With 4 months to work on the details, Oregon football nails down the fun

Oregon showed off an explosive passing attack and a fierce pass rush at the Spring Game Saturday in Autzen Stadium, with the Combat Ducks winning 17-10 on a 60-yard touchdown pass from Brock Thomas to Dakorien Moore with 22 seconds to play.

Led by Aydin Breland and Matt Johnson, the defensive line racked up ten touch-sacks in the annual scrimmage, indicating that the offensive line and pass protection remain a work in progress.

"I don't put too much stock in that," Dan Lanning said. "Do we have to protect better? Yes. But I also thought we ran the ball pretty well up the middle. There are some things to look at and evaluate."

Line play and special teams glitches remain quibbles, sure to be addressed in Fall Camp

Indeed, the split units and deep rotations of an intrasquad scrimmage make it hard to evaluate the o-line's readiness, but there's time to craft an effective two-deep over the next four months.

Newcomer Tommy Tofi (a 6-6, 340 four-star from Archbishop Riordan High School in San Francisco) showed promise, and third-year starter, senior center Poncho Laloulu is back to call out the protections. Chances are good A'lique Terry will get this group back to the Joe Moore Award semifinalist level of the last three seasons.

What's clear is that the Oregon quarterbacks, Dante Moore, Dylan Raiola, Akili Smith Jr. and Thomas, can sling the rock, and they have a talented, explosive cast of receivers to throw to. Back from a year-long injury, Evan Stewart latched on to four passes for 110 yards, including a perfectly thrown 76-yard touchdown pass from Raiola, the transfer from Nebraska.

Dakorien Moore grabbed both the winning touchdown and a 36-yard post route from Smith Jr., while tight end Jamari Johnson hauled in a 6-yard scoring pass from Moore on the first drive of the game, pivoting for a ball the quarterback had to throw behind him to keep it away from Brandon Finney and Koi Perich. Johnson could be the best pass-catching tight end in college football this year.

Offensive fireworks were limited in the four quarter scrimmage, but unlike many schools the Ducks played a real game in the April sun before an estimated 46,500 fans. It's a unique tradition and a recruiting showcase, with NFL All-Pro Penei Sewell and his wife and kids dancing in the end zone during "Shout." The atmosphere and enthusiasm are something you don't get everywhere else.

Special teams snafus will be evaluated in the film room, with the normally reliable Dierre Hill muffing two punts, and new field goal kicker Gage Hurych missing the uprights on a pair of 50+ field goal tries. He hit successfully from 35 and 41 to go 2-4 on the day.

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