2022 Oregon Ducks Spring Football Preview: Safeties

The Ducks safety room will feature at least one new starter this season.

With spring football starting Thursday, some things are going to look a little different in the safety room. With Verone McKinley III preparing for the NFL draft, Oregon is looking for its next star at safety.

While the room may be without one of its key players, there are still a lot of players to be excited about in spring ball.

Bennett Williams

Scott Boldt/Ducks Digest

Williams will be very exciting to watch during spring camp. Williams missed part of last season due to a broken leg suffered at practice. Even with the injury, William recorded 21 total tackles, 16 solo tackles and three interceptions in 2021. He also added two tackles for loss and forced a fumble. He's easily the biggest playmaker in Oregon's secondary heading into spring football, evidenced in the photo above which shows him diving into the end zone after snagging his second interception against Arizona.

Williams’ potential is huge, just from the limited snaps we saw him play last season. Spring camp is the perfect opportunity for Williams to get the experience that Oregon needs and for him to lead what figures to be a very young and fairly inexperienced group.

Jamal Hill

Scott Boldt/Ducks Digest

Hill could potentially be the star Oregon is looking for. He recorded for a total of 36 tackles, 26 of them being solo. He also flashed his coverage skills with four pass breakups, in addition to three quarterback hurries and one forced fumble in 2021.

Hill has the experience at safety that Oregon needs, especially with the loss of McKinley. It will be interesting to see how he matches up in spring camp.

Jeffery Bassa

Scott Boldt/Ducks Digest

The role Bassa will play in the upcoming season is still unknown. He was originally brought on the team as a linebacker, but was moved to safety in the 2021 season due to depth issues, and he was the biggest freshman success story on defense.

Former Head Coach Mario Cristobal suggested that Bassa would return to his natural spot in the secondary in the 2022 season, but we have no clue what the new coaching staff has in mind. Bassa recorded 48 total tackles and a sack last season. Spring camp will give us a clue as to what we can expect from Bassa this season.

The safety room is full of potential ready to be unlocked this spring. Hopefully, some questions will be answered with spring football coming up. Steve Stephens IV will also be interesting to look at, after he’s been gone for a while due to a leg injury. Bryan Addison is also someone to look out for in the safety room. 

Oregon needs someone with experience and talent to take over after Verone McKinley III, it’s just a matter of who that person will be.

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