Halftime: Oregon 21, Washington 7

Bullet point notes from a rowdy first half in Seattle…

Oregon received the ball to start the game and was stopped on a fourth down in Husky territory. Prior to turning the ball over on downs, Keanon Lowe dropped what would have been a wide open touchdown on a nice pass from Mariota. On Oregon’s second possession, there were three plays in a row that were reviewed: a Josh Huff fumble (which was originally called a touchback, but overturned), a Mariota almost touchdown and a Marshall rushing touchdown. Marshall was stood up in a pile of about 10 players, but the play was ruled a touchdown on the field and was not overturned. After Oregon’s scoring drive put them ahead 7-0, Washington responded in impressive fashion with an Austin Sefarian-Jenkins touchdown catch on 3rd and goal.

While an even first quarter posted a 7-7 score, the second quarter tallied 14-0 in favor of the Ducks. Bishop Sankey — who has been bottled up all game by an outstanding effort from Oregon’s defensive line — fumbled the ball in Ducks territory on a promising drive. Oregon went score, stop, score on the next three possessions of the game, with Addison and Marshall each reaching the end zone.

Aside from an outstanding performance by Oregon’s defense so far, another big storyline is the injury bug, which has come out in full force today on the Duck’s side. De’Anthony Thomas (ankle) has yet to play, and Josh Huff (leg), Marcus Mariota (knee), Christian French (unidentified) and Tony Washington (unidentified) were all injured during the first half. Mariota and Washington have returned to the game.

 

Oregon vs. Washington: Quick Hits

A few quick notes prior to the 1 PM PT kickoff here in Seattle…

UW leads the all-time series 58-42-5, but Oregon has won the last nine meetings, with each victory coming by at least 17 points.

Oregon’s average margin of victory during its current nine game winning streak vs UW is 25.8.

Marcus Mariota has a 17-1 recorder as a starter, including an unbeaten 8-0 mark away from Eugene.

Mariota has yet to throw an interception or play in a fourth quarter this season for Oregon.

The Ducks rank second nationally in scoring offense (59.2) and defense (11.8).

Washington has gone three and out on just 6 of 65 offensive drives this season. Only Baylor (1-61) has been better in that regard.

Washington has turned the ball over six times this year, but none of those turnovers have been converted into points by the opposition.

The Huskies have allowed just seven points in the first and fourth quarters this season.

Bishop Sankey enters today as the fourth leading rusher in the nation, averaging 146.4 yards per game.