Oregon Ducks Take Lumps, Luggage for Rutgers Reckoning

EUGENE, Ore. — Losing raises questions. Just ask The Oregonian reporter James Crepea. But don’t ask Oregon coach Dan Lanning about simulated pressures. Mr. FishDuck wrote about Simulated Pressures in the past, and took a break from checking into online casinos sites not on GamStop to discuss the Hoosier tactics with me.

First things first. The No. 3 Indiana Hoosiers handed the No. 8 Oregon Ducks their first loss of the season in a 30-20 heavyweight slugfest on Saturday at Autzen Stadium. Never mind ESPN’s College GameDay, shirtless coaches, and million-dollar missed field goals. For the Ducks, the only thing more attention-grabbing than the pregame spectacle was the postgame reality check that followed.

Fans, it’s critical to put this loss into perspective. This was Oregon’s first Big Ten loss in the regular season since joining the league. Oregon is now 18-1 in conference games. Secondly, the loss came against another very talented and well-coached team under Curt Cignetti, who has the Hoosiers poised to eat the whole enchilada and clog the college football toilet.

Of Oregon’s two most difficult games this season — Penn State and Indiana — the Ducks split the difference. Not a disaster. The problem is Oregon’s performance against a then-No. 3 Nittany Lions team on the road in a White Out game was miles apart from the game at home coming off a bye week against Indiana, which makes removing one’s shirt with Pat McAfee at 4 a.m. a little less awesome.

(Side note: PSU never recovered from losing to Oregon at home. The Nittany Lions have since lost to UCLA and Northwestern, dropped out of the top 25, lost starting QB Drew Allar and fired longtime head coach James Franklin midseason. Oof. Talk about all-time death spirals. Things could be worse, Ducks fans.)

Need Answers

So, questions: Why was the offense stuck in the mud, sunk to the chassis? Why was Heisman hopeful quarterback Dante Moore not executing at the same level as in the previous five games? Why was he seemingly rattled and confused by the Hoosiers’ simulated pressures with two weeks to prepare under a Zyn-fueled defensive wunderkind in Lanning? Where were Kenyon Sadiq and Dakorien (DK) Moore? Why did Oregon stop giving the rock to freshman RB Jordon Davison, who was clearly having success between the tackles in the first half?

Well, let’s open her up and have a look inside, shall we?

The Hoosiers outgained Oregon 326 to 267 in total yards, scored two touchdowns and a pair of field goals, and reduced Autzen’s raucous decibel levels to that of a wheezing hamster. Moore, who walked into a White Out game at Beaver Stadium like a box-jawed Dolph Lundgren and helped lead Oregon to a 30-24 double overtime win over Penn State, suddenly resembled a young man lost in existential crisis. He threw for just one touchdown and two interceptions, both in the fourth quarter — the last of which appeared to be an overt act of surrender.

While his overall 70.6% completion rate and 167.7 passer rating on the season remain solid, against Indiana, those numbers meant little — especially when Oregon converted just 3 of 14 third downs. (To be fair, Indiana wasn’t much better on third downs, going 5-of-14 on the afternoon.) Folks, if I never see a screen pass or a check down again in my life, it would be too many. I would rather eat a tortilla stuffed with Washington coach Jedd Fisch’s hair and nail clippings than watch some average defensive back repeatedly blow up a predictable screen at the line of scrimmage.

Moore was sacked six times, the most in any game so far this year (Moore had only been sacked once this season heading into this game). But the offensive line isn’t solely to blame. Sure, there were plenty of missed blocks, but Moore didn’t help matters by frequently bailing from the pocket and looking for the easy check down instead of connecting with freshman phenom DK streaking wide open toward the end zone. (This happened on multiple occasions.)

