SEATTLE — Last year, Washington got the chance to dance on the
Oregon “O” after defeating the Ducks in Autzen Stadium.
This year, the opportunity to dance on the Washington “W” came
at Husky Stadium. And again, the Huskies took full advantage of it.
Washington hung 42 unanswered points on the board, including 35
in the second half, en route to a 42-10 victory over Oregon in
front of 72,450 on Saturday.
“We played very poorly in the second half,”
Oregon head coach
Mike Bellotti said. “The bad plays snowballed on us. You have to
create your own field position. We didn’t do that.”
Washington didn’t have Rich Alexis. The Huskies didn’t have Cody
Pickett in the second half. They
didn’t have wide receiver Charles Frederick fully healthy.
And it didn’t matter.

Kenny James and Casey Paus proved to be more than adequate
replacements for the Washington offense. James — who had only
been named the starter a few days before the game, when it was
apparent Alexis could not play — became the first running back to
rush for more than 100 yards in a single game against the Ducks
this season.
James finished with 107 yards on 18 carries, and backup Shelton
Sampson scored three touchdowns. Sampson, almost a side-note
name before the game started, ran for 134 yards on just six
carries.
“Once they got that good run in, it seemed like the enthusiasm
(on Oregon) dropped a bit,” Oregon cornerback Justin Phinisee
said.
Paus came in for an injured Pickett in the second half and
delivered 117 yards through the air on 5 of 8 passing, including
a 63-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Reggie Williams with
11:54 left in the fourth quarter.
The Huskies scored 35 unanswered points in the second half and
42 overall, much like the 28 points they put on the scoreboard —
and 42 overall — in the second half at Autzen Stadium last
season.
“We lost 42-10,” Oregon quarterback Clemens said. “I can’t think
of any words for it. It just hurts a lot.”
This wasn’t the Ducks’ day. Mistakes and penalties cost Oregon.
Washington didn’t receive a penalty until the fourth quarter.
Oregon was charged with 10 penalties for 75 yards, compared to
just two for 25 yards for the Huskies.
“Penalties are the most infuriating thing about this game,”
Bellotti said.
Clemens fumbled the ball with 10:56 left in the fourth quarter,
allowing Greg Carothers to return the ball for a 55-yard
touchdown return. The Huskies picked off Clemens in the waning
moments of the game and got to Oregon’s quarterbacks seven times
for sacks.
Clemens finished 14 of 24 for 230 yards. Jason Fife finished 2
of 5 for 16 yards and had 52 yards rushing.
Meanwhile, Washington had four plays of 50 yards or more. James
ran for 56 yards on the first drive of the second half, setting
up Sampson’s second touchdown of the game.
Reggie Williams continued his dominance of the Oregon defense
after burning the Ducks for 198 yards last season. He sliced
through Oregon in the second half for 99 yards on three
receptions. He caught a 63-yard touchdown from Paus in
the fourth quarter and finished the game with seven catches for
130 yards.
“They caught us in a couple of blitzes and took advantage of our
defense,” Oregon safety Marley Tucker said. “Those exposure
plays killed us. Up until the second half we were controlling
the game, we were controlling the ball, and we were up. Then it
took a turn for the worse.”
Sampson ended Washington’s offensive day with a 77-yard
touchdown run with 6:38 left in the fourth quarter.
“We didn’t execute very well in the second half,” Clemens said.
“Washington did a good job of sustaining momentum.”
Clemens gave Oregon’s offense an early boost with his scrambling
ability. With 4:46 left in the first quarter, he was
pressured to his left, but found Demetrius Williams along the
sideline on a loft pass. Williams, who beat Washington’s Sam
Cunningham, ran unabated for an 85-yard touchdown.
Sampson ended a 17-play scoring drive for Washington with a
one-yard plunge at the 12:09 mark of the second quarter. The
Huskies had started on their own 17-yard line, and had just one
play of 20-yards or more.
Oregon linebacker Marcus Miller most likely tore his ACL during
the game, Bellotti said, and cornerback Rodney Woods also
suffered a stinger in the first half.
“Even if you’re not the starting guys, you’ve got to step up and
make plays,” Oregon linebacker Kevin Mitchell said.
That about sums it up.
NOTES: The Ducks wore all-white uniforms, despite speculation
the team would come out in all-yellow or in a variation of the
team’s three uniforms — the Huskies played without running back
Rich Alexis, who was out due to an injured thigh — he was
leading Washington with 566 yards rushing on 138 attempts
entering the game — Washington’s Charles Frederick did play
despite concerns an injured chest would keep him out of the game
— game-time temperature was 40 degrees, and by the halfway point
of the second quarter, it had begun to lightly snow — Oregon’s
Paul Martinez averaged 23.3 yards on three punts in the first
half — Pickett did not play in the second half because of a blow
to the head in the first half.