The Oregon Ducks have been playing some of their best football of the season over the past two weeks, rising to No. 1 in the nation for the first time since the 2012 season, highlighted by a win over the Ohio State Buckeyes at home in Week 7.
What makes all of that more impressive is the fact that the Ducks did it without some of their best players on the field. Before the Buckeyes matchup, Oregon’s star defensive end Jordan Burch suffered a knee injury in practice, holding him out of the game. A week later, star tight end Terrance Ferguson had to have surgery to remove his appendix, forcing him to miss last week’s matchup against Purdue.
Both players are expected to return to the field this season, but will that be for Saturday’s top-25 matchup against the No. 20 Illinois Fighting Illini? Let’s take a look.
Jordan Burch injury update
Jordan Burch was having a career year in the first six weeks for Oregon, propelling his name up NFL Draft boards quickly. Unfortunately, he went down with a knee injury in practice a couple of days before the Ducks’ game against Ohio State.
Fortunately, the Ducks were able to get past the Buckeyes without him. Now it’s a matter of when the star defender can get back on the field. On Oregon’s availability report for Saturday’s game against Illinois, Burch was listed as “out.”
“We’ll wait as the season goes and as the week goes to see where those guys (Burch, Ferguson, and Matthew Bedford) are at and if they are available for us,” Lanning said.
How long will Jordan Burch be out?
If I had to guess, Ferguson returns to the field sooner than Burch. I think that Oregon is in a good enough spot on defense that they don’t need Burch back right away to keep their winning ways going.
I am told that it will likely be a few weeks before Burch returns, likely sometime in November. He is progressing quickly in his recovery and is ahead of schedule, per someone with knowledge of the situation.
Oregon Ducks defensive end depth chart
With Burch out, we have truly seen the breakout that was expected for sophomore defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei.
Uiagalelei was having a really solid year to start the season, coming off of his impressive freshman season, but in the starting role in place of Burch, he has been outstanding, with 8 tackles, 4 TFL, and 2 sacks in the last two games.
This is part of the reason that Oregon isn’t in a position to rush Burch back onto the field — they have some great talent and depth at the position.
Terrance Ferguson injury update
Ferguson was a surprise scratch from the Ducks’ Week 8 game against Purdue, and head coach Dan Lanning revealed after the fact that the senior tight end had undergone surgery to remove his appendix. On Oregon’s availability report for Saturday’s game against Illinois, Ferguson was listed as “out.”
“We’re expecting a quick recovery based on what that looks like for him and being smart with him,” Lanning said after the Purdue game. “I think he’ll be back relatively quick, but we want to do what’s best for Terrance.”
How long will Terrance Ferguson be out?
“Relatively quickly” is the key term here when trying to decipher Lanning’s quotes. It won’t be in Week 9 vs. Illinois, but could be next week against the Michigan Wolverines.
Oregon Ducks tight end depth chart
If Ferguson is out again on Saturday, the Ducks should be able to manage with Kenyon Sadiq and Patrick Herbert splitting reps at the TE spot. We saw last week what Sadiq could do in an elevated role, and it was impressive.
You never want to lose someone as talented as Ferguson, but Oregon has the depth to make up for it at tight end.
Other Oregon Injuries to Know
- Matthew Bedford — Knee — Out
- Jahlil Florence — Leg — Out
- Dave Iuli — Foot — Questionable
- Gary Bryant Jr. — Unspecified — Out
- Kyler Kasper — Leg — Out
- Khamari Terrell — Unspecified — Out
- My’Keil Gardner — Foot — Out
- Dakoda Fields — Knee — Out
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