EUGENE -- The Ducks offense was firing on all cylinders in Willie Taggart's Oregon coaching debut. The Ducks set a new Autzen Stadium scoring record in a 77-21 win over Southern Utah on a hazy Saturday evening.
Oregon amassed 703 total yards en-route to its highest-scoring game in more than a century. The Ducks 77 points were the most an Oregon team had scored on the gridiron since a 97-0 win over Willamette on Oct. 7, 1916. The Webfoots also broke the previous record for most points in a game at Autzen Stadium (72--2x).
Senior running back Royce Freeman led Oregon's attack, rushing for 150 yards and four touchdowns. Freeman also caught four passes for 50 yards.
Kani Benoit also broke the 100-yard mark, finishing the night with 107 yards and 3 TD's.
Sophomore quarterback Justin Herbert turned in an efficient performance. The Eugene native completed 17-of-21 passes for 281 yards and a touchdown.
The Ducks offense got some scoring help from the special teams unit when Tony Brooks-James returned the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. It was just the fifth 100-yard kickoff return in school history.
Oregon was led defensively by Troy Dye. The sophomore linebacker had 10 tackles, a sack, and an interception.
The challenge gets tougher next weekend when Mike Riley brings his Nebraska Cornhuskers to Eugene. The Huskers survived a scare from Arkansas State, beating the Red Wolves 43-36 Saturday in Lincoln.