GO DUCKS!

Halftime Score: Ducks 17 - Cougars 17

1ST QUARTER: Washington State kicked off and Travis Dye fumbled the attempted return that luckily fell behind him for the touchback. A Jaylon Redd reverse was lucky to gain a yard and a CJ Verdell run gained five to make it 3rd-and-4.

Justin Herbert had trouble finding an open man and elected to run it himself for a 12-yard gain. Quarterback runs are a rare occurrence in this offense, yet Herbert ran on the proceeding play as well, though for only two yards this time. A false start by tight end Hunter Kampmoyer put the Ducks at 2nd-and-13 but Herbert was able to connect with Redd to gain six yards back on the next play. But on third and long, Misiona Aiolupotea-Pei was able to sack Herbert for a 10-yard loss, leading to a 39-yard punt from Maimone.

Starting at their own 25-yard line, Washington State was able to gain big yardage in just four passes, each going for double digits: Dezmon Patmon for 13, Brandon Arconado for 28 then 11, and a screen for running back Max Borghi who gained 18. However, back to back holding penalties on Liam Ryan put the Cougs from the 3-yard line to the 23-yard line, then a short gain by Patmon followed by consecutive incompletions led to a Blake Mazza 36-yard field goal.

Cougars 3 - Ducks 0

CJ Verdell began to pick up steam with carries of seven and then eight yards. Spencer Webb gained 17 yards on the next play after the Cougars were forced to respect the run and then the ball was given back to Verdell for gains of eight and six yards.

Cyrus Habibi-Likio entered the game but was only able to pick up one yard and then Herbert was forced to scramble and was barely caught by defensive lineman Will Rodgers III for a 3-yard gain. On 4th-and-3, Cristobal took a timeout to discuss their options with 3:16 left in the first quarter. And after the commercial break, Oregon elected to attempt a 40-yard field goal and were rewarded by freshman Camden Lewis.

Ducks 3 - Cougars 3

Washington State started their next drive at their own 29 and picked up 14 yards off the strong legs of Borghi, who was shaken up when Nick Pickett’s helmet crashed into his ribs. Easop Winston Jr. made his first catch of the game, a 4-yard reception, but Wazzu’s offense fell flat on the following two plays.

Jevon Holland signaled for the fair catch on the Oregon 11 and the Duck offense once again took the field. And on the first play of their third drive, Verdell took it to the house for an 89-yard touchdown. Lewis missed the extra point.

Ducks 9 - Cougars 3

Gordon completed a 2-yard pass to Patmon who was punished with a hard hit by Holland, and on the last play of the first quarter Borghi ran for three yards to make it 3rd-and-5 on the Wazzu 31.

2ND QUARTER: Washington State was able to pick up the first down on a 10-yard screen pass to Borghi and then another immediately after thanks to an 18-yard pass to Patmon. Borghi gained seven more yards and Arconado picked up the first down and then some on the next play, placing the Cougars at the Oregon 15.

Pressure got to Gordon forcing him to throw it away, and on the next play Arconado dropped a potential touchdown which bobbled its way into the hands of Verone McKinley III for the interception.

The Ducks went three-and-out on a drive that started at their own six after a couple of carries by Dye and a Herbert run fell short of the first down (though the spot of the ball on Herbert’s slide was questionable).

A personal foul on Daewood Davis gave the Cougars excellent field position and then another good run by Borghi had Wazzu at the Oregon 20. Gordon connected with Arconado on 4th-and-1 to get the Cougs at the Duck 2-yard line and two plays later Borghi pounded it in for the touchdown. Camden Lewis’ missed extra point bit the Ducks in the tail feathers when Mazza connected with his for the lead.

Cougars 10 - Ducks 9

Travis Dye took the kickoff to the 24-yard line. An outlet pass to Juwan Johnson picked up eight yards, then a 12-yard run by Verdell gave Oregon a first down. The running back picked up 13 more on his next carry but the momentum was momentarily stalled with an incomplete pass to Johnson.

Dye picked up three yards to make it 3rd-and-7 and Webb came up with another big reception in the middle of the field for an 18-yard gain. Washington State took a timeout at the 4:30 mark with Oregon just outside of the red zone.

Coming back from the break, Rodgers was able to sack Herbert for an 11-yard loss, which seemed to affect Herbert’s next throw - an attempted screenpass to Redd that fell short. A completed pass to Dye resulted in chaos on both sides as Juwan Johnson was called for an illegal block and Washington State was called for targeting by Travion Brown. The penalties offset, Brown was ejected, and Dye’s fumble was given back to the Ducks who replayed the third and long.

The result of the 3rd-and -21 was a 6-yard sack by Ron Stone Jr and Oregon was forced to punt. After the touchback, Wazzu started the drive with a false start, then a Mase Funa sack put the Cougs at their own 5. Gordon was forced to throw away the ball and suddenly Washington State was had a 3rd-and-25.

Despite the fact that Gordon needed 25 yards to move the chains and was deep in his own end zone, the quarterback decided to throw it deep to the middle of the field where Holland was eager to snatch it up for a 19-yard pick six. Johnny Johnson III was able to bring in the two-point conversion despite taking a big hit in the back of the end zone.

Ducks 17 - Cougars 10

The Cougars were able to drive down the field after a 36-yard kickoff return in which safety Jamal Hill was injured. A 21-yard pass to Arconado got things going, then an 8-yard run by Borghi continued their success. Two penalties were called on Oregon: one a pass interference by Lenoir and the other an unsportsmalike on a furious Cristobal. The PI was wiped out after it was made clear that the receiver stepped out of bounds, but on the next play Renard Bell was able to score off a short pass which went for a 15-yard touchdown.

Cougars 17 - Ducks 17

A boneheaded unsportsmanlike on Brady Breeze put the Ducks at their own 20 and Herbert was able to earn a first down after a couple of quick passes. Herbert was unable to connect with Pittman and Oregon ended the quarter with a Habibi-Likio run.

-END OF HALF-

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