2008 Woodie Awards
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Broncos hold off Ducks' late charge
Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli left the game in the first half with a concussion in the 37-32 loss
by Kevin Hudson | Senior sports reporter
The No. 17 Oregon Ducks fell just short of their second late comeback in as many weeks, falling 37-32 to the visiting Boise State Broncos Saturday in front of 58,713 at Autzen Stadium.
Oregon trailed 37-13 after three quarters but mounted an offensive surge in the fourth quarter behind true freshman quarterback Darron Thomas, who made his first appearance for the Ducks as the third quarter came to a close and led the Ducks to 19 fourth-quarter points on 13-of-25 passing for 210 yards and three touchdowns to one interception.
"He'd been a scout team quarterback up until Monday," Oregon coach Mike Bellotti said of Thomas. "But he had shown tremendous improvement so I felt very comfortable and we just didn't get him in the game soon enough."
Thomas connected with junior tight end Ed Dickson five times for 87 yards and two scores in the fourth quarter, and Dickson finished as the Ducks' leading receiver with seven catches for 103 yards and the two late touchdowns.
Senior kicker Matt Evensen missed both of his field goal attempts and an extra point in the game, though the second missed field goal was the result of a bad snap.
"Those are significant points in the game," Bellotti said. "It's frustrating because we're actually pretty good at times, and you take some of those things for granted."
Oregon's offense had sputtered for much of the first half and into the third quarter under true freshman Chris Harper, who was alone in leading the offense after a helmet-to-helmet collision in the first quarter sidelined sophomore transfer Jeremiah Masoli with a mild concussion.
Oregon was decidedly one-dimensional with Harper behind center, as Harper passed the ball just three times through the first three quarters, two for interceptions. Masoli threw the ball four times in his limited action, completing three passes for 27 yards with no interceptions.
Before Thomas took over for Oregon, the Ducks ran the ball 56 times for 250 yards and threw the ball seven times for 27 yards and two interceptions.
Oregon trailed 37-13 after three quarters but mounted an offensive surge in the fourth quarter behind true freshman quarterback Darron Thomas, who made his first appearance for the Ducks as the third quarter came to a close and led the Ducks to 19 fourth-quarter points on 13-of-25 passing for 210 yards and three touchdowns to one interception.
"He'd been a scout team quarterback up until Monday," Oregon coach Mike Bellotti said of Thomas. "But he had shown tremendous improvement so I felt very comfortable and we just didn't get him in the game soon enough."
Thomas connected with junior tight end Ed Dickson five times for 87 yards and two scores in the fourth quarter, and Dickson finished as the Ducks' leading receiver with seven catches for 103 yards and the two late touchdowns.
Senior kicker Matt Evensen missed both of his field goal attempts and an extra point in the game, though the second missed field goal was the result of a bad snap.
"Those are significant points in the game," Bellotti said. "It's frustrating because we're actually pretty good at times, and you take some of those things for granted."
Oregon's offense had sputtered for much of the first half and into the third quarter under true freshman Chris Harper, who was alone in leading the offense after a helmet-to-helmet collision in the first quarter sidelined sophomore transfer Jeremiah Masoli with a mild concussion.
Oregon was decidedly one-dimensional with Harper behind center, as Harper passed the ball just three times through the first three quarters, two for interceptions. Masoli threw the ball four times in his limited action, completing three passes for 27 yards with no interceptions.
Before Thomas took over for Oregon, the Ducks ran the ball 56 times for 250 yards and threw the ball seven times for 27 yards and two interceptions.
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