Projecting Oregon's post-spring defensive two-deep

Spring ball is over and it’s time to turn our heads to the roster.

Some things may change by the time fall ball is underway. But for now, here’s a guide to what Oregon’s two-deep might look like.

Shoutout to Corpatty for his scholarship counter, a super-helpful resource that I use all the time. You can find it in the pinned ScoopDuck threads.

Note: I’m using the same position designations Georgia did last year.

Without further ado, here’s my best shot at Oregon’s defensive two-deep!

Nose Tackle

Starter: Popo Aumavae (RSr.)

Backup: Sam “Taki” Taimani (RJr.)

During a Spring interview, Taimani explicitly said he wants to — and will — play nose tackle.

Popo Aumavae still has to be the clubhouse leader here, though, considering his wealth of experience. He’s one of the few players left who was brought to the Oregon program from the high school class of 2017 and was an all-conference selection last year.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see both of these guys on the field at once, with Popo at tackle. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Jackson Powers-Johnson taking reps here.

Defensive Tackle

Starter: Keyon Ware-Hudson (RSoph.)

Backup: Keanu Williams (Soph.)

Kristian Williams is one of two players currently away from the program for unspecified reasons — the other being punter Tom Snee — while Keyon Ware-Hudson was out injured all spring.

I’m still putting Ware-Hudson as the starter, and Kristian Williams is likely next up if he ends up in the team. But for now, I’ll list Keanu Williams as the backup — his name came up multiple times in spring interviews as someone who could take a step up.

Defensive End

Starter: Brandon Dorlus (Jr.)

Backup: DJ Johnson (Sr.)

Dorlus also missed the spring due to injury, but he had a very good 2021 season and is still the clear-cut number one in this room.

DJ Johnson was probably Oregon’s biggest performer from the Spring game, enough so that it shouldn’t count for nothing. His transformation into a dominant d-lineman is now five years in the making at Oregon.

DJ Johnson’s positions and numbers at Oregon

2018: OLB #44
2019: DL #7
2020: TE #89
2021: TE #12
2022: OLB #2 pic.twitter.com/r6p030wQwq

— Charlie Folkestad (@folkestad3) March 15, 2022

Sam Linebacker (strong side edge)

Starter: Mase Funa (Jr.)

Backup: Jake Shipley (Soph.)

If you want to combine Sam and Jack into one position group, I think the order is Funa, Swinson, Shipley. Shipley ran with the “ones” during the first fastball practice.

Jack Linebacker (weak side edge)

Starter: Bradyn Swinson (Soph.)

Backup: Brandon Buckner (Soph.) OR Treven Ma’ae (RJr.)

The backup battle might be interesting here, though. Buckner played fewer defensive snaps than Ma’ae last season (50 to 191), but we’ll see where he lands in this new regime.

Money Linebacker (inside)

Starter: Noah Sewell (Soph.)

Backup: Jeffrey Bassa (Soph.)

Again, this could be combined with the Mac position. They’re both inside linebackers. If they were combined, I’d go Sewell, Flowe, Bassa, LaDuke, Brown.

Mac Linebacker (inside)

Starter: Justin Flowe (Soph.)

Backup: Keith Brown (Soph.) OR Jackson LaDuke (RFr.)

Flowe should be healthy for the fall. He took live reps toward the end of Spring. It doesn’t matter that he’s less experienced than Bassa; you can’t keep a monster athlete like Flowe off the field.

Star (Nickel)

Starter: Jamal Hill (Jr.) 

Backup: Bennett Williams (Sr.)

This was the hardest decision to make. Both could start.

I’m giving the edge to Hill because he took more than twice the amount of snaps as Williams last season. Yes, that was mostly due to Williams’ injury, but Hill got the first-team reps in Spring. That’s the tiebreaker.

Strong Safety

Starter: Trikweze Bridges (RSoph.)

Backup: Daymon David (Soph.)

With the departure of Verone McKinley III, safeties are now the thinnest position group on Oregon’s defense. I think Bridges slides over from corner and into Verone’s old spot.

Free Safety

Starter: Bryan Addison (RJr.)

Backup: Steve Stephens IV (Soph.)

Again, there’s not a huge difference between these groups. Williams has been working at safety — and boundary corner — this spring and could factor in here, too. My five-deep: Bridges, Addison, Williams, Stephens IV, David.

Jalil Tucker and Trejon Williams will join the team in the fall, and they could both play safety. Since I haven’t seen them at all, I can’t say either will definitely jump into the two-deep.

Two former scholarship guys who are now walk-ons could also factor in here: JJ Greenfield (wasn’t with the team last year) and Donovan Dalton (Hawaii transfer).

Lanning made it a point to say walk-ons are on the same level as scholarship guys when discussing Greenfield, so we’ll see if that’s true or mere coach speak come fall.

Boundary Corner

Starter: Dontae Manning (Soph.)

Backup: Avante Dickerson (Soph.)

Field Corner

Starter: Christian Gonzalez (Soph.)

Backup: Darren Barkins (RFr.) OR Jahlil Florence (Fr.)

The top two corners are clear-cut. If we combine the corner spots, I think it’s Gonzo, Manning, Dickerson, Florence, Barkins. Dickerson played 32 snaps last year, while Barkins played two.