Nick MedleyHmerald
Receiver Donald Haynes (10) celebrates his first career touchdown for Oregon with of
fensive lineman Scott Fergus in the second quarter of the Ducks’ win.
Hood
Continued from Page 7
be lost for the entire season just a
few weeks ago — returned, and
with him returned Oregon’s big
play capabilities on offense.
Now, who’s ready for the stretch
run?
With Ho-Ching back at tailback
for the Ducks’ final two games,
Oregon finally has some teeth on
offense. That puts the Ducks
back into consideration for a
New Year’s Day Bowl berth, or
something equivalent.
Options for the Ducks: If Ore
gon can win its next two games
against Arizona State and Oregon
State it stands a very good
chance of getting an invitation
from either the Holiday Bowl or
Cotton Bowl, which both can se
lect the No. 2 Pac-10 team, or the
Sun Bowl, which selects the No.
3 Pac-10 team.
Of course, all of this is contin
gent on what UCLA and Arizona
do down the stretch. The No. 3
Bruins got a break from Michigan
State on Saturday when the Spar
tan knocked off No. 1 Ohio State.
That loss puts the Bruins back
into the run for the national title
game on Jan. 4. in Tempe, Ariz.
No. 2 Kansas State is a lock if it
beats Nebraska on Nov. 12.
Tennessee, which took over
the No. 1 spot in the Associated
Press Top 25 after the Buckeyes’
loss, have a great chance at an
undefeated season because its
remaining schedule is weak.
But UCLA has a chance to leap
frog Tennessee if it wins big in
its last two games against
Washington and Southern
California.
The Sun Bowl in El Paso,
Texas, on Dec. 31 seems to be
the best bet for the Ducks if they
win out. The hottest team in the
Pac-10 right now is Arizona,
which has the distinction of
being the only team to crush
Oregon this season.
Football
Continued from Page 7
Hartley’s second touchdown,
with 12 minutes, seven seconds
remaining in the fourth quarter,
gave Oregon a 24-15 lead. Nathan
Villegas bolstered that lead with a
42-yard field goal to make it a 12
point game with 7:44 left before
Herman Ho-Ching’s fumble with
two minutes left gave the Huskies
a glimmer of hope.
Backup quarterback Marques
Tuiasosopo scored on a keeper
from two yards out to close the
lead to five, but Brandon
McLemore recovered the ensuing
onside kick. Two Ho-Ching runs
were enough for a first down, and
Smith was able to twice take a
knee and run out the clock, as well
as Washington’s chances.
Ho-Ching ran for 47 yards on 17
carries but, more importantly,
made it through the game without
reinjuring the knee strain he suf
fered Sept. 19 against San Jose
State.
“It was going through my mind
on the sideline, but when I would
go into the game, I just had to for
get about my knee and worry
about the game,” the 5-toot-ll,
200-pound freshman said.
Oregon rushed for just 61 yards
in the battle between two pass-ori
ented teams. Washington (5-4, 3
3) managed just 89 yards on 34
carries.
“They haven’t been a real good
rushing team this year," Oregon
linebacker Dietrich Moore said.
“We were more concerned about
the pass, but we had to stay hon
est with the run. If we could force
them into third and long situa
tions and take care of the crossing
routes, we thought we could be
successful.”
Husky quarterback Brock
Huard used those crossing routes,
mostly run by former high school
teammate Dane Looker, to end the
first half by completing nine
straight passes, the last a 10-yard
touchdown to Looker. That made
the score 17-12 at halftime, and Joe
Jarzynka’s 40-yard field goal
pulled the Huskies to within two
pointsat 17-15 after three quarters.
Oregon jumped out to a 10-0
lead on a 27-yard Villegas field
goal and Hartley's 30-yard score.
Huard connected with Gerald
Harris from 34 yards to get Wash
ington on the scoreboard, but after
Jarzynka missed the extra point,
Smith led the Ducks on a four
play, 61-yard drive that ended
with a 27-yard scoring pass to for
mer junior-college teammate Don
ald Haynes.
