Green Defeats White in Oregon Spring Game

An estimated crowd of 40,000 took in Oregon’s 2024 Spring Game on an overcast day in Eugene. Local legend Mat Kearney performed the coin toss to get the game started while guest coaches Kenjon Barner and Troy Dye paced the sideline. 

Dillon Gabriel took the field for the first time as a Duck with the green offense, quickly hitting Tez Johnson twice for solid gains. Jayden Limar took a handoff for a chunk gain on his first carry of the afternoon. The defense rallied for a stop around midfield after getting gashed on the first drive of the day.

Dante Moore’s Oregon career got started with a completed out route to Traeshon Holden and the offense went with tempo early. Jordan James broke off a big gain on the ground to the green 24-yard line for 35 yards before Moore layered a perfect pass to Terrance Ferguson about 15 yards downfield that was broken up by linebacker Devon Jackson. 

Kicker Grant Meadors was called on and knocked down a 49-yard field goal to wrap up the drive, a welcome surprise for Duck fans.

The white defense came out and got a sack from Ben Roberts on second down before Jay Harris carried defenders to move the chains. The green offense had trouble syncing up on deep passes as a couple were missed looking for Kyler Kasper and Evan Stewart in the early going. 

Austin Novosad got his first action in the second quarter and had to chase down an errant snap, an issue that popped up on both squads early. Ferguson let a perfectly placed ball fall incomplete as the white offense’s early miscues continued. 

Novosad flung a deep ball into double coverage that was intended for Jurrion Dickey but was snagged by true freshman Dakoda Fields and returned to just outside the red zone. 

Gabriel led a red-zone possession that featured a quality outside run by Limar before he punched it into the endzone from a yard out as the green team converted the turnover into points.

Moore led a late second-quarter drive that featured a strong outside run by Jordan James and a completion over the middle to Ferguson for around 10 yards. The offensive line pushed hard and got extra yards for Kilohana Haasenritter on a couple of occasions. Washington transfer Jabbar Muhammad made an impact, breaking up a short pass and flashing his signature celebration for the first time in Autzen.

The highlight of the first half offensively was a pass from Novosad to Justius Lowe deep down the left sideline that was hauled in for a 30-yard gain before Ross James pinned a punt inside the 10.

Second Half

Haasenritter started off the third quarter with a conversion on the ground before Novosad hit Ferguson over the middle again for a good gain on first down. Gary Bryant Jr. moved the chains on a crossing route to take the white offense inside the 30 before true freshman Jeremiah McClellan made a circus catch inside the five on a beautiful back-shoulder ball from Novosad. James strolled into the endzone to cap off the drive and get the white team its first touchdown of the day. 

Kenyon Sadiq saw plenty of touches including an end around that he took for 27 yards to open the second half for the green offense. Evan Stewart made a nice grab on a flea flicker pass to move the green offense across midfield. 

True freshman Aaron Flowers was flying around and made a touchdown-saving shoestring tackle on Jay Harris. The game was moving quickly aside from some injuries that popped up throughout the day.

Veteran cornerback Dontae Manning got banged up and would not return. He was seen after the game sporting a sling. Dan Lanning didn’t have any updates as to injured players following Saturday’s spring game.

A consistent pass rush made it hard for Gabriel to get comfortable but he was ultimately able to find Justius Lowe over the middle of the field for his first passing touchdown. 

Fans got their first look at 2024 signee Luke Moga, who came on at quarterback for the white offense and scampered for 15 yards. Walk-on Brison Cobbins had one of the most explosive runs of the day, breaking free for a 68-yard touchdown as the third quarter came to a close.

There wasn’t much action in the fourth quarter, as passes fell incomplete and both teams rattled off short gains on the ground. The game wound down as the Green team secured a 28-17 win over the White Team with one more spring practice on the schedule for Tuesday.