Oregon Football Standouts Have Changed Their Jersey Numbers and Here’s What That Could Mean

At first glance, Oregon Football might not appear to have changed much at all in 2019.

The offense returns 10 starters from 2018, including Hometown Hero/Heisman dark horse/NFL Draft darling, Justin Herbert. Defensively, they return 8 starters, and folks should prepare to witness Troy Dye have his, “Casey Matthews,” year and bring the defense to a whole new level of intensity.

The Ducks have experienced such little change that they are even expected to wear the same uniform design as last year’s team.

Big, if true.

Most pundits would suggest that the team will be more mature with another year of experience behind them. Some might even suggest that the coaching staff will be more comfortable in their roles. But I have the real secret to the evolution of this Duck team: new jersey numbers.

As seniors graduate, certain sought-after jersey numbers are made available to the younger guys who may have been forced to wear a number that wasn’t their first choice.

Whether their new number is the one they had in high school; or it belonged to their favorite athlete growing up; or it just looks better when printed on their athlete backpack; making that kind of change while heading into a new season is always significant.

Knowing that jersey numbers play a key role in the confidence of young players, a few Ducks have made such a change going into 2019, and I’ve done a bit of scouting and speculating on how those changes will affect their on-field productivity.

CJ Verdell: 34 to 7

Running back CJ Verdell AKA the Husky Killer has gone from a rugged number 34 to a sleek and simple 7, and I don’t know how to feel about it.

The number 7 is a bonafide skill player number, and CJ has absolutely earned it as the prime offensive weapon that he is. However, 34 is a gritty, hard-nosed number, and one that I believe reflects CJ’s running style directly.

CJ was a total bruiser in his redshirt freshman season, rolling for over 1,000 yards.

In 2019, Verdell and Travis Dye will most likely split time once again in the backfield, continuing Oregon’s history of dominant two-headed monsters in the running game.

I am fairly confident that CJ won’t soon forget his downhill running roots, but if the number change helps him break a couple of runs out to the edge, would that be so bad?

Jaylon Redd: 30 going on 13

Wide receiver Jaylon Redd, previously number 30, will also be upgrading to a stylish skill number. He’ll be taking over 13 from 2019’s leading receiver, Dillon Mitchell.

Redd is already a speedster, perhaps the fastest on the team, but this number change alone tells me that he will be even faster in 2019.

Nike is constantly pushing to eliminate unnecessary weight from uniforms, and Redd clearly had the same thought when he made this change.

Even in the newer, lighter, “stream-lined,” Nike joints, a “zero,” on the uniform obviously requires more material that a “one,” does.

By eliminating unneeded material from his jersey, he ends up decreasing the amount of weight he carries with every step. It’s basic science, people.

Jaylon is committed to do everything he can to improve his aerodynamics, while also paying homage to former teammate Dillon Mitchell, and this combination of analytics and passion will surely translate to a huge improvement in his prominence as an offensive weapon.

Kayvon Thibedoux: 8 (HS) to 5

Freshman defensive lineman, Kayvon Thibedoux, didn’t play for the Ducks last year, but he wore the number 8 at Oaks Christian High School last year, and he also just so happened to be ESPN’s number one overall recruit of 2019.

He will be wearing the number 5 for the Ducks, stepping into the growing trend of collegiate defensive lineman donning single digits.

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Number 8 already belongs safety Jevon Holland on defense, so he couldn’t wear it even if he wanted to, but judging by Thibedoux’s tweets, he is obviously intent on carving out his own UO legacy.

Kayvon could plan on personally, “owning,” the number 5, rather than trying to complete with the massive Hawaiian shadow that Mariota left behind with his iconic (should be retired) number 8.

Vince Lombardi famously said: “Football is a game of inches and inches make the champion.”

Lombardi knew the game from every angle, so I’m going to assume he was also reffering to the inches of fabric that make up the numbers on the uniforms.

Oregon Football in 2019 is like a magic eye poster, you may have to look long and hard before you notice all of the little ways that they’ve changed going from 2018.

Analyzing jersey numbers might not seem like the first strategy one might adopt, but when it comes to Spring Camp, I’ll let my eyes glaze over and stare at it long enough until I start to see the bigger picture of what is sure to be an immensely improved team.