Oregon Football: Run Game Powers Ducks In Win Over Southern Utah
Oregon Football used the Running Game and Royce Freeman showcased his talent in a decisive win over Southern Utah.
Last season, Running Back Royce Freeman was not himself. An injury against Nebraska seemed to lag the rest of the season. Entering 2017, there was not only a different vibe around the team, but Freeman was healthy. It showed on Saturday night. The Senior ran for 150 yards and 4 touchdowns in a big win over Southern Utah.
Fellow Running Back Tony Brooks-James kicked off the Willie Taggart Era with a 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to open the game. Oregon’s Offensive Line was physical all night giving Quarterback Justin Herbert plenty of time to find Receivers when he had to. It was 703 yards of Offense against the Thunderbirds that keyed 11 touchdowns for the home team.
Tony Brooks-James had three touchdowns and both Brooks-James and Freeman had over 100 yards rushing.
The Oregon Defense, ranked one of the worst last season showed improvements under Defensive Coordinator Jim Leavitt. Troy Dye had a big night with 10 tackles, 5 of them solo and an Interception. The Ducks picked off the Thunderbirds three times on the night and came away with big plays on third and fourth down when there were needed.
A special victory. @OregonFootball players award the game ball to @CoachTaggart. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/rwbTHarabe
— GoDucks (@GoDucks) September 3, 2017
Last season Troy Dye played at Outside Linebacker. This season he has made the move inside, but still had a big impact to start the 2017 season. He was involved in big plays throughout the night and the rest of the Defense fed off his energy.
With the Offense in good hands, the Defense should have improvement entering the second week. Oregon may also have Scott Pagano and late transfer Malik Young on the field against Nebraska in Week 2.
Next: Ducks Celebrate Big Win Over Southern Utah
Oregon and Nebraska meet on Saturday, September 9th(1:30pm PT, FOX)