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It
gets a little tougher this week, Stanford fans. The boys in red had their
chances last week at home against the Cougars of Washington State, but the Card
just couldn’t seem to raise its head above water to snatch a victory at Stanford
Stadium. So now it’s up to Eugene, Oregon, to take on a team that admittedly is
not as good as Wazzu’s Cougars, and which also has a decidedly less-intimidating
mascot: the Oregon Ducks.
It
has been a bit surreal, hasn’t it, watching this Stanford team so far in 2003?
Quarterback U struggling to score points, while its defense continues to do a
stellar job of refusing opponents’ access to the end zone. With the exception
of a few blunders in the secondary this last week, Stanford’s defense did indeed
prove that it belongs on the national stage. The wall known as Stanford’s
defensive line grudgingly surrendered only 70 yards to Cougar running backs last
week, and will have to continue its 17th-best in the nation play this week as
well if the Card are to pull of a victory in the unfriendly confines of Autzen
Stadium.
Buddy
Teevens is starting Chris Lewis on Saturday in what looks like an attempt to
shake things up offensively and carry over some of the momentum that the
Cardinal started to generate toward the conclusion of the Washington State
game. Is Trent Edwards hurt? Probably a little banged up and bruised. Is
Buddy going with Lewis to try and get some more experience on the field whenever
the offensive unit is out there? Highly likely. Does C-Lew give the Card its
best chance to win come Saturday? Debatable. Those who remember the 2001
campaign no doubt still get a little tingle going up their spines when they
remember the upset that Lewis engineered on the very field where the Ducks and
the Cardinal square off this weekend. Those who remember the 2002 campaign
still love Chris Lewis, but really would prefer him to come off the bench, where
he’s usually lights-out, as opposed to starting, where he has shown himself to
be susceptible to bouts of the butterflies that occasionally cause him to make
some questionable decisions in the pocket. Are we at The Bootleg going
to subject the Quackers to some questions and see how they stack up against your
Stanford Cardinal for this weekend’s game? Definitely.
What’s up with the Oregon offense this year?
Those
who remember the days when the national media fawned over Joey Harrington and
Jason Fife like they were Montana's and Marino’s love children might be a bit
surprised at the less-than-explosive offensive output the Ducks have managed so
far this year. Really, though, Oregon started off 2003 in typical Ducky
fashion, averaging exactly 38 points a game through its first four contests, all
wins. Since then, however, the wings of the Ducks have been clipped big time.
Oregon managed only 16 against Washington State, was held to 13 in a somewhat
embarrassing loss to the Utes from Utah, and in their last game squeezed out a
measly two touchdowns’ worth against Arizona State in a 59-14 slaughter. Where
are the New York City billboards now?
Advertising cynicism aside, any objective observer has to admit that the Ducks
still possess an offensive attack worthy of respect. At the head of the flock
are a duo of quarterbacks at opposite ends of the age spectrum. Fife, a senior,
and Kellen Clemens, a sophomore, are a potent pair who, though impressive
statistically, have still struggled a bit as of late. The latter's game against
Michigan earlier this season was one for the Clemens family scrapbook: 15 for 23
with 160 yards and nary an interception. The Burns, OR native would probably
rather forget about his last start, though, which lasted about two passes. Both
were intercepted by the Solar Satans, and one was returned for a touchdown,
followed closely by Clemens being replaced by Fife. Still, it’s the sophomore
who tops the Oregon depth chart for this week, so expect the Ducks to trot out
behind Clemens, who will probably be on the shortest of short leashes. If
Stanford’s defense shuts down Clemens, though, watch for Fife to make a
prolonged cameo - the senior last week put up some impressive numbers in the
face of a staunch Sun Devils defense: 7 for 19 for 101 yards and a touchdown, in
addition to scrambling for another six-pointer.
Is
this Oregon defensive line the best in recent memory?
It’s
tough to assign such an award to a unit that has yet to endure an entire season
of Pac-10 play, but midway indicators point to a possible “yes.” Oregon’s
D-line allows opponents only 83 yards on the ground per game, which might be
troublesome to a Stanford squad that cannot afford any turnovers and so will
probably try to protect the ball on the ground a little more. Even more telling
about the front phalanx of the Ducks is that of the team’s 18 sacks so far in
2003, 10 of them have been notched by the defensive line. This is a squad that
hungers for the opposing quarterback and takes it upon itself to stop the run
and harass the quarterback without much help from the linebackers. One-on-one
matchups with the Stanford offensive line will be the story of Saturday’s game
in the trenches - the Cardinal might very well benefit from this go-it-alone
philosophy of the Duck front four as it won’t have to worry about picking up as
many blitzes.
