5 questions for Oregon to answer in potential trap-game vs. Arizona
The Oregon Ducks have had a problem with the Arizona Wildcats over the past couple of decades. While the two teams have played a total of 21 times, and the Ducks have won 16 of those games, a handful of those 5 losses have been absolutely excruciating defeats. Let’s quickly relive some of them:
2007 — No. 2 Oregon loses to unranked Arizona, 34-24. Dennis Dixon suffers knee injury that ends Heisman Trophy campaign and derails Ducks’ potential national championship run.
2013 — No. 5 Oregon loses to unranked Arizona, 42-16. Loss derails Ducks’ potential national championship run.
2014 — No. 2 Oregon loses to unranked Arizona, 31-24. Loss briefly derails Ducks’ national championship run, but Oregon gets revenge with Pac-12 Championship blowout, makes it into inaugural College Football Playoff.
2018 — No. 19 Oregon loses to unranked Arizona, 44-15.
Yea, safe to say there’s some history in this matchup.
While Oregon is the far-better team, the past experiences make this an annual trap game for the Ducks, with promising seasons always having the potential to go up in flames. The new coaching staff hasn’t experienced that phenomenon in the desert, but the possibility remains.
Will it come to fruition once again this season as No. 11 Oregon takes on an unranked Wildcats team? We want to see that, and several other things from the Ducks on Saturday.
Can Ducks do away with trap games?
(Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images)
Great teams don’t have trap games. Rarely do you hear of the Georgia Bulldogs or Alabama Crimson Tide losing a game where they were favored by 14 or more points. They may have close games every now and then — the Bulldogs escaped with a 26-22 win over Missouri last week — but it’s not often that they end up falling in those traps.
Can the Ducks get to that point? It may seem crazy for Oregon fans to imagine a world where games each year against Washington State, Stanford, Cal, and Arizona can come and go without much stress being exhausted, but it’s not an unrealistic scenario. So far this year, the Ducks have gotten through two trap games, and only in one of them — Washington State — was there significant doubt afoot. If Oregon takes care of business in convincing fashion on Saturday, I’m not going to proclaim that trap games are no longer an issue for the Ducks, but I will start to consider the possibility of them not being as much of an issue under this coaching regime.
How injured are Justin Flowe and Byron Cardwell?
The injury situations with LB Justin Flowe and RB Byron Cardwell are different but equally interesting.
For Justin Flowe, after missing both of his first two seasons with the Ducks because of injury, there seemed to be some pressure for the sophomore to stay healthy in 2022. Through five games, Flowe has been sidelined for two of them with undisclosed injuries. On Saturday, Lanning said that he was “deemed unavailable” shortly before kick-off against Stanford, and while Flowe has practiced this week, a lot of his work has come with the second team, according to reports. Is he dealing with anything serious, or just little bumps and bruises?
As for Cardwell, the RB has been sidelined with a leg injury for the past three weeks. He’s gone through practices and suited up for games, but is left standing on the sidelines throughout. I’ve been told that his injury is not serious but based on the amount of time that it’s caused him to miss, I think it’s fair to question. I’m very curious to see if he gets on the field this week.
Can the defense hold momentum?
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The season-long stats and rankings for the Oregon defense aren’t that impressive, but in the past 5 quarters, this unit looks to be picking things up. If you go back to the final quarter against Washington State, the Ducks got some big stops in key places, including a game-sealing pick-six as the game came to a close. And then last week against Stanford, Oregon started on a tear, allowing just 30 yards in the first quarter, and 102 yards in the first half. They looked like the dominant unit that we thought they could be coming into this season.
Will that continue against Arizona? It’s a big ask, considering that the Wildcats have one of the best group of wide receivers in the nation, and Oregon’s passing defense is one of the worst in the leauge. If the defensive line can get home, though, it will make a big difference and give Oregon’s defense a chance to remain dominant.
Can Bo Nix get deep ball back?
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This is a relatively small question, because I am not afraid to say that I’ve been incredibly impressed with Bo Nix and his passing game this season. However, against Stanford, the Oregon QB struggled a bit when airing it out, only connecting on two passes for more than 25-yards. Lanning and Nix both made a note this week that it’s something that needs to improve, and simply is a matter of getting the ball out on time and connecting with receivers.
In order for the Ducks to win this weekend, the offense is going to need to be prevalent. While I feel confident in the running game and their ability to put up numbers, seeing some connections downfield would be encouraging.
Will the discipline be there?
Oregon Ducks vs. Stanford Cardinal (Photo Courtesy of Ethan Landa)
It’s no secret that the Ducks were incredibly undisciplined last week against Stanford, racking up 14 penalties for a ghastly 135 yards. Doing that and still being able to win a game is simply unsustainable and will be a major problem for Oregon if it’s a trend that continues.
Lanning made a lot this week about players taking accountability for their mistakes and improving on that front. It’s going to be pretty apparent on Saturday whether they are making strides in the right direction or not.
