Triumphs and Tumbles: The 5 standout winners and losers from Week 1
By Justin Perez
How are we supposed to believe in this Oregon team after their week 1 showing against Idaho? The Ducks were looked at as one of the top contenders for a national title. They were put on par with Georgia and Ohio State.
Yet, Oregon didn't look as good against a school that was demoted to the FCS after a forgettable two-decade run in the FBS.
Oregon won by just 10 points, in a 24-14 struggle. It seems as if the new Big Ten tenant has issues on the offensive line. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel got sacked three times.
This is shocking as the team has only given up five combined sacks over the last two years. The running game was only able to average 2.9 yards per carry on 37 carries
To make things even worse, Oregon turned the ball over on downs twice. They almost did it a third time but got aided by an offsides penalty committed by the Vandals.
Because of that gaffe by Idaho, Oregon was able to take advantage and score the game-sealing touchdown, a 12-yard touchdown catch by Tez Johnson with 5:36 to go.
Defensively, Oregon was fine. They only allowed 217 total yards. They held Idaho to just 49 yards rushing. Defensive backs Nikko Reed and Brandon Johnson each picked off a pass from Idaho quarterbacks Jack Layne and Jack Wagner.
However, they gave up Idaho's two scores on trick plays. Needless to say, there's a lot of work that needs to get done in Eugene and Oregon needs to wake up fast.