Oregon’s issues went beyond protection. The Ducks’ 14 first downs were a season low, and the Ducks failed to score an offensive touchdown after the first quarter. The offensive line that had paved highways for running backs Dierre Hill Jr. (267 yards, 9.2 avg.) and Noah Whittington (211 yards, 8.1 avg.) looked tentative against Indiana’s front, which repeatedly collapsed the pocket. The Ducks’ ground game had 30 carries for 81 yards, averaging 2.7 yards per carry, well below their season average of 5.8 yards per rush. Again, I understand the benefit of running back by committee, but when you have a hot hand in Davison, deal it. There’s no shame in running the same play until they show they can stop you — keep pounding gut shots until your opponent buckles from peptic ulcers.

Defense Doin’ Work

How about the other side of the ball? While Oregon’s defense couldn’t quite plug all the leaks, they played well enough to win. Oregon’s defensive front seven never really got home against Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza (except a tremendous sack by junior defensive lineman A’Mauri Washington and two tackles for a loss by transfer DL Bear Alexander), giving the talented playcaller time to deliver strikes to future NFL wide receivers Elijah Sarrat and Omar Cooper Jr.

Oregon walk-on linebacker Bryce Boettcher recorded his 50th tackle of the year. And freshman corner Brandon Finney, well, he’s just special. Despite a dismal offensive performance, Oregon had tied the game 20-20 thanks to a late-game pick-six by Finney, giving the Ducks a chance to win in the fourth quarter. That’s definitely a bright spot for those unwashed Ducks fans who woke up in a booth at Max’s to the sound of Sunday morning bartenders phoning the police.

The takeaway? The offensive coaches need to flip the script sooner if Moore is visibly struggling with an opposing defense (and yes, the Hoosiers’ simulated pressures gave Moore microseizures the entire afternoon. Sorry, Dan, you’re going to have to fix that). Perhaps run heavier and take the pressure off Moore. Do anything but what we saw last weekend against Indiana. Oregon wins 9 out of 10 times if they play their game and make proper in-game adjustments. Period.

Thankfully, there are answers to many of the problems fans saw on the field last weekend. The hope is that this talented and capable Oregon staff will recognize the mistakes, fix them and put this game in the rearview as the team hits the road for New Jersey.  

Since the loss, Lanning acknowledged that adjustments were late and execution lagged, but summed up the week with his usual mix of confidence and stoicism, emphasizing toughness, discipline and “responding the right way.” I fully trust Lanning to right the ship. No doubts. I stand behind that dude 100 percent. But we have to be honest about shortcomings.

Rutgers Redemption?

The Ducks will travel 2,908 miles to face Rutgers for the first time in program history in Piscataway, marking their longest Big Ten road trip since joining the conference. Stat of the Week: Oregon has more air miles traveled this season (roughly 9,200) than total yards (2,786). Both are impressive. Only one wins football games.

The Scarlet Knights (3-3, 0-3 Big Ten) might not sound terrifying, but they’ve played their last three conference opponents (Iowa, Minnesota and Washington) fairly close — and “close” could be dangerous for a team seeking to find its rhythm again.

Rutgers quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis ranks third in the conference with 1,785 passing yards and 11 touchdowns, while sophomore running back Antwan Raymond has racked up 560 yards and nine scores. Their offense sputters behind an O-line that’s surrendered 20 sacks — a number that will have Oregon’s pass rushers, led by Teitum Tuioti (2.5 sacks) and Matayo Uiagalelei (4 sacks), licking their chops à la Mildew Wolf and the Cattanooga Cats.

Rutgers’ defense, ranked dead last in the Big Ten in yards allowed (385.3 per game), offers Oregon a chance for redemption. If Moore can rediscover his inner “Universal Soldier” (a 1992 action film starring Dolph Lundgren, duh) and the Ducks reestablish the run, this could be the game that restores their high-seed playoff narrative.

Oregon still controls its postseason destiny. The Ducks are 17.5-point favorites over Rutgers, and if they win convincingly, the Indiana debacle could soon fade into statistical noise. Silence the critics, the questions, and the second-guessing. And then we can all take our shirts off together.

Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. PT Saturday, SHI Stadium, Piscataway, New Jersey
TV: Big Ten Network
Line: Oregon -17.5 (ESPN BET)
Series: First meeting