As we get into single-digit days until the Oregon Ducks kick off against the Georgia Bulldogs on September 3, the focus is ever-so-slightly starting to shift towards game preparation.
One of the biggest questions for the Ducks to answer is whether or not they can stop, or even slow down, Georgia’s room of incredibly talented tight ends.
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At the top of the depth chart for the Bulldogs is Brock Bowers, a player who absolutely turned heads as a true freshman in 2021. He was named the SEC Freshman of the Year and earned second-team All-American honors after hauling in 56 catches for 882 yards and 13 touchdowns. Unsurprisingly, Bowers has been named a First-Team Preseason All-American ahead of the 2022 season.
That’s not all, of course. Georgia also has Arik Gilbert (career 368 yards and 2 TD), and Darnell Washington (career 320 yards and 1 TD) heading up the depth chart.
On Wednesday afternoon, Oregon’s nickels coach Joe Lorig was asked about how he intends to try and slow the Bulldogs’ TE room down in 10 days. His answer was refreshingly honest.
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“I don’t know if you can,” Lorig said.” I don’t think it’s any disparagement to our team to say that that’s the best tight end room in the country. I think pretty clearly is right.”
With the Ducks getting deeper into their own game prep ahead of the trip to Atlanta, the tall task of trying to simulate Georgia’s big-bodied receivers on the field is a small dilemma. Without all-American players of that stature and skillset to practice again, how can you be ready to stop the real thing?
“You just try to create those matchups as much as you can in practice,” Lorig said. “Their guys are also receiver type, so we have a couple of the bigger guys, Kyler Kasper and Caleb Chapman, that you can match them up with, and Terrance Ferguson, we can match them up with. So you try to create those matchups as much as you can in practice to play the game before the game, but I don’t know that you can replicate Brock Bowers personally.”
A common answer from linebackers throughout Oregon’s defense this offseason has been that coverage is the top thing that they’ve been working to get better at. We will see in the first week of the season how much that work translates onto the field.
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