Oregon Football Practice Report: Nov. 17
By Rob Moseley
Editor, GoDucks.com
Venue: Moshofsky Center
Format: Helmets only
After a week off that felt like ages to some of the players, the Ducks got back to work Monday in preparation for Saturday’s game against visiting Colorado (1:30 p.m. PT, Pac-12 Networks).
Oregon held some conditioning sessions last week prior to its bye Saturday, but this was the first full practice since the win at Utah. The Ducks’ eagerness to get back to work was reflected in pre-practice meetings, in which UO coach Mark Helfrich said they were particularly attentive. And then practice later in the morning was pretty sharp, once the Ducks got going.
“Warmup was a bit sloppy, but after that I thought it was great,” junior offensive lineman Andre Yruretagoyena said. “We were flying around. We got our tempo back after the first period.”
Linebacker Derrick Malone Jr. said the bye week was welcome from a physical standpoint. But he admitted feeling a little bored without a game for which to prepare.
Thus, Malone was excited to get going again Monday. “I think we executed pretty well,” he said. “We had some new stuff in; nothing out of the blue, but we ran around, we were pretty sharp, communication was up there. I’m glad with where our heads are.”
Added Yruretagoyena: “I thought everyone looked fresh. It was nice. Not too many guys are beat up anymore. Got that week off and really took advantage of treatment and recovery and everything.”
Yruretagoyena told reporters after practice he’s looking forward to contributing at right tackle against the Buffaloes. “I actually felt really good today, surprisingly,” he said. “I thought it would be a lot harder, but I didn’t really get too tired so I was happy about that.”
Highlights: Typically this year, Erick Dargan has been Marcus Mariota’s nemesis in practice, but today it was cornerback Dominique Harrison. The JC transfer, who is redshirting on the scout team, intercepted Mariota passes both in 7-on-7 and team drills. … Other than that it was one of those days for Mariota, who zipped passes around to Evan Baylis, Charles Nelson, Dwayne Stanford and Devon Allen over the course of the workout. … Chris Seisay also picked off a ball in 7-on-7, Malone had a very physical pass breakup in 11-on-11, and Dior Mathis came up with a turnover in that same team period.
Other observations: Receiver Dwayne Stanford is still practicing in jersey No. 88, but on Saturday and for the rest of this season he’ll don No. 85 in tribute to his roommate and fellow Ohio native Pharaoh Brown, who is out for the season with a leg injury. … ICYMI, center Hroniss Grasu has accepted an invitation to play in the Senior Bowl. … The punt return and kickoff coverage teams were featured during special teams drills. The coverage team really bottled up the scout return squad. … Ayele Forde and Kenny Bassett earned kudos from Helfrich in the post-practice huddle for their efforts in a punt-block drill.
