#13 Utah Football Falls To #8 Oregon, 35-6

Game Recap: Football | 10/28/2023 5:35 PM

Story Links SALT LAKE CITY – The No. 13 University of Utah Football program lost 35-6 to the No. 8 Oregon Ducks today, ending its 18-game win streak inside Rice-Eccles Stadium. Utah is 6-2 overall and 3-2 in Pac-12 play.

It was the first time that Utah was held without an offensive touchdown since 2018 (vs. Washington, L 10-3) with Utah finishing the game with 241 yards of total offense and two field goals. Despite winning the time of possession battle at 31:57 to 28:03, Utah only had 13 first downs and was just 5-of-15 on third down conversions.  

GAME LEADERS Wide receiver Devaughn Vele finished the game with 80 yards on a career-high tying seven receptions, averaging 11.4 yards per catch. Bryson Barnes was 15-of-29 for 136 passing yards with Jaylon Glover leading the Utes with nine carries for 39 yards.

On defense, Levani Damuni posted a season-high 11 tackles with Karene Reid adding nine. Cole Bishoip and Sione Vaki also contributed seven stops each.

Jack Bouwmeester averaged 49.0 yards per punt against the Ducks with Dijon Stanley and Mikey Matthews combining for 65 kickoff return yards that included a career-long 49-yard return from Stanley.

FIRST HALF BREAKDOWN Oregon scored on its first possession of the game to take the early lead, scoring a one-yard rushing touchdown on a six-play, 75-yard drive for the 7-0 advantage with 12:18 on the clock.

Utah's defense came up big on Oregon's next drive with Junior Tafuna forcing and recovering a fumble, but the Utes' offense struggled to find rhythm, only producing 51 yards on offense. Utah settled for a field goal with 3:45 to go in the quarter with Cole Becker knocking in a 32-yarder to cut the Oregon lead to 7-3.

Oregon scored 14 unanswered points to end the first quarter and start the second, starting with an 18-yard passing touchdown to make it 14-3 with 18 seconds to go in the first quarter. They followed it up with a touchdown on a three-yard catch, giving them a 21-3 lead with 12:29 to go in the second quarter.

Utah finished the quarter with 101 yards of total offense in the second quarter, but was still unable to find the end zone, once again having to go for a field goal with Becker hitting a 30-yarder to make it 21-6 at halftime.

SECOND HALF BREAKDOWN The Ducks went on to score another 14 unanswered points to start the second half, jumping on the scoreboard with 8:44 to go in the third quarter with a nine-yard rushing touchdown.

Oregon went on to capitalize on a Utah turnover, scoring once again at the 6:08 mark with a five-yard rushing touchdown for the 35-6 advantage. The Utes would hold Oregon scoreless in the fourth quarter, but were also unable to find the end zone themselves, falling to the Ducks at home.

UP NEXT Utah will play at home for the second week in a row with the Arizona State Sun Devils coming to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 4. The game is set for a 12 p.m. MT kick and will air on Pac-12 Networks.