Oregon left Los Angeles with the kind of win that can steady a season in a hurry, pulling away from USC 41-27 in a game that swung hard in both directions before the Ducks closed it out late.
USC opened by choosing to take the ball after winning the toss, and the Trojans came out aggressive. They moved it on a 20-yard completion, converted a fourth-and-1 at Oregon’s 32-yard line, and pushed all the way to the 11 before Bear Alexander sacked Jayden Maiava to force a fourth down. USC tried a 33-yard field goal and got nothing, handing Oregon a chance to set the tone.
The Ducks did exactly that on their first snap. Jordon Davison ripped off a 45-yard run down the left side, and Oregon quickly got into scoring range.
The drive bogged down on a couple of holding penalties, though, and the Ducks settled for Gage Hurych’s 30-yard field goal. Oregon led 3-0.
USC answered later in the first quarter by moving the ball with short pass gains, then punted after stalling out. Oregon couldn’t do anything with its own deep field position and went three-and-out, which gave the Trojans a short field. Four plays later, Maiava hit a 31-yard pass on 2nd and 10 at the Oregon 31, and USC moved in front 7-3.
That lead didn’t last long. Oregon’s next possession featured a 37-yard throw from Dante Moore to Jamari Johnson, and two plays later Moore scrambled on a broken play for 10 yards before Desman Stephens hit him with a targeting penalty.
Moore looked seriously injured and was carted off. Dylan Raiola stepped in, and after a short Davison run, he threw a touchdown pass to Evan Stewart.
Oregon was back on top, 10-7.
USC tied it on its next trip with a 38-yard field goal after moving the ball into Oregon territory, but the Ducks kept answering. Raiola connected with freshman Messiah Hampton for 20 yards, Oregon converted a fourth-and-1 at the USC 42, and the Ducks kept grinding forward even after a beautiful catch by Jamari Johnson was wiped out by a holding penalty.
Oregon got all the way to the USC 1-yard line, then opted for the field goal on 4th and 1. That decision paid off because Oregon would get the first possession of the second half.
The Ducks went into the break ahead 13-10.
The first half belonged to Oregon in the numbers, too. The Ducks had 234 total yards to USC’s 166, averaged 5.2 yards per rush, and got 61 rushing yards from Davison on 11 carries.
Moore went 8-for-10 for 77 yards before leaving, while Raiola finished the half 6-for-8 for 63 yards and a touchdown. Stewart caught five passes for 37 yards and a score, Jerimiah Johnson had three grabs for 56 yards, and Hampton added three catches for 31.
Oregon was flagged four times for 45 yards, with three of those penalties coming on holds. USC had five penalties for 29 yards.
Oregon wasted no time after halftime. The Ducks needed only four plays to score, and the big one was a 62-yard Raiola throw to Dierre Hill Jr. Hill finished the drive on the next two snaps, punching in the touchdown to make it 20-10.
USC responded with a clean drive of its own. Maiava completed passes of 10, 16, and 27 yards, and the Trojans finished it off from the 1-yard line to cut the margin to 20-17.
Then Oregon struck again. Raiola caught fire, hitting Jamari Johnson for 34 yards and Dierre Hill Jr. for 28 before Hill ran in from the USC 4-yard line. The Ducks pushed the lead back to 27-17.
USC kept hanging around. The Trojans drove deep again, but on 2nd-and-goal they couldn’t get into the end zone and settled for a field goal.
Oregon led 27-20, then went three-and-out on its next possession and punted. USC moved to midfield to end the third quarter.
The fourth quarter started badly for Oregon on defense. USC drove too easily into the red zone and tied the game in seven plays, making it 27-27.
Oregon answered when it needed to. The Ducks moved to midfield, stalled at their 40, then got a fresh set of downs when USC was flagged for roughing. Raiola then hit Dakorien Moore for 12 yards and followed that with a 29-yard strike to Moore to put Oregon back in front, 34-27.
USC got the ball back at its 25 and drove to its 49 before turning it over on downs, giving Oregon a short field with 7:15 left. From there, the Ducks leaned on the run and the clock. Dierre Hill Jr. kept churning out tough yards, and after runs of nine and 14, he finished the job with a pair of hard two-yard carries, the second one sealing the touchdown with 2:11 remaining.
Oregon’s offense kept answering, its defense bent but didn’t break when it mattered most, and the Ducks walked out of Los Angeles with a 41-27 win.
In Other News...
Bear Alexander Twisted The Knife After Oregon Beat USC
Bear Alexander had a little extra spotlight waiting for him at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, and he seemed to lean into it. The Oregon defensive tackle, facing his former team in the Ducks 41-27 win over No. 18 USC on September 26, played a key role in a result that carried plenty of edge even before kickoff. With NFL scouts scattered through the building to watch the matchup, Alexander gave them something to note on the field and the Trojans crowd plenty to react to off it.
The boos from USC fans did not end when the game was over. Alexander took to social media after the victory to mock the Trojans and celebrate Oregons win, turning a tense reunion into a full-on postgame swipe. For Oregon, it was another signature road result in a season already built around high-stakes moments, and for Alexander it added an unmistakably personal layer to a night his old school probably would rather forget. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons USC Win Put One Transfer Story Front And Center
Week 4 offered a reminder that Oregons roster churn has reached far beyond Eugene, with several former Ducks making their presence felt for new teams. The most visible example came in the win over USC, where backup quarterback Dylan Raiola helped lead the way with 289 passing yards and two touchdowns, a performance that put his transfer path back into the spotlight.
Raiola was hardly alone in turning heads. Kingston Lopa, Kamar Mothudi, Sione Laulea, Makhi Hughes, Keith Brown, Jericho Johnson and Blake Purchase all turned in meaningful work for their new programs, adding another layer to Oregons transfer-era story. For the Ducks, the week was a useful snapshot of just how many familiar names are still shaping games elsewhere, even as one of the biggest results of the weekend came against USC. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon Just Teased A New Look Bruins Fans Need To See
During the bye week, Oregon used a little downtime to stir up plenty of offseason-style intrigue, teasing a new alternate look that fits right into the programs long-running habit of making uniforms part of the brand. The matte black jersey features green and yellow paint streaks, along with a nod to the origin of speed inside the collar, a clear callback to the Chip Kelly era that helped define a lot of what the Ducks became.
The timing makes the tease even more interesting, with the full reveal expected on September 29 and a possible debut lined up for the October 10 matchup with UCLA. A version of the jersey had already surfaced through Dicks Sporting Goods, both online and in some stores, so the only real mystery now is how Oregon plans to package the finished product when it officially goes public. [Read more 🡒]