Mario Cristobal's will look to turn around Oregon's fortunes.

The Oregon coaching staff, including the new hires and promotions following the departure of Willie Taggart, have made a huge splash in recruiting. Even with the de-commitment of Cameron Williams, the Ducks are still first in the Pac-12 recruiting rankings in 2019, and ranked 16 overall in the country. With many more commitments on the horizon, one thing is clear, this coaching staff can recruit at an elite level.

The lingering question many have though is how will this year's crop of talent produce on the field come this fall?

While the defensive scheme is likely to have minimal changes due to Jim Leavitt’s decision to stay at Oregon, the offense is likely to see schematic changes, and could even display an entirely new identity which Oregon fans are not used to. This article will offer minimal specific insights in terms of offensive scheme changes, but will instead focus on the new identities Duck fans can look forward to this fall.

It is no secret Cristobal has expressed his team will win football games in the trenches. Cristobal wants guys who breed physicality. The recent years of Oregon football had an identity of speed and athleticism. Cristobal is changing that identity. During Cristobal’s time as offensive line coach at Alabama, his offensive line won the Joe Moore award, which is given to college football’s most physical offensive line. To get there, the new head man is bringing in a stellar offensive line recruiting class. The five offensive line recruits set to join the team this summer have an average height of 6-foot-6, and an average weight of 333 pounds. That size of an offensive line is something Oregon fans should get used to seeing.

One thing we saw during the Duck’s game versus Boise State is the high amount of long developing passing plays. These plays typically include verticals, crosses, digs, posts, and corners. These routes are dependent on excellent offensive line pass protection because the plays take more time to develop. We don’t yet know if this will be a constant theme now for the Duck’s offense, but it is a definite change amongst the typical Oregon identity. Former Duck quarterbacks, specifically Jeremiah Masoli and Darron Thomas, excelled from a quick passing game. These quick plays often included a pre-snap read, where the quarterback knows where he’s going to throw to before the play begins. While it’s possible the Duck’s coaching staff will incorporate more of these plays during the offseason, they were mostly absent in the Las Vegas Bowl. If this is to be a new theme for the Ducks, it is essential that the offensive line can provide Justin Herbert an ample amount of time.

There is one specific offensive schematic change to expect in the use of the pistol offense, influenced by running back’s Coach Jim Mastro. The Ducks ran a lot of plays out of the pistol formation during the Oregon spring game. While this has been used in the past by the Duck offense, it would seem to be a staple in the offensive formations used moving forward. The formation changes the approach running backs use in comparison to the typical shotgun formation where the running back lines up directly next to the quarterback. The pistol formation allows for more “downhill” running which certainly fits the style of current Duck running back CJ Verdell.

The Las Vegas Bowl and Oregon spring game offer little insight to how the offense will shape out this season, but fans can expect to see a new identity of Duck football. This new identity will revolve around the size and physicality of the offensive and defensive line. This new identity could very well take a few years to be installed, but when it is, expect the Ducks to have a dominant inside running game and a punishing defensive line.