Oregon Ducks defensive coordinator Don Pellum on his ‘toughest day of work’

Oregon travels to Colorado next week. The Ducks fell out of the poll completely after the loss, breaking their run of 98 straight poll appearances, which was the second longest active streak in the nation.

But as the game wore on Utah quarterback Travis Wilson capitalized on breakdowns up front to rush for 100 yards, and he threw four touchdown passes over the course of the night, a couple to receivers who found big holes in the coverage. But they still struggled to stop a team that is not even considered a strong passing team.

Utah, meanwhile, thrived with the return of quarterback Travis Wilson from a sprained shoulder.

“We have to get better at all positions, not just back there”, he said. When you’re in this situation, you have to find some strength.

How was the locker room after the defeat?

Try to go back to 8:40 p.m. Eastern time on Saturday evening, when this game began in Autzen Stadium.

In his last start, Adams completed 22 of 39 passes for 309 yards with one touchdowns and two interceptions in a 31-28 loss at Michigan State.

Oregon quarterback Jeff Lockie (17) looks to pass during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Utah, Saturday, September 26, 2015, in Eugene, Ore. Six minutes remain in the first half. The Razorbacks had the Aggies on their heels but faltered down the stretch, with miscues on both sides of the ball – blown coverage, turnovers – causing their undoing. Oregon’s young cornerbacks were getting burned short, deep, and all areas in between. “We’re not setting edges, we’re not capitalizing on opportunities and those guys have to grow up fast”. “So I’m really happy with just the overall performance”. Those should have been signs that things were even worse than we suspected.

“We are all we’ve got”, Helfrich told his team.

The third-ranked Horned Frogs needed one of the most improbable bounces and one of the most wonderful catches you will ever see to get out of Lubbock, Texas, with a 55-52 victory against Texas Tech on Saturday.

The Utes’ defense was simply poetry in motion, forcing the Ducks three punts on their first three drives. It was the type of thing the Ducks used to do to their opponents.

Already trailing the No. 18 Utes by 35 points late in the third quarter, the No. 13 Ducks were forced to punt from their own 35-yard-line.

Oregon coach Mark Helfrich says the loss is all on him, but he’s looking ahead.

It was a night where everything that could go wrong, did.

All of that came together against the Cougars.

Hard to believe it has come to this for Oregon. And, heading into Tempe to face an Arizona State team picked by more than a few to win the Pac-12 South, many thought the Trojans were staring 2-2 in the face. But an A grade for at least one game never hurts. But after watching Oregon get torched by the Utes, perhaps none of those games will be easy. The compounding mistakes Saturday were a case of the Ducks continuing to dig.

Oregon has had double-digit victories in each of the past seven seasons, has twice played in the national championship game in the past five years and has carried the flag for the Pac-10/12 in the post-Pete Carroll era at USC.