GAMEDAY: KEY MATCHUPS
WHEN OREGON HAS THE BALL:
After rushing for a career best 257 yards last weekend, CJ Verdell and the Oregon offense head to a place where the talent is far superior. While the Trojans have struggled on the road this season, they are undefeated at home. USC has struggled with injuries and depth this season which has partially explained their inconsistency on both sides of the ball, but they get a key piece back on defense this week with the return of linebacker Palaie Gaoteote.At 6-2, 250, Gaoteote has very good size and the kind of athleticism that will allow him to drop into coverage and take away the middle of the field. The Ducks are going to need to handle the Trojan defensive line without a lot of double teams and get an offensive lineman to the second level quickly in order to neutralize Gaoteote.
When healthy, the standout from Las Vegas has teamed with the leading tackler for the Trojans, John Houston, to create the most dynamic linebacker corps Oregon is likely to see this season. With Gaoteote patrolling the interior of the defense and accounting for 26 total tackles, Houston has done everything else. He leads the team in total tackles (70), is second in tackles for loss (6.5) and has 3 pass breakups and a fumble recovery. Houston will be a key in the RPO reads by Justin Herbert and, in the action of Drake Jackson, will also be someone who the Trojans might use to create pressure on Herbert.
The Oregon offensive line has really started to live up to their preseason hype over the last few weeks and will be critical in this game. While the defensive line is thin due to injuries, the linebacker group is getting close to full health. How the Oregon offensive line handles that group will be a key component in their success or lack thereof tonight. If the Ducks are able to get a lineman to the second level on a regular basis, the running game will have plenty of success and that will, in turn, create a much better passing attack.
Oregon is likely to use a quick, short passing attack early to set up the running game by spreading the Trojans side-to-side. With the improvement in the rushing attack over the previous three weeks, the ability of Oregon to keep Gaoteote and Houston from having big games will be the key matchup when Oregon has the ball.
I AM MOST INTERESTED: In seeing if Oregon can get some passing plays down the field. The receivers struggled some with creating separation a week ago on their deeper patterns. Part of that was a design to get more vertical routes and the Cougars showed some defensive alignments that made that verticality the right read.
But the Trojans are much better at defensive back than Washington State. Their talent in the defensive backfield is the best that the Ducks will see this season. There will be some better individual players (Jaylon Johnson, Utah), but as a whole this group is very talented and the Ducks may find it more difficult to use the vertical routes. The Trojans hold opponents to less than 60-percent completions and are allowing just 6.9 yards per attempt through the air. While they do a good job overall, the unit has just three interceptions this year. Watching the matchups on the edge will be a fascinating look into how this game could play out for Oregon offensively.
WHEN USC STATE HAS THE BALL:
The obvious answer here is Michael Pittman. He is the best receiver in the Pac-12 this year and will be a nightmare matchup. He has 50 receptions for 755 yards and 7 touchdowns. At 6-4 and 220 pounds, he has the size that makes him an impossible matchup for most teams. He lines up all over the field and has great hands. He runs really crisp routes and understands the game of football at an advanced level. The thing that makes him so difficult to cover, however, is that teams cannot double team him often because of what he has alongside him. Tyler Vaughns (9-2, 190) has 50 receptions as well for 638 yards and 5 touchdowns and Amon-Ra St. Brown (6-1, 195) has 40 catches for 432 yards and 4 touchdowns. Imagine if the Washington State receiving group had this much natural talent? They would be unstoppable.
The Oregon defensive backfield has played extremely well for much of the season accounting for 11 interceptions. Deommodore Lenoir has been a lockdown corner on one side of the field while Thomas Graham has done a good job on the other. Graham leads the team in passes defended, but has struggled at times with some receivers and given up some big plays. The glue to this defensive backfield, however, has been the symbiotic relationship between safeties Jevon Holland, Verone McKinley, Nick Pickett, and Brady Breeze. That is especially true of what Holland and McKinley have done for the Ducks in the defensive backfield. While the Trojans have tremendous talent at wide receiver, Oregon has played well in the defensive backfield. The Trojans top three receivers have combined for 140 catches, 1,825 yards and 16 touchdowns. Their average of13 yards per catch may not jump off the page, but they have the combination of size and speed to really create some stress on the Oregon defense. If Oregon can handle the wide receivers and contain them, their defense will have a big day; if not? Then it could be a really long day for Oregon fans.
I AM MOST INTERESTED: In seeing if Oregon can create pressure on Kedon Slovis. After having so much success through the first seven games, Oregon has struggled to get pressure the last two weeks. Sure, some of the issue a week ago is the offense that Washington State runs, but pressure is not only sacks; it is changing the angle of the throw, or the timing of the throw, in such a fashion that the defense has gained an advantage. Against a quick passing offense, this means really good early push, an understanding of gaps and eye discipline; good early coverage that forces the quarterback to move up into the pocket or escape to the outside and hands in their air by defensive linemen.
Slovis is completing 72.3-percent of his passes, but is averaging just 8.8 yards per attempt. He has thrown five interceptions and be harried at times this season. He has gotten better (as would be expected) over the course of the last several games, but if Oregon can get some early pressure on Slovis and disrupt the timing between he and his standout receiving Corps, that could make a difference for Oregon in this game.
