2014 Season Review: Defensive line

By Rob Moseley
Editor, GoDucks.com

DEPTH CHART

DE: DeForest Buckner, Jr.; T.J. Daniel, So.; Jalen Jelks, Fr.; Jordan Kurahara, Fr.
NG: Alex Balducci, Jr.; Sam Kamp, Jr.; Austin Maloata, Fr.; Jonathan Kenion, RFr.; Spencer Stark, Fr.
DE: Arik Armstead, Jr.; Tui Talia, Jr.; Henry Mondeaux, Fr.; Jason Sloan, RFr.

Starters: There’s a saying in football that some teams look great right when they get off the bus (sometimes it’s a pejorative, for teams that only look good getting off the bus). Given Oregon’s “bullets over bowling balls” reputation, favoring speed to sheer bulk, the Ducks aren’t always the more impressive team getting off the bus. An exception was “Bus One” on road trips, featuring guys with names in the first few letters of the alphabet. Among them were starting defensive ends DeForest Buckner (6-7, 290) and Arik Armstead (6-8, 290), and nose guard Alex Balducci (6-4, 310), who look as good as anybody getting off the bus.

They weren’t too shabby once games began, either. Third-and-short situations were an issue for the Ducks in 2013, but it wasn’t such a glaring area in 2014. Down the stretch, the defensive front even thrived in short-yardage situations; in the Civil War, the Pac-12 title game and the Rose Bowl, the UO defense faced fourth-and-one situations four times, and stopped the ball carrier short on all four. Buckner was the most consistent force, both in practice and games – no coincidence – and he was fifth among all defenders with 81 tackles. Armstead battled through some injury issues but still finished with 46 stops, and Balducci made 18 tackles when he wasn’t doing his typical job of tying up blockers for teammates. Like the rest of the UO defense, the line took its lumps against Ohio State in the title game, but it also played a huge part in getting the Ducks into the playoff final in the first place.

Reserves: The first guy off the bench was Sam Kamp, who could play both tackle and end. He even started two games while Armstead was hobbled at midseason. Kamp finished the year with 20 tackles, and JC transfer Tui Talia – who also filled in for Armstead at times – added 18 in his introduction to major college. T.J. Daniel and Henry Mondeaux also provided depth at end, and Austin Maloata did so at nose tackle. The Ducks may not have relied on as deep a regular rotation in 2014 as recent years past, but as much as anything that may have had to do with how strong the starting lineup was.

Redshirts: With Mondeaux and Maloata pressed into action, the only 2014 signee who redshirted was end Jalen Jelks. He’s a long, lean player in the mold of Daniel, certainly capable of adding weight to his frame. Jelks took a considerable amount of scout-team reps during the fall against all-America left tackle Jake Fisher, experience that should serve Jelks well as he looks to break into the rotation in coming years. Second-year scouts Jonathan Kenion and Jason Sloan also practiced on the line, as did newcomers Jordan Kurahara – another tall, lanky end who had a knack for making plays in the Friday scout-team scrimmages – and tackle Spencer Stark, whose doesn’t have the deepest array of pass-rush moves but is very powerful at the point of attack.

SPRING PROJECTION

DE: DeForest Buckner, Sr.; T.J. Daniel, Jr.; Jalen Jelks, RFr.; Jordan Kurahara, RFr.
NG: Alex Balducci, Sr.; Austin Maloata, So.; Jonathan Kenion, So.; Spencer Stark, RFr.
DE: Tui Talia, Sr.; Henry Mondeaux, So.; Canton Kaumatule, Fr.; Jason Sloan, So.

Buckner’s decision to return to school is massive, every bit as impactful as decisions by guys like Marcus Mariota, Hroniss Grasu and Ifo Ekpre-Olomu a year earlier. He’s Oregon’s top returning player on defense, and the best leader coming back. Balducci enhances the veteran presence on the line, though the Ducks will move on without Kamp, who will graduate in the spring and opted to retire from football. There’s a ton of young talent in Maloata, Mondeaux, Jelks and incoming freshman Canton Kaumatule, who is already enrolled. The line lost an amazing talent in Armstead and a seasoned vet in Kamp, and yet there’s little reason to think the unit should take a step back in 2015.