No. 10 Oregon: The Ducks are the class of the Pac-12 North, even without Mariota

Dr. Saturday will unveil its preseason Top 25 team-by-team during the next 25 days. This list is based on returning starters, schedule and prospects. However, we all know that once the games begin, things can change very quickly. Still, we thought we’d give our best guess heading into the 2015 season.

No. 10 Oregon

2014 record: 13-2, 8-1 SEC

Returning starters: 6 offense; 6 defense

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2015 Outlook: Surprise! Oregon is going to be very good again.

The Ducks are coming off a national title game loss – the program’s second in five seasons – and have registered double-digit wins for seven consecutive seasons. There’s no reason that streak shouldn’t continue in 2015. Still, Ducks fans want more than that. They want a national title.

Our No. 10 may ranking may seem a little low for such a successful program, but there are quite a few lingering questions that Mark Helfrich will need to sort out.

First and foremost, how do you replace Marcus Mariota, the 2014 Heisman winner? Jeff Lockie, Mariota’s backup the past two seasons, knows the offense in and out, but that didn’t stop the Ducks from bringing in heralded FCS transfer Vernon Adams.

Adams, the two-time runner up for the Walter Payton Award (the FCS version of the Heisman) finally graduated from Eastern Washington this week and participated in his first Oregon practice on Friday. He has had a Ducks playbook, but still has plenty to catch up on if he wants to succeed Mariota, as is expected.

The 5-foot-11, 201-pound Adams was one of the top offensive players at the FCS level. He has experience playing against two Pac-12 teams, as well. He led EWU to an upset over Oregon State in 2013 and nearly did the same in 2014 at Washington. If he does pass Lockie on the depth chart as most expect, he has a ton to work with at the skill positions – but it could have been more.

Running back Thomas Tyner (573 yards, 5 TDs) is already out for the season with a shoulder injury and it would be a surprise if talented tight end Pharaoh Brown (25 catches, 420 yards, 6 TDs), who suffered a grisly knee injury at Utah, did not use his redshirt. Speedy wideout Devon Allen (41 catches, 684 yards, 7 TDs) is also on the mend from an ACL tear while Darren Carrington (37 catches, 704 yards, 4 TDs) faces a suspension for a failed drug test.

For most programs, those losses would be devastating – but this is Oregon. Byron Marshall (74 catches, 1,003 yards, 6 TDs), Dwayne Stanford (43 catches, 639 yards, 6 TDs) and Charles Nelson (23 catches, 327 yards, 5 TDs) are back, as is Bralon Addison. Addison caught 61 balls for 890 yards and seven touchdowns in 2013 before missing the 2014 campaign with a knee injury.

That is an absurd amount of talent, and it doesn’t even include running back Royce Freeman. Freeman put up huge numbers – 1,365 yards and 18 touchdowns – as a true freshman and should have to shoulder a huge load with Tyner sidelined.

The Ducks are always known for offense, and that should continue in 2015. But at the same time, Oregon’s defense was mostly pretty good last year – especially in the second half of the year when it gave up an average of 21 points in its last seven games, including the 42 points Ohio State put up in the national title game.

The front seven is a formidable one, with massive defensive end DeForest Buckner (6-7, 290) wreaking havoc up front with an experienced group of linebackers (four seniors could start) cleaning up behind him. The secondary is young and will have three new starters alongside strong safety Reggie Daniels. One of those could be Nelson, who has practiced on defense in the past.

So what does it all mean? The Ducks are the class of the Pac-12 North (though I think Stanford is a bit underrated), but the other side of the league should put up more of a fight than it did last year. That Nov. 21 visit from USC should be a good one – a potential conference title game preview, too, with major College Football Playoff implications.

Player to watch: Royce Freeman, RB

Freeman was a highly-rated recruit, but he still seemed to come out of nowhere to put up explosive numbers in 2014 as a true freshman. He rushed for 1,365 yards and led the conference with 19 total touchdowns. With Mariota out of the picture, a lot more attention will be put on the 5-foot-11, 230-pound Freeman.

The Ducks rely heavily on the read-option and play-action pass, so Freeman pounding the rock at a reliable clip is crucial – especially with a new quarterback running the show and Tyner out for the season. If Freeman can chip away at four or five or six yards at a time, the downfield options should be plentiful.

Though All-American linemen Hroniss Grasu and Jake Fisher have moved on to the NFL, Oregon returns three starters on its offensive line to open holes for Freeman. He’ll certainly have plenty of chances.

Breakout player: Vernon Adams, QB

The breakout player has to be Adams, right? No one knows exactly what to expect from the FCS transfer if he does succeed Mariota as expected. Here’s what we do know: Adams led EWU to an upset of a ranked Oregon State team in 2013 and nearly did the same to Washington a year later. He can play against Pac-12 competition.

His numbers in three seasons as the starter at EWU look like this: 10,438 yards and 110 touchdowns passing and 1,232 yards and 11 more scores rushing. Not too shabby.

While those rushing totals do show his ability to scramble, Adams is a guy who would rather extend a play with his legs to set up a big pass play than look to run. If he moves past Lockie on the depth chart as is expected, he becomes one of the more intriguing players to watch in the country.

He will be put to the test early, too.

After his former team Eastern Washington visits Autzen in Week 1, Adams and the Ducks travel to East Lansing for a primetime matchup with Michigan State. Adams has never been under that kind of spotlight before. The eyes of the country will be watching.

Miss one of our Top 25? No. 11 Georgia, No. 12 Notre Dame, No. 13 UCLA, No. 14 LSU, No. 15 Georgia Tech, No. 16 Arkansas, No. 17 Ole Miss, No. 18 Arizona State, No. 19 Oklahoma, No. 20 Arizona, No. 21 Tennessee, No. 22 Missouri, No. 23 Stanford, No. 24 Boise State, No. 25 Wisconsin.