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kyle bonagura
Eugene, Ore. – immediately after oregon51-34 win against james madison In the first round of the College Football Playoff, Ducks coach Dan Lanning couldn’t hide his disgust.
“There is a standard here,” he said. “There’s definitely a standard of performance. Our players know that and they know what Championship football looks like, and the second half didn’t look like that.”
The Ducks (12-1) took a 34-6 lead at halftime — effectively punching their ticket to the quarterfinals against No. 4 Texas Tech — but the knockout blow never came. Instead, James Madison, which initially looked outmatched in every aspect of the game, outscored the Ducks 28–17 in the second half.
Duke never came close enough to jeopardize the outcome, but the flaws they exposed on both sides of the ball in Oregon frustrated Lanning.
“To come out like we did in the first half and not have the same success in the second half is definitely disappointing, and I think our players will definitely learn from that,” Lanning said.
Asked what he would describe the feeling, Lanning did not deny.
“I probably wouldn’t describe it,” he said.
But his terse behavior made it clear. Lanning knew that the version of Oregon that played in the second half at Autzen Stadium was not one that could make a deep run in the playoffs – and that another quarterfinal exit would represent a significant disappointment for a team with much bigger goals.
The second half was a lackluster performance that came with a lot of positivity. Oregon totaled 514 yards of offense and blocked one field goal and one punt. quarterback dante moore Completed 19 of 27 passes for 313 yards with four touchdowns and added a rushing score. But he also threw two interceptions that led to 10 JMU points.
Moore understood Lanning’s sentiment, but was also quick to put a different twist on it.
“The whole team understands it wasn’t our best game, but at the end of the day we won the football game,” Moore said. “In the playoffs, if you lose, you go home. We’re happy we won.”
Moore was not surprised by Lanning’s disappointment.
“Coach Lanning is our leader. We go the way he goes,” Moore said. “Everybody knows how Coach Lanning is. He’s mentally insane. He’s going to put that fire in us, and it’s needed. We don’t want everybody to be satisfied and we’ve never been satisfied all year.”
Defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi shared some of Lanning’s concerns.
“It’s a bittersweet feeling that we’re moving forward and very grateful for it,” said Lupoi, who will remain with the Ducks during their playoff run after being hired as Cal’s head coach. “But if we play anywhere remotely like we did in the second half in this next game, we will feel disappointed after the game.”
James Madison (12-2), the first Sun Belt team to reach the CFP, finished with 509 yards of total offense, including 110 yards rushing. wayne knight,
“To accomplish what we’ve done to get here, I think there’s some things we should be really proud of, and obviously it’s not ideal to end it the way it ended this night, but at the same time, it doesn’t take away from what we did during the year,” said James Madison coach Bob Chesney, who now turns his attention to his new job as coach at UCLA. Will concentrate.
