In spotlight, Oregon gives glimpse of its potential

George Schroeder, USA TODAY Sports | USATODAY

TEMPE, Ariz. – At halftime, Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott held court in the back of the press box at Sun Devil Stadium.

Oregon led 43-7, and the questions had to be asked: What just happened? And because in college football, every week is a referendum: What did it mean?

"On the one hand," Scott said, "Arizona State is not as good as we thought. On the other hand, you watch Oregon and you have to go, 'Wow!' "

Anyone who watched the first 20 minutes Thursday probably agreed.

Oregon, ranked No. 2 in the USA TODAY Sports coaches poll and No. 3 in the initial BCS rankings, unleashed wave after wave of first-half devastation, something like one of those massive desert dust storms that strike every so often here, boiling up from nowhere, enveloping everything. That was Oregon in the first 20 minutes: a perfect storm of offense, defense and domination. Although the final score was 43-21, nothing else mattered after that initial onslaught.

And here's the thing: People surely watched, at least for a while. Once the province of small fry who would play anytime for the TV exposure, Thursday night has become a big primetime stage, a chance to be seen by everyone, no competition. And the stakes were fairly high, at least in the BCS beauty contest. Inevitably, Oregon was going to be measured against Alabama, and Florida, and Kansas State and several others.



"People wanted to see what the Ducks were about," Oregon defensive coordinator Nick Aliotti said. "What can I say? We're 7-0, that's the most important stat. The kids played well, it was a big national audience tonight – at least for the start of the game."



Oregon had rolled through its first six opponents, who have a combined record of 18-21. None are currently ranked. Arizona State qualified, barely – the Sun Devils are ranked No. 24 in the USA TODAY Sports coaches poll, though they'll surely drop out this weekend. But if the tendency now is to discount Arizona State, consider it was Oregon's first true road test.



The Sun Devils billed the game as a "blackout," and announced attendance as 71,004 – though there were plenty of empty seats (and even more as the game wore on). It gets more difficult from here, but if the idea was to see how the Ducks would handle a hostile environment and their first taste of adversity, they passed pretty easily.



"We were good," Oregon coach Chip Kelly said. "I didn't like the way we opened."



Or finished, probably. But Kelly was referring to a fumble on the game's second play, and an Arizona State touchdown on the third. Marcus Mariota, the Ducks' redshirt freshman quarterback, coughed up the football. Taylor Kelly tossed a 28-yard touchdown pass. Just 49 seconds in, the Sun Devils' upset hopes seemed viable.

Twenty-three seconds later, Arizona State's lead was gone. Kenjon Barner bolted 71 yards for a touchdown, the Ducks tacked on a two-point conversion, and the storm was only beginning. Nineteen minutes later, it was 43-7, and college football had gotten an eyeful of frightening capabilities.



"We are as good as we allow ourselves to be," Mariota said.



Said Aliotti: "It took us two plays to wake up, one on offense and one on defense. And then we woke up and played the way we're capable of."



After giving up the quick touchdown, Aliotti's perpetually overshadowed defense shut down the Sun Devils, and grabbed four interceptions. After the early mistake, Mariota threw for a touchdown, caught a pass for another, and raced 86 yards for another. There were plenty of the big plays.

But Oregon also put together long, methodical drives – 14 plays for 74 yards, 15 plays for 78 – though they were conducted at that diabolical pace Alabama's Nick Saban hates so much.



"We played complementary football," Oregon offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich said. "Then we just kind of deflated."



Don't make too much of that last part. When it mattered, Oregon created the kind of discombobulation that prompted Saban, not so long ago, to decry the evils of those supersonic-paced offenses. "That's when I knew everyone was paying attention," Scott said.



During a phone interview Wednesday evening, Arizona State coach Todd Graham said, "You can argue Oregon is the best team in the country." Thursday night, he was more certain:



"There's no doubt that they're one of the two best teams in the country," he said.



So, how would Oregon fare against, say, an SEC champion in the BCS Championship?



"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, we're halfway through the season," the commissioner said.



But it's obvious he believes Oregon belongs in the conversation. And for anyone who saw the first 20 minutes Thursday night, it's hard to argue.