Jordan Burch, Jordan James injury updates: Dan Lanning updates status vs. Wisconsin

A pair of Oregon stars are banged up entering a Week 12 bout against Wisconsin. But head coach Dan Lanning had some optimistic news.

Both star running back Jordan James and impact edge rusher Jordan Burch are both expected to be back against the Badgers, Lanning said this week. First, though, the duo will be given a bit of a lighter workload to get right for game day.

“Continue to evaluate, get those guys back,” Lanning said. “Right now, early in the week we’ll take a lot off of them and then see how they feel. But I anticipate that we should be able to see them.”

Burch was warming up for the game against Ohio State when he went down with the injury. He then couldn’t suit up against Purdue on a short week, and he wasn’t be on the field Saturday when Oregon beat No. 20 Illinois. He’s been in action the last two weeks for Oregon, against Michigan and Maryland.

When asked about the status of Burch and other injured Oregon players in late October, Dan Lanning said the program would take a wait-and-see approach. As a result, their statuses for Saturday were up in the air.

“We’ll wait as the season goes and how the week goes to see where those guys are at and if they’ll be available for us this weekend,” Lanning said.

Burch is in his second season at Oregon after transferring from South Carolina. He was having a big year prior to his injury, totaling 19 tackles – including seven tackles for loss and five sacks – in five games this season. That came after an impressive 2023 campaign in which he had 34 tackles, eight TFLs and three sacks as a key piece of the Ducks defense.

James has 166 carries for 946 yards and 10 touchdowns so far in 2024 and has been available in every game for Oregon this season and seems to be on track to play in the 11th this weekend.