The Ducks lead 21-13 at the half. Tim DeRuyter’s aggressive defense was on full display, but the offense left fans wanting more.
The Oregon Ducks enter the half leading Fresno State by a score of 21-13. Here are our instant reactions from the first half:
Aggressive Duck defense on full display: When Tim DeRuyter was hired away from California to be the Oregon defensive coordinator, one of the first things he said was that he wanted the Ducks to force a lot of turnovers. If the first quarter against Fresno State was any indication, it’s going to be a very fun season.
Kayvon Thibodeaux got things rolling on the Bulldogs’ second possession when he came from the blindside and nailed quarterback Jake Haener, causing a fumble and giving the Ducks the ball at the 3-yard line where they quickly turned into their first touchdown on the season.
Not to be outdone, Noah Sewell managed to strip tailback Ronnie Rivers of the ball on Fresno State’s next possession. Oregon again quickly scored to make it 14-0 midway through the first quarter.
Brown and the offense could have been better: If you take out the two possessions where the defense gave the offense a short field to work with, the offense wasn’t that impressive. There wasn’t much of a down-the-field passing game until towards the end of the second quarter when Brown found Johnny Johnson III for a 31-yard touchdown. But before that, Fresno State’s front four dominated the Duck offensive line, which is not a good sign heading into the Ohio State game next week.
Mycah Pittman showing he can be a factor: There weren’t many opportunities for the receivers to make plays, but when Brown did find time to throw the ball, Pittman seemed to be his go-to guy. Pittman ended the first half catching three of Brown’s five completions for 40 yards. Considering his career has been plagued by injuries, it’s nice to see Pittman be a factor in Joe Moorhead’s offense.
Oregon holds a slim 21-13 halftime lead over the Bulldogs.
Fresno State’s offense has plenty of weapons to provide Oregon some problems in the Ducks season opener.
If Mario Cristobal’s goal is to schedule good competition for his Oregon Ducks football team right away in Week 1, mission accomplished.
It would be easy to invite a team from the Football Championship Subdivision such as Portland State to begin the first normal season in two years, but Oregon will welcome Fresno State Sept. 4. When the two teams take the field, it will be 644 days since a full Autzen Stadium will witness a game.
The Bulldogs come into the contest already with a win under their belt as they blew out Connecticut 45-0 last week. Granted UConn didn’t play last season and the Huskies looked more than sluggish, but Fresno State was able to show their overall team speed and an accurate quarterback that will test Oregon’s young secondary.
“They’re a team that’s impressive and you can tell they return a lot of starters,” Cristobal said of Fresno State in his weekly press conference. “They’re explosive on offense and it relates to a couple of different things. At running back, they’re as good as you’ll find. They also have a very experienced quarterback that came over from Washington and can tell by the efficiency of their passing game, the timing and precision, and their ability to protect and launch it down the field when they want to.”
That quarterback from Washington is senior Jake Haener. He transferred from the Huskies to the Bulldogs after the 2018 season where he appeared in four games in Seattle. Haener sat out the 2019 season per NCAA transfer rules, but when he was able to step out on the field for Fresno State, he delivered.
In 2020, Haener was an All-Mountain West honorable mention, leading the conference in averaging 337 yards a game. He also completed nearly 65 percent of his passes. Haener threw for 14 touchdowns in the six games the Bulldogs played last season. In the 2021 season opener, Haener picked up right where he left off going 20-of-26 for 331 yards and three scores.
The Fresno State tailback Cristobal mentioned was senior Ronnie Rivers, a 5-foot-9, 195-pounder from Brentwood, Calif. Although he had a slow day against UConn (13 carries for 58 yards), Rivers has been spectacular in his career.
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Rivers was a first-team all-conference tailback last season where he scored seven rushing touchdowns and nine total. Rivers’ next touchdown, his 45th, will make Rivers the all-time leading touchdown scorer in school history.
Fresno State’s deep threat was on full display last week with receiver Jalen Cropper. The 6-0, 172-pounder from Parlier, Calif. had an 86-yard touchdown against UConn where his speed was just too much for the Huskies’ secondary to handle. But that was the first time Cropper has exploded for a score in his career. Far from it.
Cropper has 55 catches in his two-plus-year career and is averaging almost 15 yards per reception. He caught 37 passes last year, good for 520 yards and five touchdowns in the six-game season.
As for their next game, inside a full Autzen Stadium, Fresno State offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb knows Oregon will provide a more difficult challenge than UConn did.
“Jake (Haener) is going to have to get that ball out on time,” he said of his quarterback avoiding sacks. “I think a big part of it is staying in rhythm and not getting ourselves in a position where Jake has to throw the ball. The O-line has to play well and know where the matchup is. We’re looking for a heavy dose of a pass rush and we just have to stay firm up there.”
A lot of offensive coordinators have said the same thing when facing the Ducks defense led by defensive Kayvon Thibodeaux and have walked away wondering what went wrong. Fresno State could be in that same position about three hours after kickoff.
