Biggest notes from Ducks’ usage report in Holiday Bowl victory
On Wednesday night at the Holiday Bowl, the Oregon Ducks beat the North Carolina Tar Heels to win a major victory. It’s not a victory that will go down in history for Oregon, but it was a thrilling game that saw a relatively depleted roster come back from 10 points down in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, scoring the go-ahead touchdown with 19 seconds on the clock.
We’ve talked a lot about the game in general, going over some of the biggest takeaways and seeing which players bumped up their stock the most, but now we want to get into the nitty-gritty a little bit before we head into the offseason.
Throughout the season we’ve done snap count takeaways after certain games that give us a glimpse at the depth on the roster, and see what we can learn about how much some players played. We thought it would be a good time to look into snap counts to see what they reveal. These are our key takeaways from Wednesday’s snap count.
Total Snaps — 70-80
(Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images).
Offense
None
Defense
-
CB Trikweze Bridges (72)
-
S Bennett Williams (72)
Total Snaps — 60-70
Oregon Ducks Holiday Bowl (Photo Courtesy Of Ethan Landa).
Offense
Defense
-
LB Keith Brown (68).
-
LB Mase Funa (68)
-
LB Jeffrey Bassa (65)
-
DL Brandon Dorlus (61)
Total Snaps — 50-60
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Offense
-
WR Chase Cota (56)
-
LG Marcus Harper II (51)
Defense
None
Total Snaps — 40-50
Offense
-
RG Steven Jones (48)
-
C Alex Forsyth (44).
Defense
-
CB Dontae (45)
-
S Jamal Hill (43)
Total Snaps — 30-40
Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Offense
-
TE Cam McCormick (39)
-
LG Ryan Walk (37)
-
RB Bucky Irvine (32)
-
RB Noah Whittington (32)
Defense
Total Snaps — 20-30
Mark J. Rebilas – USA TODAY Sports
Offense
Defense
-
S JJ Greenfield (28)
-
CB Jahlil Florence (27)
-
DL Taki Tamani (25)
-
DL Jordon Riley (22)
Total Snaps — 10-20
(AP Photo/Young Kwak)
Offense
Defense
-
DL Keanu Williams (12).
-
DL Treven Ma’ae (11)
Total Snaps — 0-10
Soobum Im – USA TODAY Sports
Offense
-
RB Jordan James (8
-
TE Patrick Herbert (5)
-
LT Josh Conerly (3)
Defense
The 100% Club
Oregon Ducks Holiday Bowl (Photo Courtesy Ethan Landa).
It is always a pleasure to see who got 100% of the snaps when we do snap count takeaways. On offense, it’s typical that the QB and five offensive linemen are on the field for every snap unless it is a blowout, but on defense, it’s always interesting to look at. For the Holiday Bowl, here are the guys who didn’t come off the field:
Bridges is the name I remember most from that group. He is making a compelling case for Christian Gonzalez’s CB1 role next season. He did a great job on Wednesday and was clearly an important part of defense.
Terrence Ferguson’s Greater Role
Oregon Ducks Holiday Bowl (Photo Credited to Ethan Landa).
Terrance Ferguson has seen a lot of playing time this year, but with TE Moliki Matavao no longer in Eugene after transferring to UCLA, it’s clear that Ferguson’s role got a little bit bigger. He played in all but two offensive plays against North Carolina. He had an impressive game to prove it. He caught 5 passes for 84 yards and led the Ducks in receiving. It’s clear going into 2023 that he is the TE1 on the roster.
The Top Linebackers
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We were unable to see Justin Flowe and Noah Sewell in action so we wondered who would replace them as the Ducks’ next LBs. We now have the answer, thanks to Jeffrey Bassa, Mase Funa and Keith Brown all taking up the helm. The good news is that all three are coming back for the 2023 season as well, so there will be some major consistency and carryover for Oregon’s defense.
Marcus Harper’s Presence can’t be ignored
(AP Photo/Young Kwak)
Marcus Harper has started at LG for much of the season, but he didn’t get the start in the Holiday Bowl, with the Ducks instead going to Ryan Walk and Steven Jones at the guard spots. It’s clear that the Ducks wanted him on the field tough, with Harper ending up playing 51 of the 66 snaps at left guard, compared to Ryan Walk’s 37 total snaps on the night. With a lot of the offensive line going through a turnover this offseason, Harper is the one starter expected to return in 2023, and he’s absolutely proven his value down the stretch.
Jahlil Flores and Dontae Florence
The Ducks are seeking starting cornerbacks to contribute in 2023. Trikweze Bridges might be the front-runner with Alabama transfer Khyree Jack also making a strong case. However, Dontae Maning and Jahlil Florence’s cases were quite entertaining. Both played very well and showed that they’ve improved from the start of the season, with Manning getting more snaps in the end (47 vs. 27). Florence would probably be the top starter right now. Manning is likely to come in second, but it will still be fascinating to see the depth chart over the offseason.
The Running Back Split remains
Oregon Ducks Holiday Bowl (Photo Courtesy Ethan Landa).
The stats that Bucky Irving put up in the Holiday Bowl — 149 yards and 2 TD — were impressive, but seeing that he did it on only 13 carries, averaging 11.5 yards per attempt, is downright insane. Irving seems to have taken over the role of No. Irving is the No. 1 RB on this roster. But, until the last game of the season, he was still in an even time-split avec Noah Whittington. Both saw 32 snaps.
There’s a fine line between going with the hot hand and splitting reps to keep everyone healthy, and the Ducks have been walking it from start to finish this season. I’m very curious to see how they treat Irving in 2023, and if he will be the feature back in terms of snaps and rushes or not.