The Oregon Ducks and the superb, splendid, good, very fine day
The Ducks scored on every single drive Anthony Brown Jr. played and finally did what a top-10 team should do to a team like Colorado
(Eric Evans/GoDucks.com)
EUGENE — With two minutes to play at Autzen Stadium the student section had cleared out.
The score was lopsided and boos began to cascade down from those who remained here on this homecoming afternoon. Just hours earlier, the place was a joyful mess as Oregon paraded around legends from yesteryear — first Marcus Mariota and Hroniss Grasu, then Sabrina Ionescu and Satou Sabally and so on — and it was just a week ago that a hot mic caught Oregon coach Mario Cristobal telling fans that he didn’t want to “hear that shit anymore,” in regards to booing.
Yet here they came again, beginning faintly and then picking up steam as the man drawing their ire took center stage. But this time it was a referee, who after replay review had just ruled what would have been Anthony Brown Jr.’s fourth touchdown pass of the day came from an illegal formation.
No problem. The Ducks took the penalty, moved back to Colorado’s 14-yard line and then scored three plays later when Seven McGee punched it in for six from one-yard out to punctuate No. 7 Oregon’s 52-29 thumping of Colorado.
In a way, Saturday came with a slight twinge of déjà vu from those Mariota years, when it seemingly felt like only the guys in stripes could halt the offense.