Oregon Football to have the best offensive line in college football again despite sending stud to NFL Draft
When an offensive line sends an iconic personality, leader, and stud center like Jackson Powers-Johnson to the NFL Draft it's fair to expect some sort of drop in quality of play. JPJ was the anchor of the nation's best offensive line last year and he's a near lock for first round NFL Draft capital. However, […]
When an offensive line sends an iconic personality, leader, and stud center like Jackson Powers-Johnson to the NFL Draft it's fair to expect some sort of drop in quality of play. JPJ was the anchor of the nation's best offensive line last year and he's a near lock for first round NFL Draft capital. However, even after losing JPJ, Oregon Football might have the best offensive line in the nation yet again.
The Oregon Ducks return three of five offensive line starters from last year's squad. Both tackles Ajani Cornelius and Josh Conerly, and their left guard in Marcus Harper return for 2024. They also return their versatile do-it-all interior lineman Iapani Laloulu who looks set to step in at center for Jackson Powers-Johnson. Laloulu played over 400 snaps last year, spending time at all three interior line spots, performing well in each.
But perhaps the most important piece to the puzzle is transfer offensive lineman from Indiana, Matthew Bedford. He has nearly 3000 snaps of experience already, and over 1300 snaps specifically at right guard. Bedford will replace Steven Jones, who was a steady force at right guard for the Ducks last year. Early word is that Bedford is already proving himself and could perhaps even be an upgrade at the position.
All across football and sports media the hype surrounding the Oregon offensive line is becoming abundantly clear. Multiple outlets have published rankings and write-ups this spring suggesting Ajani Cornelius was a top ten offensive tackle prospect among all players in the country this past season (like in the post below).
There's also been rising steam for Josh Conerly Jr. to be considered just as good, giving Oregon the best (or at worst, second best) offensive tackle tandem in the nation behind only LSU (as Max Chadwick of PFF outlines in his post below).
If the interior of the offensive line gels as well as early spring practice and team reports suggest, Oregon will undoubtedly have the most dominant offensive line in the nation once again.
I talked to Jackson Powers-Johnson at the NFL Combine about how the team led all of college football in pass block win rate (via Sports Info Solutions & PFF) and pass block efficiency (via PFF). Here's what he had to say about the stars on the offensive line that make the offensive line room so great:
With the Ducks offensive line being as great as it is, and the team bringing in an elite quarterback in Dillon Gabriel who loves to get rid of the ball quickly, expect more dominance up front this fall on offense for Oregon.
Be looking for more College Football and Oregon Ducks coverage here at A to Z Sports all year long! Follow me (@FF_TravisM) and A to Z Sports (@AtoZSportsNFL) on X for all the latest football news!
And if you want to watch some 2023 Dillon Gabriel highlights from a year ago to see just how good the Ducks offense could look once again in 2024, check out the video below!
