In leading the Ducks to a 48-7 rout of California in Berkeley on Saturday, senior quarterback Joey Harrington improved his record to 20-2 as a starter. More importantly, though, he kept Oregon (6-0 overall, 3-0 Pacific-10 Conference) in line for the Rose Bowl, the site of this year’s national championship.
“I wouldn’t trade Joey for any other player in the nation,” head coach Mike Bellotti said. “He is one of the great reasons we’re where we’re at.”
Harrington accounted for three touchdowns against Cal, including one on the ground. The senior from Portland has six rushing touchdowns this season and 17 in his career, the most of any quarterback in school history (Reggie Ogburn previously held the record with 12).
In 27 career games, Harrington is responsible for 63 touchdowns (including a touchdown reception in the Holiday Bowl last season). Danny O’Neil, who led the Ducks to the 1994 Rose Bowl, holds the school record with 67 total career touchdowns.
Additionally, Harrington is fifth in the country in total points accounted for, with 19.3 points per game. He is 18th with a passing efficiency of 147.3.
Lewis still questionable
for Saturday
Safety Keith Lewis is still listed as a questionable for Saturday’s Homecoming game against Stanford, Bellotti said Tuesday.
Lewis is in a boot after spraining his right ankle in Oregon’s 48-7 win over California last Saturday. The sophomore from Sacramento, Calif., leads the Ducks with 8.5 tackles per game.
Bellotti said junior Allan Amundson is “probable at best” for Saturday. Amundson sprained his ankle Sept. 29 against Utah State.
Fraudulent claims?
Not everyone is jumping on the Oregon bandwagon.
In its midseason report card, CNNSI.com gave Harrington and tight end Justin Peelle honorable mention All-American honors, but was not so fond of the Oregon defense.
In the category “Your Top Five Soon-to-be-Exposed Frauds,” the staff at CNNSI rated Oregon the No. 1 fraud, saying the “beyond-suspect defense will eventually burn them.”
Tennessee, Michigan State, Virginia and Texas rounded out the top-5 frauds.
Most likely to win the national championship, CNNSI chose Miami as its top pick, followed by Oklahoma, Nebraska, UCLA and Florida.
We’ll take that
Oregon is second in the country in turnover margin at +2.33 takeaways per game. And no other team in the country has more interceptions than Oregon’s 14.
The Ducks have also recovered six fumbles, compared to just three turnovers themselves (three interceptions, three fumbles).