The Ducks may be getting an early reality check after a confusing 2-0 start to the year.
I’ll admit, I wasn’t fully there for the Oregon Ducks’ 37-34 win over the Boise State Broncos on Saturday night.
Not at Autzen Stadium. Not mentally.
About 30 hours before kickoff between the No. 7 Ducks and the Broncos, my wife gave birth to our second child. Since paternity leave isn’t exactly a thing for a college football reporter adding to his family in September, I didn’t have the opportunity to completely check out of Oregon’s Week 2 game. However, I opted to watch the game from the comfort of my couch rather than in the middle of 59,000 anxious and agonized fans about two miles down the road.
It’s probably a good thing, too, because I’m not sure I had the brain power or energy to process all that happened.
Oregon’s first punt returned for a touchdown since 2018? The Ducks’ first kickoff return touchdown since 2019? An Oregon offensive line that trotted out 11 personnel combinations before finally figuring out which one protected Dillon Gabriel? The Ducks kicker nailing a game-winning field goal as time expired?
None of that even mentions Noah Whittington committing the most horrific of sins, dropping the ball short of the goal line on his TD return and being saved only by the grace of Jayden Limar.
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There were times while watching this game that I thought I had finally drifted off and entered Sweet Dreamland for the first time in a couple of days. I could feel myself slipping far away from the world of umbilical cords, swaddling blankets and nighttime feedings.
But then Ashton Jeanty would shake me back to reality. A reality in which I’m being forced to come to grips with the fact the Oregon Ducks might not be a very good team.
Yet.
Once again, Oregon earned a win on Saturday. Once again, there likely isn’t a coach or player exiting the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex feeling good about what they accomplished.
Boise State outgained the Ducks on offense, 369-352. Oregon lost the rushing yards battle, 221-109, committed 9 penalties for 74 yards, went 4 for 12 on third downs, punted 7 times, lost 2 fumbles and gave up 4 sacks.
This is not a team fit to compete for a national championship at the end of the year. It’s not even a team that can make it to the Big Ten Championship game at the beginning of December.
Fortunately for Dan Lanning, though, teams can change and morph throughout the season.
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We saw it take place with the Ducks last year. After barely beating Texas Tech on the road, the Ducks went on to have one of the better seasons in recent Oregon history. Down in Lubbock, I reached out to Lanning to thank him for accommodating media members who were delayed for his press conference due to a postgame snafu. His text back?
“We’re gonna get better, I promise.”
I didn’t doubt it then, and I don’t doubt it now.
On paper, the Ducks should be better. They have a leading Heisman Trophy candidate under center, a Rimington Trophy candidate spearheading the offensive line, multiple preseason All-Americans across the roster and a staff stocked with future head coaches.
Oregon is simply too talented to be this bad. However, I think everything is too fresh right now to be as good as many expect.
When you bring in nine transfers who are occupying spots in the starting lineup, it’s going to take a second for things to jell. It may not be fair to ask them to click like national champions in the first month of the season. That’s not making excuses for why Oregon has been as bad, sloppy or mistake-prone as they have so far this season, but just an understanding of why things might be playing out this way so far.
The good thing for Duck fans is there is a lot of time for these mistakes to be corrected, and so far they haven’t been deadly yet. Oregon is 2-0 with a pair of incredibly uninspiring and ugly wins under its belt. The Ducks fell from No. 3 to No. 7 in the AP Poll after Week 1, and could fall a couple of spots again after Week 2.
In the end, rankings in September don’t mean a damn, though.
Duck fans can still dream of a world where their team is competing for a Big Ten championship in their first season as members of the conference. A world where Oregon hosts a first-round College Football Playoff still exists, and a national championship is not yet out of the question.
If you want to, you can still dream of those things with realistic expectations that they may come true in a few months.
I myself am just going to try and skip past the REM cycle and get some good, deep sleep.
When my son’s cries shake me back to reality a couple of months down the road, I have a feeling the Ducks are going to be enjoying that dream season we all envisioned going into 2024.
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