by Jerry Feitelberg

photo credit yahoo.com Vernon Adams Jr. Oregon QB

The Oregon Ducks beat the Stanford Cardinal Saturday night by a score of 38-36. The Ducks were finally healthy and were looking to win their fourth game in a row. Stanford had won eight games in a row, and a win over of the Ducks would put the Cardinal in the Pac-12 championship game on December 5th at Levi Stadium. With the loss, the Cardinal will have to beat the University of California next Saturday here at Stanford Stadium to clinch the Pac-12 North title.

The game was a barn burner with the outcome in doubt except for the last ten seconds of the contest. Stanford won most of the stat but still lost the game. They controlled the ball for over 43 minutes. They racked up more total yardage than the Ducks 506 to 436. They ran 86 plays compared to 48 for Oregon but still came up short. The Duck offense was just too fast for the Cardinal defense. The Ducks did not use up much time when they scored their touchdowns. Boom, boom and boom.Give them the ball and they put it in the end zone. Stanford used a ball-control offense and could not come up with the big plays all night long. Stanford is now 8-2 overall and 7-1 in the Pac-12 while Oregon improves to 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the conference.

The Stanford Cardinal took the opening kickoff and drove to the Oregon 14 yard line before the drive stalled. Conrad Ukropina kicked a 33 -yard field goal to give the Cardinal a 3-0 lead with 8:43 left in the first period. The Cardinal controlled the ball for over six minutes but had to settle for the field goal. The Ducks stormed back, driving eighty yards in less than two minutes. Royce Freeman broke free for a 49-yard run. Kani Benoit followed with a big run. The Cardinal was offside, and that gave the Ducks a first and five from the fifteen-yard line. Quarterback Vernon Adams, Jr took the ball down to the three. Benoit scored, and the extra point was good. 7-3 for Oregon with 6:15 left to play in the period. The Cardinal roared back to take a 10-7 lead near the end of the first period. The drive stalled at the Stanford 26 yard line, but the Ducks were called for a personal foul that gave the Cardinal a first down on their own 41. Two passes from Kevin Hogan, one to Bryce Love for 17 yards and one to Michael Rector down to the Oregon 29. After a short gain to the 22. Hogan carried the ball and scored. Stanford leads 10-7. The lead did not last long as the Ducks’ Charles Nelson, on the first play from scrimmage after the kickoff, went 75 yards for the score. 14-10 for Oregon with 1:01 left So far, it’s the conservative Cardinal offense against the Oregon run, run and run. So far, the Oregon way is winning.

The Cardinal played better defense in the second period. The Ducks intercepted a Kevin Hogan pass, but the Cardinal defense stiffened and forced Oregon to punt. The Cardinal took over on their 41-yard line. The key play was a 35-yard pass from Hogan to Michael Rector that put them on the Ducks’ 23-yard line. The Cardinal made a first down at the Ducks’ eleven. On the next play, Christian McCaffrey took it to the house for the score. 17-14 for Stanford with 6:03 left in the half.The Ducks turned over the ball on their next possession. The Ducks were on the move, but the Cardinal’s Brennan Scarlett pressured Vernon Adams to fumble the ball. Linebacker Kevin Anderson caught the ball mid-air and returned it to the Ducks’ nine-yard line. The Oregon defense held and the Cardinal had to settle for a field-goal. Stanford leads 20-14 with 1:59 left in the half. With 48 seconds left, Adams connected with Darren Carrington for a 47-yard touchdown pass. The drive went 75 yards on the drive. The Cardinal trails by one with 48 seconds left to play. They did not run out the clock. They drove to the Oregon 32. With just two seconds left, Conrad Ukropina kicked a 49-yard field goal to put Stanford ahead 23-21 at the half. The first half was as advertised- a real barnburner.

In the first half, Kevin Hogan was 13-for-19 good for 139 yards and running back Christian McCaffrey rushed 19 times for 92 yards.  Oregon rushed 17 times for 159 yards and six for six passing for another 109 yards. There was just one punt in the first half. Oregon had nine first downs while the Cardinal had seventeen. Stanford dominated time of possession. They controlled the ball for 21minutes and thirty-two seconds. Oregon had the ball just 8 minutes and twenty-eight seconds, but that is no indication of the score. The Ducks offense has speed and can score very quickly.

The Ducks took the kickoff down the field for their fourth touchdown of the game.The drive was 69yards in a minute and 29 seconds. Royce Freeman scored on a 21-yard run. Ducks lead 28-23. Stanford came back after the kickoff and drove to the Ducks’ 26-yard line, but the offense failed to convert a third and short. Ukropina missed the field goal attempt. Oregon scored again to take a 35-23 on a 49-yard touchdown pass from Adams to Taj Griffin. They went 82 yards in just four plays. Adams is nine for nine passing at this point in the game.  The Stanford defense has to find a way to stop Oregon if they are to win this game.

Stanford drove 75 yards on eleven plays to close the gap to 35-30. The drive took 5 minutes and 27 seconds off the clock and 11:18 remains to be played in the game.The key play on the drive was a 17-yard pass from Hogan to Stallworth to put the Cardinal on the Ducks’ 4-yard line. The Cardinal defense stopped the Ducks offense forcing a punt. Stanford started a drive, but Hogan mishandled the snap and lost the fumble. Oregon took over at the Cardinal 48. The Ducks took the ball down to the Cardinal 13 before the drive stalled. Aidan Schneider kicked a field goal to give Oregon an 8-point lead 38-30 with just 5:12 left in the game. Stanford took the ball to the Ducks’ 15-yard line, but Hogan fumbled again to the ball back to Oregon with just 2:06 remaining. The Ducks ran three plays but could not make a first down. They were forced to punt with !:15 left. The Cardinal has the ball on the 50-yard line with just 69 seconds left, and Stanford is out of timeouts. Hogan connected with Trenton Irwin to put the ball on the Oregon 35. On third and ten, Hogan passed to Michael Rector for another first down at the 24. On third and ten from the 24, Hogan threw to Devon Cajuste. The pass was incomplete, but Oregon was called for pass interference to put the ball on the 9.  14 seconds left. Stanford has to score and then make a 2-point conversion to tie the game. Oregon called for illegal substitution, and that puts the ball on the 4. Hogan hit Greg Toroada in the end zone for the score. Stanford could not convert. Hogan’s pass to Austin Hooper was incomplete, and Oregon leads 38-26 with ten seconds left in the game. The Cardinal tried an onside kick, but they were offsides on the play, and Oregon ran out the clock for the win. Oregon wins 38-36.