CALIFORNIA 7/0/0/0 - 7
OREGON 0/0/10/7 - 17
EUGENE, OREGON - After outscoring their last three opponents by a score of 133 to 15, the Ducks fell back down to earth when the one-loss California Golden Bears nearly pulled off the upset at Autzen stadium. The Oregon offense didn’t score until the third quarter, but Cristobal and company were able to remain undefeated in PAC-12 play with the help of a dominant defense that kept the Golden Bears scoreless for the final three quarters.
Things started off promising for the Ducks in the opening quarter, the defense forced a Golden Bear three-and-out and the offense followed that up by marching down the field to reach the Cal 25-yard line, but Ashtyn Davis ended the drive by collecting a rare Justin Herbert interception and returning it 31 yards. The Golden Bears capitalized on their early momentum by putting together a 6-play, 63-yard drive that ended with a 22-yard touchdown pass from Devon Modster (stepping in for injured QB Chase Garbers) to Chris Brown Jr; this was the first opening-half touchdown allowed by Avalos’ defense all season.
Oregon’s next drive seemingly got the offense back on track, but after travelling 62 yards in 14 plays, the turnover bug once again bit the Ducks as running back Travis Dye coughed up the ball in the California red zone. The Duck defense did its part by forcing another three-and-out, but the Cal offense was back on the field two plays later after Dye fumbled the ball for a second time. Neither team was able to score for the remainder of the opening half as both teams missed a field goal, however, Jevon Holland provided a last second highlight by picking off Modster’s deep shot in the final moments of the second quarter.
After trading three-and-outs in the third quarter, Oregon scored its first points of the game off of a 13-play, 72-yard drive that resulted in Camden Lewis’ first made field goal. Late in the third, Oregon’s offense took advantage of the great field position that the Duck defense and a good Jevon Holland punt return gave to them by traveling 30 yards in three plays to score their first touchdown and build a 10-7 lead; after Dye lost a yard on first down, Justin Herbert connected with Jacob Breeland for a gain of 30 yards, then Cyrus Habibi-Likio pounded the ball in the end zone for a one-yard rushing touchdown.
Troy Dye snatched Oregon’s second interception of the evening with 9:40 left in the fourth quarter, and once again the Ducks were able to take advantage of the situation by scoring on the proceeding drive. Herbert picked up 26 yards with his legs on second-and-13 and a few plays later connected with Jaylon Redd for a one-yard touchdown. Cal missed another field goal attempt, this time a 46-yard try that would have made it a one-score game with less than three minutes of play left on the clock, and the Duck defense capped off a great performance by preserving their 17-7 lead for the win.
Fun Moment: A rare tackle from Cyrus Habibi-Likio went viral when the running back took care of a fan that jumped down to the field and evaded security for a few minutes. The tackle received possibly the loudest cheer of the evening.
"We have so much respect for our offense, so much respect for Mirabal. We tell them all the time, we don't care if you score 100 points or you score three. We're going to find a way to win the game."
Cornerback Thomas Graham Jr
Oregon Offense (total: 404 - pass: 214 - rush: 190)
California Offense (total: 256 - pass: 190 - rush: 66)
Oregon Defense (forced turnovers: 2 - INT: 2)
California Defense (forced turnovers: 3 - INT: 1 - FUM: 2)
UO (4-1, 2-0) CAL (4-2, 1-2)