After months of trying to forecast what we might see from this Oregon Ducks team in 2026 and who the standout players would be, Saturday's 34-27 win over the Boise State Broncos gave us real data to take in and use to form opinions.
We're no longer taking sound bites and tips from sources about which players may be stepping up; now we have real on-field play to evaluate.
In Oregon's season-opening win,we got a lot of great information on players who are going to have bigger-than-anticipated impacts, and others who may not end up playing as big of a role as we might have expected. With 497 yards of total offense, there were several players on that side of the ball who showed out, while the defense had a nice day as well, stepping up in big moments.
So let's evaluate what we saw and take away who we are encouraged by and who needs to show us more going forward. Here is our weekly stock report after the first game of the season.
Stock Up: WR Jeremiah McClellan
Stat Line: 6 catches, 150 yards, 1 TD — 76.1 PFF Grade
Analysis: There were a lot of people in Eugene who knew about Oregon Ducks WR Jeremiah McClellan ahead of the Week 1 game vs. Boise State, but he's starting to become well-known around the college football world at large after that game. McClellan stood out in a deep group of wide receivers and looked like the clear No. 1 pass-catcher on an offense full of talent. Of course, this will likely change week by week with as many mouths as there are to feed in Eugene, but McClellan was undoubtedly the biggest winner of the week for the Ducks.
Stock Up: LB Dylan Williams
Stat Line: 2 tackles, 0.5 TFL, 2 QB Hits — 73.5 PFF Grade
Analysis: The biggest riser on the defense in my mind was linebacker Dylan Williams, who played a huge role in this game, stepping up alongside Jerry Mixon and Devon Jackson in that linebacker room. While his stats don't jump off the page, Williams was flying around the field and had a huge impact on this game, earning some high praise from Dan Lanning when all was said and done. Expect to see a lot more of Williams this year.
Stock Down: DB Carl Williams IV
Stat Line: 3 tackles — 52.6 PFF Grade
Analysis: In his first game as a Duck, nickel cornerback Carl Williams IV struggled a bit. While he was able to get in on a few tackles, he wasn't great in coverage, giving up Boise State's first touchdown of the day after getting beat on the outside, and he ultimately earned a 54.7 coverage grade on Pro Football Focus. It's early in the year, and there will undoubtedly be some growth here, but Williams needs to show more going forward.
Stock Up: CB Na'eem Offord
Stat Line: 1 tackle, 1 Pass Break-Up — 66.0 PFF Grade
Analysis: Na'eem Offord played far better than the stats show on Saturday, and he had a huge impact, particularly late in the game, with some great coverage and a massive pass break-up on Boise State's final play of the game. Offord is in a tight competition/rotation with Ify Obidegwu, so performances like this are very encouraging to see.
Stock Up: LT Ziyare Addison
Stat Line: 0 sacks allowed, 2 QB pressures allowed — 64.4 PFF Grade
Analysis: A lot of people were surprised on Saturday when it was Ziyare Addison who came onto the field as the starting left tackle instead of Fox Crader, but Addison lived up to the expectations, protecting the blindside and looking very good doing it. Adison was one of three offensive linemen to play every snap of the game, and it appears that he is going to be the guy for the Ducks going forward at that spot.
Stock Down: OL Kawika Rogers
Stat Line: No Offensive Snaps — 4 Special Teams Snaps
Analysis: Going into this game, I expected to see Kawika Rogers as one of the first offensive linemen off the bench, and potentially even in the starting lineup. Instead, we didn't see him at all on the field, with Trent Ferguson coming in as relief at the left guard spot instead. We will see if that changes going forward, but I'll definitely be watching it over the next couple of weeks.
Stock Up: K Gage Hurych
Stat Line: 2-for-2 FGs (26-, 44-yards), 4-for-4 PATs
Analysis: It was quiet and flew under the radar, but something needs to be said for Gage Hurych's performance on Saturday. As a kicker, the best thing you can do is go unnoticed, do your job when asked, and make field goals when given the opportunity. That's what Hurych did, which is encouraging for Oregon fans after an offseason of relative uncertainty at this position.
Stock Down: PR Evan Stewart
Analysis: As a wide receiver, Evan Stewart was great on Saturday, with eight catches for 72 yards. As a punt returner, though, Stewart left a bit to be desired. He had a trio of mistakes: a fair catch at the 3-yard line and two muffed punts, one of which was recovered by Boise State. In the end, Oregon was still able to get the win, and Lanning expressed support of Stewart after the game, but it's clear that this operation needs to clean up going forward for the Ducks, or we may see someone else back there in the return game.
Stock Up: DL Bear Alexander
Stat Line: 8 tackles, 1 sack — 73.5 PFF Grade
Analysis: As a whole, the Oregon defensive line played pretty well on Saturday, but Bear Alexander absolutely stood out among the biggest difference-makers. He was very solid in the run game and was able to rack up four QB pressures and one sack. Going into the year, Alexander was often listed as the fourth DL in a great quartet, but he was anything but 4th best on Saturday.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon stock report: Jeremiah McClellan surges in win vs. Boise State
