Well, the Ducks lost tonight in heartbreaking fashion. Auburn kicks the winning field goal as time expired, giving the Tigers their second National Championship and leaving the Ducks having to wait another year for their first.
I think there are a lot of Auburn fans out there who are mildly surprised by the final score. Based on some of comments posted on ‘The Oregonian’s’ web site from Auburn fans, I think they were expecting to run all over the Ducks. Didn’t turn out that way. The PAC-10 champ gave the SEC champ all they could handle. And while the SEC continues its dominance in the championship game, this was not like previous years when the SEC team ran away early and often. The better team did win, but they weren’t THAT much better. But all you have to do is put one more point on the board than the other guy and Auburn did that (three points actually). My hat is off to them.
There were two plays that were the turning points as far as I was concerned. The first play was the opening kickoff and subsequent Duck three and out. I am fairly certain Kelly wanted to establish the tempo of the game early but it back fired. The kick returner slipped twice during the return and the Ducks were in a hole right away. The fast tempo works best when the Ducks have a shorter field. The defense doesn’t feel like they can take gamble when the Ducks have a short field. But with 85 yards of green to defend, it makes defensive play calling a little easier. If the Ducks would have kicked off, then three and outed the Tigers, I think big ol’ Mo would have been in our favor. Plus, taking the kickoff to open the game, gave the Tigers the ball to begin the second half.
The second game turner was the 37 yard gain late in the fourth quarter. The Ducks had Auburn pinned deep and more time would have been needed to Auburn into field goal range. Should the guy have been called down? Technically, the BIG 10 officials got the call right. But the runner was controlled by the tackler, only to be let go because the play was thought to be over. It is true his knee was never down, but what about when a player lands on top of a pile trying for short yards? Often, the runner’s knee or elbow never actually touches the ground. In that case, the refs blow the whistle, ending the play because the runner is controlled by the defensive player(s). Dyer was controlled by the tackler. I know, I know, play to the whistle. Did this change the outcome? Who knows, but it certainly put Auburn in complete control.
Overall the officiating was decent. There were a few missed and questionable calls, but there almost always is in every game. The first one is the Dyer run. As I said, technically they got the call correct, but the runner was controlled by the tackler. The officials missed at least one face mask against Newton. It was a short run and the Oregon player clearly got a hold of his face mask. The one that chaps my hide though is the unsportsmanlike conduct called on an Oregon player after he caused a Newton fumble which Oregon recovered and turned in to eight points. Yes, he did get up and thumped his chest and that can be called by strict definition of the rules. But later, when Dyer thought he had scored at the tail end of the game, he was mobbed by the players on the field and from the bench. Why wasn’t this considered a violation of the rules if the chest thump was a violation? Auburn should have been backed up the 15 yard line. Fortunately, I don’t think any of the missed called impacted negatively on the outcome, other than the Dyer situation and as I have said, technically it was the correct call.
Play calling was a little suspect in my opinion. Just when it seemed that Oregon was gaining momentum by running outside they would try to run inside and get stuffed. The stupid reverse on the kickoff was beyond compare. There is no way you are going to trick a team as fast as Auburn with something like that. QB Thomas played a decent game (350+yards passing, 2 TDs), but his brain fart near the goal line cast the Ducks four points. His job is to read the offensive line then make a decision who gets the ball. In that case Nick Fairly had broken through (by design I think) and tackled Thomas for a big loss. He should have handed off to James. Fairly would not have been able to react quick enough to bring James down. He even said in the post game he had one target and that was the QB.
Of the two teams in the final, I think Oregon has the best chance of returning next year. Auburn is going to take a big hit with both Fairly and Newton almost certain to declare for the draft. Newton came out of nowhere. If not for Newton, then Auburn is a very good team but not undefeated. The offensive line will also be hurt by graduation. For Oregon, both Thomas and James return. Not sure if Barner is coming back, I think he is a senior. But waiting in the wings is a soon to be red-shirt freshman who is absolute burner. Since Oregon runs so many players in and out of their defense and offensive line there is experience to replace those who will depart. Matthews will be missed at linebacker.
I am proud of my Ducks. They represented well, but just came up a tad short.
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