Wednsday War Room: Fall Camp heats up

 

Oregon Secondary Taking Shape Through Fall Camp as Competition Heats Up

As Oregon enters the heart of fall camp, competition across the board remains fierce—nowhere more so than in the Ducks’ reshaped and reloaded secondary.

Following six practices, head coach Dan Lanning, defensive backs coach Chris Hampton, and redshirt freshman cornerback Ify Obidegwu all spoke about the growth, energy, and intensity that have defined the first stretch of camp.

Ify Rising

Obidegwu, a former Rivals100 prospect entering his second season in the program, has quickly emerged as one of the most improved players in the secondary. After spending last season behind veterans like Nikko Reed, Jabbar Muhammad, and Dontae Manning, he’s putting that experience to work.

“It was a good growing, learning, growth, improvement for me,” Obidegwu said of last year. “Just sitting behind those guys… just soaking up all the knowledge, seeing how they was going about their business.”

Both Lanning and Hampton praised Obidegwu’s camp.

“He's having a great camp,” Hampton said. “There are a lot of guys having a great camp right now. But he's definitely having one of the better outputs in the secondary.”

Lanning echoed that assessment, saying, “More than anything, understanding. Knowing what he's going to do, how he needs to execute on the field, what his job is. But yeah, he has really special traits. He could be a special player for us.”

For Obidegwu, the biggest jump has come mentally.

“The biggest growth, I would say just definitely the playbook,” he said. “Learn all the plays, the checks, the formations, the different motions… getting to know the teams, like route concepts and route recognition.”

Wide-Open Competition

The defensive backfield is full of talented options, including veterans like Jahlil Florence and rising transfers such as Theran Johnson, but no one has locked in a starting job.

“It’s been great competition,” Obidegwu said. “We all can make plays… you got Sione Laulea, Jahlil Florence, Theran Johnson, even the freshman guys… we’re all elite guys. So, you know, the competition is very high. You got to bring it every day. You’re going to get left behind.”

That competitive fire is by design. “There’s no depth chart right now,” Hampton said. “We’re letting everybody roll… we’re splitting guys up, working different combinations.”

Obidegwu described it as a “dogfight” every day. “The energy is high. You got to bring high energy. You got to be on point… everybody’s hungry.”

Hampton is making sure each defensive back learns all three main roles—field safety, boundary safety, and STAR. “We’re kind of just rolling everybody… making them learn and making it a challenge right now.”

Theran Emerging

One of the newcomers making noise is Northwestern transfer Theran Johnson, who turned in what both Lanning and Hampton described as his best practice so far during Practice 6.

“Theran’s been a guy that’s come in, he’s learned the system. He’s highly intelligent,” Hampton said. “He made a lot of plays… had some ball production.”

Lanning highlighted a key play from Johnson as well: “He made an outstanding play today in practice… you want guys with ball skills.”

The Oregon staff sees Johnson as someone who can contribute immediately.

Leadership and Development

Another veteran drawing praise is Florence, who has returned from injury to take on a leadership role.

“He motivates the guys on the sideline,” Hampton said. “He’s definitely got to take on a leadership role for us, and I think he’s ready to do that.”

The Ducks have also seen physical and mental growth from sophomore safety Kingston Lopa.

“He really changed his body,” Hampton said. “He’s probably put on about 15 pounds of muscle this offseason… year two in the system, he gets it.”

From the Top Down

The consistent messaging across the defensive staff is about daily improvement, discipline, and accountability—something Obidegwu hears constantly from both Hampton and assistant Rashad Wadood.

“They want you to be the best,” Obidegwu said. “You can never get comfortable… no matter who you are. They tell us about the NFL—guys can be here one day and gone the next. So you got to be on your stuff every day.”

Lanning added that the competition in the defensive backfield and defensive line is part of what will separate this group.

“There's been some really good competition,” Lanning said. “What's important for these guys is not to read the press clippings but to focus on what they really need to do to improve.”

 

Adjustments at STAR

Following a court ruling that could make Daylen Austin unavailable for the near future (his trial starts Aug. 14), both Lanning and Hampton confirmed that the Ducks are prepared with multiple options at the STAR position.

“We have a plan in place, we’ll adjust,” Lanning said.

“We got multiple guys working there,” Hampton added. “Jadon Canady, Dylan [Thieneman], Zach Grisham is having a heck of a camp… we got plenty of DBs.”

That depth is a product of intentional recruiting and development. “We definitely look the part,” Hampton said. “We’re not as experienced… but we got all the talent to be a really good secondary.”

Offensive Pops and Tight End Depth

While much of the focus was been on the secondary, Lanning acknowledged that the offense got the upper hand on Day 6, especially in red zone periods.

“Some explosive plays showing up,” Lanning said. “Haven’t seen a lot of those through fall camp. Saw some today, which was a real positive.”

He praised the offensive line and running backs for some explosive runs and gave credit to the quarterbacks for taking what the defense gave them.

When asked about the tight end group, Lanning was equally optimistic.

“Really pleased with the progress,” he said. “Roger [Saleapaga] has come really well back from that injury… Jamari [Johnson] is a guy that has experience, and he’s done really well so far in fall camp.”

Obidegwu has seen it firsthand.

“Jamari Johnson, yeah, I think he’s going to be real nice for us this year,” he said. “He’s a big guy, athletic, makes great catches… great blocker, too.”

Eyes on the Now

Though NFL buzz surrounds players like Dillon Thieneman, Lanning and Hampton made it clear that the focus is internal.

“Is Dillon a special athlete and special talent? Absolutely,” Lanning said. “But none of us are thinking about the NFL Draft, himself included.”

Hampton echoed that: “He’s working hard enough to do it… just a matter of how he plays in the season.”

For Lanning, the real focus is the now—and who earns starting roles by the time the second scrimmage wraps.

“As we go into that scrimmage, there’ll be some pieces of the puzzle we’ll want in certain spots,” he said. “But there’s still a lot of competition to be had.”

And for players like Obidegwu, that competition is the point.

“It’s still the same game I’ve been playing since I was young,” he said. “Just bringing that same energy and having fun… you always want football to be fun.”

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