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Denzel Burke has a night to forget

Denzel Burke has a night to forget

EUGENE, Ore. – The trip to Oregon, the first visit to Eugene since 1967, was a spectacular smorgasbord of just about everything you could ever want at a college football game.

From Oregon’s recovered onside kick to Ohio State’s decisive drive in the fourth quarter to regain the lead, to Oregon’s counterpunch to the Buckeyes’ final attempt, including a strange slide run by Will Howard to end the game, the wrinkles were there wonderful and the The atmosphere was electric straight away in The Duck’s 32:31 win.

Tough night for Denzel Burke and the OSU secondary

Cornerback Denzel Burke stayed with the Buckeyes this season when he could have turned pro, in part because he wanted to win a national championship. The senior could still get his wish, but he didn’t help his draft status by playing below par against the Ducks.

Burke, considered OSU’s best cover corner, surrendered a 69-yard catch to Oregon wide receiver Evan Stewart, and two plays later he watched Stewart make a beautiful catch over him for a 10-yard touchdown .

Later in the second quarter, Burke was beaten deep again, this time by a 48-yard strike from Ducks quarterback Dillon Gabriel to Tez Johnson. Not only did Johnson fly past Burke to get open, but he carried Burke another 10 yards after the catch.

The deep completions by Stewart and Johnson marked only the first and second times this season that Gabriel completed passes of more than 20 yards to the right side of the field. And he did it twice against Burke.

That wasn’t all. Burke struggled most of the night to get everything under control. Sometimes there is an off game. This was one of them. But Burke wasn’t alone. The entire secondary was shaky, allowing 341 passing yards, many of which came to wide-open receivers.

Emeka Egbuka shows flashes of a professional future

Jeremiah Smith is a phenom, but the Buckeyes rightly trust Emeka Egbuka more than anyone else on offense. The fifth-year senior, who caught 10 passes for 93 yards against the Ducks, is smooth, loves to block and few players in recent memory can turn corners and upfield as quickly as the speedy wide receiver.

A play that really illustrates this: On a third-and-4 from OSU’s 31 and the Buckeyes trailing 29-28, Howard found Egbuka crossing under coverage for a first down. It kept the ride alive.

It makes you wonder why the Buckeyes don’t throw deep to Egbuka more often. On the other hand, they don’t throw deep to anyone. Why?

It’s becoming increasingly clear that Howard’s ability to throw deep is not a strength. Even on his only long completion (38 yards) to Smith, the ball was subdued. The Ducks, meanwhile, completed four passes of 30 yards or more, including 69 and 48 yards.

At least on Saturday, one team showed it could throw far while the other couldn’t. Because it couldn’t.

Buckeyes trying to hit the ball to prove a point?

The last time the Buckeyes and Ducks met, Oregon imposed its will in the trenches, winning 35-28 in Columbus. That loss exposed cracks in OSU’s foundation and was the beginning of the question of “toughness” that has plagued Ryan Day’s teams ever since.

Toughness wasn’t an issue Saturday, and as if to prove it, the Buckeyes lined up in the rugged T formation on fourth-and-short twice, getting first downs both times. The first resulted in a 1-yard score when Quinshon Judkins scored behind a block from tight end Pat Gurd.

The second was a 3-yard gain by Judkins on fourth-and-2. The Buckeyes converted another fourth-and-1 when Howard gained three yards on a keeper.

Ohio State averaged 4.5 yards rushing in the game, while Oregon averaged 5.0, with Jordan James finishing with 115. But the Buckeyes’ oft-maligned lines weren’t their biggest problem.

Autzen Stadium creates a fireworks atmosphere

I’m not ready to crown Oregon the best road climate in the Big Ten just yet – Penn State still has my vote – but Autzen Stadium is a close second. Ducks fans know how to have fun, which is missing from too many venues, including Ohio Stadium too often. Not only is Autzen loud, his fans bring an “anything goes” attitude that comes close to crossing the line but doesn’t cross it (too far).

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