University of Oregon football had a strong 2022 season. The team ended the year at 10-3 with those three losses coming at the hands of Georgia, Washington and Oregon State. The gave against Georgia got out of hand, but Oregon’s losses to Washington and Oregon State were by single digits. Putting those defeats aside, 2022 proved to be a solid first year for head coach Dan Lanning and his staff.
FanDuel Sportsbook has set the price on Oregon’s win total at 9.5, with the under juiced to -122. The Ducks are also +310 to win the Pac-12. They trail USC to win the conference on the College Football odds board. Bookmakers clearly expect another strong season for Oregon in 2023. Let’s dive into some Oregon football predictions, with a season preview and roster overview.
2023 Oregon Football Predictions & Season Preview
Oregon Football 2023 Season Preview: Coaching Staff
This will be Oregon’s second year under Dan Lanning. The Ducks lost 2022 offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham to Arizona State, but have hired Will Stein to fill the void as offensive coordinator. Stein previously held the same role for University of Texas San Antonio in 2022. Oregon will retain the services of DC Tosh Lupoi after he previously coached defensive line for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2021. With their staff set, Oregon will have their sights on a Pac-12 title in year two of the Dan Lanning era.
Oregon Football 2023 Season Preview: Offense
Quarterback
Bo Nix has a career revival last season and will return in 2023. Nix completed 293 of his 408 pass attempts (71.8%) for 3,589 yards (8.8 yards per attempt), 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also finished with 510 rushing yards on 89 attempts, while only taking six sacks the entire year. That low sack rate speaks to Nix’s elite mobility.
Nix has legitimate NFL potential, so getting him back is a huge boost for Oregon. He was the fourth graded passer in the Pac-12 last year, according to Pro Football Focus. Oregon’s backup should be Ty Thompson now that Jay Butterfield departed in the portal. Thompson is a former four-star recruit from the 2021 class. They also have incoming four-star freshman Austin Novosad, who is the tenth overall quarterback in this class.
Running Back
Oregon returns their top two rushers in Bucky Irving and Noah Wittington. Irving stands 5-10, 194 pounds and rushed 157 times for 1,064 yards and five scores last year. He also caught 30 passes for 297 yards with four drops. Irving proved hyper-efficient averaging 4.36 yards after contact and forcing a missed tackle 42.7% of his attempts. Whittington stands 5-8, 194 pounds and rushed 140 times for 777 yards and five scores last year. The former Western Kentucky product caught 22 balls for 169 yards without a drop. He proved relatively efficient with 3.18 yards after contact per attempt and forcing a missed tackle on 17.9% of his attempts.
Oregon also returns their third back Jordan James, who rushed 46 times for 189 yards. They have recruited a pair of four-star running backs in Dante Dowdell and Jayden Limar this offseason, which should help the depth in the running back room.
Wide Receiver
Oregon will undergo some changes at receiver with Chase Cota and Dont’e Thornton out the door. However, leading receiver Troy Franklin returns. Franklin stands 6-3, 178 pounds and caught 61 balls for 891 yards and nine scores last year. He played out wide 74.4% of the time and his 2.34 yards per route ranked fifth in the Pac-12. Oregon also returns their third leading receiver Kris Hutson. Hutson stands 5-11, 172 pounds and caught 44 balls for 473 yards last year. He played in the slot 55.2% of the time and his 1.6 yards per route ranked 22nd in the PAC 12.
Oregon did add three transfer receivers, so it is no guarantee that Hutson maintains his role. Tez Johnson comes over from Troy after catching 55 balls for 856 yards and four scores. Johnson stands 5-10, 150 pounds and played in the slot 80.9% of the time. He logged an elite 3.52 yards per route run in the Sun Belt last year. They also landed Alabama transfer Traeshon Holden. Holden stands 6-3, 214 pounds and caught 25 balls for 331 yards and six scores. He played out wide 73.7% of the time and logged a strong 1.82 yards per route. Gary Bryant Jr. also comes over from USC after deciding to redshirt last year. He is 5-11, 180 pounds and previously caught 44 balls for 579 yards and seven scores in 2021. Bryant played in the slot 67.6% of the time and notched a strong 1.67 yards per route.
If that wasn’t enough, the Ducks landed five-star freshman Jurrion Dickey, along with four-star Ashton Cozart. Even after a strong 2022 season, this group improved this offseason.
Tight End
Oregon returns their top TE Terrance Ferguson after 32 receptions for 391 yards. Ferguson is 6-5, 255 pounds and blocked on 47% of his snaps. Oregon rotates their tight ends a fair amount. Cam McCormick and Moliki Matavao departed, leaving a void at the position behind Ferguson. Oregon retained depth piece Patrick Herbert, who likely plays a larger role after his 219 snaps last year. Herbert stands 6-5, 251 pounds and blocked on 64.4% of his snaps. From there, Oregon added Casey Kelly from Ole Miss. Kelly stands 6-3, 255 pounds and blocked on 70% of his snaps. With that said, he caught 17 balls for 150 yards back in 2021. Kelly likely functions mostly as a blocker, with Ferguson as the main pass catching option.
Offensive Line
Oregon lost left tackle TJ Bass, center Alex Forsyth, right tackle Malaesala Aumavau-Laulu, and guard Ryan Walk along their offensive line. That leaves left guard Marcus Harper II as the only returning starter. Harper played 610 snaps last year and now has two years of starting experience. Jackson Powers-Johnson looks like he will be their center after playing 400 snaps last year. Most of those occurred at guard, but he has played all over the interior. The right guard position should be held by Texas transfer Junior Angilau. He was a three year starter at Texas prior to his season ending injury in 2022. At right tackle, Ajani Cornelius comes over from Rhode Island, where he started for the past two years. Cornelius was regarded as one of the top tackle transfers in the portal and he should be expected to start immediately here. This leaves just left tackle, but Oregon believes they have a capable replacement in Josh Conerly Jr.. He only played 118 snaps last year, but Oregon thinks he can start at left tackle this year.
