By Jakob Salao
Oregon Football will make its return to Autzen Stadium on April 23 for the annual Spring Game. This will be an unofficial first game for the 2022 season along with the first season under Head Coach Dan Lanning.
“I love coaching these guys every day," Lanning said. "It's a fun group. They come to work, and certainly, they know there's a ton of things we can improve on. But it's a fun group to coach."
New Spring Game, Familiar Format
Rather than make players flip sides of the ball or include some other gimmicks, the Spring Game appears to just be a showcase of Oregon in a normal game. According to Lanning, the game will “be very similar to a game format.” The Ducks will be split into two teams, the yellow team and the green team, each complete with an offense, defense, and special teams.
The Spring Game will also see the return of NFL players from Oregon as honorary coaches. For the yellow team, De’Anthony Thomas will serve as the Offensive Coordinator and Haloti Ngata will serve as the Defensive Coordinator. For the green team, La’Michael James will be the Offensive Coordinator and Arik Armstead will be the Defensive Coordinator. These coaches will take over play-calling duties during the 4th quarter.
See You Later, Seniors
Some of Oregon’s biggest playmakers from the 2021 season will not be returning for the 2022 season. DE Kayvon Thibodeaux, one of Oregon’s most dominant defensive players, is projected to be a first-round pick. His dominant defensive presence contributed 7 sacks and 12 TFLs for Oregon.
Other Ducks that have declared for the draft include RB CJ Verdell, QB Anthony Brown, WR Johnny Johnson III, and DBs Mykael Wright, and Verone Mckinley III. RB Travis Dye, WR Mycah Pittman, and DB DJ James all entered the transfer portal earlier in the offseason.
First Look at New and Familiar Faces: Players to Watch
As Oregon loses people to the transfer portal, some new players may get some bigger looks starting with the Spring Game.
With the departure of QB Anthony Brown, Oregon’s starting QB position has been up for grabs. Last year, Redshirt Freshman Ty Thompson was a name crowds cheered for in hopes of seeing him play on the field. The 5-star recruit hardly saw any meaningful playing time in the 2021 season, but that might change this season. However, Oregon also gained QB Bo Nix via the transfer portal. Before being injured, Nix threw for 2294 yards with 11 touchdowns at Auburn in his junior season. Head Coach Lanning has yet to name a starter between these two yet, and the Spring Game could act as a showcase between these two QBs.
Another interesting piece on offense making a return is RB Byron Cardwell. Cardwell’s freshman season began on the bench behind the likes of CJ Verdell and Travis Dye. It wasn’t until Verdell’s injury that Cardwell would see some action, albeit behind Dye. Despite this, Cardwell would rack up 417 yards and 6 touchdowns on just 61 carries and are in a solid position to be the new starter. Last year, Seven Mcgee, originally listed as an RB, saw some time as a WR and is listed as such in the Spring Game. It’ll be interesting to see if he continues to play a hybrid role similar to the 2021 season, or if he has fully converted into a WR.
LB Justin Flowe, who missed nearly the entire 2021 season due to injury, has been progressing toward a return during the Spring Game, although it hasn’t been confirmed yet. Other notable returners for the team include DB Steve Stevens IV, RB Sean Dollars, and OL Ryan Walk are among the few confirmed to be making a return to the field.
If you're looking to listen to the game, KWVA will broadcast the game over 88.1 FM as well as online on KWVA Stream 1. The Pre-game show will begin at 12:45, and the broadcast will continue until the end of the game.