EUGENE — Oregon did not have many glaring weaknesses last season, at least statistically, but the few that there were are where the Ducks are aiming to correct ahead of a season with extremely high expectations.

Offensively, Oregon ranked at or near the top of the Pac-12 and the country in most major stats and defensively it made major jumps nearly across the board from 2022 to finish with a top 10 scoring defense. But penalties, particularly on offense, were a season-long issue and red zone defense saw a dip from the year before, while third down defense was improved but bolstered by strong play against weaker teams.

“Going back off of last year’s assessment, something we got to get better at is red zone defense,” defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi said. “We did a lot of things this offseason, looking at possible different schematics and then taking what we do and doing it better. We made a jump and improved, had some critical success on some third downs but consistently that’s something a goal of ours, where we want to be winning at a much higher percentage on third down as well, continue that trend continuing upward.”

The Ducks ranked 68th nationally in red zone defense (83.3%) last season, with winning teams boasting an even higher success rate (87.5%).

Similarly, while the defense made a massive jump on third down conversions from 2022 (46.8%, 123rd) to last season (35.8%, 36th), it did not fare well against winning teams (47.13%, 97th). In the last three seasons, 10 of the 12 teams to appear in the College Football Playoff ranked in the top 30 in third down defense against winning teams.

Further, while UO’s plus-11 turnover margin tied for fourth last season it was due more to security on offense than takeaways on defense, which forced 18 turnovers over 14 games. Lupoi wants to see that figure increase.

“We want to be a relentless defense,” Lupoi said. “When you turn on the film I think being a really relentless defense, attacking the ball and playing for something much bigger than just yourself. That’s what we want to accomplish out there.”

Oregon’s 60.57 penalty yards per game was about more than offensive issues, but there were a high rate of false starts at times, ineligible man downfield and personal fouls. The issue got better over the final four games, but was bordering on undisciplined at times even with an offense that was nearly unstoppable.

“If you look at our rankings in the major categories, they’re obviously all really good,” offensive coordinator Will Stein said. “Penalties are something that killed us in spots. We always want that plays clean: reducing penalties pre-snap (and) post-snap, playing clean and then it comes down to turnovers and explosive plays. Anytime we can limit turnovers and have more explosives than the other team, we’re in good shape.”