It’s a stat Oregon football usually doesn’t have to worry about all that often, but in last night’s 38-30 win over Texas Tech, penalties were almost as much of an opponent for the Ducks as the Red Raiders were.
The Pac-12 refs that were officiating the game threw a flag on Oregon 14 times, with most of them being either false starts or defensive pass interference. Perhaps it was the combination of some growing pains that come with a new offensive line and new secondary playing their first road game, but Texas Tech will hardly be the most hostile crowd Oregon will face this season. If Dan Lanning and his staff don’t find a way to clean this up, the Ducks won’t be as lucky to come out with a win the next time.
When Oregon wasn’t getting flagged, it was able to move the ball on a fairly consistent basis, but the defense had some problems keeping containment. Tyler Shough led all rushers with 103 yards. Again, Shough won’t be the most mobile signal caller this defense is going to face.
Fortunately for the Ducks, not all wins are going to be the Mona Lisa and a prestigious work of art. At the end of the day, they got the win.
Here are the ups and downs of the Week 2 report card.