Oregon Ducks running back Noah Whittington re-emerged against Illinois, making him the Ducks Wire Player of the Game.
The Oregon Ducks took on a ranked opponent for the second time this season on Saturday afternoon, and they beat the Illinois Fighting Illini without leaving a doubt. Oregon took control early in the first half and didn’t loosen its grip — walking into halftime up 35-3. After a much slower second half, the Ducks won 38-9.
Oregon’s performance in this game defined a “team win.” On offense, defense, and special teams, every Duck did their job, despite a few mistakes. And while there was no standout performer, running back Noah Whittington is this week’s Ducks Wire Player of the Game.
It’s been a year and a month since Whittington’s devasting ACL tear against Colorado. It was a long road back for Whittington, and at times this season, he hasn’t looked as sharp as he did early in his Oregon career. But this Saturday, Whittington showed he is all the way back. He finished the day with seven carries for 56 yards (8 yards per carry) and a rushing touchdown. Whittington also caught two passes for 20 yards and a TD.
Whittington made the play of the day for the Ducks, scoring on an 18-yard rush in the second quarter. At the end of the run, he had one man to beat on the goal line, and instead of darting to the right or the left, Whittington went straight through the Illinois defender.
“When you get an opportunity to run through a man’s face, there’s nothing better than that,” Head Coach Dan Lanning said after the game.
In the past few seasons, Oregon has adopted a true two-back approach, with the Ducks top two RBs splitting carries. This season, the volume split has skewed towards Jordan James much more than Whittington, but this week Whittington proved he’s still an elite RB.
Next week, the Ducks take on Michigan, the defending national champions. The Wolverines haven’t been nearly as strong this season, but they’re still a good team, especially at home.
Oregon running back Noah Whittington was going to find the end zone no matter what, which was evident based on how he bulldozed his way across the goal line.
Amid a dominant 35-3 first half for the No. 1 Ducks against No. 20 Illinois on Saturday in Eugene, Oregon was up, 21-3, but was at third-and-five on Illinois’ 18-yard line. Whittington slid through a hole near the line of scrimmage, and although he had some space ahead of him to work with, there were three Illinois defenders waiting for him.
Whittington blew past the first two before absolutely trucking the third, who was blocking the path to the end zone. This poor defender probably didn’t stand a chance against Whittington’s momentum.
The Ducks running back plowed right through the Illinois defense with an emphatic ending to his 18-yard touchdown run, which gave Oregon a 28-3 lead.
Whittington finished the first half with five carries for 45 yards and a score, plus a receiving touchdown, as Oregon entered the break with a comfortable 32-point lead.
Oregon RB Noah Whittington wowed college football fans with his bulldozing move
Photo Gallery: The Ducks send Autzen into a frenzy with Atticus Sappington’s 25-yard field goal and their 37-34 win over Boise State.
It wasn’t pretty. It wasn’t exactly how the Oregon Ducks planned it. But the bottom line says the Ducks are 2-0 after a 37-34 thrilling victory over Boise State Saturday night at Autzen Stadium.
After a first half where the Broncos led 20-14 at halftime, the final 30 minutes of action had everything in it with turnovers, a missed extra point, and explosion plays galore for both teams.
Fortunately, the Ducks had one more explosive play than Boise State. Tez Johnson’s 85-yard punt return and Noah Whittington’s 100-yard kickoff return kept the Ducks in it just enough to set up Atticus Sappington’s game-winning boot from 25 yards out.
Here are all the sights from a rollercoaster ride that was Oregon vs Boise State.
The Oregon Ducks are in the process of pairing down a long list of talented kick returners ahead of the 2024 season.
One thing that the Oregon Ducks aren’t lacking going into the 2024 season is playmakers.
No matter where you look on the offense, you will find guys who can dazzle with the ball in their hands. From Jordan James and Noah Whittington to Tez Johnson and Evan Stewart, there are endless options when it comes to players who could potentially act as a kick returner for the Ducks. But finding the right guy to send back there in special teams is a process that’s more difficult than it looks.
Ask special teams coordinator Joe Lorig. He’s ultimately responsible for tabbing the guy to receive kicks, and it’s on him to choose from a list of players who are currently littering preseason award watch lists.
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“I think we have a lot of good options,” Lorig said on Friday. “(It’s about) getting a bunch of guys reps early and then kind of paring it down as you go through the next couple weeks of simulated games. We have enough bodies and enough talent back there that I think we can be explosive in the return game.”
