University of Oregon
4-1 , 1-1
California
3-1 , 0-1
Ducks Leave Doubts In Their Wake
09/29/18 | Football
No. 19 Oregon bounced back from defeat to win its first Pac-12 road game since 2016, knocking off No. 24 California on Saturday, 42-24.
Seven days after a string of unlikely events resulted in Stanford coming from behind to win in Eugene, the UO football team finished strong Saturday night against No. 24 California.
As was the case seven days previous, Oregon took a commanding lead in the first half but left the door open for a comeback, before a pick-six by Ugochukwu Amadi and a last-minute interception by Jevon Holland clinched a 42-24 victory.
"After a tough loss last week, they really took it upon themselves to get right down to business," UO coach Mario Cristobal said. "… There was really not much to be said, but a lot to do. We did a lot tonight."
The 19th-ranked Ducks entered their bye week at 4-1 overall and 1-1 in Pac-12 play, having made significant progress under first-year coach Mario Cristobal. They'll have an extra week to prepare for their rivalry game against defending conference champion Washington, on Oct. 13 in Autzen Stadium.
Oregon took a 28-10 lead into halftime Saturday, after a 21-point explosion in the second quarter capped by La'Mar Winston Jr. returning a fumble 61 yards for a touchdown. The Ducks led 35-10 when Cal scored twice to get within 35-24, but Amadi provided another touchdown from the UO defense on a pick-six with 3:02 left.
"There's no bigger momentum changer than a pick-six," Cristobal said. "Can't say enough Ugo. Can't say enough about those guys continuing to fight."
Oregon played without starting tight end Jake Breeland and starting defensive end Austin Faoliu due to injuries, and senior running back Tony Brooks-James was limited to special teams participation. It didn't matter, as tight end Kano Dillon caught a touchdown pass for Oregon's first points, freshmen CJ Verdell and Travis Dye handled the rushing load, and defensive end Drayton Carlberg had two sacks in the first half — the second forcing the fumble Winston returned for a TD.
"Coach Cristobal preaches fundamentals and working on what you need to work on to help the team," Carlberg said. "We take that serious as individuals, and as a team. So that helps us, when people go down; the next man is able to step in and we don't miss a beat."
Dye led the team in rushing with 115 yards and a touchdown, and Verdell added 106 yards, bouncing back from his turnover late in the Stanford game. Justin Herbert completed 16-of-22 passes for 225 yards and two touchdown, connecting several times again with Dillon Mitchell, who caught seven balls for 105 yards and a score.
Troy Dye led the defense with 11 tackles. None was bigger than a stop on fourth-and-goal from the UO 1-yard line, in the midst of Cal's second-half surge.
"It was huge," Carlberg said. "We haven't won one (on the road) in a while. It was big for our momentum as a team."
Team Stats
ORE 0, CAL 3
CAL - Thomas, Greg 25 yd field goal 15 plays, 72 yards, TOP 7:29
ORE 7, CAL 3
ORE - Dillon, Kano 30 yd pass from Herbert, Justin (Stack, Adam kick) 8 plays, 74 yards, TOP 3:18
ORE 7, CAL 10
CAL - McIlwain, Brand 28 yd run (Thomas, Greg kick), 11 plays, 90 yards, TOP 5:16
ORE 14, CAL 10
ORE - Dye, Travis 45 yd run (Stack, Adam kick), 8 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:40
ORE 21, CAL 10
ORE - Mitchell, D. 36 yd pass from Herbert, Justin (Stack, Adam kick) 4 plays, 81 yards, TOP 1:11
ORE 28, CAL 10
ORE - Winston Jr., L. 61 yd fumble recovery (Stack, Adam kick)
ORE 35, CAL 10
ORE - Habibi-Likio, C 1 yd run (Stack, Adam kick), 3 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:31
ORE 35, CAL 17
CAL - Laird, Patrick 10 yd run (Thomas, Greg kick), 6 plays, 65 yards, TOP 2:32
ORE 35, CAL 24
CAL - Duncan, Jordan 1 yd pass from McIlwain, Brand (Thomas, Greg kick) 7 plays, 97 yards, TOP 3:04
ORE 42, CAL 24
ORE - Amadi, U. 32 yd interception (Stack, Adam kick)
