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The Ducks are sure to face off against a Washington state football team coached by Mike Leach. In the past five years, the Ducks have won only once against WSU, and that came on a final second field goal a year ago.
Slowing down Leach’s air attack proved a difficult task for any defense. The Ducks were certainly not alone. They’ve given up over 300 passing yards and over 30 attacking points in each of the last eight games.
Luckily for the Ducks, Leach is now hacking into southern waters. But, a new marauder runs the Cougar program now in the former Hawaii head coach Nick rolovich. In Rolovich, Washington State once again found a cheeky leader with a very distinct offensive system. He brings the run-and-shoot east with him, and that offers a different challenge for the defenses around the Pac-12 conference.
The run-and-shoot can be focused on passing. There’s a reason Hawaii ranked fifth nationally with 337.1 yards per game in 2019. Washington State led the country with a clip of 437.2 assists per game. But, as the name suggests, it also features the racing game more prominently than the air raid.
While the Rainbow Warriors averaged 42 assists per game last year, they also ran it 28 times per game. It’s a tough contract from Leach’s offense, who averaged 55 passing attempts per game for just 16 points. Rolovich’s offense appeared even more balanced in Saturday’s 38-28 victory over Oregon State at Corvallis, in which they passed it 33 times and ran it 30 times. The Cougars actually gained more rushing yards (229) than passing yards (227) in the game.
“I think people hear the run and shoot and they see the spread, and they think, ‘Oh that’s gonna pass,'” said the Oregon defensive coordinator. Andy Avalos, who trained against Rolovich in Hawaii at Boise State. “But there are a few running patterns that present issues. Rolo is determined to run the ball, and they did a good job with that. We saw that the other night of their game.”
Stopping the race is the first thing to deal with this offense, according to Avalos. It’s a running attack that is “diverse”, according to head coach Mario cristobal. Expect to see traps, interior areas, counters, and a variety of draw sets from an extended formation that often features four wide receivers. He also said the team made effective use of the running back in swing passes and in screen play.
“It’s just very multiple and you’ll see it on multiple sets,” he explained. “Usually you’ll see four broads in there, but they move around and put them in situations and spaces and divisions, which allows them what they want from a distribution point of view in the passing game. . “
Like the air raid, the run and fire pass attack aims to expand defense with the goal of winning one-on-one clashes in space.
“They will play the 53 meters of this field,” said Avalos. “They’re going to expand the pitch and use the green grass. So we have to do a really good job with our covers and understand our influence and the way we play our techniques.”
Cristobal noted that although the protections are different, the ball comes out quickly, limiting the number of sacks and quarterback sacks. Washington State posted a ratio of 35.5 to 1 tempting passes per sack last year. Rolovich’s Hawaii side weren’t nearly as good, but still had a 23.5-to-1 ratio.
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Oregon Senior Safety Nick pickett enters his fourth game of the rivalry. He admitted that this year the defense is ready to play more in the box.
“Last year we did a lot of things to prepare for the air raid, but now we see that they are running the ball and shuffling it a little more,” he said.
“They put the emphasis on their run game this year,” second-year linebacker Mase Funa said in agreement. “So we’re going to do what we need to do, follow our game plan and just play.”
Cougars can be starless running back Max Borghi. Borghi missed the season opener over Oregon State with a back injury. Rolovich hasn’t ruled him out for the game, but the Ducks will need to be prepared for both Borghi, as well as his replacement. Deon McIntosh, who ran for 147 yards and touchdown on Saturday replacing Borghi.
The Oregon coaching staff has praised true WSU freshman quarterback Jayden de Laura. Avalos said he had that ‘factor’, while Cristobal said he didn’t look like a freshman when the team first won. Oregon defensive lineman Austin Faoliu Laura says reminds him of the former Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate because of his “flashy” style of play and his ability to beat defenses with his legs and arms.
The 11th-ranked Ducks (1-0) will face Washington State (1-0) at Pullman on Saturday. Kick-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. and will take place on FOX.
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