Occupying a very small corner within one of the wildest years in modern human history has been a college football offseason and now season that has appropriately reflected our current day and age. The twists and turns have been numerous and well documented over the past several months, as COVID-19 continues to hang like an anvil over the viability of a 2020 college football season. In addition to that, college football’s player empowerment movement and the multiple opt-outs from high profile players across the country (including a handful who were on the Oregon roster) has also contributed in shaking the foundation of a decades-old American institution.
The extent to which these factors will change the previously accepted landscape of college football is unknown. What is known, however, is that after previously postponing the 2020 football season, the Pac-12 has decided to change course and proceed with an abbreviated conference schedule, joining the vast majority of the FBS on the gridiron this fall.
With October 9 set as the official start date of fall camp for the Ducks, WFOD is here to help preview and bring you up to speed on the upcoming season by providing its position-by-position breakdown of the Oregon roster. The series continues Sunday, as we take an in-depth look at the offensive line.
As always, you can find the most up-to-date look at the Oregon depth chart by visiting our Living Depth Chart page.
The Headliner
For the foreseeable future, Penei Sewell will be long held as the gold standard for offensive linemen at Oregon. It’s a remarkable reputation for a player who only played a season and a half of football for the Ducks, but it’s one that was certainly well earned by the reigning Outland Trophy Award winner. Given the ripple affect of COVID-19, Sewell’s decision in early September to opt-out of the upcoming season came as no surprise. However, when combined with the loss of four other starting offensive linemen from last season’s Pac-12 and Rose Bowl Championship squad, it hits home rather quickly how considerable Sewell’s departure is for the Ducks moving forward.
The good news for Oregon is that head coach Mario Cristobal is as dedicated to the success of his offensive line as any coach in college football. It’s also a good thing to have Steven Jones on hand to likely serve as Sewell’s heir apparent at left tackle. Having appeared in only four games a season ago, Jones was able to preserve his redshirt status and now enters the 2020 season as the headline-grabbing name from this group.
As a true freshman in 2018, Jones appeared in five games, making one start in a loss at Utah. Despite the limited action, however, the 6-foot-7, 349-pound Jones made his presence felt, as Pro Football Focus (PFF) graded him as the top tackle in the Pac-12 following a win over UCLA. Jones would go on to allow nary a sack and commit nary a penalty to finish out his first season as a collegian. Needless to say, expectations are high for Jones, who will anchor this group post-Penei.
The Supporting Ensemble
With Steven Jones serving as the expected replacement for Sewell at left tackle, that leaves four other starting offensive line positions for Cristobal and Ducks offensive line coach Alex Mirabal to fill. Three names Duck fans should familiarize themselves with in the build up to the season are Alex Forsyth, Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu, and Jonah Tauanu’u.
In Forsyth, the Ducks have a jack-of-all trades offensive lineman who will remind some of the recently graduated Calvin Throckmorton, at least in terms of his versatility. With the ability to fit in virtually anywhere along the offensive line, Forsyth – a redshirt junior from West Linn (Ore.) with 10 games of experience to his name – is anticipated to get the first crack at replacing the graduated Jake Hanson at center. Meanwhile, Aumavae-Laulu is expected to win the starting job at one of the guard positions flanking Forsyth.
Ranked as the top JUCO tackle in the country by 247Sports’ Composite Rankings during the 2019 recruiting cycle, Aumavae-Laulu has used the last year and a half to reshape his body, getting down to a svelte 325 pounds. After appearing in two games last season at right guard, the native of the Big Island of Hawaii should be ready to slide right in and provide immediate help in the trenches. The relative wild card of this group is Tauanu’u. The SoCal native arrived in Eugene last summer ranked as the ninth-best offensive tackle in country by 247Sports’ Composite Rankings and seemed to be a natural replacement for Sewell whenever he decided he was finished dominating collegiate competition. However, with Jones expected to be Sewell’s replacement at left tackle, Tauanu’u could be a strong candidate to bookend him at right tackle after seeing action in two games in 2019.
Other names to be on the lookout for as preseason camp gets underway are George Moore, Sam Poutasi, Dawson Jaramillo, Chris Randazzo, and walk-on Ryan Walk. Having appeared in nine games over the course of his collegiate career, Moore is expected to provide depth at one of the tackle spots. Same goes for Randazzo, who only appeared in one game last season before being saddled with an injury. Like Randazzo, Portland (Ore.) native Dawson Jaramillo similarly appeared in one game last season before he was hampered by an injury that cost him most of 2019. His versatility, however, could see him in the mix all across the offensive line. Poutasi and Walk are seasoned veterans who have provided depth at guard and center, respectively, the past few years and both are expected to be right in the thick of the competition at both those spots.
The Intriguing New Cast Member
There are a handful to pick from here, but the newcomer who arguably created the most buzz prior to the official onset of the pandemic was true freshman Jonathan Denis. A native of Homestead, Florida, Denis was a four-star prospect in the 2019 recruiting class who committed to the Ducks before he had even visited campus. It seems as though he knew exactly where he wanted to be, however, as Denis quickly settled in and made a name for himself with versatile play at both guard and center. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 285 pounds, don’t be surprised to see Denis steal a starting spot during fall camp or at some point during the season.
T.J. Bass, Logan Sagapolu, Marcus Harper, Jaylan Jeffers, and Faaope Laloulu are other newcomers to be mindful of during fall camp, with Bass being perhaps the most likely bet to earn instant playing due to his experience (a JUCO transfer) and ability to fit in at either guard or center.
The Stirring Subplot
How much of a drop off will there be between the fresh-faced 2020 group and the senior-laden 2019 crew?
Walking hand-in-hand with the questions at quarterback are the questions relating to how Cristobal and Mirabal will go about replacing Penei Sewell, Calvin Throckmorton, Shane Lemieux, Jake Hanson, Dallas Warmack, and Brady Aiello along the offensive line. Over the past four years, the Ducks have been blessed with unbelievable stability at quarterback with Justin Herbert and along the offensive trenches, but will go from being one of the nation’s most experienced teams at both positions to one of the nation’s most inexperienced in 2020.
It’s a troubling recipe for a program that hopes to repeat as conference champs this fall, but with so much uncertainly in college football this season, in some ways it might be the perfect time for Oregon to break in a brand-new cast of characters. Cristobal and Mirabal have certainly been bullish on the players who are set to step in for those departed veterans, but with no spring practice and little to no offseason preparation, it’s hard to say whether those impressions are grounded in reality or hopeful optimism. At the very least, fans would be wise to expect some real growing pains given the circumstances and the fact the Ducks will be hitting the ground running with a conference-only schedule this season. However, if this young and inexperienced group can stay healthy, embrace the chaos, and find a way to gel quickly, it could conceivably set Oregon up for not only a spirited conference title push this fall, but potentially an extended run of Pac-12 dominance over the next few years.
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WFOD’s 2020 Fall Camp Preview – The Wide Receivers
WFOD’s 2020 Fall Camp Preview – The Tight Ends
Top Photo: Oregon OL Steven Jones (Eric Evans Photo)