Quacking the Roster: CB Transfer Aaron Scott Jr.

As such, I treated the study of Scott’s tape as an extension of the developmental player film review I’ve done for garbage time plays during Oregon’s own season. The clips below should be considered illustrative of Scott’s potential as a Duck and not representative of his production as an FBS starter. He also has time to improve his conditioning and technique, so there is potential for him to work on some of the issues I saw in his first two seasons of college tape.

For the vast majority of plays with only a small handful of exceptions, Scott was playing outside corner. With the all-22 tape this offseason, I was able to verify all of Scott’s playing time on the high angle, but assembling quality clip compilations for this article, leading off with the broadcast angle and information chyron, was challenging. Secondary play is always the hardest on broadcast camera operators, because unless there’s a specific pass target or a run play breaks to the outside, defensive backs often aren’t in the camera frame.

I was able to compile a total of 24 clips I thought were suitable for discussion (instead of the usual 32), though at times I needed to include plays where the camera operator didn’t switch to a wide view until just before the snap so I apologize for some rough transitions.

Oregon has two returning starters at outside corner in So. CB #4 Brandon Finney Jr. and CB #7 and R- So. Ify Obidegwu. It would be certainly make sense if Scott had come to Eugene to serve as depth on the outside along with returning So. CB #2 Na’eem Offord. After reviewing his tape though, I found similarities between Scott and former Ole Miss transfer Jadon Canady; who also had experience at outside corner but played the nickel-defender/STAR safety position at Oregon.

As one would expect of a former 5-star, Scott is more physically imposing than Canady but still often at a size disadvantage on the outside; being listed at 6’ 0” and 195 lbs in 2025. He does have long arms for his height though and this is highlighted in some of the clips below. Like Canady, I found Scott to have good acceleration and be unafraid of contact. He was at his best in zone coverage where he could read the quarterback and react to the play in front of him rather than matched up one-on-one outside, just as Canady’s Ole Miss film had showed.

It’s possible Scott’s transfer came down to the Ducks offering a path to meaningful playing time as Canady’s replacement inside, rather than at outside corner as Ohio State had put him, and I am eager to see where he lines up during the spring game.

Scott thrived in zone coverage when he could react to the play in front of him. As a young player he needs to continue to work on recognizing the play as it develops, but given his experience level for the film I saw I thought he was progressing well at this. He accelerates well when breaking on the ball showed good tackling technique in the open field.

Here is a sample of passing plays where Scott successfully completes his assignment.

1. :00 – Playing mostly garbage time late in blowouts doesn’t give a corner many chances at highlight plays, but Scott makes the most of this opportunity. He’s lined up over the tight end split outside the numbers on the offense’s right. Keeping his eyes on the QB in zone coverage, he quickly diagnoses and breaks on the short hitch, using his long right arm to break up the pass.
2. :13 – By this point in the game the Western Michigan knows their line cannot hold long enough to throw anything but short routes and the defense knows it. Keep your eyes on Scott in press coverage at the top of the screen throughout the play. The quarterback never has a chance to look at the receiver he is covering (WMU #82) but Scott has his man blanketed.
3. :26 – As in the first clip, Scott does a good job here in zone coverage and breaking on the throw. He is lined up against the #1 (outside) receiver to the boundary at the bottom of your screen. Once the #2 (inside) receiver breaks toward the sideline he passes off the sideline-go route to the safety and follows the thrower’s gaze to the ball. The ball is placed behind the receiver so it is away from the defender, but this prevents a clean catch.
4. :39 – Scott starts in press coverage over the single receiver to the offense’s right. The defense is running a cover-3 scheme similar to a classic Tampa-2 with the middle linebacker gaining depth between the hashes. This mean’s Scott’s responsibility is the flat, but he still has to stay with the receiver until it’s clear he’s going deep and can be handed off to the safety. This leaves a lot of space for the back to work with on a check down, but Scott does an excellent job to close the distance (despite slipping) and make a form tackle in the open field.
5. :59 – The Badgers are running a fake sweep action to try and get the boundary defenders to bite on the run and leave one of the two receivers in the pattern open. The defense keeps both downfield options covered up so the quarterback has to improvise. Scott has followed his man all the way across the field and holds the completed pass to no gain.
6. 1:27 – Lined up over the outside receiver toward the field at the bottom of the screen, Scott defends this running back screen much as he did outside runs. He controls the receiver with his arms extended and keeps outside leverage to protect the sideline and force the ball carrier out of bounds.

