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Oregon Football: 5 overreactions from Ducks’ win over Nebraska

By Justin Dottavio

EUGENE, OR - SEPTEMBER 02: Running back Royce Freeman #21 of the Oregon Ducks scores a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at Autzen Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images)
EUGENE, OR - SEPTEMBER 02: Running back Royce Freeman #21 of the Oregon Ducks scores a touchdown in the second quarter of the game against the Southern Utah Thunderbirds at Autzen Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Steve Dykes/Getty Images) /
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5. Justin Herbert ends the season a Heisman candidate

Justin Herbert had to step up as the starting quarterback at Oregon in 2016 in part to save Mark Helfrich’s job (it didn’t work) and because the Ducks’ offense needed a spark an athletic quarterback can provide.

The 6-foot-6, 225-pound Herbert came out of high school as a three-star signee, per 247Sports. Herbert started seven games and threw for 1,900-plus yards and 19 touchdowns but the important stat was a true freshman throwing only four interceptions.

Related Story: Breaking down Josh Rosen's incredible Texas A&M comeback

Against Southern Utah, Herbert threw for 281 yards and a touchdown letting his teammates score the other 70 points. Then came the showcase matchup. The Blackshirts defense rolled into Autzen and Herbert carved them up for 365 yards on 25-of-33 passing with three touchdowns. He added 6.0 yards per carry, keeping a defense honest with his ability to pull and get first downs on inside zone read plays.

Herbert’s numbers will be impressive because the Pac-12 loves offense and the only major defenses he faces will be the Stanford Cardinal, an improved Wazzou Cougars defense and the Washington Huskies. Other than those three, he gets the Swiss cheese defense gauntlet of Arizona, Arizona State, Cal, Oregon State and UCLA.

Herbert can easily throw for 300 yards against all six of those opponents plus games against Wyoming and Utah which are toss up type games. Herbert should end the season with 3,000-plus passing yards and over 30 touchdowns for the Ducks.

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