Oregon’s season has gone from preseason glamour to damage control in a hurry.
The Ducks opened 2026 ranked No. 2 in the AP poll, but five games in they’re outside the Top 25 after a 17-15 upset loss to No. 12 UCLA. The numbers tell the ugly story: seven turnovers, just one conversion in 13 third-down tries, and an offense that spent most of the afternoon stuck in the mud.
Still, not every Oregon stock line is pointing south.
Defensive tackle A’Mauri Washington is making his case to be counted among the bright spots. The senior came back to Eugene for one more year despite favorable NFL draft projections, and after a quiet start - six tackles with no pass breakups through the first three games - he’s starting to show up in a big way. Against USC and UCLA combined, Washington logged 10 tackles and three pass breakups.
His day against the Bruins wasn’t spotless. Washington got hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after tossing the ball in the air when he missed an interception on one of his two pass breakups. But that doesn’t erase the bigger picture: Oregon’s defense held up, and Washington was a major reason why.
Punter Bailey Ettridge also deserves a mention on the rising side. Oregon hadn’t needed him much before Saturday; he had punted only 11 times entering the game.
Against UCLA, though, the Ducks leaned on him six times as the offense stalled out, and he responded with 289 yards, a 48.2-yard average. That included a 67-yard bomb and two punts inside the Bruins’ 20, one of them pinned at the two.
Ettridge and Oregon’s punting unit now rank third nationally with a 46.88-yard net punting average, and they’ve allowed only three punt return yards through five games. Not exactly the flashiest part of the roster, but it’s been one of the most dependable.
Quarterback Dante Moore is another Duck whose stock is up even though he never took a snap against UCLA. Before a concussion suffered against USC sidelined him, Moore had thrown for 926 yards, nine touchdowns and no interceptions. He’s practiced, but he still hasn’t been cleared, and Oregon’s quarterback room looks a lot thinner now than it did before Dylan Raiola’s first relief outing against USC.
That’s where the downturn starts.
Raiola’s first start in an Oregon uniform was rough from the jump. He completed his first three passes, then the game unraveled fast.
He finished 6-of-19 for 43 yards with two interceptions and a lost fumble. By Tom Fornelli’s EPA-per-dropback rankings, Raiola’s performance against UCLA was the worst single-game quarterback showing since 2024 at minus-1.20 EPA per dropback.
Brandon Thomas gave the Ducks a little life after spelling Raiola in the fourth quarter, going 11-of-15 for 156 yards and a touchdown. If Moore can’t return for Nebraska, Lanning could have a real decision to make under center.
Running back Jordon Davison is also trending the wrong way, even with six touchdowns already on the season. The sophomore hasn’t cracked 100 rushing yards in a game yet, and against UCLA he carried 13 times for 41 yards and a 1-yard score. Dierre Hill Jr. was more efficient, leading Oregon with 44 yards on 10 carries.
The pattern with Davison has been clear so far: all six of his touchdowns have come from five yards or less. He didn’t post his first 100-yard game last season until Week 7 against Rutgers, and Oregon will hope this year’s Week 7 meeting with Nebraska gives him the kind of breakout he’s still chasing.
And then there’s the bigger picture, which lands on Dan Lanning’s desk.
Oregon had the ball for less than 20 minutes while UCLA held it for 39, and 179 of the Ducks’ 272 total yards came after the Bruins had already pushed the lead to 17-6 in the fourth quarter. Lanning’s choice to go for two after Davison’s first-quarter touchdown is also getting attention, especially since the failed attempt later forced Oregon into another two-point try after Evan Stewart’s 44-yard touchdown from Thomas late in the game.
The Ducks are 1-1 in Big Ten play, and the pressure now sits squarely on Lanning to steady a season that has gone off script fast.
In Other News...
UCLA Suddenly Has A New Offensive Question After Stunning Oregon Win
UCLAs 17-15 upset of Oregon in Eugene gave the Bruins a long-awaited breakthrough, their first win there since 2004, and it came with the kind of defensive backbone that can change a seasons mood in a hurry. Cornerbacks Scooter Jackson and TaShawn James helped make life miserable for the Ducks, while receiver Morgan emerged as the most dependable option in a passing game that never really found its comfort zone.
The victory, though, left UCLA with a fresh offensive question to sort through in the days ahead after the quarterback situation shifted in the second half and the Bruins had to lean on Ty Dieffenbach in difficult circumstances. He settled in well enough to keep the game moving, but with the starters status now part of the conversation and the passing attack still searching for consistency, UCLAs next step may depend as much on how it handles that position as on the confidence this win should provide. [Read more 🡒]
UCLAs Oregon Win May Have Created A Massive QB Problem
UCLAs win over Oregon came with a painful price, and it may change the shape of the season at the most important position on the field. Nico Iamaleava, who has been the Bruins starting quarterback, is expected to miss the rest of the year after suffering a knee injury in the game, leaving the staff to sort through a suddenly thin depth chart at quarterback.
Madden Iamaleava and Ty Dieffenbach are the names to watch as UCLA looks for its next starter, and the Bruins are also waiting on injury updates for Roderick Pleasant and Tao Johnson. Dieffenbach already saw action in the second half against Oregon, which at least gives UCLA a live in-game reference as it tries to figure out what comes next for an offense that just lost its centerpiece. [Read more 🡒]
UCLA Left Too Many Points On The Field Against Oregon
UCLAs offense spent too much of its Week 6 matchup with Oregon leaving points behind, a familiar problem in a game where the Bruins had chances to build on momentum but could not cash in. A blocked field goal, along with a pair of turnovers and a missed opportunity near the goal line, kept the Bruins from turning possession into pressure and left them chasing the game instead of controlling it.
Nico Iamaleavas interceptions were part of the offensive stall, but UCLA also had a chance to keep a drive alive and chose aggression over the safer points, only to come up empty at the doorstep. Those moments added up quickly against a Ducks team that did not need many invitations, and the Bruins will be left replaying the same sequence of failed conversions that helped swing the outcome away from them. [Read more 🡒]