I often saw Scott lined up in press coverage against outside receivers, but while I did see him effectively use his hands in rush defense I didn’t find any good examples of him jamming receivers at the line in order to throw off the route timing. Whether this just isn’t a technique the Buckeyes were making an effort to teach him or he has yet to become comfortable with this skill is a question I cannot answer. If he is going to play outside corner at Oregon this is something he definitely needs to work on though, as I didn’t see great make up speed or fluid hips in his film.

Below I have compiled examples pass defense errors from Scott.

1. :00 – Lined up in one-on-one press coverage over the outside receiver to the field (top of screen), Scott’s feet are in bad position against a vertical route as he’s surrendered outside leverage. When the receiver breaks outside at the snap he has no chance to use his long arms to redirect them. Playing from behind, he needs to turn his head and look for the ball when the offensive player has to slow down for the pass. If the catch hadn’t been made, I suspect an official would have gone for their flag for DPI.
2. :31 – Later that same drive, Purdue tries their luck again. Scott is matched up against a different receiver, this time to the boundary but still on the offense’s left. Again, his left foot is inside of the receiver and he can’t get a jam against an outside move. With a better throw this is a touchdown.
3. :50 – Scott is playing a different technique, but the result is the same as before. Over the single receiver lined up into the boundary on the offense’s right, you can see on the high angle replay that he never sinks his hips low in his backpedal. As such, he lacks explosiveness as he turns to run down the field with Tennessee #17. At first it seems like he catches up and might have gotten a PBU but on the replay you can see the receiver drops a touchdown pass.
4. 1:12 – Against the cup on the offense’s right Scott is lined up short and outside the hash marks. His job is to take the first receiver who breaks outside, and as the routes develop he is in good position. Once the quarterback breaks contain and the scramble drill begins he is in tension as there are two receivers in his area. He gains depth to keep them both in front of him, and while this does give up a completion for a first down he makes a sure tackle to limit the play to a short gain.
5. 1:37 – Scott is over the top of UCLA #1 at the bottom of your screen, so it isn’t his fault the underneath defenders get rubbed and the crosser is wide open. His failure to stay on his feet through contact with the receiver at the top of the route does mean there is nobody to prevent a touchdown, however.
6. 1:57 – As he follows his man across the formation (doing well not to get caught in traffic) Scott lets up as he thinks Ohio State #6 is clearly going to make the tackle. If he kept sprinting at full speed he could have been in position to prevent the cut back. In the fourth quarter of a game with this score it won’t change the outcome, but I’m sure he heard some choice words about “hustle” in the film room the next day.

Given that most of his snaps were late in blowout wins for the Buckeyes, I saw a lot of more of Scott in run support than I would usually expect for a corner during the same number of snaps. His physical gifts shone in this situation. Most of the poor grades I have for him in run defense on my tally sheet come from his true freshman season when he wasn’t always taking proper angles (typical as young players adapt to higher level competition).

Scott’s biggest strengths as a run defender are his long arms and hand use, allowing him to effectively get off blocks and tackle enthusiastically. I frequently saw him able to control blockers and then discard them to make the play because he could grasp their shoulders before they could get to grips with him. In his sophomore season he also showed a much better grasp of his role defending the run in Ohio State’s scheme: protecting the sideline and turning ball carriers back inside toward his team mates in pursuit.

Here is a collection illustrating successful run defense from Scott.

