Special teams — Alejandro Maldonado, Jackson Rice, Rob Beard, De’Anthony Thomas, Josh Huff, Brian Jackson
Despite many ups and downs during a season last year filled with setbacks, most Oregon fans will remember Maldonado for the 37-yard field goal he missed against USC that could have sent the game to overtime. However, fans forget that the then-sophomore — who was headed for a redshirt until quad injuries took Beard out of the lineup — hit a 30-yarder late in the Rose Bowl as well as six other kicks through the season. That being said, Rob Beard has the bigger leg of the two and looked serviceable@@and looked serviceable? is he a robot?@@when he returned late last season to assume kickoff duties for the Ducks. The position will be up for grabs heading into fall practices, but he has the upper hand because of his range.
Rice’s opportunities to punt are few and far between, but he looks to be headed for an elite season as his 49.5 yards per attempt would have been sixth in the country last year (He failed to qualify statistically due to limited reps).
Thomas, if given the opportunity, should continue to be electric in the kick game; Huff and Jackson should also serve as solid returners and give Oregon two more home-run threats every game.