Spring football is a month to shake off the cobwebs and develop momentum for the fall.
It is a time to refine individual performances, and most importantly, to stay healthy.
Players realize this. They don’t want to risk a season-ending injury during a weekly scrimmage.
Nonetheless, head coach Mike Bellotti would like to see a little more tenacity out of his troops as they participate in the final week of spring drills.
The coach has been relatively pleased with his team’s first two scrimmages, but expects more this Saturday when the Ducks close out spring with the Spring Game at 1 p.m. in Autzen Stadium.
“I think at times I feel we’re playing to protect ourselves,” Bellotti said, “and maybe not hurt a teammate. I think that’s great because one of the goals of the spring is to stay healthy.
“But we’ve got to cut it loose and play with the intensity that will make us better.”
The team seems to be ready to accept such a challenge in front of the faithful Duck contingent that is expected to be on hand this weekend.
“Hopefully we can come out and show the crowd something,” fullback Josh Line said. “We’ll hit a little harder and just give them something to get excited about. We have a long way to go, but we’ll come out and play hard.”
Wide receiver Marshaun Tucker said the crowd’s energy will help them take their game to another level.
“Autzen’s going to be loud — it always is,” he said. “It’s going to be pretty amped, so we’ll be out there working hard. It’s going to be a show.”
Bellotti did admit that some of his original goals he set for the spring have not been met.
“I think we’re a little bit behind schedule,” Bellotti said, “because I think in some respects we kind of slowed things down to allow the kids to feel more comfortable with a certain pace.”
One specific position that limits what the team can do is tailback. With no proven runner on the spring depth chart it is tough to truly gauge the offense, as well as the defense.
When Jermaine Hanspard moved back to the cornerback slot, the tailback duties were left to redshirt freshmen Carlos McCall and Joe Broder. In last Friday’s scrimmage, Broder led the team with 48 yards on nine carries, while McCall picked up nine yards on his five touches.
“It does make it tougher for us to evaluate on both sides of the ball,” Bellotti said. “I don’t think we present the speed factor at tailback that we hope to have during fall camp.
“Certainly, I think the talent level is going to improve dramatically in the fall when our scholarship athletes come in.”
Read between the lines, and you can figure out who Bellotti is referring to.
Junior college sensation Maurice Morris, a 6-foot, 205-pound tailback, is the gem of Oregon’s recruiting class. In fact, in most circles he is considered this year’s top junior college prospect.
He’s expected to step right in and make a serious impact. He is currently completing classes at Fresno City College and will join the team in the summer.
Morris’ stats are incomparable. The two-time J.C. Grid-Wire All-American eclipsed national junior college career records with 3,708 yards rushing, 593 carries and 4,487 all-purpose yards.
He also surpassed Fresno City College’s school records for most rushing touchdowns in a single season (26 in 1998) as well as career rushing touchdowns (45) and touchdowns overall (49).
His highest yardage total in a single game came on Halloween night in 1998 when he ran for 334 yards, and he was held under 100 yards just once in 20 regular-season games (92 yards).
“Morris is everything he is billed to be,” Bellotti said. “He gives us the power player at his position.”

Updates …
One more former Duck is NFL-bound as defensive tackle Faiva Talaeai heads to the New York Giants as a rookie free agent …
Tight end LaCorey Collins sat out of last Friday’s scrimmage due to a sore hamstring. He also did not participate in Monday’s workout …
Among the notables attending last Friday’s scrimmage were former Ducks Brandon McLemore, Michael Fletcher, Dietrich Moore and Justin Wilcox. UO basketball player Freddie Jones and professional golfer Casey Martin were also in attendance.