Oregon Ducks Training "Mutants" in Weight Room To Prep For Big Ten

The Oregon Ducks are preparing for their inaugural season in the Big Ten conference. Oregon coach Dan Lanning has assembled a roster fit to challenge for the Big Ten Title and in the College Football Playoff right away. To push the team to the next level, Oregon's weight room sessions have also leveled up.

Oregon Ducks linebacker Jeffrey Bassa with reporter Bri Amaranthus /

The Oregon Ducks are preparing for their inaugural season in the Big Ten conference. Oregon coach Dan Lanning has assembled a roster fit to challenge for the Big Ten Title and in the College Football Playoff right away.

To push the team to the next level, Oregon's weight room sessions have also leveled up. Head Football Strength and Conditioning Coach Wilson Love is beloved by the Ducks team due to his spunky personality... Coach Love is also respected as the results are pouring in. For example, Oregon linebacker Teitum Tuioti added nearly 20 pounds this offseason.

Senior linebacker Jeffrey Bassa described a Duck weight room session in detail, saying that it could feel like an earthquake below with all the weights moving.

Oct 28, 2023; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Oregon Ducks head football conditioning coach Wilson Love calls drills before a game against the Utah Utes at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Creveling-USA TODAY Sports / Christopher Creveling-USA TODAY Sports

"Starting with Coach Love - Intense," Bassa told Oregon Ducks SI's Bri Amaranthus. "From Doug Jacks all the way down to the warm-up. The warm-up might be a little long, but hey, we're going to get after it."

"It's weights moving. I mean, if you're in the parking garage below the weight room, you think there could be an earthquake going on. I's a lot of energy in there. Guys are turning everybody up and there's a lot of music going on."

"Sometimes I'm like, damn, they think we're mutants," Bassa said. "If we want different results, we're going to have to do something that's different."

Below is a Q&A with Bassa about how Oregon's defense is preparing for the Big Ten.

Q: What do you make of the doubters that Oregon isn’t prepared for the Big ten?

Bassa: Obviously we see all the tweets. We see what people are saying. We don't let external factors dictate how we think in our internal factors. So we try to block that noise out. But then we also keep that in the back of our mind, like, okay, people don't think we physical, so let's show them we physical.

But it's all right. When it's first and 10 and we'll see, if teams try to decide to run counter or inside zone, we'll see who's the more physical team.

Q: Why do you believe the 2024 defense is better than last season's defense?

Bassa: I just think that the depth that we have, the guys that we have, the guys that we brought in. We brought in a lot of transfers and then we're developing young guys at the same time. So, you know, there's a 11-headed snake that we got to let loose.

Guys are fighting for those number one positions and I think guys are competing at a high level and we have dogs in every position.

Q: How do you just take that next step this year?

Bassa: I think we just have to attack the ball more. We've got to be consistent week to week. And I think that no matter if we're playing a small school or we're playing a bigger school, the standard is always going to be the same. I know Coach Lupoi always says that the standard is the standard. And we have these traits on our defense that we have to live up to every play in every game. So yeah, even knowing that the standard is going to be set high, we've got to treat every game like a championship game.

Q: What makes this defense different than other defenses you've been apart of?

Bassa: I think just the depth that we have. It's like what I've seen this past offseason was guys would get done with the team run and then our player run practices would look a certain way. And then guys are looking to stay at the facility and get more. (Extra work) is part of our routine now... Guys want more. Guys want more from each other. Guys are competing at the highest level. And I love to see that.

Oregon's first game is less than a month away vs. Idaho. In the Big Ten conference, Oregon faces a handful of the most explosive offenses in 2024, including: the Ohio State Buckeyes, Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans.

Oregon Ducks Training "Mutants" in Weight Room To Prep For Big Ten#GoDucks @BriAmaranthus @Bassa_21 #B1GFootball https://t.co/RzM0idRK5Z pic.twitter.com/C6J35MYgQj

— Oregon Ducks On SI (@OregonDucks_SI) August 1, 2024