Team Preview: Bulldogs front four can disrupt Ducks offensive rhythm
Oregon’s offensive line was a young, but talented group in 2020, and all they needed was some experience. Although the season was short, it was enough for the Ducks to gain that valuable experience and are now considered one of the best offensive lines in the Pac-12.
We’re going to see how good they are right away when Fresno State comes calling Sept. 4 to open up the 2021 college football season. The Bulldogs bring with them a defensive front four that is probably the best the Mountain West Conference has to offer.
The quartet of defensive ends David Perales and Arron Mosby along with tackles Kevin Atkins and Leonard Payne would be able to hold their own against most offensive lines in the Pac-12.
Mosby, a 6-foot-4, 246-pound defensive end is Fresno State’s version of Kayvon Thibodeaux. As a junior in 2019, he accumulated 78 tackles, a career-best, including 40 solo stops. Mosby also added 5.5 tackles for loss and forced three fumbles. In the Bulldogs’ first game with UConn, Mosby forced a fumble on a sack and then scooped the ball up and ran 31 yards for the team’s first touchdown of the season.
Perales is also a senior after transferring from Sacramento State. The jump to Division I football didn’t affect him at all as the 6-foot-4, 246-pounder was named to the second-team all-conference squad in 2020. He led the Mountain West with four forced fumbles and second in the MWC with two fumble recoveries. Perales was second on the team with 28 tackles, 19 solo stops to go with nine tackles for loss, and four sacks. All of that came in just six games last year.
Atkins, a 6-foot-2, 307-pounder led Fresno State with five sacks in 2020 and was an all-Mountain West honorable mention selection with his 23 tackles. He led the team with five sacks in 2019.
As for Payne, he’s the question mark of the group as he hasn’t played much in recent seasons. At 6-foot-3 and 315 pounds, he played sparingly as a redshirt freshman in 2019 and sat out all of last season. In the season opener, Payne managed two tackles and a half of a sack.
The performance of the Bulldogs’ front four definitely got the attention of Oregon offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead.
“The two defensive ends and interior guys are very stout,” he said. “They can split double teams, very stout against the run and they affect the passer so that they present a great challenge for us in Game 1.”
In one respect, it’s nice for the Ducks that Fresno State has a game under its belt so Oregon can watch some recent game film, but in another respect, Fresno State might have erased some early-season jitters. According to Moorhead, it’s definitely a give and take.
“When you gameplan a first game opponent, you’re generally going off last year’s film, which the game plan preparation is somewhat speculative,” he said. “For us to see them in game action has become a double-edged sword. It gives us better information to prepare, but they have one under the belt, so it’s probably a push there in that regard.”
The front four might be really good, but they weren’t alone in handing UConn a goose egg in the 45-0 win over the Huskies. Fresno State’s secondary held the opposing quarterback to a combined 14-of-30 passing for just 72 yards.
One cornerback in Fresno State’s secondary that won’t be intimidated by the Autzen atmosphere is senior transfer Elijah Gates via UCLA. He played in all of the Bruins’ 31 games from 2018-20 and managed to lead UCLA with two interceptions last season.
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5 questions we hope the Ducks answer vs. Fresno State on Saturday
