Tag: Patrick Herbert

Spring Position Preview: Veteran experience leads athletic group of tight ends in Eugene

With Terrance Ferguson and Patrick Herbert leading the way, the Oregon Ducks have veterans leading an athletic group of tight ends.

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. 

Already this week, we’ve covered the quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers. Now let’s move onto the tight ends.

A year ago, the Oregon Ducks were in a relatively tough spot at the tight end position. While Terrance Ferguson was returning after a strong sophomore campaign, an injury during spring practices sidelined him for a period of time. The future was a bit unknown as far as Patrick Herbert’s ceiling went, and the transfer of Moliki Matavao left the position group a bit thin.

Fast forward to this year, and the TE position is looking like one of the strongest groups on the Oregon roster, with Ferguson returning for a fourth season that could be filled with broken Oregon records. Behind him, Herbert is looking as healthy and productive as he ever has in his college career, and Kenyon Sadiq is verging on a breakout season, representing the most athleticism we’ve seen from a Ducks’ TE in quite some time.

It’s safe to say that TE coach Drew Mehringer has things going in the right direction. Here’s a complete breakdown of how things stand at the position, and the names and storylines that you need to know.

Stock Report: Patrick Herbert thrives, Cole Martin shines, and Ty Thompson drops a dime

The Oregon Ducks had only stock risers on Saturday in their 49-13 win over Arizona State on Saturday.

One of the things Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning has stressed all season is the need for his team to play a complete game. The game against the Utah Utes is the only one Lanning has classified as a complete game, where the Ducks didn’t let up in their dominance for a second.

I think you could argue that Oregon was incredibly close to getting that done on Saturday in a 49-13 win over Arizona State. With six touchdowns on six drives in the first half, all of which were TD passes for Bo Nix, the Ducks were as dominant as we’ve seen this year, winning in every facet of the game. They gave up some scores in the second half when starters were pulled from the game, but it’s easy to see how good the Ducks can be when they play to their ceiling.

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It was hard to find much for Oregon to improve on this week when looking at our stock report. We usually try to find some things that could be better for Dan Lanning’s team after a game, but in Week 12, it was nothing but stocks on the rise in Eugene. Here’s our weekly stock report.

Patrick Herbert draws praise from Dan Lanning after stepping into larger role

With TE depth an issue this spring, Patrick Herbert is stepping up. Dan Lanning has taken notice.

That whole Herbert-to-Herbert dream seems so long ago.

Oregon quarterback Justin Herbert throwing to his younger brother Patrick never occurred for one reason or another. But it looks like the younger Herbert, now a junior, should get plenty of passes thrown his way in the coming months.

Due to an injury to Terrance Ferguson that knocked him out of spring practice, Herbert is now No. 1 on the tight end depth chart for the spring game. The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder has a chance to become the player everyone thought he would be coming out of Eugene’s Sheldon High School.

Herbert showed glimpses of his talent in 2022, but the depth chart at tight end was loaded with players such as Terrance Ferguson and Moliki Matavao. Ferguson is injured and Matavao went to UCLA, which gives Herbert an extended look.

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning already knows Herbert’s skill set and what he brings to the table after what he saw in 2022.

“Patrick probably doesn’t get enough credit for how consistent of a player he’s been when his number was called last year,” Lanning said. “He did exactly what we asked him to do. I know he knows that he has a role to embrace and a lot more to do for. Then also seeing a young guy like Kenyon (Sadiq) step up. It’s been really beneficial for us as well.”

Sadiq might be the answer at tight end in the future, but for the present, it’s Herbert. It’s the same position Herbert was in just a few seasons ago. At that time, although Herbert battled injuries, it gave him a chance to redshirt and learn the college game. Fortunately for the Ducks, the tight end position was plentiful.

That’s not the case in 2023 with Herbert being the only healthy tight end who has played a snap of football in college. Hopefully, Ferguson can get healthy over the summer and replenish the depth chart. If not, Herbert and Sadiq will have to grow quickly.

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Patrick Herbert eager to get back and contribute for the Ducks

With the injury bug hopefully behind him, tight end Patrick Herbert is ready to get his Oregon career off the ground.

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Fair or not, when the back of the uniform says Herbert, expectations have a way of going through the roof.

Fans were talking about that Herbert-to-Herbert connection even before Patrick, a tight end, had committed to Oregon. Unfortunately, quarterback Justin Herbert never got to throw a pass to “little” brother Patrick because of injuries.

Now Patrick, who’s not so little at 6-foot-5 and nearly 250 pounds, seems to have his injuries behind him and is ready to be that player opposing defenses lose sleep over as he was at Sheldon High School.

Herbert hasn’t played in a real game since 2019 and it could have been easy to fall out of the loop or lose some of his competitive edge. According to Oregon coach Dan Lanning, that’s just not the case. It’s quite the opposite.

“I think Pat’s been really eager to get back out there on the field. So I was excited to get to see him get some work,” Lanning said. “It’s so easy when you’re off the field and not able to get in there and involved to kind of fall out of the circle and fall out of the focus of what you got to do on the field. I’m excited to see Pat get out there and really pick it up pretty quick.”

The Ducks have a number of highly-recruited tight ends already on the roster, including Terrance Ferguson and Moliki Matavao. Both played their share of snaps last season. If Herbert is anything like his brother, Herbert was born with a competitive fire that shouldn’t be overlooked.

