Ducks find their edge on Big Ten Mountain

On the slopes of Big Ten Mountain, Rutgers registers somewhere between a green circle and a blue square.

The Scarlet Knights aren’t quite for beginners, but they shouldn’t pose much of a challenge for experienced … uh… skiers.

A week earlier, Washington took a cautious route through the first half of the run before bombing through the second, hitting a jump and backflipping its way to a 38-19 win.

Despite an Oregon loss to Indiana and another trip to the Eastern Time Zone — plus the unfamiliarity of facing a team for the first time in program history — the Ducks were expected to do the same.

They did even more. They won 56-10.

“We ran into a buzzsaw tonight,” Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said. “Very good football team, Oregon, there’s no doubt about it. They played with a heck of an edge.”

The Ducks were more talented. The Ducks were more athletic. And a week after numerous complaints from fans about both coordinators, the Ducks were clearly better coached.

Oregon totaled 750 yards. Rutgers had 202. The Ducks had 15 plays of 20-plus yards. The Scarlet Knights had 13 first downs.

It was domination against a team Oregon should dominate. But conditions can get tricky, even on easy runs. Coming off a loss and going on the road, credit to Dan Lanning and his staff for keeping the Ducks out of the trees.

How Dante got his groove back

The key to getting Oregon back up the hill was reminding Dante Moore that he was Dante Moore.

Against Indiana, Moore’s unassailable start to the season came under fire. He looked confused at times, turned the ball over in key situations and was constantly under pressure.

That happened. But so did everything that came before it.

“Personally, with me, I feel like the way I just have so much confidence in this team and the offense has confidence in me,” Moore said. “I feel like as a quarterback when you take that into a Monday practice and nobody is upset and nobody’s face is down, and everybody is like, ‘Five, smile. Get back to yourself.’ I kind of feel like I love that.”

Lanning saw that confidence return during a game where Moore threw for 290 yards — including 10 completions of 15-plus yards — and four touchdowns.

“He was out there playing with joy,” Lanning said. “You see the smile on his face, and there’s still going to be some moments that he’s going to want back. Some opportunities that we missed and some things that we can improve. But overall, I thought he executed the plan that we asked him to execute at a high level.”

Sadiq Is OK

Tight end Kenyon Sadiq was brilliant — no surprise there. 

He also came up hobbled after his second touchdown and didn’t play in the second half.

“Probably just more precautionary on our side,” Lanning said.

The old man has some wheels

The “oh no, here we go again” feeling lasted all of a few plays before running back Noah Whittington settled things down with a 68-yard touchdown run.

A week after starting slow against Indiana, Whittington took a pitch around the left edge on third-and-3, followed the blocking of fellow running back Jordon Davison and turned the final defender into a spinning top.

“It was a great play call by Coach Stein,” Whittington said. “Hell of a block by Jordon Davison and the big guys up front. I just had to run, honestly.”

Whittington added another rushing touchdown and caught one through the air in one of the best games of his career.

Not bad for the old man of the room.

“It’s been very competitive, but it’s been a brotherhood,” the senior said. “I’m the older guy in the room, so it’s kinda like they’re my little brothers. It’s fun. It’s unique. There’s a lot of selfless young men in there and that’s what separates our team.”

Getting his Flowers

Another week, another young member of Oregon’s secondary stepping into the spotlight.

Last week, true freshman Brandon Finney Jr. made headlines with a pick-six of Fernando Mendoza. This week, redshirt freshman safety Aaron Flowers stole the show with five tackles, an interception and a forced fumble.

Oregon held Rutgers to 79 passing yards.

“I feel like we came out here and just attacked our game plan, were ourselves, and then just sustained it,” Flowers said. “Came out there full speed, just full effort, and I feel like that showed out.”

Your words, not mine