Stanford Football: 3 takeaways from Cardinal win over Oregon
By Dana Becker
1. The Ducks need help
If Saturday’s thrashing at the hands of Stanford proved anything about Oregon, it’s that the Ducks really, really, really need Justin Herbert.
The problem, though, is Herbert isn’t walking back through that door anytime soon after suffering an injury back on September 30 in a win over California.
It should really come as no surprise that Oregon has lost both games since, as true freshman Braxton Burmeister isn’t ready and senior Taylor Alie is far from a polished quarterback.
The two combined to go 5 of 13 for 33 yards with two interceptions vs. the Cardinal, though Burmeister did score the lone touchdown on a run. He finished with 31 yards, but never threatened Stanford with his arm.
Head coach Willie Taggart has to be a little taken back, as his team has scored just 17 points over the last two weeks. Oregon appeared to be humming right along with 4-1 before the Herbert injury, averaging 49.6 points per game.
Royce Freeman looks healthy after suffering his own injury vs. California, racking up 143 yards in the loss. Tony Brooks-James added 54, but it was far from enough to compete with the Cardinal.
Also, the Duck defense was shredded, as Stanford ran for 248 yards and passed for another 256.
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UCLA is up next weekend followed by a Utah team that let a lead slip from its grasp vs. USC and a road date at Washington.