There were times on Saturday night when Oregon football did not look its best. Dillon Gabriel was sacked at one point on back-to-back plays. The Ducks committed costly turnovers, two of which ended up being points for Boise State. Gabriel had a miscommunication fumble himself at the 22-yard line and was sacked four times on the night.
It felt like Oregon needed to get out of its own way at times, but it battled. Special teams played a big role in the outcome, a 37-34 win over Boise State to get to 2-0 on the season.
Some may have even more questions about this Oregon squad than we did after the win against Idaho. Again, I say, a win is a win, and the Ducks will take it.
There is no doubt that Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty is a special player. He rolled up close to 200 yards on the Autzen Stadium turf. He had two long runs of 31 and 70 yards, the latter for a touchdown. Jeanty scored three times, but Oregon was able to contain him for the most part in short-yardage situations in the second half.
Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel found a way, even using his legs at times against Boise State. The penalties were plenty, mostly for holding on the offensive line, but Gabriel completed better than 85 percent of his passes on the night to six different receivers. The offense showed up when they needed to, but the Ducks Special Teams unit shined.
Tez Johnson had an 85-yard punt return for a touchdown and Noah Whittington had a 99-yard kickoff return. Whittington's play was reviewed, and he dropped the ball just before breaking the plane of the endzone chalk, but an Oregon teammate scooped up the ball for the score.
Oregon will face a familiar foe in visiting Oregon State this week. The Ducks and Beavers kickoff at 12:30 p.m. PT on FOX.