After Oregon’s 39-31 loss at Oklahoma State in Week 2, Kirk Herbstreit is openly wondering whether the problem in Eugene goes deeper than one bad night.
The ESPN analyst raised the issue on “Nonstop with Kirk and Joey,” the podcast he hosts with Joey Galloway, his former Ohio State teammate and ESPN colleague. Herbstreit didn’t sound ready to dismiss the Ducks’ performance as a one-off.
“Right now, I don't know if something's going on internally,” Herbstreit said.
What stood out most to Herbstreit wasn’t just the final score. Oklahoma State controlled the game statistically, piling up a 554-281 edge in total offense while holding Oregon to 90 rushing yards on 30 carries. Dante Moore finished 14 of 29 passing and took four sacks.
“They couldn't stop Oklahoma State running or throwing,” Herbstreit said. “I don't know if it's one of those things where you're always thinking, 'Oh, we're playing Oklahoma State or we're playing Boise.
Let's go for an 80-yard touchdown on every play.' And they're kind of getting away from the fundamentals.”
Drew Mestemaker was the difference for the Cowboys. He threw for 317 yards and two touchdowns and added 109 rushing yards and a score.
Herbstreit said the defensive struggles are the most alarming part of Oregon’s start.
“The thing that's surprising me is not the lack of continuity on offense, but this defense giving up 27 to Boise State and now 39 to Oklahoma State, over 500 yards of offense,” the “College GameDay” analyst said. “That is the most shocking thing to me.”
Oregon coach Dan Lanning didn’t try to soften the blow afterward.
“The score was closer than it really was because it wasn't close in a lot of ways,” Lanning said after the game. “We got our ass kicked in a lot of areas.”
Lanning said he doesn’t believe his team was looking ahead, but he does want more from the Ducks’ practice habits. “I think there has to be a higher temperament in practice, a higher level of focus in practice for us to be able to execute,” he said, per 247Sports.
He also stood behind offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer and defensive coordinator Chris Hampton, both of whom were elevated after Will Stein left for Kentucky and Tosh Lupoi took the job at California. When asked whether he was second-guessing those promotions, Lanning pushed back.
“That's the easy thing to say if you're watching,” Lanning said.
One of the few Ducks players to speak publicly, pass rusher Teitum Tuioti, pointed to the team’s mindset.
“Going into the season, maybe we were too lackadaisical,” Tuioti said, per ESPN. “Maybe we were reading our press clippings too much.”
Galloway was even less optimistic than Herbstreit.
“We haven't seen anything in this season that would make you believe that this is just sort of a bad game,” Galloway said. “Now I actually have to see it to believe it.”
The fallout was immediate. Oregon fell from No. 6 to No. 21 in the AP Top 25.
The Ducks return home to face 0-3 Portland State on Friday at 10:30 p.m. ET on Big Ten Network before opening Big Ten play at USC on Sept. 26 at 7:30 p.m.
ET on NBC.
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