Thursday’s highly anticipated matchup between Oregon and Stanford will feature a clash of conflicting styles, as the Ducks’ dynamic offense will look to spread the field and the Cardinal will bring its old school ground-and-pound approach.
Oregon’s headliners are quarterback Marcus Mariota and explosive playmakers Bralon Addison and De’Anthony Thomas. However, Stanford brings to the table a hard-nosed style of offense and a premier defensive front that could potentially spell trouble for Oregon and its BCS championship hopes. Let’s take a look at some of the key matchups for Thursday’s contest in Palo Alto.
Stanford’s front seven vs. Oregon’s offensive line
Stanford absolutely dominated this matchup during last year’s win at Autzen Stadium, as the front seven shut down Oregon’s running game and pressured Marcus Mariota early and often. Stanford’s entire starting front seven is made up of upperclassmen and is led by senior linebackers Trent Murphy, Shayne Skov and A.J. Tarpley.
Skov and Tarpley have done tremendous jobs racking up tackles at inside linebacker and Murphy has emerged as one of the nation’s most feared pass-rushing threats off the edge. Murphy ranks among the top five in the country in both sacks and tackles for loss and wreaked havoc in the backfield during recent matchups against UCLA and Oregon State. Much like he did two weeks ago against UCLA’s Anthony Barr, Oregon left tackle Tyler Johnstone will have his work cut out for him with Murphy.
Stanford Key: The defensive line has been banged up in recent weeks and suffered a major blow with the loss of two-time all-conference defensive end Ben Gardner, who will miss the rest of the season with a torn pectoral muscle. Seniors Josh Mauro, David Parry and a returning Henry Anderson will need to lead a strong push up front to allow Stanford’s nasty linebacker corps to swarm the Oregon backfield. Anderson has been out since early September with a knee injury and head coach David Shaw admitted that conditioning is still an issue for Anderson, indicating that he may be limited to about 60 plays during Thursday’s bout with Oregon. Anderson’s effectiveness will be key for Stanford to control the line of scrimmage.
Oregon Key: The clock in Marcus Mariota’s head will be sped up on Thursday against Stanford’s pass rush and every second the offensive line can afford him will be invaluable. It will be key for Tyler Johnstone to limit the pressure on the edge, as Trent Murphy will make Mariota’s night a long one if Johnstone is unable to keep the explosive 6-foot-6, 260-pounder in check. If Oregon can win the battle in the trenches and give Mariota enough time in the pocket, he’ll have a better chance to hook up with Josh Huff and Bralon Addison downfield.
Advantage: Stanford
Oregon’s front seven vs. Stanford’s running game
With Stanford’s run-heavy approach, running back Tyler Gaffney’s efficiency on the ground will go a long way in dictating how effective Stanford will be at moving the chains. Kevin Hogan has been out of sync of late and for him to have any success against Oregon’s top-notch secondary, it will be vital for Stanford to establish a successful running game to set up effective play action downfield.
For the visitors, it all starts in the trenches, as Oregon will need strong play inside from defensive tackles Wade Keliikipi and Taylor Hart against Stanford’s physically imposing offensive line. If Oregon decides to stack the box against Stanford it will become especially important for cornerbacks Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and Terrence Mitchell to maintain tight coverage and win one-on-one battles with Cardinal wideouts Ty Montgomery and Devon Cajuste.
Stanford Key: Commit to the run. On paper, Oregon’s run defense appears intimidating, having limited opposing runners to just 3.41 yards per carry. However, Washington and UCLA both showed that with a quality rushing attack, the Oregon defense can be exploited on the ground. Bishop Sankey ran for 167 yards on 28 carries for the Huskies and UCLA’s duo of Paul Perkins and Malcolm Jones combined for 151 yards on 34 rushes in place of starting running back Jordon James. Oregon’s defense was able to negate the running game in its other conference matchups against California, Colorado and Washington State, but all three teams rank in the bottom-fifth of the FBS in both yards per carry and rushing yards per game. Oregon’s defense has yet to show that that it can stop a formidable ground game and until it does, there’s no reason Stanford should deviate from the run.
Oregon Key: Oregon needs to play to its strengths defensively, which is on the perimeter. The key for Oregon will be to stack the box and force Kevin Hogan to beat them through the air. The Ducks stand a better chance at stopping Stanford’s offense by relying on man-to-man coverage from Ekpre-Olomu and Mitchell than they do at stopping the Cardinal running game without extra reinforcements.
Advantage: Stanford
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