{"id":16668,"date":"2026-01-12T10:25:54","date_gmt":"2026-01-12T10:25:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=16668"},"modified":"2026-01-12T10:25:55","modified_gmt":"2026-01-12T10:25:55","slug":"turnovers-doom-oregon-to-another-ugly-cfp-exit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=16668","title":{"rendered":"Turnovers doom Oregon to another ugly CFP exit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-meta\">\n<ul class=\"authors\">\n<li class=\"mugshot-shown\">\n<div class=\"author-img\"><\/div>\n<p>Mark Schlabach<span class=\"timestamp \">Jan 10, 2026, 01:22 AM ET<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-overlay\"><a class=\"icon-font-after icon-close-solid-after\" href=\"#\">Close<\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Senior college football writer<\/li>\n<li>Author of seven books on college football<\/li>\n<li>Graduate of the University of Georgia<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p>ATLANTA &#8212; With No. 5 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/2483\/oregon-ducks\">Oregon<\/a> trailing No. 1 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/84\/indiana-hoosiers\">Indiana<\/a> by seven points in the second quarter of Friday&#8217;s College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Ducks quarterback <a data-player-guid=\"499a514b-f7d0-35f9-a71a-4ec131562fa1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/4870921\/dante-moore\">Dante Moore<\/a> lined up in a pistol formation.<\/p>\n<p>As Moore dropped back to throw a screen pass to his left, the football brushed Oregon running back <a data-player-guid=\"ebb9ddbd-dbfe-3978-b73a-e1d7efafc685\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5141499\/dierre-hill-jr\">Dierre Hill Jr.<\/a>&#8216;s left arm. The ball popped into the air and bounced to the Ducks&#8217; 3-yard line, where it was recovered by Indiana defensive lineman <a data-player-guid=\"19942e60-e635-395e-8825-514594f200a8\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5149301\/mario-landino\">Mario Landino<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The undefeated Hoosiers (15-0) scored another touchdown three plays later on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/4696044\/kaelon-black\">Kaelon Black<\/a>&#8216;s 1-yard run, and the rout was on at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.<\/p>\n<p>Indiana pulled away for a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/game\/_\/gameId\/401769074\/oregon-indiana\">56-22 victory<\/a> and will play No. 10 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/2390\/miami-hurricanes\">Miami<\/a> in the CFP National Championship in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Jan. 19 (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;That&#8217;s a freak deal, man,&#8221; Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein said. &#8220;Dante was just throwing it out there, and it was just like the story of the night. Just literally the very edge of the football caught the [arm].&#8221;<\/p>\n<aside class=\"inline editorial float-r\" data-behavior=\"article_related\">\n<h2 class=\"editorial-title\">Editor&#8217;s Picks<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a name=\"&amp;lpos=story:editorspicks:inline:1\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/story\/_\/id\/47555225\/college-football-playoff-semifinals-2025-takeaways-every-game\" class=\"img-link\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1768213554_521_r1598677_1296x1296_1-1.jpg&amp;w=130&amp;h=130&amp;scale=crop&amp;location=center.jpeg\" width=\"65\" height=\"65\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li><a name=\"&amp;lpos=story:editorspicks:inline:2\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/story\/_\/id\/47560626\/college-football-playoff-national-championship-preview-miami-indiana\" class=\"img-link\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/2026-CFP-Bracket-Indiana_1x1.png&amp;w=130&amp;h=130&amp;scale=crop&amp;location=center.png\" width=\"65\" height=\"65\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>1 Related<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n<p>It was the second straight ugly exit for the Ducks in the postseason. Last season, top-seeded and undefeated Oregon trailed 34-0 in the first half of a 41-21 loss to No. 8 seed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/194\/ohio-state-buckeyes\">Ohio State<\/a> in a CFP quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes would go on to win the CFP title.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;They started off hot, and they really didn&#8217;t slow down,&#8221; Oregon coach Dan Lanning said of Indiana. &#8220;They were able to run it and have success. We were able to generate a little momentum there at times, but we were so far in the hole that you couldn&#8217;t [climb] yourself out of that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>It couldn&#8217;t have started any worse for the Ducks, who committed three turnovers in the first half.