If you close your eyes and listen closely, you can hear the faint heartbeat of the Oregon Ducks’ College Football Playoff hopes.
On the other hand, for Michigan coach Kyle Whittingham, the noise surrounding his job is deafening. No. 16 Oregon (7-3) beat Michigan (5-5) 31-7 on Saturday. The outlook for both teams couldn’t be more different.
The loss for Michigan makes the possibility of Whittingham being a one-and-done head coach all the more real, while Oregon keeps it playoff hopes alive.
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The Ducks came out flying, scoring touchdowns on two of their first three possessions of the game. Ducks quarterback Dylan Raiola opened the scoring when he connected with wide receiver Jeremiah McClellan on a deep ball for a 60-yard touchdown, putting Oregon up 7-0.
The Ducks’ second touchdown of the opening quarter came with less excitement, but the points still counted the same. Raiola hit running back Da’Juan Riggs in the flat for his first career receiving touchdown to put Oregon up 14-0.
It looked like the Ducks were on their way to an easy win, but Michigan running back Savion Hiter got the Wolverines on the board with a 70-yard rushing touchdown to cut the deficit in half, making it 14-7.
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Michigan looked like it was going to go into halftime down one score, but instead it had a complete coverage breakdown with seconds remaining in the first half. Raiola scrambled outside the pocket and connected with Dakorien Moore for a 59-yard touchdown after Moore got behind the defensive backs to put Oregon up 21-7.
Coming out of the half, Michigan benched quarterback Bryce Underwood for Tommy Carr, looking for a spark.
It looked like Michigan was going to cut into the deficit at the beginning of the fourth quarter, but the Oregon defense slammed the door with the Wolverines on the Ducks’ 3-yard line, forcing a turnover on downs. With the game out of reach, Oregon tacked on another score with a 49-yard touchdown from Dierre Hill Jr. off a screen pass.
With just over four minutes left, Whittingham went back to Underwood to end the game.
Oregon’s next game is against Michigan State, and beating the Spartans is paramount to staying alive in the playoff race.
For Michigan, its next two games are against ranked opponents. Next week, the Wolverines play No. 4 UCLA and then end their season against No. 20 Ohio State. Losses to either or both of those teams could spur changes in Ann Arbor.
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