Washington is up next for the Ducks, who ended a three-game losing streak with Saturday's 41-20 victory over Utah.

One week after the team meeting that may prove to have been the crucial step in getting Oregon back to the postseason, the Ducks resumed their normal schedule and held a short practice Sunday.

The workout, one day after Saturday's 41-20 victory over Utah, was typically brief, just some conditioning and individual drills. But it was more than Willie Taggart had his team do one week earlier, when in the wake of Oregon's third straight loss he eschewed a Sunday practice in favor of film review with the full team.

At his weekly press conference Monday, Taggart recounted preventative measures he took to keep Oregon's culture and chemistry intact following a loss at UCLA. The Ducks were winless in three starts since an injury to quarterback Justin Herbert – and Taggart felt his true freshman replacement, Braxton Burmeister , was bearing an undue amount of attention.

So, Taggart said, he gathered the team for film review that made clear there was plenty of blame to spread around, on both sides of the ball. The Ducks were close to breaking through for a victory, but it would take more than one player upping his game.

"There were some guys that were so-called 'playing well' that were making mistakes," Taggart recounted Monday. "You always stress as a coach, 'we've got to play as a team,' and sometimes you can talk about it but don't give guys specifics. That was good for everyone to see that, and know we all had to do a better job."

The results were borne out Saturday against the Utes. Burmeister's statistics once again weren't gaudy – 9-of-12 passing for 47 yards – but the Ducks dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. And the defense finally forced a crucial turnover that led directly to points, when Ugochukwu Amadi stripped former teammate Darren Carrington II and returned the fumble 47 yards for a touchdown.

"It was great, because our guys responded to it," Taggart said. "It showed we could win against a good football team, even without our best quarterback."

Taggart was particularly pleased to see the defense step up against the Utes. While the offense was sputtering without Herbert, the defense allowed 33 points to Washington State, and 49 at Stanford, and 31 at UCLA.





Taggart said he noticed how the Ducks "were flying around and upbeat" for their walk-through Friday. And he saw that carry over into Saturday's defensive effort against the Utes.

"After every play, guys were celebrating with each other and excited about being out there," Taggart said. "And that makes a world of difference. It's hard to stop people, and you've got to have fun while you're doing it."

Saturday's game began with Burmeister completing all three of his attempts as Oregon took the opening kickoff and drove to a touchdown. Utah was poised to respond after driving into the red zone, but two tackles for loss by Troy Dye , a penalty and a sack moved the Utes out of range even for a field-goal attempt.

Then, the Ducks fumbled on their next possession, and Utah recovered on the doorstep of the red zone. Again, Oregon's defense responded, limiting the Utes to a field goal.

"That's something that has killed is in the past, where teams would get the ball (via turnover) and they'd score," Taggart said. "Our defense stepped up to the challenge, and that's how they've got to be – not feel bad because those things happened, but be excited about the chance for what could be accomplished in that moment."

On Sunday, the Ducks returned to their normal routine and returned to the practice field, now just one win away from bowl eligibility. And it seemed the positive energy still was flowing.

"I think we all know when you win it's a different vibe, and it was good to see our guys back in that mode," Taggart said. "It seems like we've got our confidence back, and guys were focused."





Up next for the Ducks is Saturday's game at Washington (7:05 p.m. PT, FS1), the presumptive Pac-12 favorite after reaching last season's College Football Playoff. The Huskies are 7-1 overall and 4-1 in conference play this season, with a 4-0 record at home.

The game will be the first taste of the UO-UW rivalry for Taggart. On Monday, he said that "every game we play is a rivalry game," but acknowledged that many Oregon fans feel differently.

"I know the feelings when it comes to Oregon and Washington," he said. "I've heard that from day one."

The Ducks saw their 12-game winning streak in the series end last season, when the Huskies came into Autzen Stadium and won, 70-21.

"I'm sure any competitor out there wouldn't forget what happened," Taggart said. "Our job this week is to make sure we're at our best this week, to see to it that what happened last year doesn't happen again."

Oregon's loss last season to Washington was the first career start for Herbert, who was back in pads Saturday for the first time since being injured.

Herbert fractured his collar bone against California on Sept. 30, and resumed participating in team drills at practice last week. He was in pads and participated in warmups Saturday, but spent the game signaling in plays from the sideline.





"We're going to put Justin out there when we feel like he's ready to go," Taggart said. "We're not going to do anything to jeopardize him. If he's ready this week then we'll play him, and if not then we won't. … We're not going to put him out there in harm's way, and let him re-injure himself."

In other injury news, Taggart said Monday that offensive lineman Doug Brenner will miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery to repair a hip injury. That draws to an end the UO career of a Portland native who made 40 career appearances for the Ducks, and has earned Pac-12 all-academic honors each of the last three seasons. Also, Taggart said Scott Pagano is battling a shoulder problem that has sidelined him the past two games.

The departure of Florida head coach Jim McElwain over the weekend fueled speculation that Taggart, a Florida native, could be a candidate for the position.

One report Monday even suggested that there had been communication between Taggart and the Gators. In his press conference, Taggart swatted away that rumor.