Wednesday War Room: Previewiing Oklahoma State

 

Oklahoma State at Oregon: "We spend to win"

There’s a rhythm to good teams: meetings feel shorter, corrections feel sharper, and the ball finds the right hands without any drama. That was Oregon in Week 1. The test now is whether that rhythm holds when tempo, vertical shots, and a first-time starting quarterback walk into Autzen.

Dan Lanning’s message never strayed. “Double down on the process,” he told the team. He praised the quiet things as loudly as the highlights—“very few ball-in-jeopardy plays… [Dante] looked really poised,” and, maybe more importantly for this week, “we need to celebrate the plays that are avoided.” That’s the bar against an Oklahoma State defense that wants you to blink first.

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The Setup

Oklahoma State arrives with new coordinators and a plan that travels: simplify, go fast, throw vertically. Lanning called it out: “This will probably be the team that takes the most vertical shots down the field to date… they line up fast, and if you leave someone in single, they’ll let their wideouts go compete.” With Hauss Hejny out, redshirt freshman Zane Flores makes his first start—calm by nature, accurate in relief last week, but stepping into a different kind of weather system.

Inside the building, the Ducks sound like a group enjoying the details. Dante Moore on the big Jay Harris seam: “We worked that look all week… felt pressure, slid the protection, and it hit.” On his own growth: “Next-play focus… build the stamina to finish long drives.” And on the standard: “Different opponent, same standard.”

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What Oregon Wants the Game to Be

• Boring for the QB, brutal for everyone else. The Ducks want Moore’s decisions on schedule and his eyes disciplined—take the answer, not the ad-lib. Lanning: “There were several plays where the first read wasn’t there, and he got to the second—took care of the ball.”
• Connected football on the edges. This staff has hammered perimeter strain. “The way you block tells me how much you love your teammates,” Lanning said, pointing to Dakorien Moore’s effort as a freshman standard. Dante backed it up: “When we block on the perimeter, that’s when big plays happen.”
• Multiplicity up front without chaos. Oregon cross-trained linemen all camp. “We mixed lines… guys flipped sides,” Lanning said. That’s why mid-game shuffles didn’t rattle protections, and why they won’t this week.

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Oklahoma State, Honestly

Offense: Todd Meacham meshes with Gundy’s DNA: clean formations, tempo to rhythm throws, then shots. The run game was not physical enough in Week 1—Gundy’s words, not ours. “Not a scheme issue… we’ve got to be more physical and create space.” The OL allowed two sacks to UT-Martin and rotated at RG/RT. The danger: Terrill Davis can flat run by you, and Gavin Freeman stacks catches underneath until you fall asleep.

Defense: Todd Grantham’s 3-3-5 hunts edges and compresses space. Wendell Gregory logged 3.0 sacks in 35 snaps (his availability remains a storyline). Bryan McCoy Jr. is everywhere and tackles well, but across the unit there were too many whiffs—death against Oregon’s YAC game.

Special Teams: Oregon’s emphasis showed (blocked punt, starters on teams). In a first-start environment, one short field can flip the script early.

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Where It Tilts

1. YAC & Finishing vs. OSU Tackling
   Oregon graded itself on yards after contact; the tape was equal parts encouraging and challenging. Lanning: “We had a lot of guys breaking tackles… but I want us getting five yards untouched.” Translation: expect bubbles, swings, and glance RPOs until OSU proves it can tackle in space.
2. Autzen & the ID Game vs. Flores’ First Start
   Expect Oregon to stem late and spin the safeties. DB Aaron Flowers likes the test: “We’re ready to get tested… we make plays in practice against one of the best offenses in the nation.” If the Cowboys live in long yardage, the Ducks’ simulated pressure menu opens.
3. Edge Problem: Gregory (if active) vs. Oregon’s RT Plan
   If Gregory dresses, Oregon will chip, motion, and throw behind his ambition. If not, Moore has time to layer throws. Either way, Alex Harkey’s tone matters. Lanning: “He plays with a nastiness… trying to finish people.” Harkey on his own corrections: “Clean finishes—drive them, don’t just throw them.”
4. Shots vs. Quarters/Poach
   OSU’s path is go-balls and DPI fishing. Oregon will live in match-quarters with post-snap movement that turns “open” into a trap. Flowers again: “More backpedal than run-fit this week.” Win the 50/50s, tackle the underneath, and the explosives ledger stays green.

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Health/Depth Notes that Matter

• Emmanuel Pregnon: “Confident he’s good to go.”
• Theran Johnson: “Should be back this week.”
• Kawika Rogers: true questionable (ankle).
• Dillon Gresham: precautionary, out.

Those OL bodies plus Dave Iuli’s flip ability give Will Stein options to keep the front clean if Grantham starts chasing matchups.

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How It Unfolds

Early, Oregon tests tackle reliability with fast screens and duo/RPO, then flashes play-action at the numbers. If OSU answers with numbers in the box, the Ducks are happy to live in the quick game and let J-Mac/DakorienMoore/Malik Benson go earn YAC. Defensively, Autzen noise and simulated pressure put Flores in the two places first-time starters hate: third-and-long and the sideline phone.

Moore’s voice stays the tell. He was matter-of-fact about hard coaching: “Yes, coach,” and move on. He called two-minute “huge,” and the staff has hammered it in practice—if Oregon hits a late-half drive again, it’s probably curtains.

Gundy knows what he’s walking into and didn’t bother with bluster. “They’re a good football team… well coached… they’ve made investments,” he said. Lanning’s reply was the thesis of the week: “We spend to win… we’re blessed to be invested in winning.” Strip the headlines—both men just told you the same truth: this one is about poise and edges.

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Keys (Short, Real)

• Explosives +2 (cap OSU shots; create two after-contact explosives).
• >50% success on first down (run or RPO—Grantham has to choose).
• One special teams swing (short field or punt pressure).

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Prediction

Oregon 41, Oklahoma State 17.
Second quarter separation via YAC and a short field, Moore stays on schedule, the edges squeeze, and the fourth becomes developmental reps—exactly the identity Lanning wants to bottle for Big Ten play.