‘It’s about explosive plays;’ OC Kenny Dillingham discusses Oregon’s new offense, progress in camp
Media members got to meet with Oregon Ducks’ new offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham on Monday afternoon after the team’s fourth practice of the season.
The Oregon offense has been the talk of the town throughout the offseason, and after what we saw at the Ducks’ spring game, we understand why. With a highly-aggressive scheme that aims to put the ball in the hands of playmakers and spread the field, you can’t blame Oregon fans for being intrigued after the relatively conservative years of Mario Cristobal.
So with a chance to talk to Dillingham after the offseason came to an end, we discussed how the quarterbacks are handling the new offense, how a veteran OL helps the offensive install, and which young players have stood out in the first two days of camp.
Here’s everything of note that Dillingham had to say:
QB Improvement
Question: With all of the quarterbacks attending camps this summer, what have you seen them add to their games?
Dillingham: “Bo, you can see his release, he doesn’t pull out his front hand as much. Right I mean the guru term is you speak into the mic, right? Compact your release. Ty compacted his release as well. You know, he doesn’t have as long a release but doesn’t drop the ball. And you know, Dre recently worked on picking up his feet.”
Ty Thompson
Q: What did Ty Thompson pick up the most at the Manning Passing Academy?
Dillingham: “Just you know, he gets to be around guys that are better leaders. And he gets to see how people carry themselves. I think that’s one of the most important things of playing quarterback and I think it’s starting to carry over for him.”
Young Player Improvement
Q: What can the young players do the most to improve right now?
Dillingham: “I think the thing for the younger guys is strength and conditioning. Getting in the strength conditioning program has nothing to do with football, it has to do with getting in the weight room.”
Evaluating Progress
Q: How do you guys best evaluate progress day to day, week to week?
Dillingham: “We chart explosives, negatives, consistent plays for us. So we chart almost every measurable possible, (missed assignments,) penalties, and we’re just trying to look for some consistency.”
WR Kyler Kasper
Q: With Kyler Casper reclassifying to the 2022 class, how have you seen him establish himself so far at a young age?
Dillingham: “I think he’s done a really nice job just adapting. To go from a high school kid to all of a sudden being a, you know, a college kid. You weren’t expecting that, you were supposed to go back to high school this year. So I think a little bit of him is ‘whoa,’ but he’s responded. I mean, today was the first day I saw him really attack and be physical and really kind of be comfortable out there.”
Multiple Running Backs
Q: What’s your philosophy on deploying multiple running backs?
Dillingham: “It’s not about total touches for me, it’s about yards per carry. And it’s about explosive plays. So we want to keep guys fresh that way at the end of the game, we have fresh legs. So I mean, the more running backs you have, the better.”
RB Numbers
Q: How many RBs is too many?
Dillingham: “I mean, we’ve used five before. We’ve had four before all be impact players for us. We had over 4000 yards of total offense at one point but you know, not saying that that’s going to happen. I’m just saying that we’re going to use whatever we got, you know, whatever our talent is. That way we’re fresh in the fourth quarter.”
Veteran OL
Q: How helpful is a solidified OL when you’re transitioning so much in an offseason?
Dillingham: “Yeah, I mean, we’re still competing there but it is nice having guys and having leadership there. In terms of getting those guys on the same page when you’re learning a new system. At the end of the day football is all very similar, right? Especially up front, right? It’s just learning a new verbiage and learning the nuances of its five and all those veterans is definitely making it a better transition.”
Evaluating QBs
Q: How do you evaluate the QB position and their command of the offense?
Dillingham: “Well, I think it’s just in between plays, you know, are they directing the show? If somebody is misaligned, are they making it right? Or is the play just going to be a negative? You know, at the end of the day, we talked about extreme ownership in our room, right when you play quarterback. I mean, it is the definition of extreme ownership. Whatever happens, is on you. If you don’t score, it’s on you at the quarterback position. So that just goes into taking charge and having extreme ownership over the unit when you’re on the field.”
Growth since Spring Ball
Q: How have you seen the QBs grow since spring ball?
Dillingham: “I have and I think part of that is they’re more familiar with the offense. You can’t make people right, you can’t fix problems when your head is still spinning. So I think they’re slowly getting it, they’re processing it better. It’s allowing them to help other guys, you know, when we’re not aligned, right, or good guys and proper splits.”
The Film Room
Q: Have any QBs really stepped up in the film room this offseason?
Dillingham: “Not really, I mean for me, it’s about can you take the meeting room to the field. So some kids may need to spend five hours and learn something, some kid may look at it 30 minutes, memorize it, right? Can you take something from the meeting room to the field, right, whatever that is. So everything for us. We obviously want guys to come in and work and put in that time necessary because that helps you on the field. But at the end of the day, we play football, we don’t watch film. So the film is going to help you prepare for football, but we’re going to be judged by you know, the process on the field. Obviously, the fieldwork is going to drastically help you when you get to the field.”
Sample Size
Q: Is 4 practices enough film to watch and make evaluations off of?
Dillingham: “Not meaningful. We haven’t even had full pads yet. We haven’t played football yet. We played 7-on-7 A lot though. A little more.”
