Oregon Football: 5 reasons why Royce Freeman will win 2017 Heisman

After a big sophomore season, Oregon football’s Royce Freeman had a rough 2016. Here are five reasons why Freeman will rebound to win the Heisman.

As a true freshman, Royce Freeman supplanted Byron Marshall as Oregon’s starter in the backfield. Marshall, a 1,000-yard rusher in 2013, was moved to receiver to accommodate the talented recruit. Freeman instantly rewarded the Ducks with 1,365 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns on the ground. In the process he became the first true receiver to rush for at least 1,000 yards at Oregon and broke the true freshman rushing mark in the Pac-12.

He followed up a strong 2014 season with even bigger numbers in 2015. With Marcus Mariota graduated, Freeman picked up a bunch of the offensive slack. As a sophomore, Freeman rushed for 1,836 yards and 17 scores while adding another 348 receiving yards and two TD catches. His biggest game came against Washington State, as the Cougars gave up nearly 300 total yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns to Freeman alone.

Royce Freeman looked like a Heisman candidate entering his junior season. Then Freeman’s fortunes mirrored those of Oregon as a team in 2016. The talented runner was hampered by injuries that limited his effectiveness. As his numbers plummeted, so to did the wins for the Ducks.

For a while it seemed as though Royce Freeman would depart Eugene and declare for the 2017 NFL Draft. Then the running back announced in December that he would return to UO for his senior season. The return was a boon for new head coach Willie Taggart, who gets another dangerous offensive weapon to bolster his chances of a quick turnaround in Eugene.

Here are five reasons why Freeman will rebound all the way to the Downtown Athletic Club in December and join Mariota as the second Heisman winner in Oregon history.