Saturday, November 9
Eugene, Ore.
4:00 PM
University of Oregon
10-0 , 7-0
39
vs
18
Maryland
4-5 , 1-5
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Maryland
3
7
0
8
18
Oregon
7
14
8
10
39
Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com
Ducks Reach 10-0 For Third Time Ever
11/09/24 | Football
Oregon survived 12 penalties to beat Maryland at home on Saturday, 39-18.
EUGENE, Ore. — On a night two top-five teams including one of five previously unbeaten programs in the country lost, the Oregon football team held serve.
The top-ranked Ducks improved to 10-0 for the third time in school history Saturday with a 39-18 win over Maryland before 59,245 fans in Autzen Stadium. Dillon Gabriel's three passing touchdowns gave him an FBS-record 180 touchdowns responsible for in his career, and helped the Ducks endure a night in which they were flagged for 12 penalties.
All three Maryland scoring drives were aided by UO penalties, but the Oregon defense otherwise was solid, allowing just 3.8 yards per play and providing a touchdown on a fumble return by Brandon Johnson. The Ducks were remarkably balanced on offense, with 183 passing yards and 180 on the ground, as Jordan James ran for a score to complement Gabriel and the passing attack.
"Nice to walk away with a victory, but I feel like there were moments we could handle a lot better," UO coach Dan Lanning said. "… But you can't go through that game without recognizing having the all-time touchdown leader in the NCAA. What (Gabriel) was able to accomplish there, he was the first one to tell me he doesn't care, but he should — because that's a really special moment for him."
Johnson's fumble return in the second quarter was one of three turnovers that led to Oregon points, as the Ducks turned a pair of interceptions in the fourth quarter into 10 more points. The UO offense also showed some creativity to shake off recent third-quarter doldrums, with Gabriel throwing a touchdown pass to offensive lineman Gernorris Wilson, and then tackle Josh Conerly Jr. taking a direct snap on the PAT and running in a two-point conversion.
Gabriel finished the game 23-of-34 for 183 yards and three scores, plus 28 rushing yards. It was the TD pass to Wilson that pushed him past Case Keenum into first all-time for touchdowns responsible for in FBS history.
"What an interesting way to do it," Gabriel said with a smile. "But he's worked hard at that one for sure."
Evan Stewart and Terrance Ferguson also caught touchdown passes, helping the Ducks sustain their passing attack in the wake of Tez Johnson's injury at Michigan the week before. Ferguson's TD reception was the first for a UO tight end this season and the 14th of his career, tied for second in school history among tight ends.
Noah Whittington led the Ducks in rushing with 77 yards on 13 carries. Kobe Savage had nine tackles to lead the UO defense, and Jordan Burch filled up the stat sheet with one sack, two passes broken up at the line, the forced fumble that Johnson recovered and returned for a touchdown, and a 36-yard run on a fake punt.
"That's a big dude who can move good — one of the top if not the top defensive ends in the nation," Savage said. "Jordan Burch brings a lot of energy to this team. … Having a front like that makes covering a lot easier."
The game opened with Maryland driving to a field goal, a drive extended by a UO penalty on a Terrapins punt. After James gave Oregon the lead with his rushing touchdown, Johnson's fumble return made it 14-3 early in the second quarter. The teams then traded punts, before Maryland got within 14-10 on a touchdown drive that featured three more UO penalties.
The Terrapins' third and final scoring drive came in the fourth quarter, and it also included a penalty on Oregon's defense.
"We didn't play clean," Lanning said. "I don't know if we were distracted, we weren't focused. I felt like our guys had good energy and enthusiasm, but we put ourselves in some bad spots on defense."
The Ducks took a 21-10 lead into halftime after Ferguson's touchdown just before the half ended. Oregon then outscored an opponent in the third quarter for the first time in more than a month — going back to the Michigan State game on Oct. 4 — when Gabriel threw his record-setting TD pass to Wilson and Conerly ran in the two-point try.
Interceptions by Tysheem Johnson and Jestin Jacobs in the fourth quarter, after Maryland had closed within 29-18, gave the Ducks some cushion. They turned the first into a field goal by Atticus Sappington, and the second into a touchdown pass from Gabriel to Evan Stewart.
That provided a comfortable margin of victory, and left Oregon as one of just four unbeaten teams left in the country, albeit on a night the Ducks weren't at their most efficient.
"Every game this year, I felt like we've grown," Lanning said. "This one, we got some growing moments. So we're gonna go learn from it."
The top-ranked Ducks improved to 10-0 for the third time in school history Saturday with a 39-18 win over Maryland before 59,245 fans in Autzen Stadium. Dillon Gabriel's three passing touchdowns gave him an FBS-record 180 touchdowns responsible for in his career, and helped the Ducks endure a night in which they were flagged for 12 penalties.
All three Maryland scoring drives were aided by UO penalties, but the Oregon defense otherwise was solid, allowing just 3.8 yards per play and providing a touchdown on a fumble return by Brandon Johnson. The Ducks were remarkably balanced on offense, with 183 passing yards and 180 on the ground, as Jordan James ran for a score to complement Gabriel and the passing attack.
"Nice to walk away with a victory, but I feel like there were moments we could handle a lot better," UO coach Dan Lanning said. "… But you can't go through that game without recognizing having the all-time touchdown leader in the NCAA. What (Gabriel) was able to accomplish there, he was the first one to tell me he doesn't care, but he should — because that's a really special moment for him."
