With their 20-game home winning streak the longest in the league and second longest in the nation, the Ducks continue to upgrade their facilities, a project that has seemingly mirrored their rise on the field.

Oregon shared the Pac-10 title with Oregon State and Washington last season, winning a school-record 10 games, including a 35-30 victory over Texas in the Holiday Bowl, and finishing with a Top 10 ranking ... all after replacing eight starters on defense and six on offense.

It is a program that has evolved from "gutty-little" Oregon to "annual power" in the Pac-10, with a league-best seven consecutive winning seasons.

This time the Ducks must replace seven starters on defense and just four on offense. That offense looks like it could be of the record-breaking variety, with quarterback Joey Harrington now a senior leader.

It has become almost a truism in the Pac-10 that the team with the best, most experienced quarterback will win the league. Well, Oregon best fits that description in 2001.

The potent offense led by Harrington, tailback Maurice Morris and wideout Keenan Howry should give the young defense a fair chance to build confidence early in the season.

By the end of the season -- which concludes with back-to-back byes preceding the Dec. 1 Oregon State game that the Ducks hope again will have the league title at stake -- it is not inconceivable to suggest that the Ducks could be playing for the Rose Bowl.

"It has the potential to be" as good as the '94 secondary, Bellotti said. "Rashad Bauman, he is in the Alex Molden class, athletically. But when you are talking about guys like that group, you are talking about all guys that played at the next level. Whether these guys have that ability, only time will tell."

Steve Smith returns at the other corner and Rasuli Webster started 10 games last year at rover. Joining those three will be sophomore Keith Lewis at free safety.

The fourth returning starter on defense is Seth McEwen at left end, although left tackle Zack Freiter did start four games last year when he wasn't hampered by injuries. Freiter is a senior who provides an interesting mix of speed and power, but has yet to approach his vast potential.

JC transfer Junior Siavii is expected to line up at the other tackle spot, with Quinn Dorsey at right end.

The linebackers are new starters, but coaches say they're faster than any group in memory, with sophomore Kevin Mitchell, junior David Moretti and senior Wesly Mallard tops after the spring.

Mostly, what they'll need to do is prevent big plays and keep the Ducks in games. The offense should be able to outscore most opponents.

The level of confidence the coaching staff has in Harrington is such that the senior saw little action during spring drills. Instead, the Ducks gave much of the time with the first and second units to sophomore Jason Fife, who threw for 273 yards and three touchdowns in the spring game.

Harrington spent much of the spring working on improving his throwing technique, developing a more compact passing motion that is expected to result in him throwing more darts and fewer rainbows.

"I've always had a big motion and it was something that needed to be corrected," Harrington said. "We made it a lot more compact, a lot quicker."

Bellotti said the depth at running back also makes a big difference, with Morris (widely projected as a first- or second-round NFL draft pick), sophomore transfer Onterrio Smith, who played for Tennessee in 1999, and speedy junior Allan Amundson giving the Ducks three quality runners.

Howry is the top wide receiver returning, while senior Justin Peelle is back at tight end to top the receiving corps. Junior Jason Willis emerged as the likely starter opposite Howry, while redshirt freshman Keith Allen is the probable backup, along with sophomore Samie Parker. Cy Aleman, a junior, is expected to be Howry's backup, followed by redshirt freshman Paris Warren.

Fullback Josh Line returns for his senior year as a 12-game starter, and the offensive line has three starters back in seniors Jim Adams at tackle and Ryan Schmid at guard and sophomore guard Joey Forster.

All three can play more than one position, as will their primary backups. It's a system the Ducks have used successfully on the line for the last couple of seasons.

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