But when it comes to special teams, and kick or punt returners in particular, one thing that you need to focus on is health. It’s no wonder that you don’t see guys like Christian McCaffrey or Tyreek Hill returning kicks in the NFL; it’s not that they wouldn’t be elite in the position, but they’re too valuable to the team’s overall success to put them at extended risk.
So for Lorig, how much does that come into play when considering guys like James, Whittington, or Johnson as a returner?
“There’s nobody off limits,” Lorig said. “Bucky (Irving) not being on last year was my decision initially and then obviously coach (Lanning) supported it. Because once Noah (Whittington) went down, you’re just sort of more limited at running back, so we want to always try to look at the big picture.”
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At the moment, personnel limitations are not an issue in Eugene.
Both the running back and wide receiver rooms are loaded with talent and depth. Beyond the aforementioned players, you also have the likes of Jayden Limar, Gary Bryant Jr., Jeremiah McClellan, Jay Harris, and Justius Lowe taking reps at returner. On the defensive side of the ball, guys like Rodrick Pleasant and Nikko Reed are getting in the mix as well.
More than explosive returns, though, Lorig says that the real goal of his special teams unit is to be as vanilla as possible, and get the ball back to the offense.
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“We only have two goals in special teams: own the ball and no penalties,” Lorig said. “I don’t care if we’re first in the country in kickoff return as long as we own the football because we have a dynamic offense. If you give our offense the ball between the 20 and 30-yard line, we’re gonna score a lot of points.”
In 2023, the Ducks struggled to find much success in this area. Oregon ranked 124th in the nation (out of 130 teams) in overall kick return success, averaging just 15 yards per return. They’re looking to change that in 2024.
“What really comes first and foremost in our process is who’s gonna give us the best chance to make sure that we’re going to get the ball minimum at the 25 and then if that guy also was one of the most explosive returners, that’s a great thing.”
When you consider all that goes into it beyond just explosive talent with the ball in your hands, the decision becomes a lot more complicated. Fortunately for the Ducks, they have a lot of players to choose from going into the season.
Oregon Ducks RB Jay Harris arrives in Eugene fresh from the D2 level, but his path to Eugene was far more arduous than you could imagine.
On December 18, 2023, a news alert popped up on the phone for many Oregon Duck fans.
“Former Northwest Missouri State RB Jay Harris to transfer to Oregon,” it read.
…who?
Some quick Googling told you that the Ducks picked up a 6-foot-2, 215-pound running back out of the transfer portal. One who averaged 130 yards per game and scored 14 touchdowns in 2023 alone. A player who, with the size of an NFL running back and the speed of a wide receiver, went practically unnoticed from the high school football ranks into the Division II streets of Maryville, Missouri.
Seems like a strange path, no?
You don’t know the half of it.
Jay Harris is not unlike many other football players in the sense that he’s trying to use the game to change his life. The story of humble beginnings turned into generational wealth is a popular one in our world of sports, and it’s been turned into a new “American Dream” for many intercity kids across our nation who got dealt a raw hand.
Harris certainly fits into that mold of a young man trying to climb out of a pit where systemic failures started him. But the depths of that pit reach far beyond what many could imagine.
In November of 2005, when Jay was 2 years old, a tragic incident resulted in the death of both his mother and father in a matter of a few days. This resulted in Jay and his four siblings, all of whom are less than five years apart, going to live with his grandparents, John and Diann Harris.
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This magnitude of tragedy early in life can mold someone and set them on the wrong path early on if not handled with care. Fortunately, Jay was able to find football at the age of five when his older brother started playing in a Wentzville youth league.
Jay developed a liking for the sport, grabbed on tight, and hasn’t loosened his grip since.
“Football was my escape,” Harris said in an exclusive interview with Ducks Wire. “I missed a lot of family events because of football. Just travel and stuff like that. Football was definitely my getaway from whatever else was going on.”
It was apparent early on that Jay had a future in it. From his days in Little League running over opponents to his time at Timberland High School where he was named an All-State running back and cornerback, Jay had a knack for the sport, and the size to pursue it at a high level.
Photo Courtesy of Jay Harris
The only problem? Opportunity and timing.
“I had low offers, like small D1 and D2 schools,” Harris said. “Around that time I lost my grandpa, too. That was kind of my year where things fell off.”
With his grandfather now gone, Jay was forced into foster care, where he bounced around to a few different homes. Ultimately, his grandmother was able to get him back under her care.
