After a hard fought victory against Boise State, the Oregon Ducks turn the page to their Week 2 matchup against Oklahoma State. While the game was closer than expected, the Ducks didn’t play a bad game, and with a week of experience under their belts it’ll be easy to clean up some of the mistakes that plagued them in the opener. Heading into Week 2, there’s 3 areas where the Ducks can start to get better.
The 3 fixes Oregon needs to make in Week 2
Giving Jordon Davison the ball more
Oregon being down by as much as 10 points in the first half eliminated the Ducks' rushing attack for part of the game, but just 22 carries for the running backs is a number that should start to trend up. Davison was the most effective of the Ducks' duo picking up 90 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries, averaging 7.5 yards. Given the strength of the Ducks' offensive line, Oregon should be able to create big holes against this Oklahoma State defense, and wear the Cowboys down while keeping their potentially explosive offense on the sidelines.
Cutting down on the penalties
One of the easiest issues Oregon can address moving from Week 1 to Week 2 is cutting down on the self inflicted errors. Oregon racked up 10 penalties accounting for 90 yards while Boise State committed just 3 penalties for 25 yards. The Ducks need to especially cut down on the 15-yard personal fouls that are easiest to eliminate.
3rd and 4th down efficiency
The biggest reason the Boise State game was as close as it was is the fact that the Ducks went 4-12 on 3rd downs and 0-2 on 4th downs. The Ducks are going to need to do a better job of staying ahead of the sticks, and making the later downs easier, and part of that may be running the ball more. Both 4th down plays looked to be schemed up well, and with better execution this week, the Ducks' offense should stay on the field longer.
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