<\/p>\n<p>On Oregon&#8217;s first play from scrimmage, Indiana cornerback <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5118340\/dangelo-ponds\">D&#8217;Angelo Ponds<\/a> jumped a route and intercepted Moore&#8217;s pass to <a data-player-guid=\"2de73f11-3f6a-3317-a615-63199769f8fd\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5150247\/malik-benson\">Malik Benson<\/a>. Ponds, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/256\/james-madison-dukes\">James Madison<\/a> transfer who went to Indiana with coach Curt Cignetti, returned the interception 25 yards for a touchdown to make it 7-0 11 seconds into the game.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;They made a good play,&#8221; Stein said. &#8220;We threw a quick out. It&#8217;s one of our plays we love and just a good drive-starting play. The guy made a good play and jumped the route. It&#8217;s not on Dante. The guy&#8217;s open for a second.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haines said Ponds lined up off Benson, hoping he would make Moore believe he was playing soft zone coverage. The plan, according to Haines, was to &#8220;bait it, bite it, take it to the house.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ll be honest with you, I think the biggest impact was what it might have done to that quarterback because I know that he left our last game thinking, &#8216;I was seeing ghosts. I&#8217;ve cleaned those mistakes up. I&#8217;m going to be better this time,'&#8221; Haines said. &#8220;And for your first throw to cost your team six points, I think the impact on him was [significant].<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;D&#8217;Angelo puts a lot of master classes out there, but I think that might have been one of his best performances of the season right there.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The Ducks bounced back with a 14-play, 75-yard drive that took more than 7\u00bd minutes off the clock. On third-and-12, Moore threw a pass over the top of the Indiana defense for a 19-yard touchdown to tight end <a data-player-guid=\"ffcee867-627d-33f2-876c-9fa85d1be58c\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/4922988\/jamari-johnson\">Jamari Johnson<\/a> to tie the score.<\/p>\n<p>That was about Oregon&#8217;s only highlight of the first half.<\/p>\n<p>The Hoosiers scored five touchdowns in the first 30 minutes &#8212; the first on Ponds&#8217; interception and two more after Moore fumbled deep in Ducks territory. Heisman Trophy winner <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/4837248\/fernando-mendoza\">Fernando Mendoza<\/a>&#8216;s 8-yard scoring pass to <a data-player-guid=\"801b0f4f-d8cc-3444-9efb-e80a8585db3e\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/4723820\/omar-cooper-jr\">Omar Cooper Jr.<\/a> put the Hoosiers back in front 14-7 with 40 seconds remaining in the first quarter.<\/p>\n<p>After Oregon punted, the Ducks&#8217; defense finally made a big play when linebacker <a data-player-guid=\"b8a35535-bf10-3145-b6a0-c1cd0b21e47b\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5141730\/nasir-wyatt\">Nasir Wyatt<\/a> stripped the ball from Mendoza on third-and-7 at the Oregon 37. The Indiana quarterback recovered it, but the play resulted in a 20-yard sack and forced a punt.<\/p>\n<p>Disaster struck again, however, on Oregon&#8217;s next play when Hill&#8217;s arm knocked the ball out of Moore&#8217;s hand as he tried to throw.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;First thing is first, the quarterback has to protect the football,&#8221; Moore said. &#8220;They have a great defense, great disguise and different looks, but you can&#8217;t win football games if you&#8217;re causing turnovers. [It&#8217;s] something, of course, I need to work at. It comes with just reps.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Moore, who is considered a potential No. 1 pick in this year&#8217;s NFL draft, along with Mendoza, completed 24 of 39 passes for 285 yards with two touchdowns. He was sacked three times.<\/p>\n<p>The sophomore didn&#8217;t say whether he was ready to go to the NFL after only one season as Oregon&#8217;s starter.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I knew that question was coming,&#8221; Moore said. &#8220;Yeah, I&#8217;m going to soak this moment up. That&#8217;s most important, just giving hugs and just thank-yous to my teammates. But at the end of the day, I mean, I don&#8217;t know my decision yet.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately for the Ducks, it only got worse through the second quarter. On Oregon&#8217;s next possession, the Hoosiers sacked Moore on back-to-back plays to force a punt. After a 16-yard punt return and an 18-yard pass to <a data-player-guid=\"0e684a08-ee98-3fd7-95e3-6e0824b4fa21\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5088338\/elijah-sarratt\">Elijah Sarratt<\/a>, Mendoza threw a beautiful pass down the right sideline and <a data-player-guid=\"536b691f-5f45-3356-a345-02aa5d5f418c\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5146735\/charlie-becker\">Charlie Becker<\/a> jumped high to catch a 36-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 28-7.