Postgame Post Mortem: Takeaways from Oregon’s win over UCLA

Team / Sunday, November 4th, 2018

The return of Chip Kelly came and went without too much drama Saturday evening, as the Ducks rolled to a 42-21 victory over the Bruins in the former Oregon head coach’s first trip back to Autzen Stadium since leaving the program for the NFL at the conclusion of the 2012 season.

Though UCLA is far from a conference behemoth this season, the game had a must-win type feel for Oregon which had been reeling following back-to-back losses on the road to Washington State and Arizona.

With their losing streak now snapped, the Ducks look to carry some of the momentum they’ve gained into next week’s road contest in Salt Lake City when they face Pac-12 South division leader Utah. Before we look ahead, however, we take a look back and examine the major takeaways from Oregon’s win over UCLA.

1. Big plays set the tone

Perhaps it had something to do with the return of Chip Kelly. Though explosion plays this season haven’t been as frequent as they were back when Kelly was roaming the sidelines for Oregon between 2007 and 2012, they played a major role in Saturday’s victory over UCLA. Between Ugo Amadi’s 56-yard punt return for a touchdown that got the scoring barrage started in the first quarter, Dillon Mitchell’s 67-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, and Tony Brooks-James’ 54-yard touchdown scamper to seal the game late, the Ducks took advantage of a weak UCLA defense and special teams by gashing them for big plays. Whether the Ducks can continue the trend next week on the road against a stingy Utah team remains to be seen, but it was an encouraging development to see coming off two consecutive weeks of ugly offensive performances.

2. Ground game bounces back, but still feels limited

The Oregon offense took a much needed and necessary step forward Saturday against a Bruin defense that ranked second to last in total defense and scoring defense entering this week’s game. This was particularly the case on the ground, where the Ducks performed much closer to their season average (177.67 rushing yards per game) by gaining 200 yards on 4.8 yards per carry. Redshirt freshman CJ Verdell spearheaded the rushing attack once again for the Ducks – gaining 90 yards on 25 carries – and was complemented well by senior Tony Brooks-James, who had his most productive rushing performance since Week 2 versus Portland State (21 carries, 107 yards), rushing for 73 yards on five carries. Still though, this offense lacks the pop on the ground that would otherwise make them dynamic. Only four times in nine games this season have the Ducks surpassed four yards per carry, and only two of those instances came against Power 5 teams (6.19 at Cal, and 4.76 vs. UCLA). Indeed, Saturday’s game was a positive step in the right direction, but this is a rushing attack that is at best a work in progress still.

3. Ducks incur only one penalty versus UCLA

Those who closely follow the Ducks know that penalties were a particular sore spot last year for this team. After finishing 2017 as the nation’s most penalized team both in terms of penalties and penalty yards incurred, this season has produced a dramatic about face. With three games left to play in the regular season, the Ducks rank tied for 25th nationally in penalties per game (5.0) and are 34th in penalty yards per game (48.3) after incurring just one penalty for 15 yards Saturday versus UCLA. In fact, the personal foul call on Oregon center Jake Hanson for targeting was a bit controversial in and of itself as it ultimately preventing the Ducks from a rare penalty-free contest. Unfortunately for the Ducks, the targeting penalty will have a lingering impact, as Hanson – by rule – will be forced to sit out the first half of next week’s game at Utah.

Postgame Post Mortem: Takeaways from Oregon’s win to UCLA
Oregon WR Dillon Mitchell (Photo: Oregon Football/Twitter)

4. Herbert and Mitchell sharp coming off injury scare

Adding injury to the insult that was last week’s 44-15 loss on the road at Arizona was the news that both quarterback Justin Herbert and top receiving target Dillon Mitchell had entered concussion protocol. With both players in potential jeopardy of missing Saturday’s game versus UCLA, the Ducks were forced to entertain the possibility that they would be without their two clear-cut top players on offense. Fortunately for Oregon, both Herbert and Mitchell played and played well against the visitors from L.A. Versus the Bruins, Herbert completed 18-of-32 passes for 264 yards and two touchdowns to extend his consecutive games with a touchdown pass streak to 24. Both of those scoring tosses went to Mitchell, who continued his stellar play this season with eight catches for 156 yards. It was Mitchell’s fourth game this season in which he has eclipsed the 100-yard mark receiving, as the Memphis native now leads all Pac-12 receivers with 833 receiving yards.

5. The Ducks are now bowl eligible

It’s been a rocky past few weeks for the Ducks, but not only is Oregon back in the win column, but they’re also officially bowl eligible after picking up their sixth win of the season. It’s the 13th time in the last 14 seasons that the Ducks have reached bowl eligibility. While conference title hopes have been all but dashed, the Ducks still have a shot at closing out the 2018 season on a high note with games at Utah, versus Arizona State, and at Oregon State remaining. For the many forecasters who speculated on the number of wins this Oregon team would garner this season, a nine-win season would largely surpass the preseason expectations for this team should Oregon win out. The stretch run will be a challenge, particularly over the next two weeks, as the Utes and Sun Devils have been playing as well anyone in the Pac-12 South division of late. Yet, as sour as the losses to Washington State and Arizona were, there’s still a great deal left for this team to accomplish over the next three weeks.

News and notes:

  • The Ducks have won six in a row over UCLA in Eugene. It was also their eighth win in their last 10 games against the Bruins.
  • Ugo Amadi’s punt return for a touchdown was Oregon’s first punt return for a touchdown since Bralon Addison in 2015 at Michigan State. Amadi is one of two players in the FBS and the only Power 5 player with an interception return for a touchdown and a punt return for a touchdown this season.
  • Justin Herbert’s 24 consecutive games with a touchdown pass is the longest active streak in the nation
  • Herbert moved into seventh in career passing at Oregon with 6,252 yards, passing Dan Fouts. He also moved into seventh in program history in career total yards with 6,746, passing Darron Thomas (6,629).
  • Troy Dye’s 10 tackles versus the Bruins marked the fifth consecutive game in which he has notched double-digit tackles, becoming the first Oregon player to do so since Mark Kearns in 1987

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