Following USC’s upset of Stanford last weekend, Oregon is back in the Pac-12 North driver’s seat and will earn a berth to the Pac-12 Championship game if it can win its final two regular season games. The first of those games comes this Saturday at Arizona against a Wildcat team that looks to bounce back from a disappointing home loss to Washington State. Here are some of the key players to watch on both sides.
Oregon:
Derrick Malone (LB) – It doesn’t appear that the right shoulder injury Malone suffered during last Saturday’s game against Utah is too serious, but it’s worth watching how the junior linebacker bounces back. Oregon is the last team to keep Arizona under 100 yards on the ground and Malone’s health and effectiveness will go a long way in determining how Ka’Deem Carey and the Wildcats’ running game fare. Malone didn’t see much playing time during last year’s bout against Arizona, but head coach Mark Helfrich indicated after Wednesday’s practice that the defense has prepared this week against a scout team that has used multiple backs in an attempt to simulate what Carey will bring to the table come Saturday.
Byron Marshall (RB) – Oregon’s last two games have been its least effective on the ground, amassing season lows of 62 yards against Stanford and 145 yards against Utah. Part of that can be attributed to Marcus Mariota’s knee injury confining him to the pocket, but Oregon has noticeably avoided the run. After starting off conference play with five straight games of at least 19 rushing attempts and 100 yards on the ground, Marshall has been limited to just 11 carries in each of the last two games. Marshall should be able to have an effective day of rushing at Saturday’s matchup because Arizona has allowed 4.14 yards per carry this season.
Hroniss Grasu (C) – Oregon’s offensive line is coming off games against two of the nation’s leading sack artists in Stanford and Utah and will look to keep Mariota out of harm’s way on Saturday. Success in the trenches starts with the strong play of Grasu, the anchor of the offensive line and one of the more underrated pieces of an Oregon running game that ranks fourth in the nation in yards per carry.
Arizona:
Ka’Deem Carey (RB) – It’s been 13 games since an opposing defense has held Carey to less than 100 yards on the ground – a span over which the junior has averaged 6.7 yards per carry and 174 rushing yards per game. Oregon’s defense was able to contain Carey during last year’s matchup in Eugene, limiting him to just 79 yards on 21 carries. Carey, a local product of Tuscon, is second in the nation in rushing yards per game this year and is the focal point of Arizona’s offense. If Carey is able to find some room to run on Saturday, Arizona will have its chance to put points on the board.
Scooby Wright and Marquis Flowers (LBs) – Arizona’s linebacking duo is 1-2 on the team in tackles and the two will be key pieces in stopping Oregon’s vaunted rushing attack. Wright has had an impressive showing during his first season, ranking second on the team and among Pac-12 freshman, with 70 tackles. Flowers has gone three straight games with at least nine tackles and is tied with Wright for second on the team with 7.5 tackles for loss.
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