Despite the game being played under picture perfect Bay Area skies Monday afternoon, the play on the field inside Levi’s Stadium was anything but picturesque.

Seeking their ninth win of the season and their first ever bowl victory under head coach Mario Cristobal, the Ducks overcame a historically ghastly offensive performance to defeat the Michigan State Spartans, 7-6.

Defense ruled the day, particularly for the Spartans, who held the Ducks to little more than 200 yards of total offense. Yet, the Ducks needed just one well-executed six-play, 77-yard touchdown drive in order to eek out a sloppy, though hard fought victory.

With the 2018 season now officially in the books, WFOD takes a closer look and offers up its prevailing thoughts on Oregon’s win in the Redbox Bowl.

1. Duck pass catchers once again plagued by drops

If there’s been a singular recurring theme for the Oregon offense this season, it’s been the torturous number of drops perpetrated by Duck pass catchers. Whether it’s a wide receiver, running back, or tight end, no position group has been immune to these drive killing moments. Entering the day, Justin Herbert was the Pac-12 quarterback most plagued by drops (23) from pass catchers this season, and in Monday’s game, this troubling trend continued in earnest. In the first half alone, the Oregon offense was hamstrung by five drops, including two from the normally sure-handed Dillon Mitchell. On the whole, the offense was far from competent, but drops once again were a major reason for the unit’s failure to launch versus Michigan State’s talented defense.

2. Despite the win, Oregon’s offense reaches stunning levels of offensive ineptitude

The Ducks may have entered the day with the Pac-12’s third best offense, but it was held dowwwwnnnn by a stingy Spartans defense Monday afternoon. Indeed, Michigan State – who boasts the nation’s top-ranked rush defense – proved they were worthy of that recognition and then some, as the Spartans limited the Ducks to just 37 yards rushing for the entire game. The rushing total was by far the lowest output for the Ducks this season, but even more frustrating was Oregon’s inability to find a rhythm in the passing game outside of the game’s lone touchdown drive. Altogether, the Ducks were outgained by Michigan State – who came into the game ranked 117th nationally in total offense – by more than 100 yards (331 to 203) and lost the first down battle by a convincing 19-11 margin. Furthermore, the seven points scored by the Ducks were the fewest points scored by a victorious Oregon team since 1992. A win is a win, and you’ll find few Duck fans complaining after the program notched its first bowl victory since 2015, but this win felt more like a bullet dodging than anything that could be confused with convincing.

3. Speaking of the offense…

After 13 games this season, it’s painfully clear that something needs to change philosophically in the way the Ducks approach things on offense. That doesn’t necessarily mean a personnel change is warranted, but it does mean that notable tweaks need to be made in order to better utilize the skills of the existing players on the roster. In his first year as Oregon’s offensive coordinator and primary play-caller, Marcus Arroyo’s 2018 performance could be best described as bumpy. Sure, there were some peaks and moments of brilliance, but by and large, it was an inaugural season that left much to be desired. In Arroyo’s defense, the Ducks came into the year with perhaps their worst overall collection of skill talent in decades. However, the inability to adapt the offense to play to the strengths of the personnel he did have, as well as the curious play calls in key situations (look no further than the puzzling Herbert designed run on 3rd and 8 for no gain with the Ducks on the MSU 28) is legitimately concerning. Especially as Oregon looks towards a 2019 season that will come with major expectations considering what the Ducks hope to return. Dillon Mitchell coming back for his senior season would be a boon for Arroyo, as would immediate impacts from Oregon’s highly-touted group of incoming freshmen at wide receiver. Without those two things and a re-imagined offensive approach, however, Arroyo could find himself on the hot seat with the quickness if the Ducks aren’t appreciably better on offense with Herbert, a veteran offensive line, and two up and coming running backs set to return next season.

4. Take a bow Dillon Mitchell

While the Ducks were anything but world beaters on offense this season, Dillon Mitchell more than pulled his weight for Justin Herbert and the Oregon passing game. His 70 yards receiving versus Michigan State on Monday gave Mitchell the Oregon single-season record for receiving yards with 1,184, passing Josh Huff’s 2013 mark. In addition to the 1,184 yards, Mitchell finishes his junior season with 75 receptions and 10 touchdowns. Now comes a difficult decision for the Memphis native, one in which he must decide whether he will declare for the NFL Draft or return for his senior season at Oregon. With Mitchell in the fold, the Ducks will have arguably the conference’s best returning receiver at their disposal and a player they know they can count on in the passing game. Without him, Oregon could very well find itself in an even more compromised position offensively, as there would be little in the way of proven and/or experienced talent at the receiver position. For now, however, Mitchell deservingly gets to bask in the glory of an individual season for the record books.

One more look at the game winner. The Ducks are @RedboxBowl champions. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/Pc0NJd9A2E

— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) December 31, 2018

5. Jevon Holland is a star in the making

If you’ve been following this team all season long, the exploits of true freshman safety Jevon Holland don’t exactly qualify as breaking news. However, if there was one thing to be taken from Oregon’s performance in the Redbox Bowl, it’s that Holland is a burgeoning superstar in the Duck secondary. Though he only finished with four tackles on the day, Holland was seen frequently blanketing receivers and tight ends and was Johnny on the spot once again for the Ducks following his team-leading fifth interception in the second quarter. Oregon loses perhaps the program’s most underrated player in recent memory with the graduation of Ugo Amadi, but with Holland next in line to assume the mantle, the Ducks should experience little to no drop off at the position heading into 2019.

What. A. Play. @HollywoodVon makes a ridiculous catch for his conference-leading fifth interception. #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/uf778AyCyw

— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) December 31, 2018

Items of note:

• Oregon finishes the season on a three-game winning streak for the first time since 2011. The Ducks also finish the season with nine wins for the first time since 2015.
• Oregon finishes the season with a 3,000-yard passer, 1,000-yard rusher and 1,000-yard receiver for the third time in school history (Justin
  Herbert – 3,151, CJ Verdell – 1,018, Dillon Mitchell – 1,184)
• Jevon Holland’s five interceptions this season are the most by an Oregon freshman since Jairus Byrd had five in 2006
• Justin Herbert has thrown a touchdown pass in 28 consecutive games, which is the longest active streak in the nation
• CJ Verdell became the third Oregon freshman to surpass the 1,000-yard rushing mark, joining Royce Freeman (2014 – 1,365) and LaMichael James (2009 – 1,546). He’s also the third player in program history to have 1,000 rushing yards and 300 receiving yards in a season (Terrence Whitehead – 2004 and Royce Freeman – 2015).