Before Oregon kicks off against Washington State on Saturday, Ducks head coach Mark Helfrich spoke to the media following Thursday’s practice.
Here’s what Helfrich had to say:
You’ve got a young secondary that hasn’t faced an offense like this, do you go through some adjustments with them in practice?
So much of it is fundamentals, of a coverage fitting around our formation, and communicating with confidence, and aligning . It sounds so simple but when things are going quickly, a little bit differently than they’ve showed on film, that’s where you have to go back to your fundamentals and trust it. And play.
Scott Frost said on Monday that the quarterback picture was not clear, he didn’t know who was No. 1, 2 or 3 . Have things changed?
I think yes and no. I think we know what is going to happen and what we’re going to do, but it’s not in granite right now. If it was in granite I’d tell you.
Has there been an emphasis on the running game in your offense this week?
We’re kind of in a position of how we game plan is consistent of a run-pass ratio kind of thing. Obviously there are different strengths and weaknesses of how you’re going to approach things. Washington State takes away a lot in run game by how they align, so we’re going to run it and throw it – do some different things.

What is it about this Washington State team that has given Oregon fits? Last year, it took a ridiculous performance by Marcus Mariota to escape with a win. What is it about this team?
I think if you look at their play last week, they gave Cal a ton of fits. They’ve always gave Oregon their best shot for a long, long time for whatever reason. They’re extremely talented. They’ve been a little bit up and down this year, but their talent at the skills positions is always great. The defensive front is fantastic.
Last week you requested a moment of silence in Colorado, and this week you’re giving away free tickets to Umpqua CC students and staff – how much of a rule have you had to make sure to build awareness and support?
I think our administration does a great job, Rob (Mullens) was the first guy to call me right after that all occurred. Obviously we’re going to do anything we can to support that, the fallout from that situation. There is nothing you can say or do to solve it, just to provide something, whether it’s entertainment, joy or distraction or something.
Because of your roots in southern Oregon, does it mean more to you?
Absolutely. That’s an hour and change from where [I grew] up – it could be anywhere, it could be our kids. All the lessons you need to learn from that, they slap you right in the face, whether it’s going to the deal at Thurston (High School) several years ago or all the other things that happened all around the country. You got to at least talk about it.
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