In Oregon and Utah’s first ever conference matchup the Ducks lead the Utes 17-7 at halftime.
De’Anthony Thomas appeared in the starting lineup as he returned the first kick. Thomas had a total of 33 return yards and 11 yards rushing in the first half.
The defense made early plays against the Utah offense including a yardage loss on running back Bubba Poole. Linebacker Derrick Malone took down Utah quarterback Adam Schulz within the first five minutes of the first quarter. Then, just a few plays later Schulz’s throw was tipped by Troy Hill and intercepted by Terrance Mitchell. The interception led to the first touchdown of the day after a 28-yard pass to Pharaoh Brown and the touchdown pass to Thomas.
Malone has had five games this season with ten or more tackles. Malone is looking to make today’s game his sixth starting out with five in the first half. The defensive team as a whole ranks second nationally (596.6).
Malone injured his shoulder on a tackle in the second quarter and sat out for the remainder of the half, but the Oregon defense continued without him.
Regardless of being the first team leading the Pac-12 in fourth-down conversions, the Utes continued to get stopped by the Oregon defense. After Utah returned the ball back to Oregon, the Ducks settled for a 31-yard field goal from Matt Wogan after four plays, bringing the score to 10-0.
Mariota received his first sack around the eight minute mark from defensive back Michael Walker for a loss of nine yards that forced the Ducks to return the ball to the Utes. Oregon and Utah returned the ball back-and-forth multiple times to start the second quarter until Utah made their first touchdown with just under three minutes left to go in the half. After ten plays, tight end Jake Murphy received the ball 34 yards for the score.
Immediately after the Utes scored, Mariota threw a 57-yard pass to Bralon Addison which eventually led to an Oregon touchdown. Receiver Josh Huff got the touchdown credit after catching a five-yard pass from the quarterback making it Huff’s seventh touchdown catch of the season. The score came within just 45 seconds.
To finish out the first half, Schulz’s pass was incomplete for a potential first-down and Utah was forced to return the ball to Oregon. The same play panned out for the Ducks when Brown dropped the pass from Mariota.
Oregon is 7-0 when leading at the half, however, the team only leads by 10 points. The Ducks look to continue to add numbers to the board in the second half to solidify the win over Utah in the teams’ first conference meeting.
What to look for in the second half:
Will Malone’s injury effect the Oregon defense?
Mariota needs three more passing touchdowns to tie Joey Harrington for fifth-best at Oregon (59), will he make the mark in today’s matchup?
Will the receiving team continue to be the go-to for Mariota?
Follow Lindsey Tucker on Twitter @lindseyetucker