Behind a Strong Recruiting Push, Willie Taggart Has Oregon Back on the Upswing

When Oregon peaked under Chip Kelly in the early twenty-tens, the primary driver of its success was an innovative offensive scheme that left opponents gasping for air. The Ducks paired a field-stretching passing attack with a running game built on misdirection to put stress on opposing defenses. The players picked to run the scheme almost seemed incidental to its effectiveness. Kelly’s bountiful stint in Eugene hinged more on finding good system fits than procuring elite high school prospects; he had opposing coaches beat on the chalkboard.

A parade of offensive standouts made their way to Oregon during Kelly’s time there, most notably quarterback Marcus Mariota. But even the 2014 Heisman…