Oregon Football had a complete game win 41-20 over Utah, snapping a 3-game losing streak.
Oregon and Utah were both at a crossroads on the season. A loss meant a tougher road to travel to become bowl eligible. The Ducks and Utes both face Washington in the coming weeks, with Oregon getting the Huskies on the road next week. Willie Taggart looked to have his team focused on Utah. Both teams started the day on a three game losing streak.
The Ducks won the opening kickoff and started the ball from the 25 yard line. Braxton Burmeister started building early confidence with passes to Charles Nelson and Dillon Mitchell, two weapons who recently became healthy. Burmeister found Cam McCormick in the end zone and was a perfect 3 for 3 for 20 yards and the score on the Ducks first drive. 7-0 Oregon.
Darren Carrington heard plenty of boos on the Utes opening drive. He was targeted often. The Ducks Defense including a tackle for loss from Troy Dye made it 3rd and 14 from the 23. Jalen Jelks forced a 4th and 27 as Utah was forced to punt for the Utes.
After one penalty on the first drive for Oregon, two false start penalties reared their ugly head on the second Offensive drive and on 3rd and 6 Braxton Burmeister fumbled the ball and Utah recovered the ball at the Oregon 21. The Oregon Defense kept Utah out of the endzone and a five play drive resulted in a field goal making it 7-3 Ducks.
After a sack on Burmeister on the first drive of the second quarter for Oregon, the Freshman completed three straight passes getting the Ducks to the Utah 43 yard line. It was a short 3rd and 3 and after a timeout to discuss their options, Royce Freeman took the carry to the Utah 9 yard line before being pushed out of bounds.
Oregon settled for a field goal making it 10-3 Ducks. Freeman passed the 1000 yard mark on the season. The Ducks Senior hit the mark three times in his career.
Ugo Amadi ended the Utes next drive with a fumble recovery and a run back 47-yards for a touchdown giving Oregon a 17-3 lead and scoring some points for the Oregon Defense.
Arrion Springs did some work on Utah’s next drive keeping the ball out of Darren Carrington’s hands twice to hold Utah to a Field Goal and a 17-6 Oregon lead.
Oregon would see a three and out on their next drive that included a 10-yard sack on Quarterback Braxton Burmeister. Adam Stack punted the ball to the Utah 32 yard line where the Utes took over.
The first half ended with Oregon up 17-6, holding an opponent without a touchdown for the first time this season while also scoring a Defensive Touchdown.
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Utah opened the second half putting together a scoring drive in 7 plays that resulted in a deflected pass and Lineman Darrin Paulo getting a touchdown for the Utes with Oregon holding onto a 4 point lead with 11:36 left in the third quarter.
The Oregon Ducks Offense worked their way down field started by a run from Tony Brooks-James and ending with points off the leg of Aiden Schneider hitting a 38-yard field goal. The Ducks pushed their lead to 10 points at 2013.
Utah took over, getting to the Oregon 25 before Matt Gay missed a 43 yard field goal giving the Ducks the ball on their own 25-yard line.with a 10 point lead.
The Ducks started the drive with a 56-yard run by Tony Brooks-James who found a seam and was gone before being pushed out of bounds at the 19. It was trick play time as Burmeister handed the ball to Charles Nelson who nearly fell down before throwing to Jacob Breeland for the score and a 27-13 lead over Utah.
Darren Carrington made it interesting on the next drive attempting to bring in a third and long pass along the sideline on third down, but it was ruled out of bounds giving the ball back to Oregon after a punt at the Ducks 15-yard line.
Tony Brooks-James added another touchdown with a solid 23 yard run to put Oregon up 21, 33-14 on Utah. Siaosi Wilson got Utah on the board with the second touchdown of the second half for the Utes pulling to within 14 points off a 6 play 75 yard drive.
In the end, Oregon ran for 347 yards as Royce Freeman and Kani Benoit each had a 100+ yard game. For Freeman he broke the 1000 yard mark for the third time in his career. Braxton Burmeister finished the game 9 for 12 for 47 yards and a touchdown and the Oregon Defense had 10 tackles for loss against the Utes in the 41-20 win.
It was a game where everyone played together for the win. They will have to do the same next week on the road against a tougher opponent. The Ducks travel to Washington next week. Kickoff time will be announced on Sunday as either Noon, 7 pm or 7:45 pm)