Oregon bounces back with 38-24 win over Washington State

A week after Oregon’s devastating loss to Washington, the Ducks were able to regain momentum with a 38-24 win at home over the Washington State Cougars. After struggling to finish drives after the beginning of the game, Oregon’s offense committed to running the ball and they started to score consistently.

Ducks’ RB Bucky Irving was the star of the show today as he finished with three of Oregon’s TDs. Irving ended up getting hurt in the fourth quarter, but he walked off under his own power. Hopefully, he’s healthy enough to play against Utah next week because the Ducks will need him.

Washington State’s offense played well throughout the game and finished with nearly 500 yards, but they struggled too much on defense to stop the Ducks’ offense, which allowed Oregon to get the win.

Final Score: 38-24 Oregon

After a few offensive struggles to start, Oregon started to click offensively. Things improved on the other side of the ball as well as the game progressed, especially once the Ducks’ defensive line started getting to Cougars’ QB Cam Ward more.

Keys to the Game

• The run game was the story for the Ducks offense. RBs Bucky Irving and Jordan James both had monster days, and the Ducks averaged 7.8 yards per carry overall.

• Oregon struggled to pressure Washington State’s QB Cameron Ward early on, which let the Cougars open up their offense. But, in the second half, Oregon started to pressure Ward more, and the Cougars’ offense stalled.

• .Oregon’s defense was full of sure-tacklers today as nearly every Washington State receiver was wrapped up and brought down shortly after catching the ball.

Players of the Game

• Bo Nix: 18/25, 72% completion rate, 293 yards, 2 passing TDs, 1 rushing TD 196.8 passer rating

• Bucky Irving: 15 carries, 129 yards, 8.6 YPC, 3 total TDs, 3 receptions, 51 yards

• Jordan James: 13 carries, 103 yards, 7.9 YPC

• Tez Johnson: 6 catches, 94 yards, 1 TD, 76 yards after catch

• Evan Williams: 8 solo tackles, 6 assists, 1 sack

Key Stats

• Oregon averaged 7.8 yards per carry

• Bo Nix averaged 16.3 yards per completion

• Oregon only had 46 more yards of offense than Washington State (541 for Oregon and 495 for Washington State), but still won by double digits

• The Ducks sacked Cam Ward six times after initially struggling to create pressure

What’s Next

Next week, the Ducks will travel down to Utah to take on the Utes in Rice-Ecceles stadium, which is a very tricky playing environment. Utah has been without their QB1 Cam Rising all year, and he likely won’t be back by next Saturday. Still, the Utes won’t be a team that rolls over for the Ducks. In order to keep their playoff hopes alive, Oregon will need to win out from here, which will start with Utah.