On Wednesday morning Jeremiah Masoli donned a white jersey for the Oregon football team. In a day that feature an offensive unit cloaked in the coveted black jerseys and the defense in their traditional greens, Masoli stuck out like a sore thumb.
As I sat in the front row of Autzen Stadium watching a shoddy offensive performance that reached the end zone just twice in almost two hours time, I began to think of what could’ve been. This has been a recurring theme for me this spring. Each day I go to practice at the Moshofsky Center, I see a distanced Masoli on the sidelines.
Granted, he’s shown his dedication to sticking around the program by running routes as a slot receiver with the third-string offense, but that’s not what myself or the other tens of thousands of Duck football fans were hoping to see this fall.
I remember after I left the Rose Bowl back in January, while disheartened from the loss, I couldn’t wait to see what kind of magic Jeremiah was going to pull out of his helmet next season. Could he lead Oregon to an NCAA championship? Could he actually contend for the Heisman Trophy? Next season is steadily getting closer, and the thought of championships and Heisman trophies seem like a thing of the past.
Instead of a smooth offensive machine like the Ducks so often seemed to be in 2009, the Oregon offense has left something to be desired so far this spring. The quarterback controversy, if we insist on calling it that, has been far from controversial. You’ve got two guys in Darron Thomas and Nate Costa who have yet to really distinguish themselves from one another, and an offensive line returning all five starters but can barely muster up a push against the No. 1 defense.
I’ll go out on a proverbial limb here and say the majority is rooting for Thomas to win the job. I mean, the guy looks an awful lot like Dennis Dixon, right? I’m sure he’ll be able to follow in those footsteps, no questions asked (cough).
Costa on the other hand seems to be the levelheaded choice, emerging as the better passer, if less mobile, than Thomas. Costa was able to win a crucial game on the road against UCLA last season, but let’s not forget the Boise State game in 2008 when Thomas came off the bench to throw for 210 yards and three touchdowns against the Broncos — in just the fourth quarter.
I could go back and forth on these two for days, but it’s April. I’ll move on.
If I had to pick a few bright spots at this point in the spring, they would come through the rest of the backfield. Redshirt sophomores LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner haven’t lost a step and are playing with the confidence of seasoned vets.
Senior wideouts Jeff Maehl and D.J. Davis have solidified their positions atop a rebuilding receiving corps, no surprises there.
Maehl seems to be the Ducks’ only true downfield receiving threat at this point with almost no one other than Eddie Pleasant being able to slow the lanky receiver. Junior receiver Lavasier Tuinei is exceptionally tall, and that has proven to be his most important asset.
I guess after all that rambling, there are still more than a handful of questions unanswered. I didn’t even touch the Ducks’ riotous off-the-field issues, nor do I really care to. Oregon has enough talent to succeed with its current personnel, but that doesn’t mean I won’t miss the hell out of Lance Mitchell and Quinton Moore getting trucked when it mattered most.
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