The following is an excerpt from an e-mail debate between Oregon Daily Emerald Sports Editor Lucas Clark and Daily Bruin sports reporter Ryan Eshoff.
Lucas Clark: For the first time in school history, the Oregon Duck football team is ranked No. 1 in the nation. Granted, the move was made during a week in which the Ducks were idle, but being the top-ranked team in the country still has an undeniable ring to it around campus. This week, when Oregon hosts a UCLA Bruins squad that has experienced up and down success in 2010, the Ducks get their first opportunity to make a statement as the country’s front runner. Oregon is coming off a much needed bye week that gave a slew of key players ample time to recover from a very physical
Washington State game. The biggest return to the starting lineup: sophomore quarterback Darron Thomas.
Ryan Eshoff: As outlandish as it may sound, maybe it’s best that this UCLA team is facing the nation’s top team in its territory. The Bruins have looked their best when no one thought they had a chance — convincing wins over Houston and at Texas speak to that — but have looked mediocre at times against the likes of Washington State and Cal. Still, the last time UCLA beat a top-ranked team, head coach Rick Neuheisel was dealing with acne and the fairer sex in a Wisconsin high school. He’s thinking containing Thomas, LaMichael James and Co. will present some larger issues.
LC: You raise an interesting point with the big win over Texas, a game no one saw the Bruins taking. If UCLA is a big-game team, they will be tested on Thursday when they enter Autzen Stadium. Oregon fans, notoriously a faithful, in-your-face bunch, defend the Autzen turf blindly and have not seen a home loss since the 2008 preseason. For opposing teams, matching up with the Ducks for a full 60 minutes has proven to be a daunting task. Oregon has yet to give up a single point in six fourth quarter
appearances this season, providing some leeway for lackluster first-quarter showings (see Stanford). Oregon’s offense, however, has been the talk of the nation this season and the UCLA defense will have a handful of scoring threats to contain each and every play.
RE: Pun intended, the UCLA rush defense can’t afford to “Duck and cover” like it has in prior matchups against elite running backs. Kansas State’s Daniel Thomas and Cal’s Shane Vereen each put up big numbers against the Bruins, a major concern given that Oregon boasts Thomas, James, Kenjon Barner and who knows how many other Swoosh-sporting, 4.3 40-running athletes. The Bruins’ best bet from a game-planning standpoint will be to methodically utilize their pistol offense to establish the running game and try to keep the Ducks’ offense off the field. One of the major reasons UCLA was waxed at Cal was because the Bears jumped way ahead early and forced the Bruins to pass way more than they wanted to — or were capable of.
LC: Jumping out to an early lead has proven difficult for Oregon as of late, and getting off to a strong start against any conference opponent is crucial. The Ducks will be without the aid of Barner for an undetermined amount of time, leaving James to shoulder even more of the load. Not a bad trade off considering he leads the nation in rushing and is at the forefront of an ever-shifting Heisman race. The play of UCLA quarterback Kevin Prince will be a deciding factor in the Bruins fate on Thursday. Oregon’s secondary has struggled against consistent passing threats, but it’s tough to say whether Prince fits that mold or not. Having Thomas back under center is a welcome site for the fan base, but if that aching shoulder continues to hinder his performance (it hasn’t in practice all week) then Nate Costa is a more than formidable backup having faced the Bruins in Los Angeles last fall.
RE: “Consistent passing threat” is a phrase that’s as foreign to UCLA as “Hey, nice Reeboks” is to Oregon. Kevin Prince is no Joey Harrington (collegiate Joey, that is) and one of the reasons there’s still somewhat of a quarterback controversy in LA is that Rick Neuheisel and Norm Chow seem to have little confidence in Prince’s ability to lead a consistent passing attack. If (or maybe, when) a situation arises where the Bruins need to pass, don’t be surprised if Richard Brehaut makes an appearance as the play caller. On the other side of the ball, the Bruins would be thrilled to see Costa instead of Thomas, if only because they are familiar with him and because he’s still probably trying to figure out what happened on Akeem Ayers’ pick.
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