5 questions Oregon Ducks will have to answer in Week 7 matchup with Indiana Hoosiers

After a near two-week absence on the field, the Oregon Ducks will face off against the Indiana Hoosiers on Saturday in what is arguably their biggest test of the entire regular-season.

A litany of questions were answered the last time we saw them, as they defeated the Penn State Nittany Lions 30-24 in double overtime. At that point, Penn State was ranked No. 2 in the country. Now, they find themselves unranked after a dispiriting loss to the previously 0-4 UCLA Bruins.

The Nittany Lion collapse in the span of seven days brought into question just how much could be gleaned from Oregon's Week 5 victory. The AP Poll certainly took it into consideration, as they dropped the Ducks from No. 2 to No. 3 because of the Miami Hurricanes' dominant win over the Florida State Seminoles, but also because Oregon's strongest victory didn't look so strong anymore.

From that standpoint, the Ducks' bout with the Hoosiers couldn't come at a better time, as they have a chance to leap over the Hurricanes themselves with a convincing victory.

But for that to happen, they'll have to answer these five questions along the way.

Will the Ducks start fast off their bye?

After a 13-day break, the conversation of rest versus rust arises. The last time we saw Oregon, they were coming off an emotional double overtime victory over Penn State. Much of the national media jumped on the bandwagon.

Now, after a weekend off, they're stepping back into the spotlight with a showdown against another elite opponent. How will they respond?

The Ducks have excelled out of the gates in each of their home games, as they've outscored opponents 44-7 at Autzen in the opening quarter. The Hoosiers are much better than Montana State, Oklahoma State and Oregon State — but dominance in the opening quarter is still very much attainable, especially if the team can ride the home crowd.

Fans haven't been in Autzen since Sept. 20. Students haven't been on campus all season, with the first three home games happening before classes began. There's no doubt that Autzen will be rocking at 12:40 p.m. PST when the ball is kicked off; but will the Ducks be ready or will they be rusty, is the question.

Can the pass rush speed up Fernando Mendoza?

Fernando Mendoza has been on point to start the season, throwing 16 touchdowns to just one interception. A key to his success has been that the Indiana offensive line has kept him clean for the most part, allowing just five sacks in five games. When given time, the former Cal passer has revealed himself as an elite processor and decision-maker with the football, routinely dicing up defenses complete with accurate passes.

Unfortunately for the Ducks, their pass rush has been mediocre. They rank 92nd in the country with just nine total sacks despite leading for a majority of the games and forcing a pass-heavy game script from opponents.

2024 first-team All-Big Ten edge rusher Matayo Uiagalelei has done his part, recording four sacks. Linebacker Teitum Tuioti has also done well with 2.5 sacks. But outside those two, no player has more than a single sack, with multiple tallying a half sack.

It's something that has the potential to be Oregon's downfall against dominant passing teams such as the Hoosiers.

In Week 4, Illinois sacked Mendoza twice but ultimately gave him too much time overall, resulting in the Indiana passer completing 21 of 23 passes with five going for touchdowns.

When given time, Mendoza is elite. For the Ducks to have success defensively, they have to move him off his spot and make him see defenders in his face — or else there's a real chance he adds to his already soaring draft stock with a dominant day through the air.

What will Dierre Hill Jr.'s workload be?

The victory over the Nittany Lions was a coming out party for Dierre Hill Jr., who led the running backs in carries (ten) and rushing yards (82) while catching a screen pass on the perimeter and turning it into an eight-yard touchdown.

His combination of speed and vision were too much for Penn State to handle, leading to Hill having a significant hand in the win.

In the week after the game, head coach Dan Lanning referenced that we may see more of Hill, who'd earned more opportunities. But what exactly will that look like?

As the Ducks have shown all season, the backfield is loaded. Week 1 starter Noah Whittington and backup Jayden Limar are more than solid options, each clearly relied upon in key situations by the coaching staff early in the season. But in Week 5, Hill's workload received a major uptick while fellow true freshman Jordon Davison received a carry on fourth-and-one in Nittany Lion territory and turned it into a touchdown, his team-leading seventh rushing score of the year.

There's four guys who would have a legitimate chance to start at two-thirds of the programs in the Big Ten, yet they're all in the same backfield, leaving it up to Lanning and offensive coordinator Will Stein to have to navigate a difficult time share.

It's clear that Hill has earned more carries, and Lanning said it himself. But does that mean he's earned the RB1 job and will be out there right away? We'll have to see, but a real argument could be made that he's the all-purpose back that gives the Oregon offense the most juice out of the four.

How will the secondary fare against a star-studded Indiana WR duo?

Along with the pass rush reaching Mendoza, the secondary will also face their biggest test yet. While Penn State had talent at the receiver position, quarterback Drew Allar's inconsistencies hurt the passing game overall. That's unlikely to be the case with Mendoza, who's worlds better than Allar.

The Hoosiers trot out one of the top wide receiver duos in the country in Elijah Sarratt (31 receptions, 412 yards, six touchdowns) and Omar Cooper Jr. (22 catches, 408 yards, six touchdowns). The former is the more reliable of the pair, serving as the team's go-to target in crucial moments thanks to his elite body control on passes downfield and innate run-after-catch abilities.

Cooper is no slouch with the ball in his hands either, as his speed is what sets him apart. Operating out of the slot, he rarely draws the opponents' best cover man and it shows, as defenders are repeatedly overmatched trying to defend him in space.

While the secondary held their own against Penn State for the most part, they'll need to be on their game for the entire 60 minutes on Saturday against the Hoosiers talented and accomplished passing attack.

Can Dante Moore perform at a superstar level in a big game once again?

It's hard to imagine the bar being set much higher for Dante Moore than after the Penn State game. He rose to the top of the Heisman Trophy odds, standing alone before Miami quarterback Carson Beck's own impressive performance tied him with Moore.

In the face of immense pressure considering he was on the road against a top five opponent during their "whiteout," Moore delivered the goods. He was poised, calm, cool and collected.

He played clean football and tossed three touchdown passes, none bigger than his eventual game-winner in double overtime in which he deftly evaded a rusher and side-armed a pass on the run to wide open receiver Gary Bryant Jr., who walked in for the score.

But with that performance behind him, how will Moore respond? While he appears to have a reserved personality, it'd be easy for all the talk to get to his head. Along with the Heisman odds, chatter was also rampant about his prospects for the 2026 NFL Draft, in which there's a possibility that he's the No. 1 player on the board if he decides to declare.

For a 20-year-old who's racked up precisely ten starts in college football, it's a difficult task. Check that, it's a difficult task for anyone.

The Ducks don't need a superhuman effort from Moore. All they need is for him to play clean football and to be himself — nothing more, nothing less. For a second straight game, we'll learn a lot about Moore's mental make up.

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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: 5 questions Ducks will have to answer against Indiana in Week 7