Anyone who knows anything about college football knows Oregon has one of the most explosive, high-scoring offenses in the country. The fact that the Ducks have averaged 51 points through nine games is proof of that.
What many don’t realize about Oregon is that it also has the top scoring defense in the Pac-12, allowing an average of just 17.9 points per contest. The Ducks also top the conference in pass defense efficiency and are tied for second in number of interceptions with 13.
Perhaps when a team is putting up close to 600 yards of offense every week, it’s easy to overlook how good its defense is playing. Oregon’s defensive players don’t really seem to mind the lack of attention they get, though.
“We don’t worry about what people notice or don’t notice,” says junior defensive end Tony Washington. “As long as we’re winning, that’s all we care about. I think people outside this program have a lot to say, but winning is all that matters to us.”
The Ducks have certainly done plenty of winning, and Washington has been a big contributing factor in that. He leads the team in sacks with 7.5 for a combined 36 yards lost and was recently named to the Hendricks Award watch list, which honors college football’s best defensive end.
For all the offensive categories Oregon excels in, there is one in which the Ducks find themselves dead last — time of possession. That means Oregon’s defense spends more time on the field than any other team. Washington says that means they can outlast anyone they play.

“The defense has to be in great shape just at the speed we play,” he says. “Our coaches really stress running to the ball. They want all 11 hats to the rock, and to do that every play, you have to be in great shape … I love playing football, so I don’t mind being out there more.”
Washington feels that increased stamina plays a major role in his team’s defense holding opponents to so few points. Of course, until last week, the Ducks’ offense had always given the team at least a 20-point lead going late into games. Oregon’s offense was just too fast and too efficient for anyone to contain.
That changed last week when the Ducks went scoreless in the first three quarters and ultimately fell to Stanford 26-20. After losing to the team that squashed its national championship hopes for the second year in a row, Oregon is out to make a statement. This weekend in Eugene, the Utes will be directly in the line of fire.
“A lot of guys felt like they let their teammates down after that loss,” Washington says. “But we know we have to pick our heads up and just keep moving forward. We still have a long season ahead of us. Our focus right now is all on Utah.”
Ducks head coach Mark Helfrich admits that Utah’s hard-hitting defense does have some similarities to Stanford’s, but he feels that his team will be especially motivated to play its best on both sides of the ball.
“[Utah’s defense] has a great scheme,” Helfrich says. “They are tremendously sound and very talented, but we don’t need any motivation other than, ‘these guys beat Stanford.’”