Ducks face prospect of Sooners after losing sooner than expected
While almost no one expected Oregon to escape its non-conference schedule unscathed, few thought the damage would come so soon.
The Ducks, selected in the preseason to finish third in the Pacific-10 Conference, dropped their season opener to Indiana 30-24 on Saturday, largely a result of seven turnovers.
Now, the Ducks have a much tougher task in traveling to No. 2 Oklahoma, a team expected to roll over just about any other in the nation.
Oregon quarterback Kellen Clemons threw three interceptions and some blamed the Ducks’ loss on his disappointing play. Head coach Mike Bellotti said he too wasn’t pleased with Clemons’ performance, but is far from bailing out on his signal-caller.
“I had to say that I was disappointed and not discouraged by his play,” Bellotti said. “There were certain footwork issues he needs to work on. I think he rushed a couple of throws.”
The sloppy performance was particularly surprising in light of Clemons’ marked improvement over the course of the 2003 season.
“Unfortunately,” Bellotti said, “he reverted a little bit.”
As for the Sooners, the Ducks are hoping to have a shot at an upset as archrival Oregon State did in its game this season at LSU. But with the prospect of a 0-2 start, Oregon suddenly has to face this game with more desperation than almost anyone anticipated.
“We knew the Oklahoma game would not have as much luster if we didn’t take care of Indiana. And we didn’t,” Bellotti said. “Obviously we have to play an exceptional football game.”
Getting on the ball
While no one has chosen Arizona to do much damage in the Pac-10 this season, first-year head coach Mike Stoops is still agonizing over some of the mistakes his young and thin football team has made.
Last week, the Wildcats lost to an impressive Utah team in Tucson. They haven’t been helped on offense this year by turnovers and problems in the red zone.
“What’s funny is we’re last in a lot of (offensive) categories, but in time of possession we’re No. 1,” Stoops said.
Turnovers have been a particular problem for running back Mike Bell, the team’s top threat on offense. But while looking to put points on the board for Arizona (1-1), he’s instead putting the ball on the ground. That, Stoops said, is something his star needs to fix.
“We’ve lost three of his fumbles this year, and they’ve turned into points or they took points off the board for us at critical times. That happens. It’s just concentration and fundamentals,” Stoops said. “Mike’s a big-play guy and he’s always trying to look to make the big play. Sometimes you have to concede and go down and get ready to take a big hit.”
Something Bruin?
While UCLA has been far from perfect this season, losing to Oklahoma State and beating Illinois, the offense has shown signs of life. Last season, first-year head coach Karl Dorrell was accused of running a vanilla scheme. Regardless, the Bruins offense looked moribund at times in 2003.
But with new offensive coordinator Tom Cable, formerly the head man at Idaho, and another year of experience under the belt of quarterback Drew Olson, the Bruins’ offense is starting to pick things up.
“Our offense has a lot of returning players on it and that experience has really helped,” Dorrell said, complimenting Cable’s work. “He’s done a nice job in moving forward with our offense and taking it to the next step. He’s done a very nice job coaching our linemen.”
The Bruins are opening the Pac-10 schedule a week early with a game against another team struggling to find its identity, the Washington Huskies. While Dorrell said he can live with playing his third non-conference game after the league opener, it’s his preference to have another week of prep first.
“Every game is a crucial game and this is a crucial game for both programs,” he said. “Both of us want to get off to a great start, particularly in the Pac-10 race.”