At the team hotel on Saturday morning, Eric Solis ate his breakfast. Not Wheaties – sorry, General Mills, no endorsement opportunity here. Bacon and eggs, instead.
“I made sure I ate a lot of food because I played four hours later,” said the walk-on freshman kicker, who made his first career start. “That just helped a lot, gave me a lot of energy.”
He needed – and probably burned – every calorie.
Solis, a native of Sherman Oaks, Calif., made field goals of 24, 29 and 30 yards, with a 26-yarder at the opening of the fourth quarter blocked. He was also 9 for 9 on extra points and kicked off 13 times in the Ducks’ 72-0 rout of New Mexico.
“I came out with a strong mentality, like (strength and conditioning) Coach (Jim) Radcliffe says. I ignored the crowd and did my thing,” Solis said. “Go through my sets, take each kick at a time. That’s exactly what I did. I just followed what Coach (Radcliffe) told me, and I was pretty successful.”
Solis’ kicks lost some luster as the game went on; one of the field goals was a line drive off his left foot. His kickoffs also became progressively shorter. His effort level, of course, never wavered.
“Every game, I try to make every single field goal,” he said. “Obviously, it’s not always going to be like that, but when those times come, I just want to put it behind me and move onto the next kick.”
Solis was one of 27 Oregon players to make a debut appearance against the Lobos, and, with 18 points, the highest-scoring of the bunch.
“We got a lot of different players played today. And it wasn’t just one guy; it was a group of guys,” head coach Chip Kelly said. “We’re a team, and we’re going to need everybody at some time during the season.
“The depth we have on both sides of the ball, especially offensively right now, we got a lot of guys contributing,” Kelly said.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Daryle Hawkins gained the most rushing yards among debuting players (68 on 10 carries, with a touchdown) and also caught a pass for 10 yards while playing three positions. Fellow reserve quarterback Dustin Haines also spent time at wide receiver, catching one pass for 18 yards.
Just three true freshmen on scholarship played for the Ducks: defensive tackle Ricky Heimuli (one pass breakup on a fourth-down conversion attempt), long snapper Drew Howell and wide receiver Josh Huff (three catches, 45 yards).
“It feels good. At first I was really getting nervous,” said Huff, a native of Houston. “Just going through the preparation and taking it one play at a time (helped me out). I feel like I did a good job.”
The young players were treated to a boisterous but rapidly disappearing crowd of 59,104 fans at Autzen Stadium, record attendance for a season-opening game. Dressed in their Saturday best, the crowd was something of a marvel for the young Ducks as they stepped out onto the field.
“That’s when I started adjusting and getting used to the fans yelling and stuff. The student section was going wild,” Solis said. “From there, I slowly started getting used to it. From there, I just went with it.”
To complete one unforgettable game experience, just add bacon and eggs.
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