Oregon & Masoli come back to beat the Cats

2009 Oregon Ducks ... Head Coach: Chip Kelly

- 2009 Oregon Preview
- 2008 Oregon Season
- 2008 Oregon Preview
- 2007 Oregon Season

2009 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 10-2
2009 Record: 9-2

9/3 at Boise St L 19-8
9/12 Purdue W 38-36
9/19 Utah W 31-24
9/26 California W 42-3
10/3 Wash St W 52-6
10/10 at UCLA W 24-10
10/17 OPEN DATE
10/24 at Wash W 43-19
10/31 USC W 47-20
11/7 at Stanford L 51-42
11/14 Arizona St W 44-21
11/21 at Arizona W 44-41 2OT
11/28 OPEN DATE
12/3 Oregon State

2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 9-3
2008 Record: 9-3

8/30 Washington W 44-10
9/6 Utah State W 66-24
9/13 at Purdue W 32-26 2OT
9/20 Boise State L 37-32
9/27 at Wash State W 63-14
10/4 at USC L 44-10
10/11 UCLA W 31-24
10/18 OPEN DATE
10/25 at Arizona St W 54-20
11/1 at California L 26-16
11/8 Stanford W 35-28
11/15 Arizona W 55-45
11/22 OPEN DATE
11/29 at Oregon St W 65-38
Holiday Bowl
12/30 Oklahoma St W 42-31

Oregon Ducks

Nov. 21
Oregon 44 … at Arizona 41 2OT
Jeremiah Masoli connected with Ed Dickson for an eight-yard touchdown with six seconds to play to force overtime, he found Jeff Maehl for a four-yard touchdown pass in the first overtime, and won the game on a one-yard run in the second. Arizona never had control of the game, but it had a chance to hold late in regulation for the win after Juron Criner took a Nick Foles pass 71 yards for a touchdown, but Masoli was able to lead the way to the game-tying drive. Arizona answered in OT with a Criner three-yard touchdown catch, his third of the game, but only came up with a 41-yard Alex Zendejas field goal in the second OT. Foles threw four touchdown passes in the see-saw game, but Masoli was able to run for three touchdowns and helped the Ducks get up early on a nine-yard scoring pass to Maehl. Oregon outgained Arizona 459 yards to 441.
Player of the Game: Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli completed 26-of47 passes for 284 yards and three touchdowns with an interception, and he ran 16 times for 61 yards and three scores.
Arizona: Passing: Nick Fles, 30-46, 314 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Greg Nwoko, 16-58, Receiving: Juron Criner, 5-93, 3 TD
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 26-47, 284 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: LaMichael James, 19-117, Receiving: Jeff Maehl, 12-114, 2 TD
What It All Means: And now Oregon has the Pac 10 title in its hands. Thanks to the clutch play of Jeremiah Masoli, and an efficient day from LaMichael James, who didn’t do too much until late, the Ducks were able to survive and move into a position to go to the Rose Bowl with a win over Oregon State in two weeks. The offense didn’t work perfectly, it sputtered for a long stretch after the Ducks got up 14-0, but Masoli was able to relax in the charged up setting and make the plays he needed to.

Nov. 14
at Oregon 44 … Arizona State 21
LaMichael James ran for scores from four, two and four yards out in the first half, and Ed Dickson caught a nine-yard touchdown pass, as Oregon got up 31-7 at halftime. ASU made it interesting as backup QB Samson Szakacsy stepped in and ran for a one-yard score and threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Kyle Williams to pull the team within ten, but Masoli put the game away on a 21-yard scoring play to Jeff Maehl. LeGarrette Blount didn’t get off the bench.
Player of the Game: Oregon RB LaMichael James ran 22 times for 150 yards and three touchdowns.
Arizona State: Passing: Samson Szakacsy, 13-22, 113 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Dimitri Nance, 26-77, 1 TD, Receiving: Chris McGaha, 5-45
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 10-30, 120 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: LaMichael James, 22-150, 3 TD, Receiving: Jeffrey Maehl, 4-62, 1 TD 
What It All Means: The Sun Devils are in trouble after losing four straight to all but get knocked out of the bowl hunt. Now the team needs to beat both UCLA at UCLA and Arizona, and while the defense is good enough to do it, the offense needs to be more consistent. The insertion of Samson Szakacsy at quarterback provided a spark and some life, but the Bruins will get a week to prepare for him; Oregon didn’t do that. On the plus side, the D held the high-powered Ducks to 388 yards, but in a game like this, 211 yards of offense and nine penalties were going to be a killer.

