The past two weeks told a tale of two games for the No. 6 Ducks. One week, they could not establish anything on the ground, and quarterback Dante Moore was constantly under pressure. The following game, they rushed for over 300 more yards and four touchdowns.

After taking six sacks in the loss to Indiana, Moore did not get sacked all game in Oregon’s 56-10 win over Rutgers.

The Hoosiers held Oregon to 81 rushing yards with an average of 2.7 yards per carry and running back Jordan Davison’s 26-yard carry was the only rush for 10 or more yards. The Indiana defense finished the game with eight tackles for losses. Moore’s inability to escape the pocket left him with -27 rushing yards and -3 average yards per carry by the end of the game. His longest run of the game went for just four yards.

One week later, the Ducks’ offensive line flipped the script. After being unable to stop the Indiana pass rush or create holes for the running backs, the big boys up front came into Piscataway, New Jersey ready to work – and left with hundreds of yards to show for it.

“We usually have protection,” running back Noah Whittington said to GoDucks postgame. “But we gave up six sacks last week and we really wanted to come out and improve in that area and we took the necessary steps this week to do that.”

Whittington had 11 carries for 125 yards with two rushing touchdowns and a receiving touchdown. His longest run was a 68-yard touchdown in the first quarter to give Oregon its first score of the game. As Moore pitched the ball backwards to Whittington, the offensive linemen shifted to their left to create a window near the sideline. After Whittington had gained about 15 yards, Davison stepped up for one final block to clear the path to the end zone.

“Hell of a block by Jordan Davison and the big guys up front,” Whittington said to GoDucks. “I just had to run.”

The Ducks rushed for 415 yards, averaging 11.5 yards per carry. Whittington, Davison and Dierre Hill Jr. all rushed for touchdowns.

“We wanted to establish the run,” head coach Dan Lanning said to GoDucks. “We felt like we could move bodies up front and run through some arm tackles and we did that tonight.”

Moore also had a much cleaner game with the help of the offensive line. He ran for 49 yards on three carries, with his longest being for 35 yards. He also threw for 290 yards, just over 100 more than the week before, despite playing less than three quarters. Moore’s decision making improved without having to deal with a constantly collapsing pocket.

“It starts with (offensive line) coach (A’Lique) Terry,” Moore said to GoDucks. “He just dissected this defense really well. (He) understands the front they play in, understands how the linebackers flow and different ways to get different run games going. He did a great job preaching to the front five of how to block different schemes.”

The Ducks aimed to create multiple holes on each play to offer options to ball carriers as a play was developing. Lanning spoke postgame about the process of how that breaks open explosive runs. 

“(It’s about) guys staying connected,” Lanning said to GoDucks. “Once a run opens big and then movement on the line. Several of our run plays had multiple options where the ball could go to a couple different spots based on where they were heavy or tilted and I thought our guys did a good job with that.”

The Ducks have shown tremendous depth in their running game this season, while Dante Moore has demonstrated elite decision making in the pocket. This Saturday, the offensive line has another great opportunity to create success for the offense as Wisconsin comes to town. The Badgers have allowed just under 500 yards on the ground in their last three games. When matched up against Oregon, they will likely be faced with insurmountable numbers.