PORTLAND STATE 0/7/0/7 - 14
OREGON 14/21/14/13 - 62
EUGENE, OREGON - New head coach Mario Cristobal stuck to his guns about using a running-back-by-committee approach in his second game at Autzen Stadium. Against the Portland State Vikings, Cristobal shuffled between five different running backs, four of which reached the end zone during Oregon’s 62-14 blowout victory. Portland State attempted to catch Oregon off guard by starting mobile QB Jalani Eason instead of projected starter Davis Alexander, but Justin Herbert out-dueled the competition, finishing 20-of-26 for 250 yards with four touchdowns.
Oregon scored the first 21 points of the game thanks to the talented arm of Justin Herbert. Jaylon Redd added to his early-season point total by catching an 18-yard pass at the back of the end zone, then two of Oregon’s recent transfers made their scoring debut; Tabari Hines (Wake Forest) took a screen pass nine-yards to put the Ducks up 14-0, then tight end Kano Dillon (USF) capped off the 21-point run by pushing his way past multiple Viking defenders for a 20-yard touchdown.
Portland State got on the board with a 71-yard touchdown pass from Jalani Eason to Charlie Taumoepeau on third-and-6, but Justin Herbert and the Oregon offense responded on their next possession by flying down the field on a 72-yard, six-play drive that concluded with Cyrus Habibi-Likio making short work of his short-yardage duties by scoring the Ducks’ fourth touchdown with a one-yard carry. And with 27 seconds left in the opening half, Johnny Johnson III reached over a Viking defender to catch a touchdown pass that gave Oregon a commanding 35-7 lead.
The Ducks added to their lead in the third quarter by shutting out the Viking defense and adding two more touchdowns from two more running backs: first a one-yard score from senior Tony Brooks-James, then a 49-yard run from Travis Dye (brother of linebacker Troy Dye) to give the home team a 42-point lead with 6:24 left in the third. Portland State was able to score in the fourth quarter by capping off a 66-yard drive with a four-yard touchdown pass to Taumoepeau, but were unable to stop Braxton Burmeister from leading two touchdown drives late in the game. CJ Verdell did a lot of the leg work for Oregon in the fourth, resulting in another one-yard score from Brooks-James, then a two-yard score from Verdell himself put the exclamation point on the victory.
“The message all week was, real competitors, they're never affected by outside elements. It doesn't matter who they're playing, when they're playing, where they're playing — anything on the outside. But what does matter is the standard they hold themselves to.”
- Mario Cristobal
Oregon Offense (total: 562 - pass: 266 - rush: 296)
Portland State Offense (total: 224 - pass: 158 - rush: 66)
Oregon Defense (forced turnovers: 0)
Portland State Defense (forced turnovers: 0)
UO (2-0) PSU (0-2)