With the stability that Diann provided lifting him up once more, Jay landed at Northwest Missouri State, where he would play for two years and eventually turn into the running back that many thought was possible. His first season with the Bearcats saw him play just four games, but he notched five touchdowns with limited opportunities. Then, in 2023, Harris exploded.
Photo Courtesy of Northwest Missouri State Athletics
A total of 11 games allowed Jay to rush the ball 244 times for 1,433 yards (5.9 YPC) and 14 touchdowns. He had over 100 yards rushing in every contest, averaging 130 yards per game with one in particular seeing the breakout star tally 274 yards and 4 scores.
The plan was coming together. Jay knew that if he put in the work necessary at Northwest Missouri State, doors would open up. A solid season or two, and he could have a chance to make the leap to D1 and earn some newfound NIL money for himself and his family.
“I just went out and played hard every day, executing, rushing for the yards that I did,” Harris said. “And then Coach Locklyn called.”
Jay thinks back to the day that he got a phone call from the Oregon Ducks running backs coach, offering him a spot on the roster. Some kids might recall that memory with a sense of fulfillment and emotion. Instead, he sounded like an employee recounting a well-deserved promotion more than anything.
“I wasn’t really too surprised,” Harris said. “I didn’t think it would be Oregon, but I knew a call was coming from somewhere.”
One of the pillars of Dan Lanning’s program in Eugene is connection.
Time and again, he will tell you that brothers who are connected, knowing the things that make each other tick on an emotional level, will fight harder for one another when things get tough in a game.
He calls it a player’s “why,” and makes sure that “knowing your why” is one of the prerequisites to being a Duck.
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So it makes sense that Jay Harris landed at Oregon, learning under a coach who believes in the power of passion and drive. He may not have known it when committing to the Ducks, but his “why” was finding a place to grow.
What is his “why?”
“My grandma,” Harris said. “She’s the reason I get up and do what I do every day. She’s the last one in my corner. Everything I go out and do every day is for her.”
More than just making Diann proud, Harris is driven to provide. Not only for her but for his family as well. That’s why teammates describe Jay as having a different demeanor around the practice facility.
“He’s a funny dude — a big goofy dude,” said Oregon RB Jordan James. “But he attacks everything that he does.”
It’s been that way since Harris landed in Eugene earlier this year. James describes him as “working like the starter” in every aspect of his life, while offensive coordinator Will Stein says he’s always wanting to get better.
Oregon RB Noah Whittington explained it to me perfectly — Jay has no choice.
“He understands that this is his shot to change his family trajectory, and the future of his family,” Whittington said. “I tell him ‘If you do two good years here, then you can buy whatever you want to buy.'”
So far, things are going well for Jay in Eugene. He’s picking up the playbook, improving every day, and starting to carve out a role for himself in the offense. In Oregon’s Spring Game, he had 14 touches for 86 yards and a touchdown, earning our Ducks Wire MVP Award.
Making a mark during the season will be more difficult, with both James and Whittington ahead of him on the depth chart. There will be times when frustration might come, and the carries might be sparse, but Harris is confident that he will get through it.
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If he does, there’s more opportunity to come. It could be in the form of NIL deals, an NFL draft selection, and signing bonuses down the road. No matter what it is, the end result will all amount to the same thing — providing for his family and doing a good bit of work in changing his family trajectory.
With that thought, Jay Harris will continue to push forward from a rough upbringing, always moving forward.
“Just remembering my why,” he said. “It’s why I’m even getting up every day.”
Oregon Ducks head coach provided injury updates on Noah Whittington and Jahlil Florence ahead of the 2024 season.
Every football coach wants his team at near full health at all times, but especially before the actual season begins.
According to Oregon head coach Dan Lanning, the Ducks are nearly there with the more questionable players being running back Noah Whittington and corner Jahlil Florence.
Whittington suffered a leg injury during the Colorado game and hasn’t been able to play since. But Lanning says the running back is good to go as fall camp begins. Adding depth to the tailback position will only bolster the Duck backfield and Whittington showed he was up to the task before the injury.
He was averaging nearly eight yards per carry after a very successful 2022 season where he gained almost 800 yards.
Dan Lanning says that Noah Whittington is expected to be fully healthy this fall. Jahlil Florence, he said, is still working back to full health. Sounds like he’s close.
As for Florence, he’s not quite ready for fall camp like Whittington is, but he should be available in the near future after having surgery in the off-season due to an injury.
