Quack Fix: Reviewing Washington State, Week 5 in College Football

Football Roundup

A live look-in at every Oregon football fan having a cup of coffee this morning:

• Washington State (2-2, 1-0), a typically pass-happy bunch, rushed for six touchdowns to topple Oregon (2-3, 0-2) last night, 51-33. With that, the Ducks dropped their third straight contest for the first time since 2007. This is definitely not ideal.
• Look out, Ducks! Next week’s competition is taking no Ls. No. 10 Washington (5-0, 2-0 Pac-12) pummeled No. 7 Stanford (3-1, 2-1 Pac-12), 44-6, to highlight a rather humdrum Friday night in college football.
• Taking a look at the rest of the Pac-12… After topping Oregon last week, Colorado (4-1, 2-0) continued to roll, bulldozing Oregon State (1-3, 0-1) on Saturday, 47-6. The Buffalo’s 41-point margin of victory marks their largest in conference play since 1992… California (3-2, 1-1) secured a 28-23 upset over No. 18 Utah (4-1, 1-1) with a last-second, goal-line stand.

• More Pac-12: The Sun Devils’ early-season energy came to a lull, as USC (2-3, 1-2) pulled out a much-needed 41-20 win over Arizona State (4-1, 1-1)… Rounding out conference play, the Bruins scored 31 unanswered points in the second half, as UCLA (3-2, 1-1) throttled its way to a 45-24 win over Arizona (2-3, 0-2).
• Craziness ensued across the country… Senior quarterback Josh Dobbs hit wide receiver Jauan Jennings with a wild, 43-yard Hail Mary on the game’s final play, as No. 11 Tennessee stunned No. 25 Georgia, 34-31.

• Louisville-Clemson certainly lived up to the hype. In a back-and-forth affair, Deshaun Watson and the No. 5 Tigers knocked off Lamar Jackson and the No. 3 Cardinals, 42-36, forcing wide receiver James Quick out of bounds on fourth down with 33 seconds remaining.

• Nick Weiler booted a last-second, 54-yard field goal to lift North Carolina to a 37-35 dub over No. 12 Florida State. The Tar Heels kicker then sealed his moniker as ‘the most hated man in Tallahassee’ when he continued to taunt the Seminoles with a tomahawk chop. Classic.

• Wolverines cornerback Jourdan Lewis made an acrobatic, one-handed interception late in the fourth quarter to seal a 14-7 win for No. 4 Michigan over No. 8 Wisconsin… More on the Wolverines, what is this centipede formation all about?!

Leave it to Jim Harbaugh to keep it interesting on an uneventful night in college football. Sarcasm, of course.

All Things Ducks

With every athletic event on the road, it was a quiet week in Eugene. Still, teams made a lot of noise, pulling out dubs across all sports (except football… and futbol, coincidentally).

• The Oregon women’s soccer team (6-4-1, 0-2-0) fell 3-1 in the Pac-12 home opener against No. 9 USC on Thursday. Taylor Kuroda spoiled the Trojans’ shutout, scoring the game’s final goal in the 76th minute.
• Women’s volleyball (11-2, 4-0) posted a pair of road wins this week, topping Arizona State 3-2 on Friday and Arizona 3-1 on Saturday. The Ducks outlasted the Sun Devils in five (25-21, 17-25, 24-26, 25-9, 15-7) and the Wildcats in four (25-19, 21-25, 25-17, 26-24) to win their 11th straight match.
• In his 2016 debut, Edward Cheserek paced the Oregon men’s cross country team to a first-place finish at the Washington Invitational, while freshman Katie Rainsberger led the women’s team to a second-place ending at Jefferson Park Golf Course in Seattle, Wash.

Drop any other pieces in the comments. Before I say goodbye, say hello to HI-LIGHTS!

Happy commenting!