Coming into Saturday’s game against Utah, Oregon’s rush attack was averaging over 300 yards per game, and a college football-best 6.67 yards per carry. The Utes kept the Ducks’ ground game in check, something not many defenses can attest to.
Oregon’s 145 rushing yards weren’t a season-low, but based on the first half it wasn’t unrealistic to assume the Ducks would run for less yards than their 62 against Stanford. Utah held De’Anthony Thomas and company to 10 yards on 15 attempts in the first half, including 23 yards lost on Marcus Mariota sacks.
“We just weren’t communicating very well,” said offensive lineman Tyler Johnstone of the running game in the first half. “They were throwing some stuff at us that was kind of confusing us up front.”
The long run of the first half was an 11-yarder by Thomas in the first quarter. No Oregon ball carrier would gain double-digit yards on the ground until Byron Marshall’s 21-yard scamper late in the third quarter. Marshall and Thomas Tyner controlled the run game in a much improved second half, combining to pick up 123 yards on 18 carries with two touchdowns, both by Marshall.
“We really tried to pick up the tempo in the second half,” Marshall said. “I think that definitely helped. Got them (Utah) out of blitzes in certain situations, got them tired in certain situations. The combination of that just kind of sparked our offense.”
The most noticeable ball carrier not making any noise was Mariota. He played through an injured knee in the loss to Stanford and totaled negative-16 yards, the first time the sophomore finished with less than 17 rushing yards in a game in his career. On Saturday, Mariota looked reluctant to pull the ball down and take off like he’s accustomed to. He finished with negative-18 rushing yards, bringing his three game total to negative-16 yards after gaining 18 against UCLA.
“Utah did a good job of keeping me in the pocket,” Mariota said. “They did a good job of stopping me and making me hand the ball off. I’ve learned to play with it (his injured knee) and I’m not going to use it as an excuse.”
Even though Mariota was made more one-dimensional than ever before, he was locked in with receivers and extended his interception-less streak to 353 pass attempts. He finished with 288 passing yards and three touchdowns, keeping his name in the Heisman trophy race.
But if the Hawaii native is to take home the hardware and help the Ducks continue to win, he’ll need to be able to run the ball as needed.
“I think it (his knee) affects our option game a little bit,” Johnstone said. “I think Marcus is just a little less comfortable because he can run the ball, I think it’s just a confidence thing with the knee. He’s not going to hold the ball if he doesn’t feel safe doing it.”
For now, at least, Mariota and the Ducks can afford to rely on his right arm that’s been nearly flawless over the course of the season.
When all was said and done, Oregon’s offense turned things around and looked like their usual selves. The rushing numbers weren’t gaudy like they usually are, but Mariota played up to his potential and the defense stifled the Utes.
Oregon improved to 9-1 on the season and heads to Tucson next week to face Arizona.
For Utah, the loss was their fourth straight and their record now sits at 4-6. They play at Washington State next week, a game they need to win to have a chance at being bowl eligible.
Follow Madison Guernsey on Twitter @guernseymd