Oregon Ducks 7-2 Overall (5-1 Conference)

This Week’s Score: Stanford 51 – Oregon 42

Next Week’s Opponent: Arizona State

Heading into Saturday’s game against Stanford, Oregon had given up 58 points combined in five games in conference play.

The Ducks gave up just a touchdown less than that against the Stanford Cardinal.

The slow offensive start might have been expected as the Ducks were coming off of the huge USC win, but nobody could have seen one of the Pac-10’s best defenses getting completely destroyed for four quarters coming.

Andrew Luck and Chris Owusu chipped in with great games, but the recipe for disaster in this game came down to one man; Toby Gerhart. The Ducks had no answer for Gerhart, who had a career day rushing for 223 yards and three touchdowns on 38 carries.

Jeremiah Masoli had a career day as well, throwing for a career high 334 yards and matching his career high in passing touchdowns with three. Masoli’s great day through the air will do little to lift Duck fans’ spirits. 42 points on 570 yards on offense wasn’t the problem at all, even with the slow start; the defense never gave their team a chance.

In a remarkable turn of events, the focus has shifted from worrying about Boise State and the National Championship race to hanging on for dear life to the Pac-10 title. Not only do the Ducks find themselves on the wrong side of most of the potential three-team tiebreakers, but with Oregon State’s win over Cal, the game against their hated rival just became a must win. Assuming Oregon State beats Washington and Washington State, the Beavers will be playing for (at minimum) a share of the Pac-10 lead come the final game of the season.

And you think they might have a chip on their shoulder after Oregon cost them the Rose Bowl last year?

Arizona State’s weak offense could help get Oregon’s D back on track, but as a team, it is important for the Ducks not to ignore ASU looking forward to the big showdown @Arizona. The last thing the Ducks need is to open even more doors for the rest of the conference or plant more seeds of doubt.

It should be a wild ride down the stretch, but Oregon is still in the driver’s seat as they still control their own destiny.

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