As the finish line to the end of the regular season inches closer, the Oregon Ducks had a lot on the line as they hosted the Washington State Cougars on Saturday night.
Among them, a Pac-12 North Division title and a possible trip to the conference championship Dec. 3. While the game had its dramatic moments, the Ducks were able to put the game away in the fourth quarter.
Oregon (9-1, 6-1 Pac-12) defeated Washington State (5-5, 4-3) 38-24 at Autzen Stadium in front of a crowd of 52,327.
More: Pac-12 standings
Quarterback Anthony Brown finished with 135 yards through the air and 123 on the ground. The Ducks’ tag-team tandem of Travis Dye and Bryon Cardwell combined for 186 rushing yards.
Defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux was a force as he recorded six tackles and two sacks. Safety Verone McKinley III continued his stellar season as he grabbed his fifth interception and also had eight tackles.
Oregon will be on the road for the final time this regular season next week as the Ducks visit the Utah Utes at a time to be determined.
“We started fast and we took the momentum,” Oregon coach Mario Cristobal said. “Then we allowed for them to take the momentum right back.”
“We made some adjustments at halftime to handle some of their pressures and create some leverage on some plays we felt like we could exploit. We came out and played really hard and really hard the entire game. So I’m really proud of our guys for doing that.”
Back-to-back 300-yard rushing games
The rushing attack continues to be a staple for Oregon and it seems like the Ducks are hitting its peak at the right time.
The Ducks collectively rushed for 306 yards against the Cougars. This was a week after Oregon ran for 329 yards and two touchdowns in the 26-16 victory at Washington.
While teams may be focusing on Brown and Dye on the ground, Cardwell is proving he is a major contributor in the Ducks’ ground-and-pound attack. He finished with 98 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Against Colorado two weeks ago, Cardwell led the Ducks in rushing as he finished with 127 yards and a touchdown. He followed that up with a 55-yard performance on 16 carries against Washington.
More: The boxscore from Saturday’s Oregon-Washington State game
“It starts with my faith, just praying to the Lord and I’m disciplined in that,” Cardwell said. “It is just about going out on the field and in practice and doing it to the best of my ability every day. Just building that relationship with coach (Jim) Mastro, coach Cristobal and them giving me the opportunity.”
Anthony Brown was the difference in the third quarter
After Oregon received the ball in the third quarter, the Ducks relied on their quarterback to get them going offensively.
Anthony Brown led the Ducks to a touchdown on a five-play, 43-yard drive after Mykael Wright’s 56-yard kickoff return. Brown capped the drive with a 17-yard score that gave the Ducks a 21-14 lead.
On Oregon’s second drive of the second half, Brown rushed for 49 yards and threw for 34 yards before the Ducks settled for a field goal that pushed their lead to 10 points.
Brown was solid for the Ducks until a fumble on the goal line early in the fourth quarter gave Washington State the ball at midfield. Even after the miscue, Brown came back on Oregon’s next drive and helped the Ducks take a two-score lead as the team didn’t look back.
“For what they were doing, it called for him using his legs tonight,” Cristobal said about Brown’s performance. “If you look at it, 17-for-22 throwing the ball and rushing, 17 for 123 … we take a lot of pride as coaches in making adjustments and areas where we could attack.
“We felt like these things could work and they work only if they’re executed at a high level by our players. All the credit goes to the players.”
Defense stepped up in second half
Oregon’s defense has had a mentality of a bend-but-don’t-break the entire season. The Ducks certainly put that to the test late in the fourth quarter.
After Brown’s fumble put Washington State at the 50, Cougars quarterback Jayden de Laura completed a pass to Travell Harris for 39 yards at Oregon’s 11. But the Ducks’ defense stood tall in the shadow of their own end zone.
On second-and-7, Thibodeaux came up with a sack, which forced a third-and-16 at Oregon’s 17-yard-line. After an incompletion caused by Oregon’s defensive pressure, Washington State had to settle for three points instead of a touchdown, which was a turning point in the game.
More: Game balls from Saturday’s game
Subsequently, after the Cougars kicked the field goal, Oregon went on a five-play, 66-yard drive that ended in Cardwell’s 27-yard touchdown that put the game on ice for the Ducks.
Oregon’s Bryan Addison later picked off de Laura as to set up another Cardwell touchdown on the ground. After giving up 14 points in the first half, the Ducks defense dug in as they only allowed three points before a Cougars’ touchdown with nine seconds left.
Saturday marked the fifth game this season Oregon’s defense has recorded at least three takeaways.
“We had to get back on our focus,” Thibodeaux said about the Oregon defense. “Coach came in with the corrections at halftime and we had to do it.
“The adjustments were really well and we were playing a lot of man and to be able to keep that quarterback contained and them playing great zones and us being able to pressure him.”
Contact Antwan Staley at astaley@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @antwanstaley.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Three takeaways from Oregon’s 38-17 victory against Washington State