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Just like last season, Oregon’s first game in the College Football Playoff wasn’t competitive.
Unlike last season, Oregon was the side doing the bludgeoning.
The Ducks welcomed James Madison, champions of the Sun Belt Conference, to Autzen Stadium on Saturday for the 5-12 game in the opening round of the CFP. From the moment the ball was kicked, Oregon was in control. The Ducks hit 40-yard plays on each of their 3 drives of the game, scored touchdowns on each of their first 5 drives of the game, and rolled to a 51-34 victory.
Oregon had a 34-6 lead at the halftime break. The offense slowed down in the second half, but James Madison was completely out of it by the time the third quarter began.
The Dukes used a 15-play, 8-minute drive on their first possession of the game, but it ended with a field goal. They missed a field goal on their second drive to end a 10-play possession with nothing to show for it. The next 3 drives all ended in punts.
Oregon was relentless, with dynamic running backs Dierre Hill Jr. and Jordon Davison repeatedly knifing through the JMU defensive front. Davison ended with 90 yards on 10 carries. Hill had 76 yards and a score on 6 carries.
The Duck offense averaged 15.9 yards per play in the first quarter and 13.6 yards per play in the second quarter. After 30 minutes of game time, Oregon had put more points on the scoreboard (34) than it had run plays (25). It faced only 1 third down in the first half.
Coach Dan Lanning won’t like the way Oregon let off in the second half. The Ducks gave up 28 points and more than 300 yards. JMU gashed Oregon for big gains and, in certain spots, it looked like the Ducks were giving a little less than 100% on defense.
But that’s nitpicking in garbage time. Oregon did what was necessary to start the game, and it is moving on because of that.
The Ducks will face 4-seed Texas Tech in the quarterfinal at the Orange Bowl on Jan. 1. A win would send them to the Peach Bowl, where they could potentially match up with Indiana again.
Oregon 51, James Madison 34
Here’s the Oregon-JMU box score (use the dropdown menu to select team or player stats), followed by the complete play-by-play:
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.