Everything we know following Oregon’s frustrating 24-17 win over Cal

Despite Oregon’s close win over a lowly California team, it’s quite obvious something needs to change. That change might need to be at the quarterback position.

For the second game in a row, Anthony Brown struggled to consistently move the ball down the field. Against Stanford is one thing, but against the Golden Bears is another. Cal is one of the worst teams in the Pac-12 and the Ducks made their defense look like the 1985 Chicago Bears and not the 2021 California Golden Bears.

While the offense was having a hard time just getting one first down, the defense showed just how good it can be with Kayvon Thibodeaux on the field. But even then, the Oregon defenders could only hold quarterback Chase Garbers off the scoreboard for so long.

Final Score: Oregon 24, California 17

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Keys to the game

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  • Oregon showed that even the best of defenses need some help from its offense and unfortunately, the Ducks received very little assistance from Brown and company.

  • The Ducks came into this game committing just two turnovers for the entire season, but Oregon coughed the ball up twice in the first half, killing potential scoring drives.

  • California found itself up 17-10 early in the fourth quarter, but that was when the Ducks offense woke up from its slumber and generated its best drive of the night to tie the game back up 17-17 thanks to a 20-yard touchdown pass to Jaylon Redd.

  • Oregon’s defense bent, but didn’t break late as the Ducks held the Bears out of the end zone with just two seconds left.

Players of the Game

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  • Travis Dye: 19 carries, 145 yards, one touchdown, seven catches for 73 yards

  • Camden Lewis: Career-long 49-yard field goal

  • Devon Williams: 4 catches, 67 yards

  • Noah Sewell: 11 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 sack

  • Kayvon Thibodeaux: 5 tackles, 1 sack in one half of action

It was over when ...

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It was over when Chase Garber’s pass fell incomplete on a 4th-and-goal from the two-yard line with two seconds remaining, preserving Oregon’s 24-17 lead and eventual victory. The Ducks improve to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in league play.

What's next?

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Oregon goes to the Rose Bowl to take on UCLA and their former coach Chip Kelly. The Ducks and Bruins meet Oct. 23 for a 12:30 kickoff on ABC.

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