Oregon’s path to a bigger defensive payoff in 2026 starts with a simple idea: turn pressure into finishes.
That’s the message from newly promoted edge coach Kamran Araghi, who said the Ducks spent the offseason zeroing in on the part of the pass rush that didn’t show up often enough in 2025. Oregon made the College Football Playoff semifinals despite what ESPN’s Bill Connelly described as “the nation's 46th sack rate and 98th run stuff rate,” numbers that don’t exactly scream dominant front.
Araghi didn’t push back on that assessment. On an upcoming episode of the Autzen Audibles podcast, he said last season “wasn't to standard,” and that the staff has treated that as a clear offseason priority.
“Watching the tape back from last season over and over and over, you see how effective Matayo [Uiagalelei], Teitum [Tuioti] and Nasir [Wyatt] were rushing the quarterback, but at times we just didn't finish,” Araghi said. “Those pressures need to turn into sacks, which will in turn get our havoc percentage up, which is what we're looking to do.”
Uiagalelei’s numbers back up that point. The All-American finished with 6.0 sacks in 2025, down from 10.5 the year before, but his pressure production climbed sharply. He ended the season second among Big Ten players with 52 pressures, up from 31 in 2024.
For Araghi, the fix comes down to execution, and he said Oregon has built that into its daily work.
“We've got to finish plays,” he explained. “We've been very deliberate with that and intentional with all of our drills with making finish one of the main elements of each and every drill.”
He also pointed to the mindset inside the room as a reason for optimism, saying the players have embraced the challenge of doing more.
“They're fantastic when it comes to understanding that the standard wasn't met and we've got to take it to the next level,” Araghi explained. “At the end of the day, this game can never be comfortable.
Even when the standard is met, now the standard has got to be taken to the next step. We're always looking to be the best version of us, and we're looking to grow each and every day.
“I think the buy-in from that standpoint is fantastic. Our guys are egoless.
They want to be the best versions of themselves. They're their own biggest critics.”
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Now the focus shifts to the last real opening on the board, with linebacker Brayton Feister standing as the only major uncommitted Oregon target. Lanning and his staff are still chasing flips in the background, too, which keeps the class from feeling settled just yet, but the bigger question is whether Oregon can turn that late pressure into a meaningful finish after losing ground on the defensive front. [Read more 🡒]