Villegas’ successful attempts
couldn’t overshadow two misses
in the third quarter. With the
Ducks ahead 17-12 and 7:56 re
maining, Villegas missed a 29
yard attempt after what he thought
was an errant snap.
“The snap was to the right of
[holder Joshj Bidwell.and he bare
ly had time to bring it back over,
and when he brought it down, the
laces were facing toward me,” Vil
legas said. “So he spun it, and as I
was kicking it, he was still spin
ning it.”
Villegas later missed a 34-yard
attempt after anticipating the
snap and beginning his approach
too early. He had made an at
tempt from 29 yards, but was
forced to kick again after a false
start penalty moved the Ducks
back five yards.
The first miss ended Villegas’s
consecutive successful attempts
streak at 14, including one in the
first quarter Saturday.
“I guess it was bound to hap
pen,” Villegas said. “It’s too bad
it had to happen here, but we
still got a win out of it.”
Bidwell had a big kicking day
of his own that began with a 51
yard punt after the Ducks’ open
ing drive, the first in four games
that didn’t end on a turnover. He
then unleashed a 69-yard boot in
the third quarter that flew past
returner Jarzynka by at least 15
yards, then pinned the Huskies at
their own one-yard line with a
48-yard kick with 5:00 left in the
game.
Nick Medtey/Bmerakl
Washington’s Andre DeSaussure can’t come up with this reception after encountering double-coverage by Oregon's Eric Edwards (4) and
Brandon McLemore.
Hartley sets new school record with performance Saturday
Tony Hartley’s 242yards
on Saturday earn him a
spot in the record books
By Joel Hood
Oregon Daily Emerald
He doesn’t blow past corner
backs the way Pat Johnson used
to.
He doesn’t make the juggling,
one-handed grabs like Damon
Griffin.
He doesn’t strong-arm his op
ponents like Jed Weaver.
But there is something to Tony
Hartley’s game that makes him ar
guably the best clutch receiver in
the Pacific-10 Conference — and
Arizona State and Oregon State
had better account for it in the
next two weeks.
With Griffin blanketed by
Washington’s secondary the en
tire game, Hartley burned the
Huskies’ zone coverage for a
school-record 242 yards and two
touchdowns in Oregon’s decisive
27-22 victory Saturday at Autzen
Stadium.
“It was unbelievable," Hartley
said. “I haven’t had a game like
this for a long, long time and nev
er at this level.”
Actually, no Oregon receiver
had ever had a day like this one.
Hartley’s first catch went for
nine yards. His second catch went
for 23 yards and a first down. His
third catch was a 30-yard, finger
tip touchdown that gave the
Ducks a 10-0 early in the second
quarter.
“I felt like I was in a groove,”
Hartley said.
For the third game in a row,
Oregon’s ground attack was
nonexistent. The Ducks rushed
for a season-low 67 yards on 32
carries.
But all that really meant was
that Akili Smith could continue
to throw... and throw... and
throw. Smith completed 19 of 32
passes for 442 yards and three
scores.
“We were just in a zone togeth
er,” said Hartley about Smith. “In
the huddle we didn’t have to say
anything, we could just look at
each other because we knew there
was something there.”
So he continued to be Smith’s
go-to receiver.
Hartley’s fourth catch went for
35 yards. His fifth was between
three defenders and good for 46
yards. His sixth catch, a 40-yard
deep curl to the Husky 23 yard
line, extended a critical Oregon
drive late in the second half. Hart
ley’s seventh catch, a 23-yard
touchdown pass from Smith, was
the Ducks’ final score in their
most emotional victory of the sea
son.
“Everybody’s been hyping [the
game] all week,” linebacker Diet
rich Moore said. “We knew it was
going to be a big game. We felt
like we needed to go out, as we do
every weekend, and earn respect.
I think it was especially apparent
this weekend.”
Nick Medky/Hmerald
Oregon's Tony Hartley runs away from defender Hakim Akbar on his way to setting a new
school record with 242 receiving yards against the Huskies on Saturday.