2021 Ducks Digest Football Awards: Kris Hutson Most Improved Offensive Player

Hutson took a huge lead from year one to year two and displayed his potential especially late in the season.

Our team at Ducks Digest voted on the most improved player on offense for Oregon in 2021, and wide receiver Kris Hutson has earned the honor.

The @DucksDigest Offensive Most Improved Player of the Year is Kris Hutson (@krishutson_1)!

31 catches
419 receiving yards
2 TD
22.4 yards per kick return
Had just 4 catches and 37 yards last season

Even bigger things coming in 2022 🦆

(Photos: @scottboldtphoto; graphic: me) pic.twitter.com/QJdRWqCjg2

— Dylan Reubenking (@drksportsnews) January 10, 2022

DUCKS DIGEST MOST IMPROVED OFFENSIVE PLAYER VOTING:

1. Kris Hutson - 3 votes

T-2. TJ Bass - 2 votes

T-2. Ryan Walk - 2 votes

T-3. Byron Cardwell - 1 vote

T-3. Travis Dye - 1 vote

T-3. Devon Williams - 1 vote

As evident by our voting, there were a number of valid candidates for the award, but Hutson's acceleration to one of the top targets on the team was rapid. 

Hutson recorded just four catches for 37 yards in his freshman season in 2021, but coming into the 2021 season, a breakout year was expected. While the wide receiver room was loaded with talented players looking for targets and the passing offense was sometimes sporadic, Hutson began to blossom when the Ducks needed him the most.

Early in the season, it was clear that he would be a big-play receiver for the Ducks that could make contested catches down the field and could pick up chunks of yards after the catch on a screen pass. But he made a couple costly errors in the season, including a personal foul against Arizona that cost the Ducks to take a two-score lead at the half and a lost fumble against California near the red zone, and another lost fumble against UCLA .

But after Mycah Pittman entered the transfer portal three days prior to facing Utah in Salt Lake City, the Ducks needed Hutson to put those mistakes behind him and take on a bigger role, and he delivered.

He hadn't caught more than three balls in a game until that game, which was his best game in an Oregon uniform with four catches for a team-high 96 yards. Hutson elevated once again in the organizational chart the following week against Oregon State after Johnny Johnson III and Jaylon Redd were lost for the season due to injuries, and once again, he was a reliable piece to the offense.

He hauled in a career-high seven passes for 82 yards and scored his first career touchdown on a throw over the middle from Anthony Brown in a tight window early in the fourth quarter. Without Devon Williams in the Alamo Bowl, he recorded six receptions for 55 yards and a touchdown.

Hutson finished his second season with 31 receptions (third on the team), 419 receiving yards (second on the team) and two touchdowns. He also a solid kick returner for Oregon, averaging 22.4 yards per return on 14 opportunities.

Time and time again, Hutson proved his worth when opportunities arose, and there's no doubt that he will be one of the starting receivers in 2022 after his promising season in 2021.

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