Special Teams Spark Oregon Win Over Washington State

De'Anthony Thomas breaks into the open field against the Cougars
(Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)

LaMichael James and Darron Thomas returned to a loud ovation Saturday afternoon as they looked to shake the rust off against the Washington State Cougars. Thomas connected on a 55 yard touch down pass to Lavasier Tuinei but also accounted for two interceptions and was pulled in favor of back up Bryan Bennett at the half as Chip Kelly commented that he felt Bennett gave them the best opportunity to win the game. Coach Kelly has hinted at the fact that much of the reason for Thomas' benching was as much to protect his injury for later in the season as much as it was riding Bennett's hot streak.

Special teams set the tone early as the Ducks opened the game with a three and out on defense. Avery Patterson broke through around the corner to get his hands on the punt and Boseko Lokombo picked up the ball to put the Ducks on the board first. Jackson Rice completed a short pass to Alejandro Maldenado for the two point conversion to put Oregon up 8-0 after the first quarter. After a WSU field goal Oregon began to drive again. Darron Thomas was flushed out of the pocket and threw a deep pass to a waiting Lavasier Tuinei who turned and stumbled into the end zone to add some separation between the two squads.

Oregon was threatening to blow the doors off the game as they were getting into Cougar territory but on a 4th and 7 play Washington State got their first touchdown on the day when Thomas' second interception was returned 76 yards by Damante Horton to bring the Cougars within 5 points just before the half.

The Ducks got back to form as they rattled of 21 points in the third quarter, including a 45 yard screen pass from Bennett to De'Anthony Thomas who put some spectacular moves on inside the 10 to go practically untouched into the end zone. The Cougars responded with a scoring drive and a 24 yard touch down pass to Jared Karstetter but the momentum swung back the Ducks instantly as De'Anthony Thomas took the next kick off 93 yards for his second touchdown of the quarter.

Kenjon Barner scored to open the scoring for the Ducks in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach but Washington State kept fighting. Marshall Lobbestael lead the visitors on a 13 play drive capping it off with a 9 yard Ricky Galvin run and a two point conversion, again to Karstetter to give the final tally of 43-28. Oregon collected the ensuing onside kick attempt and ran out the clock as the Ducks got out of Autzen with their 21st consecutive win in Autzen Stadium.

Coming into the game, Washington State boasted a top 10 passing attack and it showed as Lobbestael racked up 337 passing yards against a young Oregon secondary. Marquess Wilson turned in a career high 11 receptions to lead all receivers with 126 yards.  In addition to the touchdown Jared Karstetter had 114 receiving yards in his second consecutive 100 yard day against the Ducks.

The Cougars made Oregon earn this one and showed promise moving forward in the year as they were able to slow the Oregon run game in the first half but ultimately didn't have the depth to contend with the Ducks. Oregon made several mistakes through the game and WSU capitalized to keep the game competitive.

For the Ducks, Kenjon Barner lead the rushing attack, turning in his third consecutive 100 yard effort in spite of James adding 53 in limited action. James looked comfortable carrying the ball, even with the large, bulky brace on his elbow.

Moving on for next week, Oregon is on the road to face a tough Washington squad who held off a rejuvenated Arizona squad. There is no love lost between these two teams and the game may very well get chippy as Washington tries to return to Pac-12 prominence. Washington State also is on the road again as they travel down to the bay area to face California at AT&T Park in San Fransisco.