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The Oregon Ducks have piled on the points so far this season. They don't plan on slowing down anytime soon.
''That's something we really pride ourselves on: our conditioning,'' Oregon coach Chip Kelly said. ''We felt like that would really be something we could hang our hat on.''
In two games, Oregon's explosive offense has piled up 1,167 yards, and the fifth-ranked Ducks (2-0) have scored 120 points on scores by the offense, defense and special teams. The two-game averages of 583.5 yards and 60 points ranks Oregon second in the nation in both categories.
Perhaps more impressive than the offensive statistics is the way the Ducks have concentrated their production in just two halves of play. They scored 45 consecutive points in the final 33 minutes of a 48-13 win over Tennessee (1-1) on Saturday. They scored 59 points in the first half of a 72-0 win over New Mexico in the season opener.
The Ducks will have another shot at piling up points when they face Portland State, which has given up an average 442 yards and 43.5 points in two games, ranking the Vikings (1-1) near the bottom of the Football Championship Subdivision.
Oregon struggled with Tennessee's defense early in front of 102,035 mostly hostile fans and found itself down 10 points after some quick scores by the Vols and an hour-long weather delay and rain deluge. The players approached Kelly at halftime, asking him to speed up the tempo of the game because they could sense Tennessee was starting to wear down from the effort.
''What they do is they wear on you, they get you tired,'' Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said. ''They've got special enough players to make you pay.''
Oregon's biggest spark came when LaMichael James, who missed the season opener serving a suspension for an offseason misdemeanor harassment charge, broke a would-be tackle for a loss by Art Evans, made five more defenders miss and found open space for a 72-yard touchdown run. The score gave the Ducks a 20-13 lead with 10:10 to go in the third quarter, a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
''That run was kind of incredible right there,'' said James, who finished with 134 yards after having only 27 at halftime. ''We needed a boost, and we needed a score. We weren't playing to our standards. We needed a boost, and that's what I did.''
Cliff Harris cleanly picked off Tennessee's Matt Simms on the following drive and ran it 76 yards for another score. The sophomore cornerback now has three touchdowns this season after returning taking two punt returns to the end zone against New Mexico.
Kenjon Barner, who scored five touchdowns filling in for James as the Ducks' No. 1 tailback in a 72-0 win against New Mexico last week, took a punt back 80 yards for a touchdown that made it 41-13 with 11:39 left.
''The great thing about this team is they feed off each other,'' Kelly said. ''LaMichael made a bit play, then Cliff made a big play, then Kenjon.''
