The Oregon football team forced four turnovers, two fumbles and two interceptions, while committing none itself in defeating the Houston Cougars 48-27 Saturday in front of 57,662 at Autzen Stadium. The game featured several big plays and a flurry of scoring late in the third quarter which amounted to four touchdowns, three for Oregon, in less than two minutes.
The game was still very much in doubt and seemed about to swing firmly in Houston’s favor were it not for Patrick Chung’s interception of Houston quarterback Case Keenum midway through the third quarter. With the game tied 20-20, Houston drove from its own 34 to the Oregon five-yard line. On third-and-goal, Keenum fired a pass over the middle toward the back of the end zone and Chung dove to snatch the ball away from the intended receiver and save the Ducks from falling behind.
The play seemed to ignite the Duck offense, which was stagnant through much of the second and third quarters. Oregon drove 80 yards over the next 3:16 and scored on a 24-yard pass from senior quarterback Dennis Dixon to senior wide receiver Brian Paysinger to make it 27-20.
“That sparked us right there…Patrick Chung came through in the clutch,” said Dixon. “That’s what teammates do for one another.”
Chung made another big play on the next Houston possession when he blocked a Chase Turner punt which was recovered by freshman Malachi Lewis and returned eight yards to the Houston six-yard line. On the Ducks’ first play of the possession, Dixon found junior wide receiver Jaison Williams for a touchdown.
Anthony Alridge struck back for the Cougars with an 86-yard touchdown reception, the longest by a visiting team at Autzen in almost three years, to close the gap to 34-27, but the Duck offense was rolling. Dixon took the first snap of Oregon’s next possession a career-best 80 yards for a touchdown.
Despite being outgained in several statistical categories, big plays defined the contest and ultimately decided the game in the Ducks’ favor.
“I don’t think we played well offensively in all honesty,” said Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti. “We made some big plays but were not as consistent as we need to be.”
Part of that inconsistency came from the Oregon receivers. Both Bellotti and Dixon said that there were receivers running the wrong routes during the game, and the Ducks accumulated just 134 yards through the air.
“We had several times our receivers didn’t run the right routes for whatever reason,” said Bellotti. “We need our receivers to be a bigger factor in the game.”
Fortunately for Oregon the lack of an aerial attack was offset by the Ducks’ ground game, which tallied 339 yards on the day, including 141 yards for Dixon.
“I just got to thank my offensive line for the opportunity,” said Dixon. “Usually it’s Jonathan Stewart running down the sideline but I had the opportunity and I try and seize the moment.”
Junior running back Jeremiah Johnson delivered the third two-touchdown game of his career while tallying 70 yards on 11 carries.
Oregon’s next opponent is the Michigan Wolverines at the Big House in Ann Arbor, Mich., next Saturday. The game will be televised nationally on ABC.