One
of the main reasons why the defensive front for the Ducks can afford to give
their linebackers more leeway is 6 foot 6 inches tall and weighs 309 pounds. It
is junior Igor Olshansky, a Ukrainian import who has dominated opposing
offensive linemen all year, and serves as Oregon’s first and stoutest defense
against the run. While he has yet to achieve at the same ridiculous level that
he did at the end of last season, when he recorded 30 tackles in the final three
games of Oregon’s season, the Ukrainian who has only played football for five
years remains a legitimate force against the run. Following a back injury,
Olshansky boasts a more refined style wherein he utilizes his hands and feet in
tandem with his massive body, instead of merely trying to run over opponents.
Mike Sullivan, welcome to Oregon. It’s your job to make sure Olshansky doesn’t
add to his 26 tackles, seven of which have gone for losses.
Can Terrence Whitehead equal his best-ever collegiate
performance (which he had against Stanford one year ago)?
He
better not if the Cardinal want a chance of taking this game. Last year in
Autzen, Whitehead had a field day against Stanford’s much-inferior 2002 rush
defense, logging 132 yards and setting a personal-best collegiate record for
yards in a game. This year, Whitehead has carried the ball 99 times for a total
of 341 yards, which only comes out to 3.4 yards per carry. He hasn’t had any
truly spectacular performances, either, with his longest single scamper going
for just 19 yards and his touchdown total clocking in at just three. Heck,
Jason Fife has rushed for more touchdowns this year, with four to his name.
Therefore, don’t expect Mike Bellotti to test Stanford’s rushing defense - it is
much more likely that the Ducks will try to open things up in the air against
Stanford’s weaker secondary. Of course, that doesn’t diminish the importance to
Stanford of shutting OU’s running game down early - guaranteeing that the Ducks
won’t try for much on the ground will allow Stanford’s linebackers to sag back
more into pass coverage over the middle and take some of the pressure off of the
Cardinal’s defensive backs.
To
whom is Kellen Clemens going to throw the ball?
Demetrius Williams and Samie Parker. All day. And all night. These two guys
have double the catches of the next most prolific Ducks receiver, with 33
receptions each. So far this year, Williams has the statistical upper hand on
Parker, averaging roughly 90 yards per game to the senior Parker’s 80. Plus,
Williams, a sophomore from Pittsburg, CA has clocked double the number of
touchdowns that Parker has (six to three), despite the fact that Parker has now
caught a pass in 21 consecutive contests. Saturday will be a big test for
Stanford’s secondary. Seeing how they play against two bona fide receivers,
especially after last week’s tough outing against Washington State, will give a
measure of the heart and determination of Stanford’s pass coverage unit.
Is
Keith Lewis the best Duck to come from Sacramento since Onterrio Smith?
Yep.
This guy’s the real deal: the Valley High School graduate and Oregon free safety
is a Jim Thorpe Award finalist who is second on the Oregon team with 37 tackles
while leading the team in disrupted passes with eight. Lewis and Steven Moore
pace the Ducks with a couple of interceptions apiece. The fleet-footed Lewis is
also a huge asset for the Ducks on special teams - his three blocked punts so
far this year testify to his extremely quick first step and to his athleticism.
Stanford had best be wary of special teams this week when Lewis is on the prowl,
for the 64-yard punt return that Sammy Moore broke off against the Card last
weekend was a psychological blow from which Stanford could not recover. The
sequel cannot happen this weekend in Eugene.
Is
Autzen Stadium the most hostile venue in college football?
Nope. While Autzen used to be a right nasty place for a visiting team to play a
college football game, since Oregon expanded its home by 12,000 seats the Ducks
are a smashing 1-4 in Pac-10 play, with that solitary victory coming against a
Stanford team last year that bears little resemblance to the maturing squad we
now know as the Cardinal. Stanford has shown that it can win here, with their
starting quarterback on Saturday already having a dramatic come-from-behind
victory in Autzen on his resume. Can Chris Lewis utilize his experience to
right the Stanford offense and lead the Cardinal to victory? Will Stanford’s
secondary be able to team with the running D to keep the Ducks offense from
taking off and resuming the form it demonstrated at the beginning of the
season? These, Cardinal fans, are the questions.
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