Projecting the Oregon Ducks’ stat leaders for the 2023 season
The Oregon Ducks put together a talented team in 2022, and until they fell to Washington and Oregon State late in the season, they were making a convincing run for the Pac-12 championship. While the final result of the season was disappointing for many Oregon fans, the Ducks’ achievements in 2022 still exceeded the pre-season expectations of many experts.
Several members of the Ducks’ core are returning for 2023, but there are also many former Ducks headed to the NFL, which will mean many players that haven’t started in the past will see a bigger role in 2023 than they did last year. After the success of 2022, the expectations are high for 2023, but hopefully, the Ducks have the skill to make a strong push.
The Ducks have talented players across the board that will need to perform in order to make that push for the Pac-12 championship and possibly the College Football Playoff. Below are the players I expect to perform at the highest level and lead the team in each statistical category.
Passing Yards and Passing Touchdowns — Bo Nix
While Ty Thompson played well in Oregon’s spring game, there is no reason to believe that there will be anyone but Bo Nix leading the Oregon Ducks’ offense come September. Nix had a remarkable 2022 season, in which he racked up 3,593 yards passing and 29 passing touchdowns, not to mention his success running the football.
Nix was in the Heisman conversation last year until he suffered an injury late in the season. If Nix can maintain the level of play we saw from him in 2022, he is poised to have another monster season and should accumulate plenty of passing yards and touchdowns for the Ducks’ offense.
Rushing Yards — Bucky Irving
The Ducks added to their already impressive backfield in the 2023 offseason, with the additions of Dante Dowdell and Jayden Limar, who are both top 20 RBs in the class of 2023. Still, for next season, we can expect veteran RBs Bucky Irving and Noah Whittington to shoulder the majority of the load.
Irving led the team in rushing yards last year with over 1000 yards in his first season as a Duck. Oregon did lose key offensive linemen from the 2022 team, which could hinder Irving’s production this season. However, there is always a chance that Bucky and the revamped 2023 Ducks’ O-line exceed expectations, and lead to an even better season from Irving.
Rushing Touchdowns — Noah Whittington
While I expect Bucky Irving to lead the Ducks in rushing yards for the second year in a row, I think in 2023, Noah Whittington will be Oregon’s new touchdown champion. In 2022, Whittington and Irving rushed for five TDs each, while Bo Nix led the team with 14.
Last season, Whittington and Irving established themselves as an elite RB tandem. Irving is elusive, Whittington is powerful, and both are exceptionally fast. In 2023, I expect to see Will Stein take advantage of Whittington’s strength in goalline situations, which should lead to plenty of TDs for the second-year Duck.
Receiving Yards — Troy Franklin
While many Ducks were snubbed from On3’s top 100 college football players, the biggest surprise is the omission of WR Troy Franklin. Franklin was the clear favorite target of Bo Nix’s last season, especially in clutch situations. In 2022, Franklin led the team in receptions with 61, in yards with 891, and TDs with 9.
Franklin was impressive this spring and with his speed, sure-handedness, and overall consistency, he should have a season just as good if not better than the last.
Receiving touchdowns - Terrance Ferguson
Though he went down with an injury at the beginning of the Ducks’ spring season, star TE Terrance Ferguson is expected to be back by the time the season starts. In Ferguson’s sophomore season, he had 391 yards receiving on 32 catches, five of which were TDs. Now that Ferguson and QB Bo Nix have played a season together, I think Ferguson will evolve into Nix’s go-to red-zone target.
Interceptions — Trikweze Bridges
With Gonzalez headed for the NFL, It is uncertain who Oregon’s No.1 CB will be next season. Former 5-star Dontae Manning and 4-star freshman Cole Martin both have the potential to be lockdown corners, but Bridges has already shown that he can shut down opposing receivers and pick off opposing QBs.
Sacks — Jordan Burch
One of the Ducks’ most significant pickups in the 2023 transfer portal is former South Carolina DE, Jordan Burch. Burch was a 5-star high school recruit and was rated as the best edge rusher in the 2023 portal. Burch had 3.5 sacks in 2023 along with 60 total tackles. Burch is expected to be a first-round pick in next year’s draft and hopefully can accumulate a large number of sacks for Oregon’s defense between now and then.
Tackles — Jamal Hill
Last season, Jamal Hill had the fifth-most tackles among all Ducks defenders, and among returning Ducks, he was second only to LB Jeffery Bassa. In 2023, I still expect Bassa to amass a high number of tackles, but I expect Hill to lead the team because this offseason, he made the move from safety to linebacker.
In April, Hill mentioned that he thinks that the position change will put him “close to all the action,” and will allow him “to play a lot faster.” For a player who tallied 50 total tackles in 2022, the ability to play faster could mean he grabs a whole lot more tackles, and regardless, it should be an encouraging thought for Ducks fans.
