Thursday afternoon after Oregon football held its second practice of its 2024 fall camp, Oregon defensive coordinator and linebacker coach Tosh Lupoi spoke with the media about the team's start of camp, the development of the new-look defensive line, the value of returning starting linebackers Jeffrey Bassa and Jestin Jacobs, plus multiple other wide-ranging topics around the Oregon defense.
[quote from Tosh]
Oregon's defense was much improved in 2023 having figured out how to better attack the quarterback (34 sacks last season), while also limiting the big plays that hit them at times during the 2022 season. Oregon's defense however must reload. They featured one of the oldest defensive line units in college football in 2023 and now will have to replace four seniors from the unit. Oregon's secondary also saw four more seniors move on from the program, adding more depth to be replaced.
Lupoi and Oregon's other defensive coaches reloaded this offseason with multiple additions via the transfer portal at the defensive line and in the secondary while also having developed its younger depth for another year.
Lupoi will enter his third year running Oregon's defense as he was an original member of head coach Dan Lanning's coaching staff back in 2022. Prior to his time at Oregon, Lupoi coached in the NFL for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, and Cleveland Browns. He also has stops at Alabama, Washington, and California as well.
