DEPTH CHART

ROB'S TAKE



SPRING PROJECTION

Reviewing Oregon's 2018 season and looking ahead to spring drills., Sr.;, RSo.;, So.;, Fr.;, Fr.;, Fr., Jr.;, So.;, Fr.;, Jr.;, Fr., Sr.;, RFr.;, Jr.;, Fr., Jr.;, Fr.;, So.;, Sr.;, Jr.;, Fr.: The Ducks have a bona fide star in, who has led the team in tackles and been named UO defensive MVP in a vote of teammates all three years of his career so far. Dye finished with 115 tackles in 2018, broke up seven passes and sacked the quarterback twice. He's UO defensive coordinator's brains on the field, playing with a relentless motor and a fierce competitiveness — not to mention length and athleticism most inside linebackers don't possess. Dye's intangibles might have been most visible, ironically enough, in defeat. During Oregon's loss at Arizona in November, Dye recorded a season-high 13 tackles, every single one of them unassisted. Regardless of a game's circumstances, he always gives 100 percent. In that he was joined by the UO defense's elder statesman, outside linebacker, who also started all 13 games. Playing through myriad injuries that earned him the program's Bob Officer Award for persevering through physical adversity, Hollins filled up the stat sheet with 64 tackles, team-high totals of 6.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss, and also five forced fumbles, one off the FBS lead.The other outside linebacker spot still varied situationally — defensive endplayed there when the Ducks sought a bigger front — but overall juniordeveloped into more of an every down presence in 2018. He had 4.5 tackles for loss among his 40 total tackles, and his scoop-and-score fumble return helped spark Oregon's win at Cal, the Ducks' first Pac-12 road victory in nearly two years. Unfortunately, the middle linebacker spot next to Dye was a revolving door for the second year in a row. Early on, Dye played in a three-man rotation inside withand. But first Slade-Matautia (shoulder) and then Apelu (leg) was injured, andwas banged up late in the season too. Apelu managed to make it back for the Redbox Bowl, and he finished second on the team for the season with 65 tackles, capping an unlikely rise from walk-on with two surgically repaired knees to the spiritual leader of Oregon's defense.: Because of those injuries the Ducks leaned heavily on their depth inside. At one point walk-onsandwere practicing with the travel squad, andmoved over to play inside linebacker late in the year as well. On the outside, true freshmanplayed the most prominent reserve role, with two starts among his 12 appearances.transitioned from safety late in the year to provide depth on the outside as well, but his long-term future figures to be back in the secondary.: Heaukulani and Wiebe spent most of the season as standouts on the scout-team defense, playing in a three-man rotation with redshirting true freshman. Following in the footsteps of Winston, Cunningham is another in-state product who brings an upbeat mood to practice day in, day out. Transferspent the regular season honing his skills on the scout team against the likes of starting offensive tacklesand. Johnson became eligible for the postseason, and he made his UO debut with a handful of snaps on passing downs against Michigan State. Walk-onsandprovided scout-team depth that the Ducks sorely lacked in 2017; Christman is another charismatic guy, who didn't mind putting his hand on the ground and working at defensive end when the need arose. True freshmanand walk-oneach sat out the season due to knee injuries; Johnson finally was able to get work with the scout team in December, flashing a mix of size and athleticism that should pay dividends down the road., RSo.;, Jr.;, RFr.;, RFr.;, RFr., Sr.;, Jr.; Dru Mathis, Jr.;, RFr.;, RFr., So.;, Sr.;, RFr.;, Sr., Sr.;, So.; Ge'Mon Eaford, Fr.;, Sr.;, RFr.: With two starters moving on, the Ducks will regroup around Dye — who spurned the NFL draft to play his senior season — and Winston. The time is now for guys like Slade-Matautia, Simms andto realize their potential. Leavitt has spoken of Slade-Matautia as a future star in the Pac-12, and the door is open to make that jump as a sophomore. Simms is among the most aggressive players on the UO defense, looking to harness that and take on a full-time role as a junior. And Johnson is an immensely talented athlete in the hybrid mold of Jelks or Hollins. The biggest wild card is, who began to show real signs in December of being a future impact guy. All season long during special teams periods, Leavitt would take Johnson aside for one-on-one coaching in Oregon's schemes. So the freshman should be up to speed mentally, and he looked physically ready during the build-up to the bowl game. The Ducks also have newly enrolled junior college transfer Dru Mathis and true freshman Ge'Mon Eaford on campus as of this month.