When the season officially began three months ago, the Oregon football team fully expected to be playing in the inaugural Pac-12 title game come December.
The two-time defending conference champion navigated its way through 12 weeks of play to finish atop the Pac-12 North Division and beat out Andrew Luck@@CE@@ and Stanford for the right to host. The Ducks’ opponent, UCLA, may have aspired to be in contention for the Pac-12 South, but after winning back-to-back games only one time all season, few expect the first conference championship to be much of a game.
Oregon (10-2, 8-1 Pac-12)@@CE@@ enters Friday’s 5 p.m. contest with its third-straight BCS bowl berth on the line, while UCLA (6-6, 5-4)@@CE@@ will not be bowl eligible with a loss. If it weren’t for the two-year postseason ban put on USC in 2009, the Pac-12 title game would have been a rematch between the Ducks and the only team to beat them inside Autzen Stadium in the last three years.
Instead, Oregon and UCLA will prepare for one more game before each has its postseason fate decided.
“It has nothing to do with who we’re playing. It never has,” defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti@@CE@@ said. “No offense to UCLA. I’ve said that when played LSU, I’ve said that when we played Missouri State. We play a faceless opponent, and we have a standard with which we live by.
“If we play to that standard, we should be fine.”
While the Bruins hold the all-time series lead with Oregon, 39-25,@@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=3383&SPID=233&DB_LANG=C&ATCLID=205339649&DB_OEM_ID=500@@ the Ducks have been tough to beat over the last three seasons. In 2008, Jeremiah Masoli@@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=1550447@@ and LeGarrette Blount@@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=1550406@@ combined for 281 rushing yards and three touchdowns to lead Oregon to a 31-24 victory in Eugene.@@http://www.goducks.com/downloads1/47333.HTM?ATCLID=1601718&SPSID=3383&SPID=233&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@ The next season, special teams play (Kenjon Barner’s@@CE@@ 100-yard kickoff return for a touchdown)@@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=233&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=204811455@@ and defense (Talmadge Jackson’s@@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=1149789@@ 32-yard pick-six interception)@@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=233&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=204811455@@ led Oregon to a 21-point third quarter to hold on for a two-touchdown victory.@@see previous@@
Then, of course, in 2010 Oregon backed up its first-ever No. 1 ranking with a complete dismantling of the Bruins, 60-13,@@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/390942.HTM?ATCLID=205016463&SPSID=3383&SPID=233&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@ on a nationally televised Thursday night game. Darron Thomas@@CE@@ threw for a then-career-high 308 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Ducks.@@see previous@@
Friday’s matchup figures to be a blend of the last three outings — at least to some degree — in what will be UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel’s@@http://www.uclabruins.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/neuheisel_rick00.html@@ final game at the Bruins’ helm. Coming off a 50-0 loss to USC last week,@@http://www.uclabruins.com/sports/m-footbl/sched/ucla-m-footbl-sched.html@@ the firing didn’t come as much of a surprise considering how frequently Neuheisel seemed to be on the chopping block during his four-year stint at UCLA.
“It’s one of the tough deals about being a college football coach, and it’s kind of the reality that we all face,” Oregon head coach Chip Kelly said. “But I think Rick is a good person, and Rick’s a good football coach.”
Only Oregon State and Colorado averaged fewer points per game than the Bruins this season,@@http://www.pac-12.org/portals/7/images/Football/2011-Stats/HTML/confldrs.htm@@ stemming from inconsistent quarterback play by Kevin Prince@@CE@@ and Richard Brehaut.@@http://www.uclabruins.com/sports/m-footbl/mtt/brehaut_richard00.html@@ UCLA’s pistol offense will resemble the same attack Nevada brought to Autzen Stadium during the home opener, which has led them to the third-best rushing total in the conference at 193.2 yards per game.@@http://www.pac-12.org/portals/7/images/Football/2011-Stats/HTML/confldrs.htm@@
Meanwhile, Thomas has performed remarkably in his last three outings. The junior signal caller has completed 61-of-92 passes for 725 yards and eight touchdowns against no interceptions.@@i did the math. i swear.@@
“Darron’s done a great job,” Kelly said. “I think he’s only thrown five picks on the season — two of them went through our receiver’s hands — so in terms of managing the game, I think he’s 13th in the country in pass efficiency. He can throw the ball if we’re forced to throw.” (Thomas is ranked 12th in the country in pass efficiency with 158.16.)
UCLA’s defense finished 10th in the Pac-12 in rushing yards allowed per game at 178.2@@http://www.pac-12.org/portals/7/images/Football/2011-Stats/HTML/confldrs.htm@@ and gave up 233.8 yards passing — the third best mark in the conference.@@see previous@@ But allowing more points (30.8) than your offense scores (23.2)@@see previous@@ will continue to be problematic as the Bruins’ season quickly draws to an end.
Oregon aims for third-straight conference title against UCLA
Daily Emerald
December 1, 2011
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