Nov. 7
at Stanford 51 … Oregon 42
In a wild shootout with 1,075 yards of total offense, Toby Gerhart ran for a career-high 224 yards with three scores and Andrew Luck threw two touchdown passes to give Stanford the huge win. The Cardinal was up 31-14 at halftime before Oregon came roaring back with two of Jeremiah Masoli’s three touchdown passes, including a 40-yarder to Jamere Holland and a 21-yard pass to D.J. Davis to pull within six late, but Stanford was able to ice it on a 48-yard Nate Whitaker field goal. Stanford held on to the ball for 37:43.
Player of the Game: Stanford RB Toby Gerhart ran 38 times for 224 yards and three scores.
Stanford: Passing: Andrew Luck, 12-30, 251 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Toby Gerhart, 38-223, 3 TD, Receiving: Chris Owusu, 4-111, 1 TD
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 21-37, 334 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: LaMichael James, 18-125, 1 TD, Receiving: Jeffrey Maehl, 5-66, 1 TD
What It All Means: Oregon might have gotten whacked by the Cardinal, but there aren’t any problems as long as there are no more mistakes. The Ducks are still in the driver’s seat for the Rose Bowl by winning out, but the defense ahs to tighten up in a big hurry after being run over and passed on. Call this a wake-up call, and also call it a positive moment as the passing game blew up with Jeremiah Masoli throwing for 334 yards. There aren’t any issues with the offense, and the D isn’t going to have any problems with Arizona State next week. 

Oct. 31
at Oregon 47 … USC 20
Oregon stunned USC by pounding away for 613 yards of total offense including 391 on the ground. With the game tied at 17 late in the second quarter, the Ducks rolled the rest of the way outscoring the Trojans 27 to 3 with Jeremiah Masoli connecting with Jamere Holland for a 17-yard score and LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner each running for short scores late in the third. USC cranked out 327 yards with Matt Barkley throwing two short second quarter touchdown passes, but the offense couldn’t keep up in the second half. Oregon averaged eight yards per carry.
Player of the Game: Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli completed 19-of-31 passes for 222 yards and a score and ran 13 times for 164 yards and a score.
USC: Passing: Matt Barkley, 21-38, 187 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Joe McKnight, 15-95, Receiving: Damian Williams, 9-82, 1 TD
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 19-31, 222 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: LaMichael James, 24-183, 1 TD, Receiving: Jeffrey Maehl, 4-54 
What It All Means: In a dominant performance that established the program as one of the elite in the nation, Oregon rumbled at will and USC had no answer for Jeremiah Masoli or LaMichael James running the ball. The defense did its part, especially in the second half, led by T.J. Ward who made ten tackles with a tackle for loss and an interception. Now the Rose Bowl is there for the taking, but there’s a tough game at Stanford next week and sure shootouts against Arizona State, Arizona, and Oregon State to follow.

Oct. 24
Oregon 43 … at Washington 19
Oregon got a blocked punt for a score and two touchdown runs from Jeremiah Masoli and two from LaMichael James in the blowout. The Ducks got up 36-6 before Washington got in the end zone on a one-yard Chris Polk run in the fourth quarter, but James answered with a 56-yard James touchdown run. Oregon outgained the Huskies on the ground 259 yards to 129.
Player of the Game: Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli completed 14-of-22 passes for 157 yards and a score, and ran 11 times for 54 yards and two scores.
Washington: Passing: Jake Locker, 23-44, 266 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Chris Polk, 18-104, 1 TD, Receiving: Devin Aguilar, 8-87
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 14-22, 157 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: LaMichael James, 15-154, 2 TD, Receiving: D.J. Davis, 4-45, 1 TD 
What It All Means: Jeremiah Masoli’s knee appeared to be more than fine as he ran and cut well and he was accurate and careful throwing it. The offense is getting all the attention, and it should with LaMichael James averaging 10.3 yards per carry against the Huskies, but the defense is also coming up big allowing just six points when the game was still in doubt. Now it’s time to focus fully on USC, and if the Ducks can win that, it’s Rose Bowl or bust time. The team is playing good enough to do it.

