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When Joe Moorhead was hired by the University of Oregon, his first decision was to buy an RV. The offensive coordinator packed his wife, Jennifer, and their three children, and drove the thing across the country.
Starkville, Miss. In Eugene – with many stops along the way.
“The better you are the husband, the better the father you are, the better coach you are,” Moorhead told me after arriving.
Moorhead really did arrive in Pullman, Washington on Saturday night, didn’t he?
Playing in what is easily Oregon’s least happy place to grab a soccer ball, the Ducks kicked off and went straight into the Martin Stadium goal posts. Then Oregon got up, looked around, and hit Washington State, 43-29.
It was a sloppy performance. The first half was particularly regrettable. But what I can’t ignore is just how more creative, offensive and accelerated the Ducks offense is with Moorhead calling the pieces.
There were still some mistakes. Quarterback Tyler Shough threw his back foot and in traffic more than I would like to see. Shough, who had 312 passing yards and four touchdowns, threw an interception and could easily have had two. There were also a few bad fumbles in the first half. Additionally, a Ducks guard lined up once out of the line of scrimmage and undoed a successful two-point conversion. What I’m saying is that there are things that need to be cleaned up. But while Oregon looks at the movie, I have an important question for the audience.
This is it: is anyone missing Marcus Arroyo?
Me neither.
The Ducks had a wonderful tempo. They were as predictable as love at first sight with play calls. And the passing play turned vertical with big shots in the important moments. Towards the end of the first half, in particular, Oregon had the ball with 20 seconds left to play alone 40. This is where the Ducks played without losing last season, even with Justin Herbert tied for the game. NFL, throwing passes. But Moorhead let Shough shoot from the field – a 57-yard strike for Jaylen Redd, who slipped behind the Cougars secondary.
It seemed new.
It was something Moorhead had promised us months earlier. In fact, upon arriving in Eugene, the new coordinator plopped down in front of a monitor and watched every snap from the 2019 season.
Every first blasted descent.
Every second breathtaking descent.
Every third pass predictable.
“At the end of the day,” Moorhead said this summer, “it’s an online scrimmage game. You have to earn this thing up front. But we’re going to get people to engage numbers in the line of scrimmage and then hurt them on the pitch.
“We will not be afraid to go on the field.”
Neither of us should have been surprised to see Oregon on the attack. The Ducks have good athletes and a promising young quarterback. The offensive line is improving every week, in part because head coach Mario Cristobal refuses to let them be anything but dominant. But we fell asleep last season, watching Herbert’s talent go to waste.
Arroyo never made a commitment to put his star quarterback at ease early in games. Herbert was a high potential spectator until Oregon desperately needed him to bail out the offense, often in third place. The 2019 offensive didn’t just become predictable, it was like reruns to watch. That’s why Moorhead’s open and fast-track plan on Saturday was so encouraging.
Is Oregon good? Sure. Awesome? No way. Not yet. The Ducks are nowhere near where they need to be several weeks from now if this season is heading to a special place. But on Saturday, with temperatures in the 1930s, there was something warm and welcoming about what the Ducks did on offense.
Nick Rolovich’s run-and-shoot is fun at WSU. But that’s not what everyone who’s seen the game will be talking about afterwards. Saturday night was a great Moorhead moment, full of imagination and promise.
Moorhead is more fun than Arroyo. Could end up more fun than Willy Wonka. Since Chip Kelly, Oregon hasn’t looked so dynamic and interesting on offense. We can see the potential after just two games with Moorhead in charge.
Running back Travis Dye said, “He kicked this attack off with a huge guts.”
Give Cristobal a lot of credit for doing the rental. Moorhead will receive a base salary of $ 900,000 this season. He will make $ 1 million next season. His last job was as the Mississippi State Head Coach. Prior to that, he called coins for Penn State. There are plenty of second-year head coaches in post who would have been threatened by bringing in such established talent.
Not Cristobal.
He wants to win.
Joe Moorhead looks exactly like the kind of coordinator who can help him do that.
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