The best to ever do it along the offensive line at Oregon has officially called it a career in Eugene.
Though Penei Sewell’s time at Oregon may have been brief, it was most certainly spectacular, as Sewell appeared in just 21 games in green and yellow, but proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is the greatest offensive lineman to ever step foot on campus at the University of Oregon. With that, his decision Monday to forego his remaining college eligibility and declare for the 2021 NFL Draft came as little surprise to Duck fans and those around the world of college football.
Thank You. pic.twitter.com/5j5agPK82r
— Penei Sewell 🇦🇸 (@peneisewell58) September 7, 2020
After becoming the first Outland Trophy (awarded to college football’s best interior lineman) winner in school history as a sophomore in 2019, Sewell was expected to serve as the irreplaceable anchor for an offensive line that was set to replace four starters heading into the 2020 season. Then, the world as we knew it changed dramatically in March, as the COVID-19 pandemic derailed spring football and ultimately led to the decision by the Pac-12 in August to postpone the season until at least January 2021.
While the rest of college football’s Power 5 conferences have chosen to press forward on a 2020 season (with the exception of the Big Ten), the uncertain climate of the time has pushed a handful of college football’s top players (such as LSU’s Ja’Marr Chase and Penn State’s Micah Parsons, to name a few) to opt out of the 2020 season in order to preserve their health and prepare for next year’s NFL draft.
Like Chase and Parsons, Sewell is a virtual lock to be a top 10 pick, and may very well be the first non-quarterback selected next April. According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Sewell allowed just ONE sack in 678 pass block snaps during his two-year stint at Oregon and didn’t allow more than two QB pressures in any of his 21 games with the Ducks. Moreover, per PFF, Sewell was the highest-graded offensive player in college football last season (95.8). In fact, PFF regards him as the best offensive tackle prospect they have ever graded – period.
“Penei Sewell is quite easily the best offensive tackle prospect we’ve ever graded here at PFF.” – @PFF_Mike
— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 7, 2020
pic.twitter.com/GasJKzpmbm
Needless to say that, while Sewell’s departure comes as a shock to no one, it drives home the fact that the next time the Ducks take the field, they will be doing so with five new faces along the offensive line. With Sewell set to join fellow 2019 starters Calvin Throckmorton, Shane Lemieux, and Jake Hanson in the NFL next season, Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal will have his work cut out for him as the Ducks look to reshuffle their starting group in the offensive trenches. To what degree, however, remains to be seen.
Should the Pac-12 return to the field in early 2021, one would expect Cristobal and the Ducks to rely heavily on a group of lightly seasoned veterans headlined by redshirt sophomore Steven Jones, redshirt freshman Jonah Tauanu’u, and redshirt juniors Alex Forsyth and Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu. Should members of the Ducks’ 2021 recruiting class be permitted and up to the task to physically compete at that time, the Ducks could be afforded some addition depth across the board, but without an opportunity to go through winter conditioning and a month of a spring practices, it’s anyone’s guess as to how reliable that depth will be.
Though it may not be the best case scenario for fans of Duck football, punting on a winter/spring season and preparing for the fall of 2021 may turn out to be the best approach for ensuring the offensive line’s success in a post-Penei world, as that position – more than most – is heavily reliant on development from both a technical and physical standpoint.
Whatever the immediate future looks like for Oregon football, what is guaranteed is that Penei Sewell has played his last game in a Duck uniform. And though the lasting image for Duck fans will be a sweet one as Sewell stood exalted, bathed in victory and Rose Bowl confetti in Pasadena seemingly a lifetime ago last January, it is surely a bittersweet farewell to a player who made a short-lived, yet everlasting impact on the Oregon program like no other.
Top Photo: Oregon OL Penei Sewell (John Cordes/Icon Sportswire)