The Oregon secondary faces another huge test on Saturday

The Oregon cornerback room has been fantastic this year, thanks to a combination of transfer players and breakout freshmen. The Ducks' pass defense ranks third nationally, giving up just 145.7 yards per game, according to ESPN.

Despite the success, the secondary has proved inconsistent against their two biggest challenges this season, Indiana and USC. While some of the struggles can be attributed to Fernando Mendoza and Jaiden Maiava being fearless in attempting tight window throws, it also highlights what could be an Achilles heel for the secondary: physicality at the catch point.

The big time performers for USC and Indiana both came in the form of big bodied receivers who thrive in contested catch situations, Elijah Sarratt and Jakobi Lane. With Sarratt, his game winning touchdown showed his ability to execute a subtle push off at the top of his route, something a guy his size has to rely on against faster corners.

Ducks struggle against the most physical receivers

Lane showed the same ability to create late separation, but his ability to track balls in the air was also on display down the sideline. When Lane wasn't catching the balls thrown his way, he was drawing pass interference penalties that, like them or not, were often the result of the defensive backs' inability to turn their heads around and play the football, which, considering how young most of these guys are, is understandable.

Washington's Denzel Boston possesses the same elite ball tracking ability and catch point saviness as Sarratt and Lane, but in a much more athletic body. A recent mock draft from CBS Sports Blake Brockermeyer has Boston as a first-round pick, 31st to the Los Angeles Rams.

When healthy, Boston has roasted opposing DBs to the tune of 730 yards and 8 touchdowns. "When healthy" is a big factor here, because Boston missed the Huskies' week 12 game against Purdue with an ankle injury, and Pro Football Focus charted him with only two snaps played against UCLA. It is rivalry week, though, and Huskies coach Jedd Fisch indicated that Boston will play against Oregon.

The hope here is that while Boston's talent can't be denied, the Huskies don't quite possess the same talent around Boston that USC or Indiana did, and Oregon can rotate its coverages to ensure that Boston has multiple defenders aware of him on every play possible. Of course, it's also going to be on the Ducks' cornerbacks to use last week as a learning opportunity, and attempt to play the ball in coverage more often.