Standing outside the Moshofsky Center after practice Monday, Oregon cornerback Cliff Harris likened the Oregon-Oregon State rivalry to a “big brother-little brother relationship.”
Though some might argue with the analogy, Oregon State boasts its own big brother-little brother tandem that has wreaked havoc upon the Ducks in past years. Brothers Jacquizz and James Rodgers left their footprints all over the Civil War matchup last year, topping the team leader boards in both rushing and receiving.
This year, Jacquizz will have to do things on his own. James Rodgers will sit out with a knee injury suffered against Arizona in October. Still, dealing with Jacquizz Rodgers alone is challenge enough for Oregon head coach Chip Kelly.
“Oregon State has got one of the top running backs in the country,” Kelly said. “He’s proven that week in and week out.”
Indeed, the younger Rodgers comes into Saturday’s game with 1,097 rushing yards to go along with 16 total touchdowns. To Kelly, he is the complete package and could prove very difficult to defend.
“Very talented,” Kelly said. “Great vision, stronger. You have a really hard time knocking him off of his feet. (He’s) got great change of direction, great vision, great patience. He’s going to be a handful, and obviously their offense revolves around him.”
The Oregon players know all about Rodgers, particularly members of the defensive line. Having spent time with him in Los Angeles, defensive tackle Brandon Bair gained an acute understanding of Rodgers’ dog-eat-dog nature.
“(He’s) really competitive,” Bair said. “He’s going to come out and he’s gonna have fun, and he’s gonna give you his best game.”
For Bair, the one consolation heading into the matchup is the fact that he is no stranger to compact and quick running backs.
“One of the best things about us,” Bair said. “Is if you’ve looked at the running backs we go against every day in practice, you know we’re used to going against small, shifty running backs. I think that’s one of our biggest benefits.”
Of course, no matter what Jacquizz Rodgers is able to do, it cannot make up entirely for the absence of his brother. The team’s go-to receiver, James Rodgers also returned kickoffs for the Beavers and even took handoffs on fly-sweep plays.
He was a complete package, but from Kelly’s point of view, Oregon State’s approach to offense has changed very little.
“They’re still running the same plays,” Kelly said. “(Sophomore wide receiver) Markus Wheaton’s running the fly sweep, he does a nice job of that … everyone’s lost certain players.”
The Ducks will have to pay particular attention to Wheaton, who has emerged as a worthy replacement for James Rodgers. In a surprise win against USC two weeks ago, the sophomore totaled 40 receiving yards to go along with 63 rushing yards.
“They’ve got some talented skill players,” Kelly said. “Markus Wheaton, when you watch him on tape, just keeps getting better every week. (Sophomore wide receiver) Jordan Bishop is a real, real athletic, big, tall receiver.”
As Kelly would likely admit, many teams are best judged by their systems. Even without the elder Rodgers brother, Oregon State’s schemes are worthy of concern.
“They run a tough scheme,” Kelly said. “You know you’ve gotta prepare for the fly sweep, you gotta prepare for all the zone plays, and the runs with (Jacquizz), and they do a great job of play action off of it.”
Even without his brother alongside him, Jacquizz Rodgers won’t be making any excuses and is capable of wreaking plenty of havoc on his own.
“Everybody knows (Jacquizz) is one of the better running backs in the league,” linebacker Spencer Paysinger said. “We know they’re going to come out lights out.”
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