“We got to have a little more consistent play at quarterback. We need consistency at that position, we’ve played three people at that position over the course of the year and it’s hard to have people in and out of the games like that. ”
Frost didn’t say whether a quarterback rotation would continue in the Ducks’ next matchup at Washington this Saturday, but did say that the Ducks were hoping to find a more standard option at the position.
On the other side of the ball, the secondary’s struggles mirrored the quarterbacks’ problems on Saturday. Washington State’s offense accounted for 505 yards through the air and scored on drives at the end of each half.
“We had a dozen chances to win the game and you walk off knowing the mistakes you made,” defensive backs coach John Neal said. “It’s beyond discouraging. It’s gut-wrenching, it’s never fun to lose and lose when you feel like you gave it away.”
The Ducks played without experienced defensive backs Reggie Danels and Chris Seisay Saturday, but Neal said that was no excuse.
“We made the mistakes we made with players that should’ve made those plays,” Neal said. “The next man up system is right and we could have made those plays without those guys.”
Looking ahead, Oregon will face Washington this Saturday at 7:30 p.m. The Huskies are coming off an upset win over USC last week and are currently allowing opposing offenses just 15 points per game.
Follow Justin Wise on Twitter @JustinFWise