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Patrick Herbert sustains knee injury in scrimmage

The injury bug bit Patrick Herbert once again as Mario Cristobal announces the tight end suffered a knee injury in the scrimmage Saturday.

It’s never good when an injury occurs in football, but when it’s during the first scrimmage of fall camp, it especially hurts.

According to Oregon Ducks head coach Mario Cristobal, tight end Patrick Herbert sustained what he called a “pretty good knee injury” during Saturday night’s scrimmage inside Autzen Stadium.

Herbert has had to deal with injuries ever since he arrived at Oregon and this is just the latest blow to what was, and possibly still could be, a promising career. When Herbert was finished at Sheldon High School in Eugene, he was the No. 1 recruit from the state and fans were hoping to see a Herbert-to-Herbert connection with star quarterback Justin Herbert, but that never materialized.

With Patrick Herbert out of the mix for the time being, the tight picture just got a little more clear. Oregon welcomed DJ Johnson back to practice and Cam McCormick, also with a history of injuries, has had a great fall camp so far.

Spencer Webb will definitely see time on the field and Terrance Ferguson, the four-star out of Colorado, has already opened a lot of eyes in camp.

With Patrick Herbert and Spencer Webb healthy, Oregon’s tight end depth is looking dominant

Both Herbert and Webb struggled with injuries during the 2020 season, but their return this spring has Oregon’s TE group looking deep.

Sharing a last name with one of the most famous players to put on a Ducks uniform is definitely a pressure-packed spot to be in, but for redshirt freshman Patrick Herbert, the stove isn’t likely to be too hot.

His 2020 season was cut short due to an injury, but the younger brother of Justin Herbert has bounced back and is ready to write his own story with the Ducks this year, hoping to carry on the family name and have an impact on the offense.

“It was great to see Patrick bounce back because Patrick is a guy we all know is going to be a really good football player,” head coach Mario Cristobal said after Saturday’s scrimmage. “You can coach him hard and he responds and he’s continued to develop and grow.”

Herbert has played in just a single game in his college career, but the high school standout came to Oregon as a 4-star recruit from Sheldon High School as the consensus top-ranked TE in the state.

Alongside him is Spencer Webb, who is also coming back from an injury last season that saw a promising season ended early. The 6-foot-6, 240-pound tight end had 209 yards and three touchdowns in 2019, and he projects to be one of the top guys at that position this season.

“Losing (Webb) last year was something that really hurt us offensively. It’s good to see him have a really good spring as well,” Cristobal said.

While the return of both Herbert and Webb are helpful, it will still likely be a combo of Cam McCormick and DJ Johnson at the top of the depth chart. McCormick has had an injury-riddled career at Oregon, but he’s shown flashes of talent that give us hope for eventual production.

Health has played a significant role at this position for the Ducks over the past several years, unfortunately, but we may now be in a position where a knick or a bruise won’t tank the spot as a whole. Any one of these guys can step up when called upon and will have Oregon’s receiving group clicking on all gears.

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Spring Position Preview: It might finally be time for Herbert 2.0 to lead Oregon tight ends

Patrick Herbert will finally have the chance to show his stuff for Oregon as the starting tight end spot could be up for grabs.

When it comes to the depth chart for tight ends at Oregon, size certainly won’t be an issue.

What might be an issue is to figure out who is going to step up in the spring and fall to claim the starting spot on the roster, though. Thankfully for Mario Cristobal and his staff, they have a lot of good options to choose from.

(AP Photo/Chris Pietsch)

Most, if not all of the Ducks faithful are going to want to see what Patrick Herbert has to offer. Justin Herbert’s younger brother was a standout himself at Sheldon High School as a tight end, and his 6-foot-5, 244-pound frame makes for a perfect target over the middle, while also providing some value in pass protection.

Herbert was the No. 1 recruit to come from the state in 2018 and he was a USA Today first-team All-Oregon selection at the tight end position, earning first-team 6A All-State honors by The Oregonian as a tight end and honorable mention recognition as a punter. Herbert had 43 receptions for 797 yards and 11 touchdowns as a senior for the Irish.

Many were hoping for that Herbert-to-Herbert connection when Justin was a senior, but the younger Herbert played in just one game in 2019 before redshirting and didn’t see any game action in 2020. Offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead’s scheme does feature the tight end, which should highlight Herbert’s unique abilities.

Most likely, however, junior DJ Johnson and sophomore Spencer Webb will be the frontrunners to be the starting tight end for Oregon.

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After transferring from Miami and sitting out a season, Johnson was able to finally make some plays for the Ducks in 2020. At 6-foot-5 and 258 pounds, the former defensive end turned TE caught 10 passes for 113 yards and three touchdowns.

As for Webb, the 6-foot-6, 240-pounder played in all 12 games in 2019 as a redshirt freshman, catching 18 passes for 209 yards and three scores. Unfortunately for Webb, he was injured for most of 2020 and didn’t get to play. Oregon is hoping those injury days are behind him and Webb can turn back into his 2019 form.

The same can be said for Cam McCormick, a 6-foot-5, 251-pounder from Bend, Ore. His career has been plagued with injuries for the past three seasons. If he can somehow avoid the injury bug, the senior can provide some extra muscle and another huge target to throw at.

If for some reason Webb and/or McCormack can’t play at full capacity, Oregon brought in one of the top prep tight ends in the nation in 6-foot-6, 240-pound Moliki Matavao from Henderson, Nevada. Nearly every school gave him a scholarship offer despite his senior season being canceled for the pandemic.

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