Oregon also grabbed East Carolina guard Noah Strother in the portal. He will come over this summer, but he has three years of starting experience. Strother has enough talent to shake up this projected starting unit. He will, at least provide solid depth on the o-line. Considering how many bodies they had to replace, Oregon’s offensive line looks to be in a pretty good spot ahead of 2023.
Oregon Football 2023 Season Preview: Defense
Oregon ranked 57th on defense in 2022. This included the 88th-ranked run defense, 96th-ranked pass rush and 25th-ranked secondary. The Ducks lost three starters in the secondary, but they hammered the portal. In total, they bring in eight transfers and 11 recruits of at least four-star caliber.
Defensive Line
Along the edge, Oregon lost DJ Johnson, but they should have a solid group. Brandon Dorlus returns after leading the position with 651 snaps last year. Dorlus recorded 39 tackles and led the team with 9.5 tackles for loss. They also return Mase Funa, who played 483 snaps. Funa recorded 3.5 tackles for loss and 32 tackles overall. He should provide solid depth here with Oregon landing South Carolina transfer Jordan Burch. Burch comes from an elite recruiting pedigree, but he never quite lived up to the hype with the Gamecocks. He did record 60 tackles and another 7.5 tackles for loss last year.
Oregon will have Casey Rogers and Keyon Ware-Hudson on the interior. The duo played 441 snaps and 357 snaps last year. Rogers finished with better counting stats, including 34 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. Ware-Hudson recorded 21 tackles and 3.5 tackles himself. However, Oregon returns the services of Popo Aumavae after missing all of 2022 due to injury. Back in 2021 Aumavae played 524 snaps, logging 36 tackles and three tackles for loss. His return will give Oregon strong defensive line depth this year.
Linebacker
Oregon lost Noah Sewell, but they return Jeffrey Bassa, who played 647 snaps last year, but struggled though most of the year. He did finish as the team’s second leading tackler, but Pro Football Focus credited him with 16 missed tackles on the year. To ease the loss of Sewell, Oregon added Iowa transfer Jestin Jacobs. Jacobs battled injury last year, but he logged 53 tackles back in 2021. They also added Connor Soelle from Arizona State after 188 snaps last year. This unit isn’t quite as deep as the defensive line. However, they have enough talent at the top to get by as long as they avoid injury.
Defensive Back
Oregon needs to replace corners Bennett Williams and first rounder Christian Gonzalez. They brought in a pair of transfers to do so. Khyree Jackson comes in from Alabama, where he played in just three games last year. Jackson functioned as a starter prior to injury. He was also a four-star recruit coming out of JUCO. They also grabbed Tysheem Johnson from Ole Miss. Johnson started for two seasons with the Rebels, showing strong year over year improvement. Last year, he logged 78 tackles with a pair of passes defended. He looks like the favorite to play nickel for this defense. The final corner should be returning starter Trikweze Bridges, who defended five passes and notched three interceptions. Jahlil Florence also played 211 snaps last year and should again operate as depth here.
At safety, Oregon lost Steve Stephens IV, but they return Bryan Addison and Jamal Hill. Addison played 335 snaps, while Hill checked in at 457. Addison defended five passes and logged 30 tackles, which is impressive for his limited snaps. Hill only defended three passes, but he logged 50 tackles. His ability to operate in the box gives Oregon strong versatility. Finally, Oregon added Fresno State transfer Evan Williams, who has 2,086 snaps of experience. Williams proved an elite starter in the Mountain West over the last two seasons and will now look to make the jump to PAC 12 play.
2023 Oregon Football Schedule & Predictions
Oregon Football 2023 Schedule
The Ducks play a non-conference schedule consisting of Portland State, Texas Tech and Hawaii. The Texas Tech game will be competitive, but Oregon should take care of business in the other two. As for Pac-12 play, Oregon draws USC, Washington, Utah and Oregon State. Outside of Oregon themselves, these are the other four highest ranked teams in the NCAA. They split these games home and away, but it is a tough schedule for Oregon here.
Oregon Football Futures Bet & Prediction
The Ducks Over/Under 9.5 wins seems efficiently priced. However, ten wins remains firmly in the cards here, as does a Pac-12 title. Even with the other top four teams in the Pac-12 on the schedule, Oregon should still come in as a favorite in most of those games. If Oregon goes 10-2 or 11-1, they will have a good shot at winning the Pac-12. For that reason, Oregon to win the Pac-12 at +310 is the best bet for the Ducks ahead of the 2023 season.
Best Oregon Football Futures Bet: Win PAC 12 (+310 at FanDuel)
You can read the rest of Matt Gajewski’s 2023 college football season previews and predictions below!
- Alabama Season Preview & Predictions
- Arkansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Auburn Season Preview & Predictions
- Baylor Season Preview & Predictions
- Florida Season Preview & Predictions
- Georgia Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa Season Preview & Predictions
- Iowa State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kansas Season Preview & Predictions
- Kansas State Season Preview & Predictions
- Kentucky Season Preview & Predictions
- LSU Season Preview & Predictions
- Michigan Season Preview & Predictions
- Mississippi State Season Preview & Predictions
- Missouri Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma Season Preview & Predictions
- Oklahoma State Season Preview & Predictions
- Ole Miss Season Preview & Predictions
- South Carolina Season Preview & Predictions
- TCU Season Preview & Predictions
- Tennessee Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas A&M Season Preview & Predictions
- Texas Tech Season Preview & Predictions
- Vanderbilt Season Preview & Predictions
- West Virginia Season Preview & Predictions
