Running back Tony Brooks-James has a nickname for Oregon’s football program, specifically its offense — “RB-U: running back university.”
The Ducks’ running back corps proved on Saturday why that’s their moniker.
Oregon set a single-game Autzen record for rushing touchdowns with nine as the Ducks blew out Southern Utah 77-21 at Autzen Stadium on Saturday night. The Ducks generated 703 yards of total offense, with 348 of those coming on the ground.
Royce Freeman ran for 150 yards and scored four touchdowns while Kani Benoit ran for 107 yards and scored three touchdowns of his own. The other two rushing touchdowns came courtesy of Charles Nelson and Taylor Alie.
Head coach Willie Taggart stated in spring and fall that Oregon’s offense would rely on “lethal simplicity.” There’s no better way to describe what Oregon’s running backs did against Southern Utah than that.
“Yeah, it can’t get any simpler than that,” Taggart said. “Just give them the ball and let them do what they do best.”
Oregon running back Royce Freeman charges for the end zone. The Oregon Ducks start their season playing against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore. on September 2, 2017. (Phillip Quinn/Emerald)
The fact that Oregon rushed the ball as much as it did was no surprise. For the past decade, Oregon has relied on its run game to push the tempo and keep opponents off balance. This year is no exception, and it could be one of the more run-heavy Oregon teams we’ve seen.
The Ducks’ running back core is experienced, deep and talented, while their receivers are young and inexperienced.
Saturday served as a preview of what’s to come from the Ducks offensively this season.
“Get used to it,” Brooks-James said. “That’s what we’re going to keep doing.”
Saturday’s game also served a chance to scrub away the memories of Freeman’s disappointing 2016 campaign where he battled injuries and rushed for a career-low 945 yards. He’s out to make sure his collegiate career doesn’t end on a similar note.
His 150-yard, four-touchdown performance brought back memories of a young, better and healthy Freeman.
“It reminded me a lot of the first two years where we were just a dominant o-line and just a run group in general,” senior offensive lineman Tyrell Crosby said.
It appears that Oregon may be on its way to returning to those days.
So much can be said about Oregon’s running backs after Saturday’s game, that what the offensive line did might slip by the wayside. But that groups deserves as much credit for Oregon’s offensive explosion as Freeman or any other running back.
“I think they did a good job,” Taggart said. “I think it starts there. Those guys open those holes for us.”
Coming into Saturday’s season opener, the Ducks’ running back corps wanted to do one thing above all else: dominate. The trio of Freeman, Brooks-James and Benoit have played together for the last three years. With Freeman and Benoit graduating in the spring, this season will be their last together.
They want to go out on top, and Saturday was the first step to getting there.
“We just wanted to dominate as a group,” Benoit said. “We’re always talking about competing amongst each other. So, everytime I see Royce do good, I want to do good and Tony wants to do good. Because we’re so competitive, it pushes us to be the best that we can be.”
That’s a good sign for Oregon as it’ll be relying on them all season.
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris