Oregon gashed by injury curse, but offense continues to roll

Jeremiah McClellan and center Poncho Laloulu went to the injury tent in the first quarter, but the Ducks showed their strength in numbers responding with an 11-play, 67-yard touchdown drive despite replacing two starters on the offensive line.

With Charlie Pickard at center and Fox Crader at left tackle, the Ducks used a 15-yard crossing route to Jamari Johnson and a pair of hard 9-yard runs by Jordon Davison to march the ball down to the Trojan 8, where Kenyon Sadiq caught a pass in the back of the end zone to take a 14-7 lead in the first quarter, Sadiq's team-leading sixth touchdown catch of the year, holding on to the ball with strong hands.

The Trojans tied it at the beginning of the second quarter though, with a trick play, a double pass from Makai Lemon to Tanook Hines, good for 24 yards.

The one thing Oregon needed to do in this playoff-elimination clash was to avoid getting into a shootout. They got a break however when Jeremiah McClellan returned to the lineup, grabbing a 23-yard pass down the right sideline.

The drive fizzled when Malik Benson and McClellan dropped passes on successive plays, McClellan tripped by the turf monster as he came out of his break.