Oregon's quick start too much for Sun Devils
Jeremiah Johnson and LeGarrette Blount ran for two touchdowns a piece and Oregon beat Arizona State 54-20 Saturday night and remain in a tie for the Pac-10 lead.
Jeremiah Masoli ran for a touchdown and threw for another for the Ducks. He gained 85 yards in eight carries and completed 17-of-26 for 146 yards.
Johnson ran 43 yards for a touchdown on Oregon's first possession and added a 6-yard TD run early in the third quarter. Blount had a 10-yard scoring run in the second quarter and an improbable 19-yard touchdown run in the third.
Oregon (6-2 overall, 4-1 Pac-10) amassed 537 yards, 304 on the ground. The Sun Devils (2-5, 1-3) lost their fifth in a row.
Coach Mike Bellotti wouldn't say until game-time whether Masoli or Justin Roper would get the start. But Masoli played the first three quarters, staking the Ducks to a 44-13 lead. Roper connected with Chris Harper for a 62-yard TD with 5:27 to play.
The Ducks beat the Sun Devils for the fourth straight time, three in Tempe.
The game was minutes old when on third-and-2, Johnson burst free over right tackle on a 43-yard touchdown run.
The Sun Devils missed an opportunity on Oregon's next possession, when Masoli and Johnson botched a handoff and Morris WootenRudy Carpenter's pass in the end zone and scrambled out to the 2. recovered for Arizona State at the Ducks' 8. But on third-and-goal from the 11, Jarius Byrd intercepted
Late in the first quarter, Masoli ran 28 yards to the ASU 3, then scored from there on the next play. The extra-point attempt was missed because a bad snap, and the Ducks led 13-0.
Arizona State gambled on fourth-and-1 at its 48 on its next possession, and Carpenter stumbled and fell going back to pass. That gave Oregon the ball at the Sun Devils 39. Four plays later, Blount ran 10 yards up the middle for a score to make it 20-0 12:20 left in the half.
Oregon had a 141-10 advantage in yards rushing in the first quarter.
The Ducks made it 23-0 on Matt Evensen's career-best 52-yard field goal with 6:27 left in the half.
Wooten intercepted Masoli's pass and returned it 24 yards to the 1, where Carpenter scored on a sneak with 2:01 left in the half. Thomas Weber was wide right on the extra point, snapping his string of 33 consecutive PATs.