Johnson's fumble return in the second quarter was one of three turnovers that led to Oregon points, as the Ducks turned a pair of interceptions in the fourth quarter into 10 more points. The UO offense also showed some creativity to shake off recent third-quarter doldrums, with Gabriel throwing a touchdown pass to offensive lineman Gernorris Wilson, and then tackle Josh Conerly Jr. taking a direct snap on the PAT and running in a two-point conversion.
Gabriel finished the game 23-of-34 for 183 yards and three scores, plus 28 rushing yards. It was the TD pass to Wilson that pushed him past Case Keenum into first all-time for touchdowns responsible for in FBS history.
"What an interesting way to do it," Gabriel said with a smile. "But he's worked hard at that one for sure."
Evan Stewart and Terrance Ferguson also caught touchdown passes, helping the Ducks sustain their passing attack in the wake of Tez Johnson's injury at Michigan the week before. Ferguson's TD reception was the first for a UO tight end this season and the 14th of his career, tied for second in school history among tight ends.
Noah Whittington led the Ducks in rushing with 77 yards on 13 carries. Kobe Savage had nine tackles to lead the UO defense, and Jordan Burch filled up the stat sheet with one sack, two passes broken up at the line, the forced fumble that Johnson recovered and returned for a touchdown, and a 36-yard run on a fake punt.
"That's a big dude who can move good — one of the top if not the top defensive ends in the nation," Savage said. "Jordan Burch brings a lot of energy to this team. … Having a front like that makes covering a lot easier."
The game opened with Maryland driving to a field goal, a drive extended by a UO penalty on a Terrapins punt. After James gave Oregon the lead with his rushing touchdown, Johnson's fumble return made it 14-3 early in the second quarter. The teams then traded punts, before Maryland got within 14-10 on a touchdown drive that featured three more UO penalties.
The Terrapins' third and final scoring drive came in the fourth quarter, and it also included a penalty on Oregon's defense.
"We didn't play clean," Lanning said. "I don't know if we were distracted, we weren't focused. I felt like our guys had good energy and enthusiasm, but we put ourselves in some bad spots on defense."
The Ducks took a 21-10 lead into halftime after Ferguson's touchdown just before the half ended. Oregon then outscored an opponent in the third quarter for the first time in more than a month — going back to the Michigan State game on Oct. 4 — when Gabriel threw his record-setting TD pass to Wilson and Conerly ran in the two-point try.
Interceptions by Tysheem Johnson and Jestin Jacobs in the fourth quarter, after Maryland had closed within 29-18, gave the Ducks some cushion. They turned the first into a field goal by Atticus Sappington, and the second into a touchdown pass from Gabriel to Evan Stewart.
That provided a comfortable margin of victory, and left Oregon as one of just four unbeaten teams left in the country, albeit on a night the Ducks weren't at their most efficient.
"Every game this year, I felt like we've grown," Lanning said. "This one, we got some growing moments. So we're gonna go learn from it."
Team Stats
MAR
ORE
Total Yards
289
363
Pass Yards
206
183
Rushing Yards
83
180
Penalty Yards
75
95
1st Downs
19
19
3rd Downs
7
6
4th Downs
1
2
TOP
32:49
27:11
1st Quarter
MAR 3, ORE 0
MAR - Howes,Jack 37 yd field goal 12 plays, 56 yards, TOP 04:43
MAR 3, ORE 7
ORE - James,Jordan 3 yd run (Sappington,Atticus kick), 14 plays, 92 yards, TOP 05:36
2nd Quarter
MAR 3, ORE 14
ORE - Johnson,Brandon 62 yd fumble recovery (Sappington,Atticus kick)
MAR 10, ORE 14
MAR - Hemby,Roman 1 yd run (Howes,Jack kick), 9 plays, 70 yards, TOP 04:25
MAR 10, ORE 21
ORE - Ferguson,Terrance 9 yd pass from Gabriel,Dillon (Boyle,Andrew kick) 12 plays, 75 yards, TOP 02:57
3rd Quarter
MAR 10, ORE 29
ORE - Wilson,Gernorris 3 yd pass from Gabriel,Dillon (Conerly Jr.,Josh rush) 8 plays, 85 yards, TOP 03:12
4th Quarter
MAR 18, ORE 29
MAR - Smith Jr.,Octavian 3 yd pass from Edwards Jr.,Billy (Edwards Jr.,Billy rush) 10 plays, 59 yards, TOP 04:07
MAR 18, ORE 32
ORE - Sappington,Atticus 20 yd field goal 4 plays, 2 yards, TOP 01:59
MAR 18, ORE 39
ORE - Stewart,Evan 17 yd pass from Gabriel,Dillon (Boyle,Andrew kick) 5 plays, 32 yards, TOP 01:08
Game Leaders
Passing Leaders
CMP
23
TD
3
YDS
183
INT
0
Players Mentioned
DE
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OL
/ Football
TE
/ FootballQB
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ILB
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RB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
DB
/ Football
K
/ Football
DB
/ Football
WR
/ Football
RB
/ Football
OL
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Wednesday, September 10
Iapani Laloulu: "Be better every single day."
Wednesday, September 10
Dan Lanning: "Business trip."
Wednesday, September 10
Dillon Thieneman: "Keep grinding day in and day out."
Tuesday, September 09
