Will the Ducks be able to bounce back from Blount's blunder?

The Oregon Ducks opened their season this week with a 19-8 loss to the Boise State Broncos. But an even bigger loss came after the game when Oregon's senior runningback, LeGarrette Blount, got into a dispute with Boise's Byron Hout. After a few words and a shove from Hout, Blount threw a right hook that connected with Hout's jaw, knocking him to his knees. The decision came the next morning to suspend Blount for the remainder of this years season, which ends his NCAA eligibility. The question is, how will the Ducks move on without him?

The whole scenario puts the Ducks in an unwanted negative light as explained in this article from ESPNU. The game itself was embarrassing enough, but now the remaining players have to deal with the unrelenting media asking all the wrong questions. At this point, the Ducks would like to put all of Week 1's "beatings" aside and move on, focusing on another worthy opponent, Purdue. Moving on without Blount could prove to be a test, though. The Ducks will have to find someone that will replace the 1,002 yards and school-record 17 touchdowns that Blount stacked-up on the ground last season. The Ducks have 2 redshirt freshmen at the top of the depth chart now, LeMicheal James and Kenjon Barner. I don't see either of them putting up the numbers or even being half the threat that Blount was out of the backfield. The Ducks offense is quite versatile, though; they don't rely too heavily on the run. Even though it helps tremendously to be able to jump on a studs shoulders when the going gets tough and know that he will produce. I'm excited to see what head coach Chip Kelly has up his sleeve this weekend as his Ducks host the Purdue Boilermakers.