This will be the biggest offensive line the Oregon Ducks defense will have to deal with all year. Utah took a page out of Stanford’s playbook from a decade before with a huge line to literally push the opponent down the field and score.
The Utes line consists of left tackle Bamidele Olaseni (6-foot-8, 330 pounds), left guard Keaton Bills (6-foot-4, 313 pounds), center Nick Ford (6-foot-5, 317 pounds), right guard Sataoa Laumea (6-foot-4, 304 pounds), and right tackle Braeden Daniels (6-foot-4, 300 pounds). All of their backups, except one, also weigh over 300 pounds.
With that kind of size along the offensive line, the Utes are able to gain an average of 214 yards per game on the ground, which is third in the conference only behind Oregon State (228.7 ypg) and Oregon (227.4).
The beneficiary of those running holes is tailback Tavion Thomas with his 82 yards per game and he has a conference-leading 14 touchdowns. But Thomas isn’t the only running back the Ducks have to worry about.
TJ Pledger averages just over 50 yards a game and has scored five touchdowns and Micah Bernard gains another 42 yards per contest.
So while the Utes running game will be a handful for the Ducks, the same can be true going the other way. Utah is going to have to deal with an Oregon front seven that is much more than the Kayvon Thibodeaux Show. But according to the Ducks defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter, having what he thinks is the best defensive player in college football in that group of seven doesn’t hurt either.
“He disrupts a game … it’s just rare to compare him to anybody,” he said of Thibodeaux. “You have to take him into account. He’s equally effective in the run game as he is in the pass game. People are going to try to screen him and get him to run sideways and he’ll chase things down from the backside. We’re obviously a much better defense when he’s on the field.”
One of those things Thibodeaux and the rest of the Duck defense will have to chase is Utah quarterback Cameron Rising. The 6-foot-2, 220-pound sophomore has started the last six games and Ute fans have to be wondering why he wasn’t the starter from Day 1.
Rising is completing 63.5 percent of his passes with 14 touchdowns and just two interceptions. Like Anthony Brown, Rising likes to spread the wealth among his receivers. Eight different players have 10 or more catches this season with tight end Brant Kuithe leading the way with 30 catches and five touchdowns.
DeRuyter says it all starts with that power running game.
“They’re a very physical running team. Their passing game is primarily spun off of their run game,” he said. “They’re a power, downhill football team. Ever since they put Rising in at quarterback, they’ve really been productive. Our hands will definitely be full.”
This will most likely be the first of two games between these two teams as Utah and Oregon are expected to meet in the Pac-12 title game in Las Vegas in just over two weeks.
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