Hey Oregon, you don't need to worry about going to the Rose Bowl now.
The Ducks laid an absolute egg in the Tucson desert on Saturday, falling to Arizona 42-16. The same Arizona team that just lost -- at home -- to Washington State. The same Washington State that was so thoroughly squashed by Oregon in a game that WSU quarterback Connor Halliday ended up throwing an FBS-record 84 passes.
Yeah, this was inexcusable if you are a Ducks fan. Marcus Mariota threw his first two interceptions of the season while Arizona running back Ka'Deem Carey ran for 206 yards and four touchdowns. And it was never competitive.
Earlier in the week, some Oregon players weren't too keen on the idea of going to another Rose Bowl. Senior receiver Josh Huff -- who was crying on the sidelines during the Ducks' loss to Stanford -- said, per the Register Guard, "I don’t want to play in a Rose Bowl unless I’m playing for a national championship.”
DeAnthony Thomas added that “It’s not a big deal at all. We already won a Rose Bowl, so it feels like whatever.”
Wonder what the sentiments are about the Alamo Bowl? Because that's next in the Pac-12 pecking order. Or what about the Holiday Bowl? It could conceivably take the Ducks if a team other than Stanford goes to the Rose Bowl and the Cardinal go to the Alamo.
But speaking of Stanford, the Rose Bowl is now attainable again, a week after it threw away the opportunity with a loss to USC. After a beatdown of Cal, 63-13, Stanford clinched an appearance in the Pac-12 title game, where it will play Arizona State, UCLA or USC.
Kevin Hogan was 17-26 for 329 yards and 5 touchdowns, while Ty Montgomery was on the receiving end of four of those scores.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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