Oct. 10
Oregon 24 … at UCLA 10
UCLA held a 3-0 halftime lead, and then it was all Oregon as Kenjon Barner took the second half kickoff 100 yards for a score, Talmadge Jackson returned an interception 32 yards for a score, and Jeff Maehl caught a pass for a 20-yard touchdown as Oregon scored 21 points in less than four minutes. UCLA’s offense sputtered, but the defense came up with a touchdown on a brilliant interception in the end zone by Akeem Ayers for a score. UCLA finished with just 211 yards of offense.
Player of the Game: Oregon RB LaMichael James ran 20 times for 152 yards, and he caught two passes for eight yards.
UCLA: Passing: Kevin Prince, 13-25, 81 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Johnathan Franklin, 9-32, Receiving: Taylor Embree, 5-50
Oregon: Passing: Nate Costa, 9-17, 82 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: LaMichael James 20-152, Receiving: Ed Dickson, 3-24
What It All Means: LaMichael James is carrying the team. Nate Costa wasn’t miserable at quarterback, but he wasn’t Jeremiah Masoli. Yet the ground game kept on rolling as James was able to pound out 152 yards and help keep the Duck offense moving after the 21-point flurry in the early third quarter. UCLA’s offense wasn’t going to do much of anything without getting several breaks, and outside of an interception, there weren’t any from Costa. The defense is playing at a high level with a tremendous pass rush fueling everything else, and against Washington next week, getting to Jake Locker and keeping him under pressure will be the key.

Oct. 3
at Oregon 52 … Washington State 6
Oregon dominated on both sides of the ball getting out to a 42-0 halftime lead and holding Wazzu scoreless until late in the third. LaMichael James ran for two first quarter touchdowns and Jeremiah Masoli threw a 26-yard touchdown pass to Ed Dickson and ran for a one-yard score before leaving the game with a sore knee. Washington State was outgained 514 yards to 158 and came up with just four first downs.
Player of the Game: Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli completed 14-of-18 passes for 166 yards and a touchdown, and he ran seven times for 52 yards and a score.
Washington State: Passing: Marshall Loebbestael, 7-13, 48 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Carl Winston, 7-56, Receiving: Jared Karstetter, 2-12
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 14-18, 116 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: LaMichael James, 13-81, 2 TD, Receiving: Ed Dickson, 7-103, 1 TD 
What It All Means: The machine is humming at just the right time. After blasting Cal, the production kept on rolling in the layup against Washington State. Jeremiah Masoli has to stay healthy, and while his knee injury isn’t a big deal, he might have to take it a little bit easy at UCLA and Washington over the next few weeks before playing USC. He’s not going to stop running, but he needs to rely on the rest of the weapons even more. No tight end in America is playing better than Ed Dickson at the moment.

Sept. 26
at Oregon 42 … California 3
Oregon got down 3-0 on a 47-yard Vince D’’Amato field goal, and then the dismantling began. Jeremiah Masoli connected with tight end Ed Dickson on touchdown passes from 26, nine, and 36 yards away and LaMichael James and Remene Alston each ran for short scores as the Ducks ripped off 42 unanswered points and finished with 524 yards of total offense. Cal was held to 207 yards with just 77 on the ground.
Player of the Game: Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli completed 21-of-25 passes for 253 yards and three touchdowns, and he ran for 21 yards.
California: Passing: Kevin Riley, 12-31, 123 yds
Rushing: Jahvid Best, 16-55, Receiving: Verran Tucker, 3-71
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 21-25, 253 yds, 3 TD
Rushing: LaMichael James, 21-118, 1 TD, Receiving: Ed Dickson, 11-148, 3 TD 
What It All Means: Now there’s the Oregon we were all waiting for. This is the Oregon that ripped through everyone at the end of last year and was supposed to be hot from the start. Jeremiah Masoli bounced back in a huge way from the fiasco against Utah last week to be nearly perfect, while Ed Dickson showed off why many NFL scouts think he’ll be making a lot of money next year at this time. Now the key is to keep up the momentum. As rocky as the start of the season was, Oregon is 1-0 in the Pac 10 and in command with the toughest games (like USC) in Autzen.

