Oregon still working to identify No. 1 cornerback as it looks to replace Christian Gonzalez

There’s no easy way to go about replacing a player like Christian Gonzalez.

In one season at Oregon, Gonzalez, the Ducks’ former lockdown cornerback, established himself as one of the best in the country at his position. When the NFL Draft begins on Thursday, there’s a very real possibility that he will be one of the first 10 players off the board.

“Whatever team gets Christian, I mean, they’re hitting a homerun,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “He’s one of the best corners I’ve ever been around and a better human.”

As Oregon progresses through the remainder of spring ball and sets its sights on fall camp, the Ducks now have the difficult task of finding a replacement for Gonzalez.

While the program’s cornerback room is stocked with talent, the jury is still out on which player will establish themself as Oregon’s No. 1 option in 2023.

While speaking with reporters on Saturday, Oregon cornerbacks coach Demetrice Martin was asked if he believes the Ducks have a true No. 1 corner on their roster.

“I’ll hold that opinion until everybody gets here. Everybody is not here in camp yet,” Martin said. “We’ve got guys still running track in high school and things like that. Once they get here, I’ll be able to make that assessment. But Gonzo is a pretty tall measuring stick.”

Oregon’s spring roster features eight scholarship cornerbacks — five returners from last year’s squad, one transfer portal addition, and two ’23 signees.

Trikweze Bridges started opposite Gonzalez in 2022 and performed well. The fifth-year junior played 703 snaps, which was the third-most of any Oregon defender. While’s Bridges is expected to lock down a starting corner job once again, he also has been repping at safety this spring.

Dontae Manning and Jahlil Florence both played significant reserve roles last season and are battling for a starting spot.

Former Alabama reserve Khyree Jackson transferred in during the offseason and is also in the mix to start.

Darren Barkins and Avante Dickerson both struggled to earn playing time last season, but Barkins has had a nice spring and is generating some buzz ahead of his third year with the program.

Solomon Davis and Cole Martin are both early enrollees who have more than held their own this spring. Martin, in particular, has hit the ground running and was seen repping at nickle with the Ducks’ second-unit defense during an open portion of practice earlier this spring.

But as Demetrice Martin notes, the Ducks still have a pair of uber-talented corners who have not yet joined the program. Rodrick Pleasant and Daylen Austin were Oregon’s third- and fourth-highest recruits according to the On3 Industry Rating.

Pleasant is the No. 9 corner in the 2023 class, and Austin is the No. 10 corner. There has been speculation that both could potentially make an impact as true freshmen.

While the Ducks’ overall collection of talent at the position is impressive on paper, it’s still unclear who, if anybody, can step up and become a player capable of shutting down opposing No. 1 receivers the way Gonzalez did.

Martin praised Manning and said the former 5-star signee is “trending upward” and is beginning to excel now that he has a season of experience operating in Dan Lanning and Tosh Lupoi’s scheme.

“What I’m happy about with Dontae is that he’s correcting mistakes before I have to correct them,” Martin said. “He’s identifying his mistakes, where last year it had to be pointed out to him.”

The key for Bridges, according to Martin, is simply making more plays.

“There were a lot of good plays that he made last year, but there were a lot of plays he left out there,” Martin said. “I think he’ll be ready to start making those plays. His being cross-trained and playing multiple positions on defense is going to help him out a lot. I think he understands where his fits are and how to get everyone else lined up.

“So being more of a leader, I think that’s where Trikweze is really strong right now.”

The addition of Jackson could prove to be an X-factor for the Ducks. While he struggled for consistent playing time at Alabama, his physical makeup is ideal for Oregon’s defense, according to Martin.

“He’s a longer guy and he has a lot of explosiveness and good ball skills,” Martin said. “(Alabama) has a very similar style of defense. Our defense isn’t probably free-agent friendly. So guys who have been in the system, know some of the terminologies, fits, and adjustments, they usually thrive.”

Even with Gonzalez in the fold last season, Oregon still struggled mightily to consistently stop opposing passing attacks.

The Ducks surrendered 256 passing yards per game, which ranked 102nd out of 131 FBS teams. They ranked 123rd nationally in third-down conversion defense (47%). They allowed 161 passing first downs, which ranked 115th nationally.

Of course, those issues can’t solely be attributed to the play of Oregon’s defensive backs. Lanning and Lupoi added talent at the EDGE and inside linebacker position during the offseason to shore up deficiencies there.

But as the Ducks work to improve upon last year’s underwhelming defensive performance, identifying a lockdown corner will be near the top of the coaching staff’s to-do list.

“We want to get more takeaways. We want to be more consistent on being 100 percent tacklers in games,” Martins aid. “Just getting better with our communication and being more sure of our assignments, techniques, and leverages all helps with that stuff.

“In the second year of a system, that’s all starting to show up.”

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