Let’s make one thing absolutely clear — Cam Newton is not your run-of-the-mill collegiate quarterback.
You know that — I know that — but it’s worth repeating.
His face has been at the front of college football for much of the regular season, whether it positive or not, and now Newton has the opportunity to take the top-ranked Auburn Tigers to their first national title victory in more than five decades.
I won’t drag you through the dog-and-pony-act that is Cam Newton’s unbelievable 13-game statistics in what is considered the toughest conference in all the land. But as Jan. 10 quickly approaches, or maybe not-so-quickly, I had to stop and think about the opposing quarterback play that’s really affected Oregon in recent years.
Over the course of Chip Kelly’s 22-3 start to what is sure to be a storied career at the Ducks’ helm, his Oregon team has faced a wide variety of signal callers. Consider this: in Oregon’s three losses, all coming in the 2009-10 season, Kellen Moore, Andrew Luck and Terrelle Pryor were precise and extremely successful in executing their respective game plans.
All the way back on Sept. 3, 2009, a young Moore completed 19 of his 29 pass attempts for 197 yards and a touchdown. He did not turn the ball over, but was sacked twice.
More than two months later, Luck and the Stanford Cardinal torched the Ducks on 12 of 20 passing for 251 yards and two touchdowns. He did not turn the ball over, and was sacked once.
Then in the 2010 Rose Bowl, Pryor led Ohio State with 23 completions for 266 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball 20 times for 72 yards, though Pryor did throw one interception.
The parallels can be hard to notice at first.
All three of Oregon’s losses came on the road against potential Heisman Trophy-caliber quarterbacks. In most instances Oregon was outplayed and mentally outmatched down the stretch. LaMichael James had a three-game rushing total of 217 yards, reaching the end zone just one time along the way.
Sure seems like a winning recipe, huh?
Establish a consistent passing game and get James out of his comfort zone. That, however, was much easier said than done in 2010. Oregon faced Luck again, this time at home, where he had a field day throwing for 341 yards and two touchdowns, connecting with nine different Cardinal receivers in that game.
The trouble for Luck came after intermission as Oregon turned a seven-point deficit into a dominant 21-point victory over the final two quarters. And 626 yards of total offense later, Stanford was sent packing with what would eventually be its only loss the entire season.
Over the next couple of weeks opposing quarterback play was sporadic at best, as Washington State’s Jeff Tuel put up decent numbers but only found the end zone once all day. UCLA’s Richard Brehaut was victim to Oregon’s most complete game of the year, and USC’s Matt Barkley wasn’t able to really get over the hump with consistent pressure.
In those three contests, Oregon forced four interceptions and recorded nine sacks. The following week against a Jake Locker-less Washington team, the Ducks held backup Keith Price to 127 yards passing, while sacking the freshman five times in his first visit to Autzen Stadium.
I suppose the quarterback play wasn’t spectacular around the Pacific-10 Conference this season, but I’m not sure it ever is. Arizona’s Nick Foles sure knew something the rest of Oregon’s 11 opponents didn’t, as he completed 29 passes for 448 yards and three scores in Eugene.
Even Oregon State’s Ryan Katz was forced into making a few bad plays, throwing three interceptions and taking three sacks in the Civil War.
For Oregon, applying consistent pressure on Newton and forcing him to make plays before he’s ready will be crucial. If they can get adequate pressure on the Auburn playmaker, the Ducks secondary has proven capable of taking the ball away in the air.
Having thrown only six interceptions all year, it’s unlikely Newton will be mistake-prone in the biggest game of his career. But if Oregon can take advantage of the few mistakes Newton does make, its shown time and time again this season how quickly those mistakes turn into points on the Oregon scoreboard.
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