According to coach Dan Lanning, Oregon has been taking spring camp just one day at a time ahead of the annual spring game this Saturday. Still, it was clear from the interviews after Tuesday’s practice that the thought of playing in front of a (hopefully) packed Autzen Stadium has crept into the minds of some players.
A phrase that Lanning harped on throughout his interview after practice was “competition,” and though he noted that wants his team to play with slight caution, he said that his biggest focus is to see guys compete and treat this Saturday like any normal Saturday in-season.
“Play clean. We’d like to be penalty-free pre-snap and post-snap,” Lanning said. “Ultimately, you just want to see that competition – guys go out there and treat it like a game.”
Though Lanning’s emphasized that the spring game is just another part of the spring camp experience, he did admit that there is a different value to it.
“I think there’s value in seeing how guys perform on a stage when there’s a setting that’s a little bit different,” Lanning said. “I think there’s definitely some value to that.”
For some Ducks, it’ll be their first time playing in front of fans at Autzen and that experience is something that the veterans on this team have conveyed to the freshmen and other newcomers while encouraging them to treat it as “just another practice”.
One of those newcomers was Alabama CB transfer Khyree Jackson, who talked to reporters Tuesday for the first time since joining the program.
He came to Eugene with hopes to be the same type of lockdown corner that Christian Gonzalez was last year for the Ducks.
“I’m definitely trying to be myself but also step in [Gonzalez’s] role as a lockdown corner, not really having to worry about that side of the field,” Jackson said. “But at the same time, bringing my own swag to the team.”
Jackson is a playmaker that Ducks fans should get to know before the season begins as defensive backs coach Demetrice Martin will try to again show his player development skills in trying to get the most out of the well-traveled corner who started out in the junior college ranks and played just 64 defensive snaps for Alabama last year.
He and fellow Crimson Tide transfer Traeshon Holden made their decision official back in the same week in December, but the two apparently didn’t have many prior discussions about joining the Ducks before committing.
“No, we didn’t (talk). Actually, when I came on my visit I was surprised to see him,” Jackson said. “I think once we were out here together, we started to talk about the decision-making process.”
Junior running back Noah Whittington can related to that transition quite well as he was a transfer coming in last season from Western Kentucky not knowing what to expect.
He's now a leader on this team helping some of the younger backs through their first experience.
On the contrary to treating it like another practice, Whittington proclaimed that having some nerves before the spring game is necessary.
“I mean, if you’re not nervous then you really shouldn’t be out there,” Whittington said. “I was talking to Dante [Dowdell] like, ‘There’s gonna be a lot of people there, but it’s just another practice. You’re going against the same people.’”
Dowdell and Jayden Limar are two of the freshmen that the media has heard the most about this spring, regarding their progression in their first spring camp and how they’ve meshed with the rest of the running back room.
One thing that we hadn't heard about was a nickname for the duo. And now, we finally have it.
“Thunder and lightning,” Whittington repeated. “Dante is thunder and Jayden is most definitely lightning.”
Keep an eye out for ‘Thunder and Lightning’ in the spring game as running backs coach Carlos Locklyn will likely want to get them some early explosive runs to get their nerves out of the way.
