In his preparation for No. 13 Oregon’s bout with No. 18 Utah Saturday, head coach Mark Helfrich said the first thing that comes to mind is Joe Walker’s miraculous 100-yard fumble return touchdown in their game last year.
“It’s the first thing that comes to [the Utes’] minds too, and they’re looking for retribution.”
Utah quarterback Travis Wilson connected with wide receiver Kaelin Clay for a 79-yard reception that would have put the Utes ahead 14-0. Clay, however, dropped the ball to celebrate the touchdown a moment before he crossed the goal line. As Utah fans rejoiced, Walker scooped up the ball and ran it back for a defensive touchdown, which tied the game after the extra point.

The Ducks translated the momentum from the 14-point turnaround to pound Utah 51-27. Their takeaway:
“If you have the ball, finish the play,” Helfrich said. “If you don’t have the ball, finish the play and something might happen.”
The Ducks still aren’t sure whether they’ll be tasked with defending Wilson or back-up Kendal Thompson at quarterback this time around. Wilson injured his left shoulder when he was hit low while scrambling down the sideline against Utah State two weeks ago. Thompson, starting in his place, led the Utes to a 45-24 win over Fresno State last week.
Despite the uncertainty, the players didn’t spend their week of preparation catering their game plan toward the strengths of either quarterback.
“You can only do what your players can handle,” Helfrich said. “From a preparation standpoint, there’s a little more on the coaches to prioritize differently in practice.”
Both teams’ quarterbacks will be “game time decisions.” Last week against Georgia State, Jeff Lockie started in place of Vernon Adams Jr., who broke his finger in the season-opener against Eastern Washington. Lockie completed 23 of 31 passes for 228 yards, two touchdowns and no picks.
“That happens all the time,” Helfrich said in regards to each team’s quarterback situation. “There are guys all over at a lot of positions, not just quarterbacks, who are nicked and dinged. It’s one of those weird and unfortunate things, but you have to make the best of it and compete your tail off.”
The Utes are well known for their physicality and big-bodied players at just about every position. Their defense is often compared to that of the Michigan State Spartans, who bottled up Oregon’s running game in their 31-28 win.
“We have a fairly good idea of what [the defense] is going to do from a schematic standpoint,” Helfrich said. “You have to compete and be physical, and match their physicality.”
On the other hand, Oregon’s defense is looking to rebound from poor tackling and pass defense in consecutive games, especially at the safety position. Glen Ihenacho and Juwaan Williams played bigger roles in the secondary last week, and may see them expand this week.
“Those guys are improving,” Helfrich said. “Glen, in particular, has improved a ton over the past couple weeks. We need to create more competition at that position, have some success and feed off of that as a team.”
The Ducks and the Utes square off Saturday, 5:00 p.m. at Autzen Stadium.
Follow Kenny Jacoby on Twitter @KennyJacoby