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"inline inline-photo full\">\n<figure><img fetchpriority=\"high\" class=\" lazyload lazyload\" data-image-container=\".inline-photo\" height=\"320\" width=\"570\" \/><figcaption class=\"photoCaption\">Oregon players react as Indiana celebrates its 56-22 win on Friday night. &#8220;We were so far in the hole that you couldn&#8217;t [climb] yourself out of that,&#8221; Ducks coach Dan Lanning said.\u00a0<cite>Stacy Revere\/Getty Images<\/cite><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Oregon&#8217;s misery wasn&#8217;t over. On second-and-6 at the Oregon 29, Hoosiers defensive lineman <a data-player-guid=\"65528194-f626-3cc6-b61e-164fb948dac9\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5146886\/daniel-ndukwe\">Daniel Ndukwe<\/a> sacked Moore and forced a fumble. Landino recovered the ball again at the Oregon 21. With 59 seconds left in the half, Mendoza threw a bubble screen to Sarratt, who dove into the end zone for a 2-yard touchdown to give the Hoosiers a 35-7 lead at the break.<\/p>\n<p>The last time the Ducks played at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, they trailed 28-3 at the half in a 49-3 loss to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/61\/georgia-bulldogs\">Georgia<\/a> in Lanning&#8217;s debut in the 2022 opener.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;We spotted these guys 21 points,&#8221; said Stein, who coached his last game at Oregon after he was named <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/96\/kentucky-wildcats\">Kentucky<\/a> head coach. &#8220;It&#8217;s hard to win when you turn the ball over three times in your own territory. You don&#8217;t do anything good for your defense in that aspect. Obviously, a poor job by us taking care of the ball.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>The Ducks ran for 93 yards, which was a bit surprising because they didn&#8217;t have their two best backs, <a data-player-guid=\"61876f86-482f-3de4-b6b3-038a192722be\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/4432631\/noah-whittington\">Noah Whittington<\/a> and <a data-player-guid=\"73d9f4c4-08fe-3e67-b00e-bc3aec98c99d\" href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/player\/_\/id\/5141423\/jordon-davison\">Jordon Davison<\/a>. Whittington was a game-time decision and got a few snaps but didn&#8217;t carry the ball. Davison broke his collarbone in last week&#8217;s 23-0 win against No. 4 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/2641\/texas-tech-red-raiders\">Texas Tech<\/a> in the Capital One Orange Bowl.<\/p>\n<p>Indiana scored three more touchdowns in the second half, including one after the Hoosiers blocked an Oregon punt.<\/p>\n<p>Mendoza completed 17 of 20 passes for 177 yards with five touchdowns. The Ducks ran for 177 yards.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The way these guys have performed all season, I&#8217;m really proud of them and proud to be a part of it,&#8221; said Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, who is leaving to become <a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/team\/_\/id\/25\/california-golden-bears\">California<\/a>&#8216;s head coach. &#8220;Again, really poor finish, no excuse for the performance. You mentioned short fields, doesn&#8217;t matter. An elite defense can [stop them], just like we did last week, right?&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><em>ESPN&#8217;s Pete Thamel contributed to this report.<\/em>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/college-football\/story\/_\/id\/47567155\/turnovers-doom-oregon-ducks-another-ugly-cfp-exit\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mark SchlabachJan 10, 2026, 01:22 AM ET Close Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia ATLANTA &#8212; With No. 5 Oregon trailing No. 1 Indiana by seven points in the second quarter of Friday&#8217;s College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, Ducks quarterback &#8230; <a title=\"Turnovers doom Oregon to another ugly CFP exit\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/?p=16668\" aria-label=\"Read more about Turnovers doom Oregon to another ugly CFP exit\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16669,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16668","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Turnovers-doom-Oregon-to-another-ugly-CFP-exit.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16668","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16668"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16668\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16670,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16668\/revisions\/16670"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16669"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16668"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16668"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jubi24.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16668"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}