Oregon didn't have the best defense in the Pac-12 in 2018. That honor belongs to either Utah, Washington or California depending upon which statistics you value you most.

The Ducks were fairly average overall. Among Pac-12 teams, they ranked seventh in scoring defense (27.0), seventh in total defense (390.5) and seventh in sacks (26). Most of the other numbers belong in a similar range among Pac-12 schools.

But, they did excel when things got tight. In fact, a closer look at Oregon's defense in the red zones shows that the Ducks were nearly the best in the Pac-12 near the end zone. That was especially true in terms of forcing field goal tries. No team in the country forced more field than the Ducks within the red zone (20 field goal attempts).

The numbers are even more impressive when propped up against the other Pac-12 schools. As the chart below shows, the Ducks were second only to Utah (the nation's best red zone defense) in points scored per red zone trip:

School Red Zone Opp. TDs FGM FGA Red Zone FG% Points per trip Utah 35 17 5 9 25.7% 3.83 Oregon 46 20 19 20 43.5% 4.28 Stanford 43 22 12 13 30.2% 4.42 Colorado 43 21 15 16 37.2% 4.46 Washington 35 19 9 12 34.3% 4.57 Arizona 48 30 7 10 20.8% 4.81 Arizona State 43 24 13 14 32.5% 4.81 USC 33 21 6 8 24.2% 5.00 California 27 17 7 8 29.6% 5.18 Washington State 36 24 7 7 19.4% 5.25 UCLA 57 39 12 15 26.3% 5.42 Oregon State 52 40 6 7 13.5% 5.73

Only three teams (Arizona, Oregon State and UCLA) were faced with more red zone appearances. But Oregon only allowed 20 touchdowns (the fourth fewest) in 46 tries, and forced an equal 20 field goal attempts. Oregon also forced four turnovers and two turnover on downs.

The number of field goals tried agains the Ducks in the red zone is an inordinately high number. Of the 46 trips, 43.5-percent resulted in a field goal. The next best in the Pac-12 was Colorado with 37.2-percent, and most schools average below 30-percent.

This year's team was the definition of bend-but-don't-break. Oregon allowed teams to march down the field regularly, but teams didn't always come away with much. The 4.28 points per red zone trip is second just to Utah (3.83) and is very favorable even in comparison with the other top defenses: Washington (4.57) and California (5.18).