Nebraska this weekend poses an altogether different challenge, as the Blackshirts seek to stop the Ducks’ marquee back. The touchdown came just one play after a turnover by the Huskers in t.
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The first game of the home-and-home series is Saturday at Memorial Stadium, and Riley says he’s excited about it maybe because he figures he can be more competitive with the Ducks now that he’s at Nebraska. In rushing, Royce Freeman ran for 207 yards and 2 touchdowns in 21 carries while Kani Benoit added 28 yards in 7 carries. The Ducks won 44-26. However, when OR scored its first touchdown of the game, it went for a successful two-point conversion and took an 8-0 lead.
“I don’t feel I have to prove myself to anybody”, Freeman said afterward. Only time, yards and touchdowns will tell how true that statement becomes this season. It was his 18th career game with 100-plus yards, and the 10th time he’s gone over 100 in his last 11.
Since 2000, OR is 6-3 against opponents from the Big Ten and Nebraska is 12-10 against current members of the Pac-12. He needs 129 more to move into second.
OR fans – do you like the look?
“I definitely think we showed people that we’re a competitive team and that we can go out there and stand toe to toe with any good team”, Williams said.
He threw for 397 yards, ran for a score and connected on a 12-yard pass to Chad Hansen that broke a 43-all tie and gave coach Sonny Dykes his biggest win in four seasons at Cal (2-1). “That always works to our benefit. You have to be smarter at times with where your hands are, but at the same time, I’m glad we went out and challenged”. If he can duplicate the effort, he could break James’ career mark (5,082). Devon Allen, who came back from a torn ACL in 2014 to compete in the Olympics, appeared to sustain another knee injury on special teams in the fourth quarter.
It’s a meeting of unbeaten teams from power conferences, so its result could be a factor for consideration down the road if either or both end up contending for the title in their respective leagues. If Oregon is able to take care of the ball the way they did against Virginia, it will limit the scoring opportunities and the short field Nebraska has taken advantage of in their first two wins this season. “We gave up big plays right at the wrong time, but (we) just kept coming back and finished it exactly how they needed to”. OR also racked up over 100 yards in Penalties, some from Player Emotion.
Ole Miss will lean on senior quarterback Chad Kelly, who threw for 341 yards and three touchdowns in the Rebels’ 43-37 over the Tide in Tuscaloosa last season.
OR settled for a 20-14 lead at the intermission after giving up a 45-yard punt return to De’Mornay Pierson-El and a 3-yard touchdown pass from Armstrong to Westerkamp with five seconds remaining.
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Nebraska safety Kieron Williams, who earlier in the week received a Blackshirt, said he and his teammates played with everything they had. That guy is definitely going to catch a ball when you need him to.
