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Ducks getting back on track.

Article Excerpt
Byline: Rob Moseley The Register-Guard

When Mike Bellotti takes that first purposeful step onto the grass practice fields in front of the Casanova Center on Friday, he will do so with a perspective different from any he's had in his previous decade as the Ducks' head coach.

In his 11th season at the helm, Bellotti for the first time enters fall camp bearing the burden of a losing record the season before. For as much excitement as the Ducks will generate with their flashy new offense, their bountiful talent at the skill positions, the all-Americans on the defensive line and their veteran secondary, the bottom line remains this: Oregon first needs to prove it can get back on the right side of .500 before serious talk of contending for a conference title can begin.

"Certainly last year we were disappointed in what we failed to accomplish," said Bellotti, who watched Oregon's school-record streak of 10 straight winning seasons end with a 5-6 mark last fall. "That's a heavy burden to carry around for a year, but something that I think reminds you of the bottom line being hard work."

The rebuilding process began in the spring with two new coaches, including offensive coordinator Gary Crowton, who worked with Bellotti and the offensive staff to design...