If you want a visual metaphor for the football game between Oregon and Washington on Saturday, think dominoes.
The offense faded first, and the defense followed as the Oregon football team gave up 42 unanswered points in a 42-14 loss to Washington at Autzen Stadium on Saturday. It was Oregon’s fourth loss in five games after starting the season 6-0 and the team’s worst loss at Autzen Stadium since a 41-7 loss to Stanford in 1986.
The loss dropped Oregon back into a tie for fifth in the Pacific-10 Conference and out of both national polls.
“We came out on fire and did a great job (Saturday),” Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti said. “We didn’t sustain that.”
Oregon scored the game’s first 14 points as quarterback Jason Fife engineered drives of 80 and 98 yards on the Ducks’ first two possessions in the first quarter in front of 57,112 at Autzen.
But Oregon went 3-and-out on its next offensive possession. That set the tone for the Ducks’ offense for the rest of the afternoon, as Oregon scored no more touchdowns, attempted only one field goal — a Jared Siegel miss — and punted seven times in more than 51 minutes of game time.
The Ducks played the game without the services of Onterrio Smith, who sat out the game with a knee injury. Smith will have surgery today to repair torn cartilage in his left knee.
Fife, who started the game by completing six of his first seven passes, went 4-for-22 over the rest of the contest.
“I was thinking about it in the locker room, and I couldn’t pinpoint a reason,” Fife said of his anemic performance.
Washington quarterback Cody Pickett went 6-for-7 passing on the Huskies’ second drive, and Rich Alexis ran in a five-yard score to bring the Huskies within a touchdown.
On the next Washington possession, Pickett hit a wide-open Reggie Williams — who ended the game with 14 catches for 198 yards and three touchdowns — across the middle for a 23-yard touchdown that evened the score with 7:44 remaining in the first half.
“I’m really proud of the ability of the team not to blink, not to worry, just to keep coming back, making plays and getting it tied 14-14 before the half was a big lift,” Washington head coach Rick Neuheisel said.
The teams remained deadlocked coming out of the locker room, and with Fife struggling, Bellotti put in redshirt freshman quarterback Kellen Clemens on Oregon’s first offensive possession. Clemens threw an interception on his first play.
“I was pretty nervous out there,” Clemens said. “It was a rookie mistake. The cornerback baited me up.”
That interception came deep in Oregon territory and set up Washington’s go-ahead score, a Pickett option toss to Alexis on the left side that went for a 13-yard touchdown.
Clemens led a seven-play drive on the ensuing Oregon possession, but the drive ended in a 39-yard missed field goal, Siegel’s second straight miss after a streak of 15 made field goals.
Pickett finished the game with 316 yards on 26-of-37 passing and four touchdowns. He broke the Pac-10 record for passing yards in a season late in the second quarter, and also broke the Pac-10 record for season completions and the Washington record for touchdowns in a season.
Williams also broke or tied several records, including the Autzen Stadium mark for catches in a game and Washington’s record for career receiving yards.
“We got into a rhythm with our passing game, and the o-line opened everything for us,” Williams said.
Pickett, who was the recipient of comments about his playing ability from Oregon free safety Keith Lewis, said, “During the game, I asked him a question or two, but he didn’t have much to say.”
Oregon will take on Oregon State on Saturday in a Civil War matchup that will determine bowl fates for both teams. Washington will head east to Pullman for the Apple Cup, and the Huskies will likely need a win to solidify a spot in a bowl.
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