Oregon defense was not up to standard against Boise State
· Yahoo Sports
The Oregon Ducks did not play especially well in their 2026 opener against Boise State. This was mostly true on offense, but the Ducks' defense didn't dominate, either, with USC looming in just two and a half weeks. Ducks Wire offers more details:
"This is another area where the stats don't quite agree with the eye test. If you were to watch that game and avoid the postgame box score, you'd likely walk away thinking Oregon's defensive line — touted as the best in the country — had a pretty tough day. In the second half, Boise State routinely established push in the trenches and picked up 4 to 5 yards on the ground with ease, moving the chains and keeping the game close.
Visit sport-tr.bet for more information.
"If you look at the numbers, though, it doesn't look half bad. The Broncos rushed for 93 total yards and 2.6 yards per carry. Oregon's defensive line got home several times. It sacked QB Maddux Madsen three times and produced eight quarterback hits. Again, the numbers don't match up, but Oregon knows it needs to be better.
"'Not good enough,' Lanning said after the game about the defensive line's performance. 'Not our standard.'
"The starting combo of Matayo Uiagalelei, Teitum Tuioti, Bear Alexander and A'Mauri Washington combined for 23 tackles and five QB hits. Throw in Matthew Johnson, Aydin Breland and Elijah Rushing, and you get another four tackles. On paper, this unit was pretty solid, and far from the reason they were in a tight game. Going forward, they want to, and need to, be better, though."
Contact/Follow @TrojansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of USC Trojans news, notes and opinion.
This article originally appeared on Trojans Wire: Oregon defense was not up to standard against Boise State