Ken Woody played defensive back,
wide receiver and place kicker for the UO
from 1966-70. He coached college football
for 18 years, including stints at the UO,
UW, and WSU. He was a head coach
twice, at Whitman College and Washington
University-St. Louis. He also did television
football color commentary for KCPQ
(Seattle-Tacoma) and Fox Sports
Northwest for 14 years.
X ’ s & O’s ...
KEN WOODY
Contributing Writer
INSIDE DUCK SPORTS
Searching for
their Lost Mojo,
‘03 Ducks to
feature Diversity,
Versatility
& Disguise
and yardage per attempt percentage, and
to give our quarterback more options…”
2. The running game, built mostly
around Onterrio Smith, was nil after
he was injured in the last half of the
season. Answer, Bellotti: “We have four
guys who all are going to contribute
this year…” Running Back Coach
Gary Campbell: “Terrence Whitehead,
Chris Vincent, Ryan Shaw all have
a good chance of being the starter.”
Can you remember the feeling?
The pounding headache, the nausea,
your unsteady shuffle, as you tried to
get up and move on last year? No,
we’re not talking about the post New
Year’s eve celebration, but the dreaded
“Seattle Bowl Hangover” which afflicted
Duck fans by the thousands. Oregon
had just lost badly to a mediocre Wake
Forest team in the same ways they had
floundered over the last half of the 2002
season: giving up big pass plays, unable
to convert third down chances on
offense, and as a team, displaying little
fire and hustle. “We certainly lost our
swagger and lost our confidence down
the stretch,” observed Head Coach Mike
Bellotti. Such were the symptoms of a
thoroughly wretched malady that took
the fun out of football---and made for
a long winter. Fortunately, for Oregon’s
legions, Bellotti conducted a “gut
check,” in the off-season, challenging
both players and coaches to look
within for answers to questions
that must be solved if the Ducks are
to regain their status in the elite
Pac-10 Conference.
Coming into the opener this
Saturday against Mississippi State in
Starkville, what is clear is that the
Ducks have strength “up the middle,”
with pro-sized offensive and defensive
lines. That’s a good place to start putting
together a solid football team. The
kicking game features Jared Siegel, one
of the best place kickers in the nation
and the newest punter, probably Paul
Martinez, a freshman, with the lack
of consistency which typifies a first-year
player. The Ducks have two good
quarterbacks (compared to WSU,
Stanford, Cal, UCLA and USC, which
currently have none), a blazing wide
receiver, three studly running backs,
and a defensive team with speed,
athleticism, and a burning desire to
put the hangover of ’02 to rest.
DEFENSE:
What Went Wrong Last
Year, & What Will Fix It?
OFFENSE:
1. Poor third-down conversion,
particularly in the last half of the
season. Answer, Andy Ludwig, Offensive
Coordinator: “Kellen Clemens is
making better decisions and better
understanding the scheme and how
we’re attacking defenses… Jason Fife
is throwing the ball with more repetitive
accuracy.” Coach Bellotti: “We’re
looking to enhance our completion
12 AUGUST 28, 2003
Ducks I llustrated
1. Too many big plays given up,
often by corners in one-on-one pass
coverage. Answer: Nick Aliotti, Defensive
Coordinator: “We have made some
changes: coverage things to give our
corners some help at times.” John Neal,
Secondary Coach: “I’ve heard a lot of
negativism about (corners) and people
are wrong. We can win championships
with them here and they know that
now.” Bellotti: “Our pass rush needs to
be better and our variation of zone and
man coverage needs to be better.”
2. Pass rush was inconsistent and
not a factor in putting pressure on
opponents’ offenses. Answer: Steve
Greatwood, Defensive Line Coach:
“Coverage and pass rush are tied
together…we have some athletic guys
who can get up the field and get after
the quarterback a little better. Bellotti:
“We have athleticism and the best size
we’ve ever had in our defensive line.”
TEAM:
1. The Ducks didn’t hustle on
defense and looked demoralized on
both sides of the ball. Answer: Bellotti:
“We had lost some leaders from the
year before and that’s an easy excuse
to make, but I don’t make them, and
we have to create that leadership.”
At a preseason media conference Bellotti
talked of speaking with every player
individually in the off season, getting
their ideas for what needed to turn
things around. “I feel good about the
leaders we have on our team, and the
number of newer guys who are also
stepping up to that role. We all enjoyed
the role of the being the “hunted,”
but after last year, we’re now the
hunter, and we will have to earn back
the respect we had before. We need to
be hungry.”
snap count and then entire defense
has to repeat the process. Obviously, the
more changes you force on the defensive
players, the greater their opportunity
of making a mistake and allowing
a big play for the offense.” Coaches in
the press box look for the adjustments
a defensive coach will make to their
fronts and coverages against shifts and
DIAGRAM A
Align, Assign & Adjust
weak safety
strong safety
weakside
linebacker
strongside
linebacker
“shift”
motion. Many times, defenses will be
forced to simplify, giving opponents
a better idea of what to expect in certain
down/distance situations. This may
boost the successful percentages in play
calling. This is a critical component of
the Duck offense going into the opener
against Mississippi State, forcing the
Bulldogs to “align, assign, and adjust”
Tight end shift forces
four defenders to
change positions. All
defenders must “align,
assign & adjust
linebackers who must cover the
option and secondary players
who must force sweeps. Defensive
players prefer to line up, “lay their
ears back” and fly to the football.
Shifting offenses slow this down
and may lead to frustration and
mistakes by the defense. Bellotti
has said that at this stage of year
DIAGRAM B
Align, Assign & Adjust
strong “shift”
safety
cornerback
“shift”
“shift”
“Align, Assign, Adjust”
Key Component of “03
Offensive Game Plan
As described by Robin Ross,
Tight End Coach, “Every time an
offensive team lines up in a formation,
every defensive player must go through
a mental checklist of how they will
react to their defensive responsibilities.
If the offense shifts, or changes its
formation prior to the snap, every player
must go through the same checklist
again. Add another dimension, after
the shift, by having a back, receiver,
or tight end go in motion before the
(lines up a strong-side (Sam) linebacker
and strong safety on the tight end),
so when the tight end shifts, those
defenders shift too, which makes two
others (weak linebacker (Will) and
weak safety) have to shift also. These
changes also might impact players
who don’t have to move, linemen who
might have contain responsibilities,
Poor matchups: fullback
vs. cornerback traded for
better matcup of wide
receiver vs. strong safety
until the very snap of the ball.
Here are two examples of what
an offense may gain from shifting.
The first (see Diagram A) involves shifting
the tight end (the tight end is usually
on the strong running side of a forma-
tion) from one side of the formation
to the other. The defense flip-flops
the offense is not as explosive as it
was last year, and this conscious
effort to force opponents mistakes into
big offensive plays may prove to be
an answer to the loss of big-play guys
like Onterrio Smith, Keenan Howry
and George Wrighster.
The second example (see Diagram B)