Depth Dossier: Oregon Ducks (Week 10)

Show Notes

Oregon Beat Ohio State by Winning Almost Nothing on the Stat Sheet The Depth Dossier breaks down what Oregon's Week 10 game against Ohio State changed on the depth chart: injuries, snap shares and who is moving up or down.

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This is the Depth Dossier: the Oregon Ducks, Week 10.

Oregon beat Ohio State 41 to 28 Saturday, and the wild part is the Buckeyes actually outgained them by 18 yards. It didn't matter, because Oregon won just about every situation that counted.

The Ducks fell behind 14 to nothing in the first quarter, then ripped off 38 unanswered points. That's the second straight week they've erased a 14-point hole. Running back Dierre Hill Junior carried the load with 75 yards and two touchdowns, including a 48-yard burst that put Oregon up 24 to 14. Quarterback Dylan Raiola threw for 257 yards and two touchdowns without a single interception.

The real turning point came right before halftime. Oregon ran a fake punt, with outside linebacker Teitum Tuioti taking the direct snap and throwing 30 yards to wide receiver Matayo Uiagalelei on fourth and nine. That set up a Hill touchdown. Then Oregon intercepted Ohio State quarterback Luke Fahey, and tight end Jamari Johnson scored on another direct-snap trick play on the final play of the half. In the span of three possessions, a 14 to 3 deficit turned into a 17 to 14 lead. Ohio State scored late to make the final margin look closer than the game really was.

Here's the thing about the box score: Ohio State actually finished with more total yards, 413 to 395, and more passing yards too. None of that mattered, because Oregon dominated the situations that decide games. The Ducks scored touchdowns on all six of their red zone trips. They converted their only fourth down try, while Ohio State missed all four of theirs. Ohio State hadn't lost a home game after leading by 14 points in 25 years, and Oregon snapped that streak by winning exactly the hidden stuff that yardage totals don't show.

A couple of other details stand out. Wide receiver Dakorien Moore made a one-handed, 11-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter that pushed the lead to 31 to 14, and it was the highlight of the day. Raiola completed 25 of 40 passes with zero interceptions, continuing his recent improvement under pressure. And worth remembering, both teams were playing without the quarterbacks who started their season openers, which makes Oregon's execution even more impressive.

Now to the injury that matters most going forward. Tuioti, the linebacker who threw that fake-punt touchdown pass, left the game in the fourth quarter with a left knee injury and didn't return. His status for the Michigan game is undetermined pending medical evaluation. Given what he did to swing this game, his health is something to watch closely, both for the linebacker rotation and for Oregon's trick-play arsenal.

On offense, Hill's role just keeps growing. He's now been Oregon's most productive back two weeks running, and he's done it both times without starter Jordon Davison, who remains out. Until Davison's back and cleared, Hill looks like the clear lead back, with last week's breakout performer Brandon Smith now settling in as a complementary piece rather than the headline.

Raiola's two-touchdown, no-interception game builds right on top of his big performance the week before. At this point, the quarterback job looks settled behind him rather than still being sorted out. And Moore is turning into the receiver Oregon leans on when it needs one play to flip a game, not just a guy who racks up catches.

Next week it's Michigan, and the questions are pretty clear. Can Tuioti play after that knee injury? Is Davison back in the backfield mix? And can Oregon's defense carry over the form it showed in the second half, once it settled down and started getting stops?

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