The Ducks play strong football. Their offense is explosive, they have a secondary that has excelled so far this season and because of it they’ve only lost one game. But Oregon has an issue that has been exploited since it left the Pac-12: it struggles to defend the run game. 

Despite covering the rushing game well in the Pac-12, one game stands out. Under then first-year head coach Dan Lanning in 2022, the Ducks suffered a regular season-ending loss resulting from the breakdown of the defense against Oregon State. Every single play Oregon State ran following an Oregon field goal late in the fourth quarter was a rush. 

The Beavers ran the same concept nearly every time they touched the ball: Pitch it out and hand it off to Damien Martinez, Jam Griffin or Deshaun Fenwick. The Oregon defensive line, whether there were four or five up front, did not close gaps well, and the linebackers crashed in the wrong places. 

The Big Ten has always been known as the conference that focuses on smashmouth football. The Ducks embraced that format in their first year in the conference, when in 2024 they were ranked top-10 in rushing amongst FBS teams, ranking sixth ending the season at 2,211 rushing yards. The five teams that bested the Ducks – Penn State, Iowa, Rutgers, Ohio State and Indiana – are all traditional Midwest powers. 

Despite the high ranking the Ducks held on offense, they did not uphold that on the other side of the ball. In the playoffs, Ohio State broke through Oregon’s defensive line as often as it could. In the Big Ten Championship game, Penn State had seven less attempts, 34, but excelled, ripping off just under 300 rushing yards despite the loss. Both teams matched, and surpassed Oregon in size leading to the Ducks having a rough time getting around or through both offensive lines.

This season, the woes against physically larger teams have continued. The Ducks play well against smaller competition and are placed just below the middle of the Big Ten in rush defense because of that. 

Already this year, Penn State and Indiana have exploited the lack of rushing defense in big games. The Nittany Lions had 35 attempts and 139 yards securing multiple touchdowns set up by the run game. Penn State’s only touchdown in overtime was on a run where Oregon collapsed. Tionne Gray was the closest to getting his hands on running back Kaytron Allen, but he was blocked well and tripped trying to get to Allen. 

Teitum Tuioti had the same issue as Gray, but Tuioti did not have to break through the line to barely miss Allen, he had to spin off the defender, something he did too late and fell to the ground watching Allen go past. The secondary crashed once they saw Allen breaking to the side of the field, but Penn State offensive lineman Olaivavega Ioane swept across the line and pancaked Aaron Flowers and Bryce Boettcher. All Allen had to do was hurdle a body and he was in the endzone. 

On Oct. 11, the Hoosiers had 37 attempts for 111 yards. Seven more attempts than Oregon had, and 30 more yards. Indiana stopped the Ducks’ defensive line with ease. The pressure rarely got to the Hoosier running backs. Indiana lined up well on each play, and ran the same play that Penn State did, pulling an offensive lineman across the formation to block an Oregon defender coming in on the side. 

In the waning seconds of the first quarter, Indiana gave the ball to Roman Hemby. Hemby got a lane thanks to the Hoosier line stuffing everyone at the line of scrimmage. Hemby had to get past Bryce Boettcher who had a tackle lined up. Hemby lowered his shoulder and ran right through Boettcher for a touchdown. It was size-on-size and Indiana won. 

Though it was a much needed bounce-back performance against Rutgers, where the Ducks allowed 123 yards, they need to show that they can take care of business against stronger teams. After all, Rutgers is ranked 12th in rushing in the Big Ten.

The games that Oregon played against less developed and effectively smaller teams are exactly what it wants to see: a strong defense breaking through and getting into the back field quickly, or minimizing the yardage running backs get past the line. 

The true tests are coming up when Oregon takes on Iowa, Washington and USC, all top-half Big Ten teams running the ball. These games act as a preview to Oregon’s postseason: they’ll provide a clue to whether the Ducks can battle against tougher opponents and their rushing game, or if the struggle to get past the bigger bodies in front and pressure the run game up front will continue to rear its head.