STANFORD, Calif. — Oregon’s defense has been stingy.
The Ducks’ defense hasn’t allowed a single touchdown since the gut-wrenching score that lost them the game to then-No. 16 Auburn in week one. The defense, yet again, helped No. 16 Oregon secure a 21-6 victory against Stanford and, yet again, did not allow a single touchdown for the third straight week.
“Physicality has been a big point of emphasis,” head coach Mario Cristobal said. “We want to be tough, we want to finish games. We have been making ground towards that. Sometimes we finish and sometimes we didn’t, certainly this was a game that we didn’t finish last year.”
Oregon, in last season’s Pac-12 opener against Stanford, held a dominating 24-7 lead at halftime. But the Ducks lead melted away as they collapsed to then-No. 7 Stanford in overtime, 38-31.
The players came into this game against Stanford seeking redemption and a different result.
They got it.
Stanford quarterback KJ Costello, last season, went 19-for-26 for 327 yards and three touchdowns. Oregon’s secondary seemed to have figured out Costello this time around. He threw for a measly 120 yards on 16 of 30 attempts and an interception.
“We weren’t going to allow them to come in and bully us,” cornerback Thomas Graham Jr. said. “They weren’t able to consistently run the ball…they weren’t able to run or pass the ball. Each game we want to come in and completely dominate the other team in every way possible.”
Oregon, following the game against Auburn, has outscored its opponents 133 to 15. The Ducks defense has also surrendered 660 yards of total offense through three games in comparison to the Ducks’ offense, which has amassed 1,256 yards.
The most staggering number is zero. Oregon has given up zero touchdowns in three weeks, something that Oregon has not done since 1935. In 1935, Oregon was known not as the Ducks, but as the Webfoots. Back then, Oregon played at Hayward Field and were apart of the Pacific Coast Conference.
This is also the first time Oregon has held three consecutive opponents to single digits in scoring for the first time since 1968.
All these stats that have accumulated over the past three weeks have helped Oregon end the Stanford spell. For the first time in three seasons, Oregon has defeated the Cardinal and for the first time since 2014 Oregon has won its Pac-12 opener.
“It means we’re doing what we need to do,” safety Jevon Holland said. “It means that coach [Andy] Avalos…they are all coaching us and pushing us to our limits. That’s what we need as a defense, we need to be pushed to our limits.”
Oregon will give the streak a rest for a week as they enter a bye, but waiting on the other side is No. 23 Cal. Oregon will look to strengthen its defense during the bye week as they continue Pac-12 play.
“Doing this is just a starting step to where we want to take this program,” Graham said, “And create our standard of excellence from here on out. Not just for me, but for the next generation of Ducks.”
Follow Gabriel on Twitter @gabe_ornelas
