Ducks’ defense works wonders with QBs hurt

TUCSON, Ariz. – With Kellen Clemens, the heart of Oregon’s offense, on the bench with a broken ankle, the Ducks’ defense took over.

Linebacker Brent Haberly returned a fumble 34 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter and No. 15 Oregon beat Arizona 28-21 Saturday despite the Ducks’ top two quarterbacks being knocked out of the game on consecutive possessions.

Haberly couldn’t believe when he saw the ball come out of Mike Bell’s arms.

“I was going to put a hit on him, and then I saw the ball,” Haberly said. “My eyes lit up, and I grabbed it. I saw the quarterback (Willie Tuitama) out of the corner of my eye, and I knew I had to make him miss, and I did.”

Blair Phillips, another linebacker, had a sack and recovered another fumble late in the game to stop Arizona’s final scoring threat, and safety Anthony Trucks, the Pacific-10 Conference’s defensive player of the week two weeks ago, had 11 tackles, 2 1/2 sacks and forced a fumble.

Special teams also were big for Oregon (7-1, 4-1), which had two punt blocks and a 69-yard punt return for a touchdown by Justin Phinisee.

The Ducks won for the fourth consecutive time since losing to No. 1 Southern California. They also won their seventh in a row over the Wildcats (1-6, 0-4).

Haberly’s score 2:46 into the fourth quarter came after the Wildcats knocked out Clemens, the third-best passer in school history, and backup Dennis Dixon on consecutive possessions in the third.

Clemens was unable to put weight on his left ankle after a hard sack by Arizona’s Copeland Bryan with about 8 minutes left in third.

Brady Leaf, a sophomore and brother of former Washington State University QB Ryan Leaf, was ineffectual at QB most of the fourth.