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Missouri State quarterback Trevor Wooden certainly hopes that what the Bears have gone through in non-conference play bodes well for them starting next week.
''There is no better preparation for the Missouri Valley Conference,'' he said after the Bears fell to No. 12 Oregon 56-7 on Saturday.
Missouri State is 0-3 for the first time since 1994, after losses to then-No. 15 Arkansas and a 28-24 defeat to Eastern Kentucky last weekend.
Missouri State visits Southern Illinois next Saturday in the league opener.
They were simply overmatched Saturday by the bigger, stronger and faster Ducks.
LaMichael James ran for 204 yards and three touchdowns, including a 90-yarder, Oregon's longest run since 1938. The Heisman Trophy finalist from last season also had a 1-yard TD in the first quarter and a 50-yarder in the third.
Darron Thomas threw for 206 yards and three touchdowns for Oregon (2-1). Lavasier Tuinei caught scoring passes of 8 and 34 yards, and the Ducks sat most of their starters early in the second half.
Missouri State scored on its first possession. The Bears were efficient in a nine-play, 84-yard drive that was capped by Chris Douglas' 3-yard touchdown run to make it 7-0. By halftime, though, the Ducks were ahead 35-7.
Wooden completed six of 13 passes for 91 yards. He also ran 67 yards in the loss.
''We can compete with anybody. We know that,'' he said. ''It just can't be five minutes here, five minutes there.''
The Ducks' opponent was supposed to be Utah, but that game was changed because of the Pac-12 realignment. Oregon was left scrambling for an opponent, and the Bears stepped in.
Missouri State will be paid $440,000 for visiting Autzen Stadium. The Bears also earned $395,000 for the game at Arkansas.
Oregon scored twice in the first quarter on James' 1-yard run and Thomas' 8-yard scoring pass to Tuinei.
Oregon freshman De'Anthony Thomas topped 100 all-purpose yards in the first quarter on one punt return, one kickoff return, one rush and a reception.
Oregon made it 21-7 on Thomas's 7-yard touchdown pass to freshman Colt Lyerla, on a drive that spanned 93 yards on three plays in 37 seconds.
While that was fast, it couldn't compare to James' 90-yard scoring run a short time later. That drive took all of 13 seconds. The longest run in school history was Bob Smith's 92-yarder against Idaho in 1938.
Thomas' second scoring pass to Tuinei came with 5:33 to go before the half. Thomas matched a school record with six touchdown passes the week before in a 69-20 victory over Nevada.
James opened the second half with a 50-yard scoring run.
The running back had been held to 54 yards in Oregon's season-opening 40-27 loss to then-No. 4 LSU. Then last week against the Wolf Pack he ran for 67 yards, but scored on a run, a reception and a punt return.
James averaged more than 144 yards rushing a game last season. After Saturday's performance, he upped his average this season to 108.3 yards.
James has 42 career touchdowns at Oregon, matching the school record set by Derek Loville (1986-89).
Oregon backup Bryan Bennett hit Lyerla with a 26-yard TD pass, and Eric Dungy with a 22-yard scoring strike to make it 56-7 in the third quarter after the starters left. Dungy, a redshirt freshman, is the son of former NFL coach Tony Dungy.
Kiko Alonso got the start at linebacker for the Ducks, a week after coming off suspension for offseason legal trouble. Alonso started at linebacker in place of Michael Clay, who injured his ankle last week.
Cornerback and kick returner Cliff Harris, also reinstated last week from an indefinite suspension, came into the game in the second quarter.
