FB | No. 19 Oregon Left Shellshocked in 44-15 Loss at Arizona

No. 19 Oregon football fell for its consecutive weekend on the road, this time in shocking fashion after Arizona’s dominant 44-15 win. The loss was highlighted by the Ducks inability to move the ball with the Wildcats outgaining them 465 to 270. It was an especially rough night for quarterback Justin Herbert, who finished the night 24-48 for just 186 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Oregon didn’t help out their quarterback out much either, with only 84 yards coming on the ground after 23 attempts. It was all too familiar of a start on offense for Oregon, which in the first 10 plays amassed just 28 yards on four drives that resulted in three separate three-and-outs and a fumble from Travis Dye. By the time the Ducks tallied a first down, Arizona already led the game 10-0. Two more field goals from Josh Pollack extended the lead to 16-0 before Oregon finally found some rhythm on offense thanks to Dillon Mitchell, who capped off a seven play, 75 yard drive with a 29-yard touchdown reception off a screen. The Wildcats issued a slow and methodical response on an impressive 18 play, 88 yard drive that ended in a JJ Taylor touchdown run. For the second straight week, Oregon went into halftime facing a big deficit with Arizona in control 23-8. Unlike last week, the nightmarish night on offense continued into the third quarter for Oregon. After intercepting a Khalil Tate pass on the first play of the half, the Ducks again went three-and-out and the Wildcats converted the ensuing possession into a touchdown pass to Shawn Poindexter for his second of the game. A sixth three-and-out on the night and then a fumble on a punt gave Arizona the ball again, which Tate turned into seven more points with a 27-yard touchdown pass to Shun Brown. Oregon didn’t find the end zone again until the fourth quarter, when Justin Herbert led the offense on a 14 play, 74 yard drive that ended in a 7 yard touchdown catch by Brenden Schooler to cut the lead to 37-15. Arizona wasn’t through with the fireworks; however, as Taylor flipped in for a 19 yard touchdown for good measure and a 44-15 lead that held until the clock struck zero. Oregon falls to 5-3 on the season with a 2-3 mark in Pac-12 play. The Ducks will host UCLA next Saturday at 4:30 p.m. in Eugene. Listen below to the full postgame audio and game stories from Saturday’s loss below.

GAME STORIES

Deja Vu for Duck Offense in Shocking Loss at Arizona (by Alex Castle)