The football game between Oregon and Colorado Saturday night in Boulder had as bizarre a start as you could imagine. Lightning pushed an already late start even further back, resulting in the players and fans in the stadium twice having to evacuate for safety reasons.
While the rain poured down and the student section — who refused to leave their first come — first serve seats, sang with the PA system. Both teams tried to stay loose and focused.
“I thought our mindset was good going into it,” Oregon head coach Mark Helfrich said of the delay. “We just tried to manage it like it was halftime.”
Over an hour after the scheduled start, the game finally got underway at 9:08 MT. For Duck fans, it was worth the wait, as Oregon (3-2, 1-1 Pac-12) was able to complete a 41-24 victory at Folsom Field.
The Ducks overcame a slow start, perhaps in part due to the delay, where the issues exposed by Utah last week in an ugly 62-20 loss reared their heads once again. The secondary was porous, allowing the Buffalo (3-2,0-1) to move the ball through the air at will. They finished with 231 passing yards.
Quarterback play was shaky as well, with redshirt junior and starter Jeff Lockie and redshirt sophomore Taylor Alie playing musical chairs throughout the game to see who would end up under center. It was a system put in place by the coaching staff going into the game, as they were hoping to have both guys see the field as part of a rotation. Lockie ended 8-11 for 54 yards and an interception, while Alie was 4-9 for 83 yards and a touchdown.
These issues led to a 17-17 tie game at the halfway mark.
“Offensively we had a couple of adjustments that we made,” Helfrich said.
Those adjustments were to focus on the running attack, which ended up being the difference in the contest. Royce Freeman got the lion’s share of the attempts, posting 27 carries for 163 yards and two touchdowns, while Taj Griffin added 11 carries for 110 yards and one touchdown. It was the first time Oregon has had two running backs pick up 100 yards in the same game this season.
“I definitely think it was a cool duo thing,” Griffin said. “I got them with the speed and Royce got them with the strength.”
As a team, Oregon completely honed in on the run, dialing it up twice as much as it did in the first half. The Ducks ended with 60 total attempts, averaging six yards per carry as a team.
Oregon also cleaned up its defense in the second half, taking advantage of the simplification the coaches stressed this week, by flying around as a unit.
“The great thing about defense is if I miss a tackle there are 10 other guys running to the ball,” redshirt senior linebacker Rodney Hardrick said.
The defensive line was able to put pressure on Colorado quarterback Sefo Liufau, forcing him out of the pocket, while applying several big hits. Senior defensive lineman DeForest Buckner stood out, forcing the Buffalo to send multiple blockers his way to slow him down.
Oregon came into this game wanting to build confidence in the players, to help them bounce back mentally from a tough loss last week. The end result is a step in the right direction.
“It’s a win,” said Helfrich. “We’re not the worst team in the history of football, and we’re certainly not the best team in the history — we are working toward the latter.”
The next step in that goal comes next Saturday as the Ducks play host to Washington State.
Follow Christopher Keizur on Twitter @ChrisKeizur