After being held to eight points in last week's season opening loss to Boise State, Oregon's offense came alive Saturday and led the Ducks to a 38-36 over the Purdue Boilermakers Saturday at Autzen Stadium.
Oregon got on the board first when middle linebacker Casey Matthews dropped back into zone coverage and intercepted quarterback Joey Elliot at the Purdue 23-yardline and returned the ball to the Purdue ten. When Oregon was not able to advance the ball from there, Morgan Flint split the uprights from 28 yards to give the Ducks an early 3-0 lead.
Purdue responded with a six play, 70 yard scoring drive to take a 7-3 midway through the opening quarter but the Ducks marched right back down the field with their next possession to retake the lead.
The drive got off to a quick start when Jeremiah Masoli connected with Jamere Holland for 40 yards on the first play of the drive, then Masoli moved the chains twice, gaining 14 and 10 yards giving Oregon the ball on the Purdue five. It took two carries but Andre Crenshaw reached pay dirt to give Oregon the lead 10-7.
Running back Ralph Bolden scored from the 19 in the early moments of the second quarter to push the Boilermakers back into the lead, 14-10. Bolden was a handful for the Oregon defense, carrying the ball 29 times and gaining 123 yards with two scores for his evening of work.
The teams exchanged three possessions then freshman punter Jackson Rice pinned the Boilermakers deep in their own territory when Aaron Valentine was forced by the Oregon punt coverage to fair catch on his own nine.
With his back to the goal line, Purdue quarterback Joey Elliot tried to hit a receiver on an "out" but Oregon cornerback Walter Thurmound III jumped the route for a pick six and a 17-14 Oregon lead.
Purdue's Carson Wiggs tied the score at 17 with a 22-yard field goal on the last play of the first half.
Jeremiah Masoli's fumble ended Oregon's first possession of the second half, giving the Boilermakers the ball on the 42. Twelve plays later Boldin scored from the one and Purdue was back in front 24-17.
It was Oregon's defense that pulled Oregon even. Defensive back Javes Lewis pounced on a loose ball at the Purdue 30 and scampered untouched into the end zone to tie the game at 24.
The defense held Purdue to a three and out giving Oregon the ball on their own 28 yard line. Freshman running back LaMichael James gained nine, seven, then 27 yards to give Oregon a first down on the Purdue 15 yard line. With the defense keying on James, Masoli tucked the ball on the option and followed his blocker down the sideline for the touchdown, putting the Ducks up by seven as the third quarter came to a close.
Purdue scored quickly to open the fourth quarter, Joey Elliot connecting with Ralph Boldin on a 22 yard scoring pass, but the extra point attempt was blocked and the Ducks remained in the lead 31-30.
The Ducks put together another scoring drive that featured a sparkling 21-yard touchdown run by Kenjon Barner. An open question following the suspension of LaGarrette Blount, Oregon's running game netted 193 yards on 41 carries. Masoli led the way with 84 yards, but the three running backs charged with filling in for Blount gave a solid accounting of themselves; James tallied 9 carries for 56 yards, Barner added 34 yards on five carries and Andre Crenshaw contributed 23 yards on 11 carries.
After Morgan Flint's extra point the Ducks held a 38-30 lead with just under seven minutes remaining.
Purdue engineered a 14 play, 70 yard scoring drive that was capped by a halfback option pass on 4th and 11. Needing the two point conversion to send the game into overtime, Elliot connected with his receiver, but Kyle Adams was not able to get his feet down before crossing the backline of the end zone.
Once Oregon recovered the onside kick, Masoli was able to take two knees to run out the clock and give head coach Chip Kelly his first win.
"We played a lot of young players today," said Kelly. "I thought LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner started to get on stride in the second half . I'm really excited about the future of those guys."
Oregon's non conference schedule concludes when Utah visits Autzen Stadium next Saturday for a 12:30 kickoff.
