COLORADO 16/10/7/8 - 41
OREGON 7/10/21/0 - 38
EUGENE, OREGON - Twice the Ducks trailed by 16 points against the visiting Colorado Buffaloes, but a pair of forced turnovers from two standout freshman defenders helped spark 21 unanswered points by Oregon resulting in their first lead of the game late in the third. Unfortunately for Duck fans, Colorado’s freshman quarterback led a touchdown drive that put the Buffaloes up 41 to 38, and with under two minutes left on the clock at the Colorado seven-yard line, quarterback Dakota Prukop threw his first interception of the season when Ahkello WItherspoon collected a poorly thrown fade route in the end zone to seal the victory for the visiting Buffs.
Oregon’s first two possessions resulted in three-and-outs, and Colorado responded by building a 10-0 lead behind quarterback Steven Montez, who started in place of senior Sefo Liufau after an ankle injury suffered the week before against Michigan sidelined the veteran quarterback. In his first career start, Montez looked confident on Colorado’s first drive, completing three of his four passes to help fuel an 80-yard drive that was capped off with a one-yard Phillip Lindsay touchdown. Then, after pinning the Ducks deep in their own territory, Colorado started their next drive at the Oregon 47 and managed to tack on a 24-yard field goal from Chris Graham.
A 50-yard run from Tony Brooks-James sparked the Oregon offense, and with 5:16 left in the first quarter Taj Griffin put the Ducks on the board with a short touchdown run. However, Montez showed great composure by leading back-to-back touchdown drives to take a 23-7 lead; the freshman quarterback was responsible for both scores, passing to Shay Fields for a seven-yard touchdown then running in the second touchdown from the Oregon three, and also connected with Devin Ross for a 61-yard gain that moved the Buffs to the Oregon five-yard line.
Things looked grim for the Ducks on their next drive when they set up to punt from their own 43-yard line while trailing by 16 points, but a direct snap to linebacker Danny Mattingly picked up 29 yards on fourth-and-three, and two plays later Prukop found Darren Carrington II in the end zone to cut the lead to nine after Aidan Schneider made the point-after ( a successful two-point conversion would have made it a one-score game, but perhaps after failing four consecutive two-point attempts coach Helfrich was understandably cautious to test his luck.) The Ducks added a 41-yard field goal with 2:31 left before the half, but the Buffs put together a 10-play, 60-yard drive that finished with a field goal to negate Oregon’s progress.
Colorado scored on the first possession of the second half when a 48-yard pass to Devin Ross was deemed a touchdown after it was initially ruled an incomplete pass. Once again Oregon trailed by 16 points, and after punting on their first drive of the third quarter the Colorado offense aimed to turn their conference opener into a road blowout, but freshman Brenden Schooler picked off Montez to give the Ducks hope. Thanks in large part to a 48-yard pass to Charles Nelson, Oregon managed to score after the interception, again electing to kick the extra point instead of rolling the dice on a two-point attempt.
The Duck defense forced a three-and-out, and Prukop capitalized on the opportunity by leading a 74-yard drive that was capped off with a three-yard touchdown from running back Kani Benoit that cut the lead to two. Then, freshman Troy Dye ended Colorado’s next drive early by tallying Oregon’s second interception of the day, and two plays later Oregon claimed their first lead of the game, 38-33, with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Carrington.
It appeared the Ducks would preserve their lead when the Buffaloes were third-and-10 at the Oregon 31 with 8:31 left in the final quarter, but Montez showed great poise by hitting Bryce Bobo with a well-placed touchdown pass. Then, Coach Mike MacIntyre elected to go for the two-point conversion, which once again ended with Bobo in the end zone.
The Ducks and Buffs traded punts late in the fourth, setting up a crucial drive for Prukop and the offense. Down by three, Oregon marched 51 yards to reach the Colorado 7 with 1:43 remaining, but on first down Prukop underthrew a fade route in the end zone intended for Carrington and was picked off by Ahkello Witherspoon. A field goal could have given the Ducks a shot at overtime, but instead the Buffs were able to kill the clock to seal the upset.
"I've never been in a train wreck. But that's probably what it would feel like."
- Mark Helfrich on the last-second interception
Oregon Offense (total: 508 - pass: 293 - rush: 215)
Colorado Offense (total: 593 - pass: 333 - rush: 260)
Oregon Defense (forced turnovers: 2 - INT: 2)
Colorado Defense (forced turnovers: 1 - INT: 1)
UO (2-2, 0-1) CU (3-1, 1-0)