Oregon’s secondary should be as strong as it has been in quite some time and the Ducks hope Florence can participate in drills and eventually in the actual games sooner rather than later. He had 27 tackles and one interception last season.
“I think Jordan is running like an angry guy, which is exactly how you want your running back to run.”
After two seasons of Bucky Irving as the top dog in the Oregon Ducks running back room, Oregon will have a new leader at RB in 2024. Oregon has a deep crop of talented backs on the roster, but Jordan James, a junior, is the heavy favorite to be the Ducks’ top running back next fall.
In his first two seasons, James showed he is an elite running back, despite a low volume of touches. In 2023, James played in all 14 Ducks’ games, rushing for 759 yards and 11 TDs, averaging 7.1 yards per carry.
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After Oregon’s ninth spring practice on Tuesday, Ducks head coach Dan Lanning was asked about how James has developed this spring, now that he’ll likely be sliding into the top RB spot.
“I think Jordan is running like an angry guy, which is exactly how you want your running back to run,” Lanning said after practice on Tuesday. “Right, he’s out here and has really improved this spring.”
Part of Oregon’s offensive identity in the Lanning era has been throwing to the RBs out of the backfield, letting them use their elusiveness to create big gains in open space. It’s an area where Irving excelled and a skill Lanning thinks James has improved a lot this offseason.
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“I’ve seen him do more out of the backfield with his hands,” Lanning said. “He has a better understanding of what we’re trying to accomplish on the field. So really proud of Jordan’s development and where he’s at.”
Also returning at running back for Oregon is Noah Whittington, who suffered a season-ending injury last September against Colorado. In 2022 — Whittington’s first season as a Duck — he split carries with Irving, rushing for 779 yards on 5.6 yards per carry. I still expect James to be the lead back for Oregon this fall, but don’t sleep on Whittington as a second option.
Bucky Irving leaves big shoes to fill in Eugene, but Jordan James and Noah Whittington are more than capable of getting the job done.
After a couple of long off-season months, the grass is starting to grow and trees are getting ready to bloom. Spring is coming in Eugene, and with it comes the long-awaited return of football for the Oregon Ducks. A lot will look different in this new year for Dan Lanning and his team, with several of last year’s top players moving onto the NFL, including guys like Bo Nix, Troy Franklin, Bucky Irving, Jackson Powers-Johnson, and Brandon Dorlus. All of that is not to mention the fact that the Ducks are joining the Big Ten, and have a new-look conference to get used to on top of a spot in the expanded College Football Playoff to strive for.
It’s safe to say that there are a lot of things to talk about going into this spring season, and a lot of storylines to discuss. To get things started, we want to give a position-by-position breakdown of Oregon’s current roster, getting readers up to date on which players left, which players are returning, and what the overall outlook is going into the spring. So far, we’ve looked at the quarterbacks, and now we’ll examine the Ducks’ running back room.
One of the hallmarks of Oregon football has been the presence of a reliable rushing attack, and that hasn’t changed during Dan Lanning’s tenure as head coach of the Ducks. In his two years as coach, one or more running backs have averaged more than six yards per carry. That consistency has opened up the rest of Oregon’s offense, which led to the Ducks scoring 44.2 points per game in 2023.
The most reliable member of Oregon’s running back room during that time was Bucky Irving, who is now headed to the NFL after two seasons in Eugene. Irving is projected as a mid-round pick, and whichever team drafts him will get an elite rusher, as well as an elite receiver out of the backfield. Trying to replace him will be a tough task for Oregon, but they have enough talent already on their depth chart to feel comfortable with their 2024 RB room.
Below is a breakdown of every loss and addition to the Ducks RB room, as well as a look at each returning player. I also dive into the most compelling storylines pertinent to the Ducks’ running backs and give an overall outlook for the position in 2024.
The injury report for Oregon is relatively short, but could be potentially impactful on Friday vs. Washington.
Considering it’s just about December and conference championship time in college football, it’s a minor miracle the injury list isn’t a mile long.
Both Oregon and Washington head into the Pac-12 title game and the second contest between the two teams relatively healthy. The Huskies look to have almost everyone available and while a few players are uncertain for Oregon, the list of ailments is relatively short.
Truth be told, that’s exactly how both teams want it. You never want to have an injury excuse for the loser of a game such as this. Each team wants the other as healthy as humanly possible and leaves it all out on the field.
