If quarterback is the most difficult position in sports, then their playcaller must be up there with the hardest places to stand on the sideline.
The coach with the playsheet is responsible for selecting and relaying the best play for each situation to their man on the field. Each has their own style, scheme and identity, but every one of them faces the same challenge: provide just enough help to allow their quarterback to succeed.
At Oregon, second-year offensive coordinator Will Stein has done just that. Last year, after replacing now-Arizona State head coach Kenny Dillingham, his scheme boosted quarterback Bo Nix to his best statistical season — 4,508 yards and 45 touchdowns on his way to the single-season NCAA all-time completion percentage record and a No. 12 overall selection in the NFL Draft.
In 2024, Stein is a kid in a candy store. The transfer portal delivered to him experienced quarterback Dillon Gabriel from The University of Oklahoma and former five-star wideout Evan Stewart via Texas A&M University. He’s sent several players to the National Football League since last year ended at the Fiesta Bowl in Glendale, Arizona. His 2024 offense, though, is conceivably better on paper than the one which ranked second nationally in points per game and first in passing yards per game last year.
“Shoot, man, we’ve got a lot of good players,” Stein said. “It’s about getting those kids the ball and getting their confidence up early.”
By the way, Stein is just 34 years old. He’s been calling plays for one season at Oregon — and just one year before that, at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
“I think it’s great to have great players — obviously,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said. “I think it’s even better when you have coaches who can adapt to those players.”
Stein’s newest challenge comes with conference realignment. The wide-open Pac-12 Conference is no more — and neither is the soft defense it offered.
The Ducks were the highest-ranked Pac-12 school in total defense last year, and were ranked No. 22 nationwide. Just two other former Pac-12 schools (Oregon State and Arizona) cracked the top 50. It’s no secret that the conference wasn’t known for its defense.
The Big Ten certainly is.
Last season, the Ducks faced, on average, the 108th best passing defense based on yards per game allowed in the nation in conference play. Four of those teams ranked in the bottom 11 of 133 Division I FBS teams. This season, they’ll face, on average, the 56th-best passing defense, including Nos. 1 and 2 (Ohio State and Michigan, respectively) in a conference with Nos. 5, 11 and 14 from 2023.
When asked where the offense has improved in the offseason, Stein said, “I think our ability to run the ball without RPOs [run-pass option plays] — we’re going into a league that is notorious for a physical style of football and we believe that we have that going into this conference, and we’ve got to be able to run the ball in the fourth quarter to win.”
Oregon ranked first in the nation in passing offense last season, but sat 29th in rushing offense. It’s not a bad number, but headed into the conference with the most top-25 teams in passing defense of any Power Four division … Stein is right. They need to be able to run the ball, because his opposite numbers are that much better.
It’s not just about the statistics, though.
When he arrived at Oregon, Stein told GoDucks, “Offensively, our job is to get our best players the ball as many times as possible. Plays are highly overrated. It’s about the players here at Oregon.”
Stein’s scheme hands much of the control over to the quarterback. In headset audio released by the team from last year’s Week 11 victory over USC, Stein calls a play in the second quarter:
Stein: “You guys like this call?”
Tight ends coach Drew Mehringer: “Ask him”
Stein: “Hey Bo. Quick route and get it out?”
Bo Nix: “Yep. That’s not a bad call.”
The play ended with Nix finding tight end Terrance Ferguson over the middle for a 15-yard touchdown pass. It’s work like that, where Stein takes advantage of the knowledge that his signal-caller has, that separates him. Often, quarterbacks new to a system are guided through it and important decisions are made by the playcaller. Stein puts the game into his quarterback’s hands immediately — and for the better.
“We build our system around the quarterback,” Stein said when asked about Gabriel’s autonomy in the scheme. “[We] give him that freedom at the line of scrimmage, so Dillon, Dante [Moore], Austin [Novosad] … everybody is taught the exact same thing and the exact same checks.”
It’s a first year in the program for almost all of those quarterbacks, but they’ve already garnered a level of trust from Stein that will allow them to play beyond where they could if their coordinator walked them through every play in-game.
“I’m always looking to improve myself,” Stein said, “and these guys are exceptional football players, and they’re extremely intelligent when it comes to the game.”
Those are the words of a smart coach (and one who’s almost certainly got a head-coaching gig in his future).
Of course Stein’s offense is complex. Of course it’s difficult. But when his ethos — let them play — rings true, it couldn’t be more obvious that they’re having fun.
“It’s fun, man,” Ferguson said after a Ducks victory last season. “I’m so blessed to be out there and I go out there and everybody out there is just having fun. I think that’s a big part of why we are so good. We’re going out there and playing football.”
For Oregon’s program, it’s a double-edged sword. Stein can continue to excel, but the more he does, the more other programs come calling. It’s how the Ducks landed with Lanning and for a program that’s getting used to competing perennially rather than in windows, it’s a problem that it’ll have to learn to solve. For now, though, they’re having fun.
And if quarterback really is the hardest position in sports, it’s Stein’s intent to make his man’s job just a little bit easier.