Oregon Ducks' trenches, coaching highlighted as biggest 'ifs' in 2026

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Looking ahead to the 2026 college football season, there's no argument against the notion that the Oregon Ducks have what it takes to compete for a national championship. With Dante Moore returning for another year, a deep set of skill players around him, and quite possibly the best defense in the nation, it would be more of a surprise to see Dan Lanning's team miss the College Football Playoff in 2026 rather than make another deep run.

However, in order for that to happen, some things need to go right. As he does every year, ESPN's Bill Connelly broke out his list of "ifs" for the top contenders in the nation, detailing what needs to happen in order for a championship to come into sight.

For the Ducks, there are three things in particular that need to play out.

Up first, the offensive line. If Oregon is to compete at a high level and get the most out of Moore's potential Heisman season, the unproven unit up front is going to be central in the equation.

"Twenty-one tackles for loss, 11 sacks, 11 three-and-outs and 43.4% of snaps gaining zero or fewer yards," Connelly writes. "That's what Oregon's offense looked like in the Ducks' season-ending losses the past two years — a 41-21 Rose Bowl defeat to Ohio State in 2024 and a 56-22 Peach Bowl walloping at Indiana's hands in 2025. The Oregon O-line has been good enough for most of the past two years, but with the season on the line each year, it got ruthlessly invaded."

Beyond the offensive line, though, the Ducks also need to be better in the trenches on the other side, according to Connelly. While there's no debate about how good players like A'Mauri Washington, Matayo Uiagalelei, and Teitum Tuioti are, it's reasonable to want a bit more production from that group that is considered among the best in the nation.

"Oregon's defense is loaded with experience and known quality. But the Ducks ranked just 46th in sack rate and 98th in stuff rate last year, and a lack of negative plays made them merely decent on third downs (52nd). Can new coordinator Chris Hampton unearth a few more TFLs?"

Finally, the focus turns to the guy in charge. Oregon has been a great regular-season team over the past few years, but once they get to the postseason, the wheels have fallen off. Dan Lanning is just 2-2 in the CFP, with wins over James Madison and Texas Tech, plus blowout losses to Ohio State and Indiana. Nobody in Eugene quite knows what happens to this team when the stakes get ramped up, but that's obviously something that needs to be answered if the Ducks are going to make a run at the championship.

"Oregon is 37-0 against teams that didn't make the national title game over the past three years," Connelly said. "They're virtually upset proof. But when your last two CFP losses have come by a combined 54 points, that's a black cloud until you rectify it."

None of these questions may be difficult to answer, but they are central to the idea that Oregon can win it all this year. Fortunately, we're fewer than 50 days away from finding out the answer to two of them.

Contact/Follow @Ducks_Wire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinions.   

This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon Ducks' trenches, coaching highlighted as biggest 'ifs' in 2026

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos