UNIVERSITY HEALTH CENTER
PLAN AHEAD FOR
THE HOLIDAY BREAK
Health Center open through December 12.
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Health Center closed on December 13 and will reopen
on January 9 to resume regularly scheduled hours.
Hours for December 10 & It
10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Hours for Monday December 12
10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
o
DON'T forget:
Fill your prescriptions
birth-control needs
1 cost over-the-counter items
UNIVERSITY
OF OREGON
http://healthcenter.uoregon.edu
appointments: 346-2770
Oregon Daily Emerald
The independent campus newspaper for the University of Oregon
Tim Bobosky | Photo editor
Oregon quarterback Dennis Dixon, left, has combined with Brady Leaf to lead Oregon’s offense without injured starter Kellen Clemens.
Tailback Terrence Whitehead (shown faking a handoff) has guided Oregon’s running game.
Ducks and Soonerr
face off in Pacific
Life Holiday Bowl
The two-pronged attack
of Dixon and Leaf faces a
stingy Sooner defense
BY LUKE ANDREWS
SPORTS REPORTER
After weeks of contemplating var
ious scenarios regarding possible
bowls and opponents, the Oregon
Ducks have finally learned of its
postseason plans.
The sixth-ranked Ducks (10-1 over
all, 7-1 Pacific-10 Conference), who
had been vying for a trip to the Fiesta
Bowl with one of two at-large bids in
the Bowl Championship Series, will
face Oklahoma (7-4) in the Holiday
Bowl on Dec. 29 in San Diego.
“It beats watching everybody else
play,” Oregon center Enoka Lucas
said. “It’s a disappointment that
we’re not going to the Fiesta Bowl,
but you can’t make mistakes like
people did last year. We’re in the Hol
iday Bowl and we just have to make
the best of it. ”
Lucas’ reference to mistakes made
last year was to a California team
that, like Oregon, won 10 games with
the only loss coming against No. 1
USC. Also, like the Ducks, the Bears
were left out of the BCS. Cal’s gripe,
however, was weakened when the
Bears lost 45-31 in the Holiday Bowl
to Texas Tech.
“Coach Bellotti stresses that a lot,”
said quarterback Dennis Dixon regard
ing Cal. “It’s pretty much the same sit
uation with us. It’s disappointing, but
you’ve got to play through it.”
The Holiday Bowl will mark the
second of three consecutive years the
Ducks will face the Sooners. Last
year, Oregon traveled to Norman,
Okla., and fell 31-7 to Oklahoma and
then-freshman Adrian Peterson, who
rushed for 183 yards in the game.
Next season the Sooners will pay a
return trip to Eugene on Sept. 16.
“We look forward to playing Okla
homa,” Oregon coach Mike Bellotti
said. “Our team is very focused in the
fact that we have evolved as a program
that is no longer happy to go to bowl
games; we want to win bowl games.
We feel that is part of our job. ”
This will be Oregon’s second trip to
the Holiday Bowl since 2000. That
year, quarterback Joey Harrington and
the Ducks defeated Chris Simms and
Texas 35-30. Despite the obvious dis
appointment of not being one of eight
teams selected for a BCS bowl game,
Bellotti recognized the opportunity in
Courtesy
Rhett Bomar
passed for
1,789 yards
and nine
touchdowns,
but also had
nine
interceptions
in his first
season as
Oklahoma's
starting
quarterback.
Bomar took
over for Paul
Thompson
early in the
season.
front of his team.
“If you’re not in a BCS game, I think
the Holiday Bowl is the very best game
to go to,” Bellotti said. “Our players
loved it the last time we were there. ”
The Ducks can become only the
second team in school history to win
11 games in a single season. To do so,
Oregon must overcome a strong Soon
er defense, which ranks second in the
Big 12 Conference. Led by linebacker
• Rufus Alexander (93 tackles, 17 for a
loss), the Sooners have allowed only
304.8 yards per game.
Oklahoma, which started 12 true
freshmen this season, has also over
come a slow start offensively that re
sulted in a 17-10 season-opening loss
to TCU at home and a 41-24 blowout
loss at UCLA. Part of the early offen
sive struggles can be attributed to the
maturation process of true freshman
quarterback Rhett Bomar and the diss
apointing play of junior quarterback
Paul Thompson.
In the loss against TCU, Thompson
finished 11 of 26 passing for 109 yards
and one interception. One week later,
Bomar replaced Thompson as the
starter, and did not attempt a pass in
the second half of a 31-15 win against
Tiilsa. Bomar went on to start nine of
11 games this season, completing 150
of 278 passes for 1,789 yards and nine
touchdowns. He has been intercepted
nine times.
The consistent part of the Sooner of
fense has come from Peterson, the run
ner-up in the Heisman balloting one
year ago. Battling an ankle injury that
has kept him out of all or part of four
games, the sophomore has rushed for
1,024 yards on 197 carries and 14
touchdowns. He has averaged 156.5
yards per game in Oklahoma’s last
four contests.
Peterson should find it difficult to
run against the Ducks. Led by Haloti
Ngata, the Oregon defense ranks third
in the conference in total defense,
surrendering 357.4 yards per game.
Offensively, Oregon has relied on
its senior-laden offense and the arms
of two inexperienced quarterbacks
—Dixon and Brady Leaf — after sen
ior Kellen Clemens went down in
the eighth game of the season. The
two have helped the Ducks com
plete the program’s greatest turn
around in 77 years after a 5-6 cam
paign last season. Oregon completed
this year ranking seventh in the
country in passing offense, ninth in
scoring and 16th in total offense.
“Our program has great respect for
Mike Bellotti and the Oregon pro
gram,” Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops
said. “They have put together another
exceptional season and we know that
they present a tremendous challenge. ”
landmvs@dailyemerald. com