This was touched upon in the game thread, but who are the Ducks going to lose? Who's a senior? Are any Ducks leaving early? Who are the most likely players to step into those holes? Lots of you know a TON more than I do about the roster, so what do you think? Ed O.
here is a great link to their depth chart... roll over the names to get specific player details http://web.nmsu.edu/~ogden/oregon/depth2010.htm quick summary of starter loses... Offense (5) WR Maehl, WR DJ Davis, OL Keiser, OL Holmes, OL Thran Defense (6) DE Rowe, DT Bair, DT Clark, LB Matthews, LB Paysinger, CB Jackson we'll see who steps up and claims these starting spots as they have a ton of highly rated prospects. Obviously Huff and Weems are favored to start on O as they've already been a regular part of the rotation. On D the Ducks played 26 players regularly so there are too many to list. Besides James, I doubt any eligible underclassman have the ability to be drafted this season. There will probably be some attrition/unexpected fallout as there is most every offseason for every program, but I've no guesses as to who this will be STOMP
I think we're going to be hurt most from losing the OL guys and DL guys. Also losing Matthews and Paysinger will sting as well. I think our defense might take a major hit next season. This was probably one of the best Duck defenses I've ever seen. The way they played last night was amazing.
They lose a key guy in Maehl. The offensive line and defensive front 7 both take significant hits. As Stomp points out, a lot of guys got regular playing time on defense, so those losses will (hopefully) be managable. The offense I am less optimistic about. It takes just the right players to make that offense work.
I'm more concerned with replacing Davis then Maehl as his downfield blocking was a big part of their running game. They've no one already on board who seems to have DJ's physicality but they've several guys that would seem to be able step into Maehl's role as a go to type receiver (Huff, Lowe, Dungy). It will be interesting to see if any of the five 4* WRs & TEs from this upcoming class make the 2 deep rotation next season... my best guess is the JC transfer Vaughn is the 3rd guy to start with Huff and Lavasier. The success OL coach Greatwood has had developing lessor HS talents into NFL draftees has been paying off with some very highly touted recruits of late. Last year brought two more 4* guys on board (Clanton and Rowland) to go with several other highly thought of non-starters who've been waiting in the wings (Armstrong, Weems, Benyard, Cody). I'm really looking forward to seeing RSF TE Curtis White and RBs Seastrunk and Williams... things are in great shape on that side of the ball IMO. The defense is more concerning, specifically Defensive Line, but it's in pretty good shape too. Ricky Heimuli is supposed to announce whether he'll be going on his 2 year Mormon Mission in the next week or so... he's probably their leading candidate to start at NT as they switch over to a 3-4. Probably next in line is JC transfer Ebert... Hart, Kelikipi, and Remington are their other 3 meh big uglies. They should be fine at DE with proven talents Turner, Jordan and Hanna... RSF Washington should also join the mix. At Linebacker I'd guess that their starters are Lokombo, Alonzo, Kaddu and Clay. They've a ton of LBs in the 2011 class who should provide most of the backup... I wouldn't be surprised to see Eddie Pleasant moved back up from Safety. Their DBs rival their RBs for most talented unit on the squad. They lose only 1 starter and have returning & incoming talent galore including Texas transfer Marcus Davis who was good/talented enough to start 10 games as a true freshman. all in all while there is some turnover, national media types (like ESPN's Ted Miller) are predicting the Ducks to win the Pac 12 for good reason... hopefully the next Ducks season concludes in the same stadium it starts in STOMP
dammit Stomp way to tear me to shreds!! I totally spaced Dungy, Lowe, Alonzo back from suspension, and Davis from TX! Interesting on Pleasent maybe moving back... Dargan to take his place maybe?
I'm going to miss Maehl and Matthews the most. Those guys were really the definition of this team's heart and perseverance.
The Ducks are definitely losing some big players but I'm really excited about some of the players they recruited. The picked up a big time MLB in Anthony Wallace who was recruited by the likes of Ohio State/USC/Texas. Could be wrong but I'm pretty sure it's the highest rated player on defense they've recruited since Ngata. On offense there are plenty of players in the 2010 and 2011 recruiting classes to be excited about. They recruited RB Lache Seastrunk last year who was a 5 star RB. The guy that's interesting though is a guy from the 2011 class, Christian French. He's 6-6 230 and reportedly runs a 4.4. He runs track and I remember seeing he ran a 10.7 100m at one event. Sounds like he'll play TE. There are plenty of WR recruits after that and if you care enough to check them out just go to rivals.com. Plenty to look forward in the coming years. Will have Darron Thomas for 2 more years and the team won't be lacking speed or talent, that's for sure. And since I'm already looking at it I'll just link the Commitment list - http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/recruiting/commitments/2011/oregon-60
