| De'Anthony Thomas and his Expanded Role |
| By Fred Perdue April 7, 2013 De'Anthony Thomas only touched the ball 10.5 times per game on offense last season. His role is expected to change dramatically in the fall. Thomas won't simply be a versatile weapon in the Ducks' offense. He will now be the focal point after Kenjon Barner's departure. “De’Anthony is obviously our most experienced running back right now, and if Byron (Marshall) can step up and take on more carries and have De’Anthony still move in and out of that tazer position, so be it,” Oregon running backs coach Gary Campbell told Rob Moseley of the Register-Guard. “But De’Anthony wants to play running back. I can tell he’s really excited about the fact he’s in there at that spot, and he feels like that’s his position. And as far as I’m concerned it is, unless we need him to do something else. “Hopefully Byron can step in and be a mainstay at that position. But I expect De’Anthony to carry the ball more than he has in the past.” Thomas will no longer occupy the versatile tazer position, unless Marshall was able to unseat him at some juncture. The tazer position could be phased out of the offense to a degree due to Oregon's experienced group of wide receivers which new head coach Mark Helfrich will rely heavily on this season: With the Ducks welcoming back their entire cast of receivers and being questionable at running back, it's almost certain (Marcus) Mariota will throw more next season. That will mean more opportunities for him to put up big numbers. |
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