Oregon steamrolls Huskies for sixth straight season

They insisted afterward that it hurts the same as any other loss, that this particular blowout at the hands of a hated rival holds no more meaning than any of their other four losses this season. But that really isn't the issue for the Washington football team. Because after Oregon ran circles around them on Saturday for the sixth consecutive year, it's becoming a little more obvious the Huskies simply aren't ready to compete with a team of the Ducks' caliber yet. Oregon used a 21-point, 196-yard third quarter to break open what had been a competitive game to that point, cruising to a 43-19 win in front of 67,809 at Husky Stadium to hand UW its fifth loss of the season and further diminish the Huskies' bowl hopes. "It's getting old," said defensive lineman Alameda Ta'amu. This is the sixth season in a row the Huskies (3-5, 2-3 Pac-10) have lost to the Ducks, and as Oregon celebrated with its fans in the west end of the stadium, it might have been easy to mistake this UW team for any of the ones that staggered to sub-.500 finishes the past six years. They'll need to win three of their final four games to get to 6-6, a stretch that includes two road games and a home game against a surging California team. And if this game was any indication of how the Huskies are progressing, it's obvious they still have a ways to go to be the team some thought they may be after beating USC Sept. 19. The Huskies looked just as helpless against Oregon's spread rushing offense attack as they had the past five years, stifling the Ducks for much of the first half before allowing several gashing runs throughout the third quarter as Oregon turned it into a blowout. "I thought we really had some opportunities, especially early in the ball game and coming out at halftime, to change the complexion of the game, and maybe get the game going in our favor more," head coach Steve Sarkisian said. "And we weren't able to capitalize on it." Sarkisian said he thinks the Huskies may be a little mentally drained, meaning the upcoming bye week might be coming at the best possible juncture. When they weren't tearing through UW's defense, the Ducks were proving themselves superior via their special teams. Tyrell Irvin recovered a blocked punt in the end zone with 12:45 left in the second quarter, then backup quarterback Nate Costa ran in a two-point conversion on a swinging gate play the Huskies were unprepared for. A fake field goal late in the half helped set up another UO touchdown, when Costa, who was the holder on the play, took the snap and took off left, gaining seven yards on fourth-and-five from the UW 15. So before Oregon's offense even got going, it was already in control. Sarkisian said the Ducks "just destroyed us on special teams," as those three gaffes conceivably cost the Huskies 12 points at a time they could have still hung in the game. The Ducks scored after UW went three-and-out to open the second half, using just three plays to go 53 yards and take a 22-6 lead. It was never close after that. Jake Locker and UW's offense managed to gain 395 yards of total offense, but several missed opportunities allowed Oregon to pull away. With UO leading 8-3, Locker threw an interception on a fourth-and-goal play from the two-yard line midway through the second quarter, and then threw another pick near the goal line with 9:02 left in the third that killed another promising drive. The failed fourth-down try seemed to turn the momentum in Oregon's favor for good. "It would have been a way different game," said UW tailback Chris Polk, who had to sit out that series with a minor ankle injury. "The momentum change would have shifted, and you could stop having that sense of doubt in your mind." The way Oregon moved the ball in the third quarter, it might not have mattered. The Ducks simply ran the ball right at the Huskies, who seemed to wear down after holding UO to just 60 rushing yards in the first half. They gained 196 total yards in the third quarter alone and were almost surgical in scoring on all three of their possessions in that quarter. "They were just a better team coming out for the second half," Ta'amu said. "They came out with a vengeance." LaMichael James ran for 154 yards on 15 carries, ripping off a 56-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter after the game had more or less been decided. And UO quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who wasn't a certainty to play, looked fine as he threw for 157 yards on 14-22 passing. The biggest of those may have been a 32-yard completion on third-and-25 that helped set up the Ducks' final touchdown before the end of the first half. Faced with the first post-blowout recovery of his head-coaching career, Sarkisian said he's not ready to give up on the idea that the Huskies are still a good team. "We're playing hard, and the last thing I want to see is the morale of the football team down and gone and, 'Woe is me, here we go again,'" Sarkisian said. "That's not our guys' mentality. We've got a fighter's mentality, and that's a great thing to have that we can build from." Reach Sports Editor Christian Caple at sports@dailyuw.com.

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