College football season has been in hibernation for almost two months now, but as spring football season begins across the country, the sport is starting to stir from its slumber. The Oregon Ducks are once again projected to be one of the best teams in college football next fall, but the long road to realizing that potential starts with the Ducks ' 15 spring practices.
Oregon lost a lot of talent to the NFL this offseason, and although the Ducks have no shortage of talent in their program, finding success with an inexperienced roster will have its challenges. On Saturday, after the Ducks' second practice of the spring season, Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein spoke about those challenges, highlighting a handful of returners, including Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq , who will provide the Ducks with precious experience.
"Kenyon Sadiq is one of the best players in the country," Stein said. "I'm glad we've got him back."
That's high praise, but in his young career, Sadiq has shown that there aren't many things he can't do on a football field. Anyone questioning Sadiq's ability can direct their attention to this touchdown from Oregon's opening drive of the 2024 Big Ten Championship:
Sadiq is entering his third season at Oregon, and despite never playing as the Ducks' No. 1 tight end, Sadiq wasted no time letting the world know how good he is. In 90 snaps as a freshman, Sadiq caught five passes for 24 yards and a TD. In 2024, he was much more productive, catching 24 balls for 308 yards and two TDs. And as the Ducks' top TE next fall, expect those numbers to fly up.
"It's my job to make sure he's getting as many touches as he can every single game," Stein said. "He's put on 15 pounds of muscle. He's nearing 250 and still looks the same speed. He has great hands. I think he's a better point of attack, on-the-ball tight end than people believe, just because he's so dang strong. And now he's got a great understanding of what we're doing offensively."
In 2024, Oregon threw to its tight ends far more than in the first two years of Dan Lanning's tenure, and it was a shift that paid dividends for Oregon. Not only did the Ducks' tight ends ramp up their receiving production, but Terrance Ferguson , Oregon's top TE last season, was often Dillon Gabriel 's first look in crunch-time, gotta-have-it situations. Ferguson and Sadiq are very different players, but expect the Oregon offense to rely on Sadiq in the big moments the way it relied on Ferguson last year.
"Now he's really in the limelight," Stein said. "He's the upperclassman in that room, he's kind of the old head. Talk about leadership, Kenyon's somebody that I'm expecting to be one of those leaders on our team. He's a very special player. I mean, I think, I really do believe he's one of the best players in college football. So it's our job to make sure that he shows that ability this season."
This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon Ducks OC Will Stein calls TE Kenyon Sadiq one of nation's best
