QUICKIE RECAP
It certainly wasn’t pretty.
In fact, if Saturday nights game was a painting in an art show, it would’ve been mothballed to the cellar never to be seen again.
Even though the No. 3 Ducks won going away with the 41-19 win, they were far from looking their best and will need to improve dramatically to have a chance at winning the Pac-12.
Where they did shine, however, was in the secondary. The Oregon defense once again came up big when it counted and grabbed five interceptions on the night to eventually stave off a very game Arizona team who found themselves just one score behind, ( 27-19 ) at the 13:37 mark of the final quarter.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Ducks came out fast scoring the first 10 points of the game in the first four minutes of play.
After taking the opening kickoff, and on just the third play of the game, Duck QB Anthony Brown found receiver Jaylon Redd for a 63 yard touchdown and an early 7-0 lead. Three minutes later, the Ducks tacked on three additional points with a Camden Lewis 21 yard field goal.
Arizona would strike back though when they went on an impressive 10 play – 91-yard drive which ended with an 11 yard scoring pass from sophomore QB Jordan McCloud to receiver Bryce Wolma.
Still in the first quarter, Oregon would extend its lead to 17-7 when Brown engineered a 5 play – 75 yard drive that ended with C.J Verdell finding the endzone on a 11 yard run up the middle – his 5th of the season.
In the second quarter, the Ducks jumped out to a 24-7 lead when Brown found freshman TE Terrance Ferguson in the endzone when he squeezed an 11 yard TD pass into a tight window. The scoring catch was Fergusons second of the season.
The Cats would add a field goal and pull within 14 points, ( 24-10 ) at the break.
The third quarter began with another momentum-shifting play in the Ducks favor when safety Verone McKinley picked McCloud in the endzone after an extended drive that certainly appeared where the Cats would come away with points.
However, after getting the ball back inside their own 5-yard line, quarterback Anthony Brown was sacked in the endzone leading to a 2-point safety and shifting the momentum back in favor of Arizona. Oregon remained in the lead at 24-12 midway through the third.
After a stagnant series on offense, Oregon punted back to the Cats who took advantage.
With :96 seconds remaining in the third, and after Arizona drove the ball the length of the field on a 12-play drive, RB Drake Anderson scored on a 1 yard plunge into the endzone getting the Cats within one score at 24-19.
But that’s as close as Arizona would get.
The Ducks finally found their mojo in the final stanza and added 17 unanswered points to put the Cats away.
After Camden Lewis drilled a 43 yard bullet between the uprights to begin the fourth, Brown engineered a 7 play – 59 yard drive at the 8:26 mark that ended with an 18 yard scoring toss to TE Spencer Webb.
The final score of the game came on another Arizona turnover.
Just 90 seconds after the Webb touchdown, McCloud lofted a pass over the middle of the field which LB Bennett Williams grabbed and ran 63 yards for a pick-six giving the Ducks a 41-19 lead. The pick was the second of the game for Williams and third of the season.
FINAL SCORE; Oregon 41, Arizona 19
KEY PLAYERS
Once again, Anthony Brown was solid at leading the offense converting 10 of 21 passes for 206 yards and tossing 3 touchdowns. Brown continues to protect the football and not turn it over.
As mentioned above, it was the Oregon secondary that made the difference in this one. While they gave up a total of 435 yards, which typically might lead to a loss, the defense grabbed 5 interceptions to swing the momentum back into their favor. Bennett Williams had two picks while MyKael Wright, Verone McKinley, and Nate Heaukulani each grabbed one.
RB Travis Dye continued to excel. Dye only carried the ball 5 times but added 92 yards to his tally. While Dye almost broke the one hundred-yard mark, C.J Verdell could only muster 45 yards on 11 carries. To succeed as an offense, Oregon needs to get Verdell more involved and should get him more than 11 carries.
WHAT’S NEXT
The No. 3 Ducks hit the road next Saturday taking their undefeated season into Palo Alto, California to take on Stanford. The game will be nationally televised on ABC and kickoff at 12:30 PM PST.
GAME HIGHLIGHTS