EUGENE, Oregon — Though Oregon remains undefeated after two weeks, the cracks are beginning to show for the team that started the season ranked third in the nation.
For the second consecutive week, the Ducks struggled to put away an unranked opponent, narrowly defeating Boise State 37-34 on Saturday. The win came courtesy of a last-second field goal by kicker Atticus Sappington.
Head coach Dan Lanning expressed a mix of relief and concern following the game, acknowledging there’s still much to improve.
"We sure like sweating around here," Lanning said. "I have a sense of relief because of the result, but there are certainly a lot of things to fix."
Sappington's 25-yard field goal sent the Autzen Stadium crowd into a frenzy as the clock hit zero. But the elation was not so far removed from the boos that showered down on the Ducks' offense with during the second half as it called three straight runs -- the last on third-and-13 -- to prompt its sixth of seven punts on the night.
"I hate to say this, but it's FEBU [f--- everybody but us], just focused on ourselves in that moment," Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel said of the booing. "We dug our own hole. We had to get ourselves out of it."
For the second week in a row, Oregon's offense looked, at times, discombobulated. It didn't mean that it still couldn't show its potential, as Gabriel threw two touchdown passes that traveled 59 and 34 yards, but the offense never appeared to find a rhythm that corresponded with the talent it has and the talent it brought in during the offseason.
"It's a team that's finding our identity together," Gabriel said. "I think you see a bunch of guys being more and more connected as the weeks go on through practice, through games, and then you go through adversity like that and then you find a way to winy. ... I think you look at the things you can clean up and look how good you can be."
The big plays saved Oregon from an upset Saturday, especially those that arrived by way of the special teams. In the second half, with the game going back-and-forth, Tez Johnson returned a punt 85 yards for a touchdown while Noah Whittington ran a kickoff 84 yards to the end zone before dropping the ball just before crossing. To Lanning's relief, running back Jayden Lima instinctively picked up the loose ball in the end zone, averting disaster
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