2011 Oregon Ducks Football Preview

The accolades Chip Kelly has received and most definitely earned in just two seasons as head coach in Eugene are something special. Having won consecutive outright Pac-10 championships and appearing in back-to-back BCS bowls is impressive enough, but a BCS National Championship Game berth and two straight Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors (in 2009 and 2010) convey a fuller sense of this man’s mastery. One wonders what he might do for an encore in 2011. Folks at Oregon will tell you one thing: Kelly isn’t satisfied.

The proverbial monkey on Kelly’s back, however, is his inability to win in the postseason. Two of Kelly’s four losses as head coach at Oregon have come in the two BCS bowl games he’s reached. In 2011, Oregon is looking to finish what it starts and end the season with a crowning moment in early January. With expectations as high as ever, anything short of another BCS bowl would be looked on a failure, as unfair as that might be.

The fantastic Oregon offense returns many of its most important playmakers. All-Pac 10 Quarterback Darron Thomas is back with another year of experience under his belt. Heisman finalist LaMichael James surprised many observers by returning to campus for his junior season. Kenjon Barner, another terrific running back in the Ducks’ spread option attack, will also play a key role. The Ducks return seven offensive starters, including three of their starting lineman. Wide receiver Jeff Maehl is Oregon’s biggest loss on the offensive side of the ball. One thing is for sure: Kelly is one of the most brilliant offensive minds in all of college football. One would be unwise to expect anything less than the gaudy statistical prowess and high-octane scoring that have become staples of Oregon football.

The defense will be the biggest question during the 2011 campaign. The Oregon defense was at times maligned during the 2010 season. Playing alongside such a quick-scoring offense can be difficult. However, the Duck defense allowed 30 points just three times and continually made plays to contribute to UO’s run to the national title game. With the loss of Casey Matthews, Spencer Paysinger, and Talmadge Jackson, the Ducks will have to retool in 2011.With stalwarts Cliff Harris and John Boyett leading a core group of five returning starters, the Ducks should be in good position.

An opening-week contest against SEC power LSU is one of the best games in the entire season. If Oregon is successful in week one, there should be no reason it can’t reproduce the kind of season it had in the prior two years of the Kelly regime. The Ducks’ rival at the top of the new look Pac-12 is certainly Stanford. With Andrew Luck, the consensus would-be number one pick in the NFL draft, returning to school, the two schools are set on collision course for November 12 in Palo Alto. How Oregon handles that game will almost surely decide the champion in the Pac-12 North Division, with a date against Utah (USC is ineligible) being the likely prize in the first-ever Pac-12 Championship Game.

Everything’s out there for Oregon to take; the Ducks simply need to prove to themselves that they can handle everyone’s best shot in the wild, wild West.

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