Issues being in the right spot in the running game
Take the corner, find the end zone.#GoDucks | @Babydye23
— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) September 11, 2021
It’s one thing to get beat on a play once, but two, three, and four times is a problem that goes deeper. A team can surprise you with game-planning or a different set or formation that you’ve not seen before. That’s why teams often have success early on, then the defense settles in.
But that didn’t happen against Oregon. The Ducks kept running a crack-back play on the left side of the offensive line and OSU never adjusted. The wide receiver crashed inside and the DB went with him, leaving nobody setting the edge on multiple occasions. In that case, the cornerback has to stay outside or the linebacker has to get around the block out on the edge, or you see what we saw multiple times Saturday. It was off to the races.
Is it fixable?
Yes, but it will take time. With the health issues in the secondary and inexperience at the linebacker position group, the back seven looks lost as it tries to kind of work on the car while driving. I’ll be real surprised if another team has the type of success the Ducks did with this principle because it’s going to be drilled in, but you can bet teams will try.