Sept. 19
at Oregon 31 … Utah 24
It wasn’t pretty, but Oregon ended the nation’s longest winning streak at 16 games thanks to a 78-yard punt return for a touchdown from Walter Thurmond early in the first quarter and helped by a career-day from LaMichael James. James ran for 152 yards with a three-yard touchdown to help overcome a pathetic day from Jeremiah Masoli and the Duck passing game. Masoli ran for scores from 22 and four yards out, but he only completed 4-of-16 passes. Utah, down 21-7, rallied with a 22-yard touchdown catch from Jereme Brooks and a 28-yard fumble return for a score from Robert Johnson, but Oregon was able to put the game away with a 31-yard Morgan Flint field goal and held on with a John Boyett interception on the five in the final moments..
Player of the Game: Oregon RB LaMichael James ran 27 times for 152 yards and a score and caught a pass for three yards.
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 4-16, 95 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: LaMichael James, 27-152, 1 TD, Receiving: Jeffrey Maehl, 1-58
Utah: Passing: Terrance Cain, 20-41, 178 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Terrance Cain, 16-68, 1 TD, Receiving: David Reed, 5-48
What It All Means: While LaMichael James might not be LeGarrette Blount, the sophomore was terrific against Utah and could turn out to be the focal point of the offense. The Oregon defense came up with a whale of a performance, keeping the Utes to 297 yards and surviving even though the offense turned it over four times and Jeremiah Masoli couldn’t do anything with the passing attack. Considering how the season started, a win is a win, and now the Ducks are 2-1 with Cal coming to town to start the Pac 10 season. 

Sept. 12
at Oregon 38 ... Purdue 36
Oregon survived a thriller as Purdue's Kyle Adams caught a two-point conversion attempt, that would've tied the game with just over a minute to play, out of bounds following a 15-yard Aaron Valentin touchdown grab. The Boilermakers outgained the Ducks 451 yards to 356, but they couldn't keep up the pace in the second half as Bryson Littlejohn returned a fumble 28 yards for a score and Jeremiah Masoli ran for a 15-yard touchdown for a 31-24 Oregon lead going into the fourth. Purdue got a 22-yard Ralph Bolden touchdown dash, his second score of the game, but the extra point was blocked, the Ducks answered with a 21-yard Kenjon Barner touchdown grab to go up eight, and they had all the points they'd need. The Oregon D also got in the act in the second quarter with an 18-yard Walter Thurmond interception for a score.
Player of the Game: Oregon LB Casey Matthews made 12 tackles with an interception and a tackle for loss.
Purdue: Passing: Joey Elliott, 24-41, 266 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Ralph Bolden, 29-123, 2 TD, Receiving: Aaron Valentin, 8-82, 1 TD
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 11-21, 163 yds
Rushing: Jeremiah Masoli, 14-84, 1 TD, Receiving: Jeffrey Maehl, 5-49
What It All Means: And the replacement for LeGarrette Blount was ... Jeremiah Masoli? With the star back out for the year, Oregon relied more on its quarterback, and he came through. But in a strange way, after allowing 451 yards of offense and 30 points, it was the Oregon defense that pulled off the win with two scores and a late stop on a two-point conversion. There's a lot of work to be done, the team is still extremely shaky, but a win is a win for a program in turmoil. 

Sept. 3
Boise State 19 … Oregon 8
In a game that’ll be remembered more for Oregon RB LeGarrette Blount punching Boise State’s Byron Hout after the game than for the stifling Bronco defense, the Ducks were held to just six first downs and 152 yards of total offense. Boise State held the Ducks to no first downs and just 14 yards of total offense on the way to a 13-0 lead, but failed to put the game away. The Broncos got a ten-yard touchdown catch form Austin Pettis to start off the scoring and a 45-yard Kyle Brotzman field goal for the halftime lead, and took a 19-0 lead on a one-yard D.J. Harper run. But Oregon hung around with a five-yard touchdown run from Jeremiah Masoli after getting great field position, but that’s all the Ducks could manage.
Player of the Game: Boise State QB Kellen Moore completed 19-of-29 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown.
Oregon: Passing: Jeremiah Masoli, 14-27, 121 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: LaMichael James, 2-22, Receiving: Jeff Maehl, 5-45
Boise State: Passing: Kellen Moore, 19-29, 197 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: D.J. Harper, 19-88, 1 TD, Receiving: Austin Pettis, 6-68, 1 TD
What It All Means: The Chip Kelly era couldn't have gotten off to a more disastrous start. From the lack of offense in the loss to Boise State, to the deer-in-the-headlights look the defense had when the Broncos were running wild, to the LeGarrette Blount punch, now is when Oregon will see what it really has in Kelly. Step one will be do figure out how to go on without Blount, because he can't be a part of the team at the moment, and step two will be to convince the team that the year is still salvageable. This might have been an embarrassing clunker, but the goals of winning the Pac 10 title and getting to the BCS can still be achieved. To do that, QB Jeremiah Masoli has to be sharper, the defense has to be tougher against the run, and the team has to show an angry spark, and not in the Blount way, against Purdue. The Ducks appeared to be way too lifeless against the Broncos.