Venue: Autzen Stadium

Format: Shells

Sunday is the Oregon football team's first major scrimmage of this preseason camp, but that didn't keep head coach Mario Cristobal from putting the Ducks through a number of game-type situational drills Saturday.



Practicing in Autzen Stadium, and with season-ticket holders invited to attend a BBQ and stick around to watch, there was a tease of gameday atmosphere three weeks out from Oregon's season opener. And if Saturday had indeed been a game, the defense would have scored last to eke out a win over the offense.



The last full team period was a two-minute drill, with the offense looking to push the ball downfield and get in position for a game-winning field goal. All three offensive units got a shot, and none was able to convert.



"Defense: excellent job closing out the practice," Cristobal said in the post-practice huddle.







With the first-string units on the field to start, the senior bookends of Jalen Jelks and Justin Hollins provided Justin Herbert no quarter. Jelks batted down a pass on first down and Hollins had a sack on third down. That forced Herbert to try and make something happen on fourth down, and he threw incomplete after being flushed from the pocket.



With the twos on the field, Braxton Burmeister threw incomplete on second down and was sacked on third down. But with the "game" on the line, Jacob Breeland did a great job getting to the sticks — achieving enough depth in his route for a potential first down — and Burmeister zipped a pass to him over the middle. Two plays later, though, Demetri Burch had the ball knocked loose after a reception by Verone McKinley III , who followed up his big day Friday by returning the fumble about 55 yards for a touchdown.







The No. 3 defense forced a turnover as well. Walk-on cornerback Charles Sudduth broke up a potential third-down completion near the first-down marker, forcing Tyler Shough to try a desperation heave deep downfield on fourth down, which Sudduth intercepted.



Special teams work was all that remained before the conclusion of practice, after which Cristobal turned the team's attention to Sunday's scrimmage.



"We've talked about closing the gap, where we are and where we want to go," Cristobal said. "Tomorrow, we find out."

Other highlights: An early full team period was conducted in the red zone, and the offense had more success. Three carries by Tony Brooks-James helped get the first-team offense near the goal line, and they converted with a Herbert touchdown pass to Cam McCormick . The No. 2 defense held its ground, but the No. 3 offense also scored, on a run by Cyrus Habibi-Likio . ... Shough was a little up-and-down over the course of the day, but had a nice sequence in the first 11-on-11 period when he connected on a long TD pass with JJ Tucker — safety Steve Stephens tried to jump the route but just barely mistimed it —and then on the next play Shough zipped a ball through the heart of the defense to Alfonso Cobb . ...



Also in that early team period, Habibi-Likio and Taj Griffin both trucked members of the secondary. With running back depth thinned by injuries, those guys are getting a bunch of work, and taking advantage. ... During punt drills conducted from midfield, Blake Maimone bombed a kick down to the "coffin corner" near the goal line. Daewood Davis was running down as part of the punt team, fielded the punt on the fly and stepped out of bounds at the 1-yard line. ... In 1-on-1 pass drills, Brady Breeze had an interception, Nick Pickett and Mattrell McGraw both slapped balls away from potential receivers as they arrived, and Kahlef Hailassie ran with Isaah Crocker on a fade route before knocking the pass away. Johnny Johnson III opened the period by using a double move to shake Thomas Graham Jr. for a touchdown, but Graham locked him down on a similar route later in the drill.

Other observations: Cristobal said earlier this week freshman Adrian Jackson was learning outside linebacker along with the position he's been practicing at, inside linebacker, and Jackson on Saturday did take some reps on the outside. ... The defense spent much of Saturday working on its nickel package — including in the 7-on-7 run-game period, to prepare that group for play action passes and screens. ... Freshman linebacker Andrew Johnson was in practice gear for the first time Saturday. During a special teams period, defensive coordinator and inside linebackers coach Jim Leavitt spent a few minutes coaching up Johnson one-on-one.

Up Next: The Ducks will scrimmage Sunday, then will have an off day from practice Monday.