When former Oregon offensive coordinator Gary Crowton left the program for the same position at Louisiana State University, speculation about his replacement varied from Boise State offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin to former Oregon quarterback and current Atlanta Falcons quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave.
So when Chip Kelly was announced as Crowton’s replacement, some were left puzzled by why Oregon coach Mike Bellotti would choose the relatively unknown offensive coordinator from Division I-AA New Hampshire as the man to direct one of the nation’s statistically best offenses.
The short answer is, when it comes to Oregon’s preferred spread offense, few do it better than Kelly.
Multiple players have referred to Kelly as a “guru” this spring and expect to see the offense reach new heights.
“I think he’s a perfect fit for what we’re doing presently and in the future in terms of the spread-option attack,” Bellotti said after Kelly was hired. “In looking at what (New Hampshire does) they’re further outside the box than we are.”
Kelly spent 14 years at New Hampshire, eight as its offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. His spread-option offenses averaged more than 400 yards per game for every season but one, while scoring more than 30 points per game during the last four years.
This is Kelly’s first Division I coaching stop, and he is charged with improving an Oregon offense that averaged nearly 30 points per game last season.
“I think the bar’s been set very high, but there’s no reason why you can’t (improve),” Kelly said. “That’s one of the reasons why I came here; Oregon’s known for being an offensive football school. Hopefully we can set the bar even higher.”
One of Kelly’s ideas to improve the offense is to implement a no-huddle approach, which he used often at New Hampshire and which Crowton used sparingly last season at Oregon.
Kelly hopes the fast-paced approach will catch defenses off-guard by causing confusion and presenting match-up problems before an opposing defense can switch players on and off the field.
“We’re going to try and play fast and get things done,” Kelly said. “I think the key to the spread offense is distributing the ball equally amongst everybody. You’ve got to make them defend everybody.”
That doesn’t mean the Ducks will be running the same offense every week, though. Kelly said that his offense will revolve around the opponent, and fans can expect to see an entirely different approach between Oregon’s first game against Houston and Michigan the following week.
This spring, he’s shown some new wrinkles in the offense. Part of Kelly’s philosophy is to have the 11 best players on the field at one time and has used formations that include junior running backs Jeremiah Johnson and Jonathan Stewart in the backfield at the same time.
One of Kelly’s biggest questions this offseason is at quarterback with seniors-to-be Dennis Dixon and Brady Leaf. Dixon started the first 11 games before he struggled and was replaced by Leaf for the final two. Dixon is atop the depth chart to start the spring.
“No matter who’s your quarterback, you have to play to their strengths,” Kelly said. “It’s finding what the strengths of your individual players are and trying to accentuate the strengths and hide the weaknesses.”
But that continues to be a work in progress as the players understand the fundamentals of his offense. Once that happens, Kelly will start to design plays that are specifically designed to bring out the best in the players.
“It’s like building a house,” Kelly said. “You have to put the foundation in first. We’re not putting the roof on yet.”
It’s evident in the practices thus far. The offense still has a way to go before it’s ready to compete as it adjusts to Kelly’s terminology and the no-huddle offense. Fortunately, there’s still plenty of time before the games start.
“It’s hard to learn. It’s real complicated,” senior wide receiver Cameron Colvin said. “A lot of guys have it, but I’ve been struggling with it right now.”
Colvin said it mostly has to do with players having to react to the quicker pace of the offense while trying to think about what their assignment is on a given play.
“Our offense is nothing without our tempo,” Colvin said. “Coach Kelly tries to teach us this quick tempo, to get it going, but it’s not happening right now. Guys are thinking. Guys are making mistakes.”
And everybody’s still learning to handle Kelly’s communication style – he’s a bit more hands-on than the often subdued Crowton.
“We’re getting used to coach Chip Kelly and his personality. He’s a get-go type of guy,” Dixon said.
That adjustment period may take longer than expected with the way the defense is playing this spring. Kelly said facing this type of adversity early on should benefit them as they continue to progress.
“We’re working on it,” Kelly said. “It’s a matter of picking and choosing (the right players) and just thinking ‘Can you get better every day?’ If you get better every day, the rest of it will take care of itself.”
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