The win was expected, all but guaranteed according to the pundits. What no one could have imagined was that third-ranked Oregon (6-0, 3-0 Pacific-10 Conference) would suffer numerous injuries at the hands of a feisty Washington State (1-5, 0-3 Pac-10) team — and still come away with a 43-23 win.
It was sloppy, even difficult to watch at times. Yet, for Oregon head coach Chip Kelly, a win proved to be the ultimate saving grace.
“We overcame a lot,” Kelly told The Oregonian. “Fortunately, we were victorious.”
At the day’s start, it looked to be business as usual for the Ducks. Having chosen to receive the ball to open the game, Oregon’s first play on offense was a reverse running play to wide receiver Josh Huff, resulting in a 16-yard gain. From there, quarterback Darron Thomas led the Ducks on a drive lasting nearly four minutes, capped off with a LaMichael James touchdown run.
Oregon completed a two-point conversion to take an 8-0 lead. The Cougars responded three minutes later with a 26-yard touchdown run by James Montgomery, cutting the lead to one.
It was on the ensuing kickoff that the game took a harrowing turn for the worse.
Kenjon Barner returned the kickoff for the Ducks, taking the ball 15 yards before being leveled on a helmet-to-helmet collision. Barner fumbled, and the Cougars recovered the ball at the six-yard line.
But no one was paying attention to that result. Barner remained motionless on the ground after the hit, and left the game in an ambulance headed to Pullman Regional Hospital.
The Ducks were visibly shaken after the incident, particularly James.
“It was really tough — I think it really affected me,” James said to The Oregonian. “Me and Kenjon are best friends, you know. He’s always been there for me.”
Thankfully, Barner was released on Sunday after an overnight stay at the hospital. The only injury he suffered was a concussion, and his status going forward is unknown.
For the rest of the team, there was still a game to be played following the injury. The Cougars scored quickly after the Barner turnover, taking a 14-8 lead.
On the next drive, James swallowed his emotions and took a Thomas pass 84 yards for a touchdown. Even then, James said he thought of Barner.
“Every play, Kenjon was on my mind,” James said to The Oregonian. “I thought about him every play.”
Just when things finally seemed to be looking up for the Ducks, Thomas went down with a shoulder injury. Luckily for Kelly, he had a more than capable backup to turn to in Nate Costa.
“Coach Kelly said, ‘Hey, you’re going in,’” Costa said to The Oregonian. “I said, ‘Sounds good.’”
If Costa’s reaction to a sudden call to arms seemed unnaturally calm, he played that way too. The senior led Oregon to a touchdown on his first drive, and proved to be far more than a serviceable backup for the rest of the game.
From that point on, the Ducks never surrendered the lead. The Cougars scored just six points in the second half, and were shut out in the fourth quarter. It was an impressive showing for the Oregon defense late in the game, but linebacker Casey Matthews knows there is still work to be done.
“Obviously we haven’t played a perfect game yet,” Matthews told The Register-Guard. “We’ve shown spurts. We just need to turn it into a complete game now.”
Aside from two lost fumbles, James was his explosive self, finishing with 136 yards on the ground to go along with 87 receiving yards and three touchdowns. Costa, meanwhile, completed 13 of 15 passes for 151 yards, while also rushing for 84 yards and another score.
“I was just out there with my boys, throwing the ball around,” Costa said to The Register-Guard. “It felt good.”
The Ducks have a bye week to enjoy before facing off with UCLA on Oct. 21. There is work yet to be done, but on Saturday they could count their blessings.
“It was kind of a tough day,” James told The Register-Guard. “But we made it through.”
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