1. :00 – This doesn’t show up on the stat sheet, but Scott not only meaningfully contributes to stopping this run he displays textbook technique while doing so. In press man coverage against the outside receiver to the offense’s right, once his assigned man tries to push him toward the sideline Scott knows this is a run. He holds his ground, keeping his arms extended on the blockers shoulder’s to control him, and gets his helmet outside to squeeze the runner’s path in toward the pursuit.
2. :18 – Scott is at the top of your screen on the offense’s right. He begins with deep zone responsibilities in coverage and has to come from depth once the back gets past the second level of the defense. Watch him extend his arms to initiate contact with the receiver blocking him; he doesn’t have the power to run through the blocker but is able to disengage and and get a hand on the runner’s legs.
3. :36 – Wisconsin is running a wide receiver sweep into the boundary putting Scott at the point of attack on this play. The play is destined to succeed once contain is lost at the line of scrimmage, it’s just a matter of how many yards the defense will give up. With a typically stout Badger’s running back coming right at him he plays it safe and aims his shoulder at the blocker’s thigh to cause a traffic jam and force the running back inside toward the defensive pursuit.
4. :50 – As the outside most defender on the offense’s left Scott is left unblocked as the run is designed to go between the tackles. He shows good vision to read the play follow the back into the hole that has been opened to help make a stop, though I would prefer him to go low with his shoulder as in the previous clip rather than stay upright and try to hat the runner’s momentum. The latter plan doesn’t work very well and the defense gives up about five yards after contact.
5. 1:09 – Keep your eye on Scott at the bottom of the screen over the outside receiver. At first it looks like he has surrendered free access to the sideline, but he’s quick enough coming downhill to cut the running back off (UCLA #1 barely avoids a block-in-the-back). Even better, he gets a hand on the runner’s foot and trips up the ball carrier.
6. 1:23 – This doesn’t go down as a tackle in the official stats, but I gave Scott credit for stopping this wildcat run on my tally sheet. The offensive line executes counter toward the boundary and the pulling guard kicks out the linebacker. The UCLA back wants to run down the sideline, but Scott has used his long arms to get outside leverage on the receiver blocking him. Between having to make a sharp cut to redirect inside and the pursuing Buckeye diving at his feet the runner cannot stay upright.

Aside from a few leverage concerns the only criticism I have of him as a run defender is that he isn’t the biggest guy on the field. If forced to contend with taller receivers or tight ends he predictably had difficulty getting off of blocks.

Below is a sample of run defense errors by Scott.

1. :00 – Michigan State has two tight ends set up to the offense’s left so Scott is playing off while a linebacker extends the defensive front to that side. The defensive front achieves immediate penetration which forces the Spartans’ running back to improvise and bounce outside. Scott plays his responsibility well by hanging back and not attacking the line of scrimmage until he knows where the play is going. He needs to redirect the runner inside, which he does, but he over commits and cannot even get a hand on the ball carrier.
2. :17 – I saw this defensive alignment only a couple of times when Scott was on the field. With a bunch formation on one side when the Hawkeyes’ receiver goes in motion Scott rotates to the deep safety position while the safety spins down in man coverage. This isn’t a normal spot for the corner and it shows on the reverse angle. He takes too long to recognize the QB has pulled the ball from the mesh, forcing him to take a shallow angle and run the quarterback out of bounds after a big gain.
3. :47 – This is the same game as the previous clip, and this time Scott is the corner lined up away from the passing strength of the formation toward the top of the screen. This leaves him as the assignment for the TE on a counter toward the offense’s right. Scott is giving up quite a lot of weight in this matchup and it is no surprise he gives ground. He does show good use of his hands to break away and be in position in case the runner had broken through the first line of defenders.
4. 1:03 – Scott is playing off the line in zone coverage over the receiver split out to the offense’s right. Once he sees this is a run he has to guard the sideline. He does prevent the back from getting outside, but cannot quite break away in time to get his hands on the back. The fact that the Tennessee receiver has decided to reject his SEC heritage and embrace Big Ten blocking certainly doesn’t help.
5. 1:23 – In the same position Scott is now assigned the flat in coverage (note the safety rotating over to guard the end zone on the offense’s right) so he has the opportunity to get stuck in and he takes it. I’d like to see him sink a bit deeper in his hips on his breakdown so he can grab onto the back’s leg instead of just bouncing off.
6. 1:38 – Now as a sophomore late in the game against UCLA Scott is at the bottom of the screen. Watch his path as he recognizes the run: you can tell he knows he’s stepped too far inside and tries to cut back toward the sideline. The Bruins wide receiver is in his way though and the running back has a free path around the defense.