Ducks fly to victory over ̢۪Dogs

If last weekend̢۪s near-comeback at Texas A&M was a step forward for Fresno State, then Saturday̢۪s contest against the Oregon Ducks was a big jump backwards.

Numerous penalties, a stagnant running game and potent Oregon offense lead to the demise of the Bulldogs as they fell 52-21 at Autzen Stadium.

The loss was Fresno State̢۪s fifth straight to the Ducks, and Oregon Coach Mike Bellotti̢۪s 100th career victory at Oregon.

“Today we got beat soundly in all phases of the game,â€Â Coach Pat Hill said. “Oregon is a great football team and I can’t say it enough that they beat us in all phases of the game.â€Â

Carrying the load for the Ducks was running back Jonathan Stewart, who rushed for 165 yards on 17 carries including two touchdowns.

One of those touchdowns was an 88-yard scamper in the first quarter, the longest run in Autzen Stadium history.

“Great blocking set it up,â€Â Stewart said. “When you’re in that situation you just see a lot of green. It’s like money.â€Â

One of the things Fresno State wanted to do Saturday was shut down quarterback Dennis Dixon and Oregon̢۪s spread offense.

This didn̢۪t pan out as Dixon would throw for 139 yards, including two touchdowns, while rushing for 59 yards and another score.

“It’s always great to get off to a good start,â€Â Dixon said. “Everyone comes together on offense and defense.â€Â

Dixon and the Ducks would jump out to a 42-6 lead in the second quarter and never look back.

“We made a lot of mistakes defensively, we missed a lot of assignments,â€Â linebacker Marcus Riley said. “Oregon is a very good team and they execute very well, but we didn’t give ourselves a chance when it came to playing assignment football.â€Â

The biggest blow Fresno State suffered on defense was the loss of junior defensive end, Jason Roberts, who broke his leg in the third quarter and will miss the remainder of the season.

While Oregon gained a total of 461 yards offensively, the Bulldogs̢۪ running game was stagnant, gaining only 60 yards total. This was due in part to the absence of guards Cole Popovich and Adam McDowell who are out with injuries.

Fresno State̢۪s downfall was in part due to the amount of yellow flags they received. Overall, the Bulldogs received 12 penalties resulting in 105 yards total.

“There were a lot of flags tonight; you can’t have that many a game,â€Â Hill said. “But I think when you get behind guys are going to get frustrated but still there aren’t any excuses we just had too many.â€Â

Additionally, the turnover bug continues to infect the Bulldogs, as their grand total for the season is now eight turnovers.

In the first quarter, running back Ryan Mathews fumbled a carry that was returned for a touchdown by cornerback Walter Thurmond III.

“We tried to go out there and make a statement by stopping the run, and I think we did that,â€Â Thurmond said.

Two possessions later, Thurmond would also disrupt the Bulldogs̢۪ passing game as he picked off Tom Brandstater in the first quarter for 30 yards and set up another Oregon score.

Brandstater completed 18 of 32 passes for 219 yards and a touchdown to go with an interception.

“That was a good team we played, but we can’t make that many mistakes,â€Â Brandstater said. “I thought we didn’t sustain enough drives and keep control of the game.â€Â

Fresno State̢۪s touchdowns came on runs from Lonyae Miller in the first quarter and a late fourth quarter score from Mathews. True freshman fullback Vince Pascoe made a touchdown catch at the end of the first half.

The new task for the Bulldogs will to be to win the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Championship. This week they have a bye, and will prepare for Louisiana Tech on Sept. 29 at Bulldog Stadium.

“We have a lot of seniors on this team who have a goal of winning a WAC Championship and that’s still obtainable,â€Â Hill said. “That’s our focus right now. We are going to get ready for Louisiana Tech and put together a good game plan. We are going to work on winning the WAC.â€Â