When the No. 8 Oregon Ducks (8-1, 5-1 Big Ten) took the field Friday night against the unranked Minnesota Golden Gophers (6-3, 4-2), it was the first time in nearly a year the Ducks had played under their home lights.
Oregon got a late boost to its offense, as star tight end Kenyon Sadiq made his triumphant return to the gridiron. Sadiq immediately had an impact on the game, making an incredible diving catch to set up the first touchdown of the game.
After an unsuccessful rush from quarterback Dante Moore, the ball was handed off to running back Jordon Davison, who put the Ducks ahead 7-0 after the extra point was tacked on.
Oregon’s defense didn’t disappoint either, holding its opponent to negative yards on its first drive of the game.
The second drive of the game made it 14-0 in the Ducks’ favor, as Davison weaved through a swarm of Golden Gophers for his second six points of the quarter, marking his sixth multi-touchdown game of his collegiate career.
“One of the things that impressed me the most with Jordon is his intelligence,” head coach Dan Lanning said after the game. “He’s the guy that’s been out there blocking his tail off, and proving to be ready.”
The rest of the first quarter went scoreless, as two of the best defenses in the Big Ten squared off and proved their respective strengths.
The first drive of the second quarter went to Minnesota, and the Ducks’ defense stymied the Gophers once again. But Minnesota wouldn’t throw away this drive entirely, as it got its first-ever points at Autzen Stadium from a 46-yard field goal courtesy of Brady Denaburg.
The very next drive produced the signature play of the game, as running back Noah Whittington took the handoff from Moore and ran through a sea of defenders, breaking away with the ball and the play intact. As he reached the end zone, the ball came loose from his grasp, but Whittington was able to recover it for the touchdown.
21-3 was the score heading into the longest drive of the night, as the Golden Gophers took 15 snaps to get to the Oregon 8-yard line, where they eventually opted for the field goal. Denaburg sent the football between the uprights for three more points.
Moore, who finished the night 27-of-30 for 306 yards, threw a rare incomplete pass on the last full Oregon drive of the half, but his offense powered through. Kenyon Sadiq made two consecutive catches to close out the drive and give the Ducks yet another touchdown, making the score 28-6 as the half came to a close.
“I just got to give a shoutout to the 10 other players with me on the field,” said Moore after the game when asked about his night that saw him break the school record for pass completion rate at 90 percent, previously held by Marcus Mariota. “I mean, overall, I couldn’t do it without them.”
The Gophers seemed to learn from their mistakes in the first half by coming out swinging in the third quarter. The Oregon defense looked sluggish as it gave up its first touchdown of the game as Minnesota’s freshman quarterback Drake Lindsey found Javon Tracy in the endzone to put the Gophers’ tally at 13 after the PAT.
The next drive was a long one, and it ended in a nail-biting touchdown from Jeremiah McClellan.
“I had confidence it was a touchdown,” a smiling McClellan said postgame.
The play had to be reviewed, but was ultimately ruled a touchdown when it was decided that McClellan had his foot in bounds when making the catch.
The third quarter would end with a Ducks lead of 22 with a score of 35-13.
The fourth quarter would open with an Oregon drive, with the Minnesota quarterback, Lindsey, being sacked to close the third. Moore, on his last drive of the night, found every receiver, including Roger Saleapaga, who had a nice catch for 18 yards. Ultimately, Moore found Jay Harris, who rushed 12 yards for the final score of the night.
The Ducks are in action once again next Saturday, November 22, when they host the No. 17 USC Trojans. A kickoff time is TBD.