Sunday Notebook: Two What-If Moments, Uncharacteristic Offense And More

With his two interceptions in Saturday's loss at Washington State, UO sophomore cornerback Deommodore Lenoir is up to three for the season. That has him tied for the Pac-12 lead with three other players — including teammates Ugochukwu Amadi and Jevon Holland — and put the Ducks atop the conference with 11 as a team.

Of all the plays that stand out from the 34-20 loss to the Cougars, it's a potential 12th interception by the Oregon defense this season that might have resulted in the Ducks completing an epic comeback. That was one of two "50/50 balls" on Saturday that Oregon appeared to have a hand on at first, but couldn't come down with — plays that could have tilted the scales Saturday.

To be sure, the Ducks' ice-cold first half was the decisive factor in the outcome. Oregon's typically punishing run game was ineffective, and the defense struggled to cover all the options created by WSU's "Air Raid" offense. The Ducks trailed 27-0 at halftime, more than any team could reasonably expect to overcome.

And yet …

When the Ducks rallied within 27-20 early in the fourth quarter, it was hard not to look back in anguish at a Hail Mary just before halftime that was nearly answered. And even without that, Oregon's comeback bid momentarily still had life when it looked like Holland had picked off a pass during WSU's final scoring drive, only to have WSU's Travell Harris come down with it.

Oregon had just kicked a field goal to get within 27-20, and the Cougars had a pass on first down of the ensuing drive batted down at the line by La'Mar Winston Jr. On second-and-10, quarterback Gardner Minshew threw deep under pressure, a jump ball toward Harris — who was being blanketed by Holland.

They leapt in unison, and each got a hand on the ball. For the briefest of moments, it looked as though Holland had control as they fell to the ground. Oregon's comeback bid had new life.

"When we thought he picked it," sophomore receiver Jaylon Redd said, "we definitely thought we had it."

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Instead, Harris ended up in possession. The gain was 37 yards, into UO territory. Four plays later, the Cougars converted a fourth down, and two plays after that Minshew threw the game-clinching TD pass.

That touchdown ended a run of 20 straight points by Oregon. And that might have been 27, had the Ducks converted a Hail Mary on the penultimate play of the first half.

With WSU up 27-0 in the waning seconds of the second quarter, Oregon faced fourth-and-two from the WSU 46-yard line. UO quarterback Justin Herbert dropped back, and his receivers flooded the left side of the field. As they neared the end zone, Herbert unleashed a bomb in their direction.

The throw ended up just short of where a scrum of Ducks and Cougars had massed. Junior receiver Dillon Mitchell tracked the ball in flight, adjusted to its path, jumped to catch it but couldn't secure the touchdown reception. Oregon went into halftime still scoreless.

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"He was able to make a play on it," Herbert said. "Unfortunately he didn't catch it, but I have complete trust in him to make that play nine times out of 10."

If the quarterback and receiver connect there, all else being equal, Adam Stack's field goal in the fourth quarter ties the game. Then, an interception by Holland would have left the Ducks with more than 5 minutes on the clock to mount a game-winning scoring drive.

The outcome certainly didn't come down to those two plays. But they illustrated the fight Oregon showed despite digging themselves into an early hole, and how close the Ducks might have come to an historic comeback.

Oregon came into Saturday atop the Pac-12 in third-down efficiency on offense, an area where the Ducks struggled against the Cougars.

Oregon failed to convert its first eight third-down opportunities Saturday evening. The first conversion only came because of a WSU penalty, and the Ducks didn't convert one on their own until late in the third quarter.

Over half of the Ducks' third-down conversions came on one drive, late in the third quarter and culminating in the touchdown reception by Redd. The Ducks were 3-for-3 on that possession, their first three third-down conversions of the game.

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"We didn't execute the same stuff (in the first half) that we executed in the second half," head coach Mario Cristobal said. "It wasn't like there was a miraculous game-plan change."

The Ducks ended up 5-of-16 on third down in the game. Some of that was due to the struggles of the running game on first down and second down; Oregon's average distance needed on third down Saturday was 7.5 yards.

"We were constantly in third-and-long, and that's tough," Herbert said.

The Ducks saw their rushing average plummet by more than 20 yards after finishing with 58 yards on Saturday. Oregon had been rushing for 209.5 yards per game, a number that dropped to 187.9 following the loss to WSU.

An inability to establish the run set up those issues on third down. On first and second down in the first quarter, the Ducks netted one yard on four snaps, not counting penalties. They were at 10 yards on nine snaps on first down and second down until opening the final possession of the first half with a 21-yard reception by tight end Kano Dillon.

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The blocking of tight ends like Dillon, Jacob Breeland and Ryan Bay played an unsung role in Oregon's prolific rushing attack over the first half of the regular season. WSU accounted for them in a way that derailed the Ducks, offensive lineman Shane Lemieux said.

"We pride ourselves on running the football," Lemieux said. "Wazzu dialed it up well. They targeted our tight ends … and really took them out of the game."

Not to be overlooked in the disappointment of defeat was a solid night in the kicking game for the Ducks.

Stack bounced back from a miss against Washington by making both of his field-goal attempts at WSU. And punter Blake Maimone averaged 45.7 yards on three attempts, putting him at 44.6 yards per punt on the season; if he had enough attempts to qualify, Maimone would rank third in the Pac-12.

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In the return game, WSU put all of its kickoffs into the end zone for touchbacks. But Amadi's only punt return was for 22 yards, setting up Oregon's drive to Stack's first field goal.

The Ducks' kick coverage unit did allow a 38-yard return to open the game — with kicker Zach Emerson making the tackle — giving fuel to what already was a raucous crowd. But the only other WSU kickoff return ended inside the 20-yard line, and Oregon's punt coverage team allowed just two yards on the only return it had to cover.