The landscape of college football underwent major reconstruction over the course of the last few years.
From NIL to the conference realignment fiasco, the scene around the NCAA became one of intense change around the country. Oregon, as always, set the tone as one of the nation’s premier innovators, and the current crop of talent encapsulates that perfectly.
To start, the Ducks lost 2023 Heisman Trophy finalist Bo Nix to the NFL draft, but instead of falling back and waiting for the time to come, head coach Dan Lanning and his staff got to work early.
Oregon found its name in the conversation for much of the 2024 transfer class, which included a star-studded group of available quarterbacks.
Dillon Gabriel, a native Hawaiian who attended high school just 22 miles away from Oregon’s only Heisman winner, became a no-brainer candidate for the Ducks. The now sixth-year senior dazzled the Big 12 with The University of Oklahoma, and led the Sooners to a 10 win season.
While Nix’s 45 touchdown, three interception season with an inhuman 77.4 completion percentage will be hard to follow up, Gabriel’s 69.3 percent clip from last season proves he can throw effectively and consistently in a premier conference.
However, Gabriel provides a different profile than Nix.
Gabriel established himself as an elite scrambler last season with the Sooners, as he scored 12 touchdowns in his 93 attempts and 373 yards on the ground. Nix used his legs slightly less, and only rushed for 234 yards on just 53 attempts.
The main aspect that Gabriel adds to the Ducks’ offense is his footwork in short spaces. While Nix made his mark as one of the more elusive signal callers in college football, Gabriel might have him beat in that department.
Gabriel’s ability to shift his feet in the pocket and create something out of nothing shined as his main strength. That will provide the Ducks with longer plays, which can open up the floodgates for their deep threats — mainly Tez Johnson and incoming transfer Evan Stewart.
Stewart’s arrival created shockwaves in Eugene. As one of the top-ranked players in the transfer portal, Stewart received interest from all the top programs.
While his stats don’t reflect his elite talent — mainly due to lack of game time — it is abundantly clear how effective he can be at Oregon.
Stewart is fast, which is something that has been talked about in exhaustion at this point. More specifically, Stewart accelerates significantly faster than any cornerback he finds himself up against, allowing him to beat some of the best-of-the-best on his day.
Stewart does his damage within five yards of the line of scrimmage, which gives one-on-one defenders no chance to catch up further downfield.
In 18 games over two seasons, Stewart averaged 12.8 yards per catch, which replaces Troy Franklin’s constant presence in the opposing secondary.
The speed at which he fires up his legs makes it incredibly difficult for anyone guarding him to stay in front. A deep threat at the core, Stewart and Johnson make for arguably the best two-man receiving duo in the country, as both are among the premier downfield pass catchers.
The cornerback room entered the offseason with a glaring question mark. One that would immediately be answered by the surprise commitment from Jabbar Muhammad, the star corner from bitter rival Washington’s national runner-up squad.
Muhammad defended the third most passes in FBS last season with 16 — mostly due to his incredible ability to track down balls and get in the way. While his 5’10” stature may not promote the utmost confidence, Muhammad more than makes up for it in athleticism.
Even when he makes mistakes, his close down speed allows him to make plays on a pass from anywhere. Muhammad’s open field tackling is second to none and gives him the ability to sag off defenders receiving short passes.
Even after one of the most successful seasons in Oregon history, changes have to come in order to stay at the head of the game. As the Ducks enter a new conference, they will have to trust in the new arrivals to become those necessary tweaks the team needs as it tackles the 2024 college football landscape.