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Oregon's potent offense met its match in Ohio State.
The Ducks' spread-option bogged down in the Rose Bowl, and No. 7 Oregon lost 26-17 on Friday in its first appearance in Pasadena on New Year's Day since 1995.
Known for their scrambling, gambling, fast-paced attack, the Ducks had the ball for barely 18 1/2 minutes - and that wasn't a good thing.
After taking a 17-16 lead on the first possession of the second half on Jeremiah Masoli's 1-yard plunge, the Ducks were shut out the rest of the way. They had only two possessions in the fourth quarter, ending in a punt and a wide-right field goal by Morgan Flint, his first miss in 13 tries dating to Oct. 3 against Washington State.
``Definitely the whole night we were just a little bit off,'' Masoli said. ``We didn't really open up the playbook regarding the air attack. I don't know why. I wasn't calling the plays.''
Tailback LeGarrette Blount, suspended after his postgame punch at Boise State's Byron Hout in a season-opening loss, scored a game-tying touchdown in the second quarter.
But with the Ducks trailing 19-17 in the third quarter, Blount committed a costly fumble and No. 8 Ohio State recovered in the end zone. The Ducks never were that close to scoring again and they fell to 0-8 against the Buckeyes.
``There was a fumbled exchange,'' first-year coach Chip Kelly said. ``I don't know exactly until I watch the replay whether it was too high in the handoff or we didn't have the good pocket.''
Freshman tailback LaMichael James, who emerged as a star replacement for Blount, was the Ducks' leading rusher with 15 carries for 70 yards, ending his streak of 100-plus yard rushing games at seven. He injured his left shoulder after falling on it, allowing Blount to see most of the action in the second half.
``They didn't let me get started,'' James said of the Buckeyes. ``They weren't that fast but just didn't miss any tackles. They didn't give me any gaps.''
Blount had five carries for 36 yards. The senior played in just two games after having his suspension lifted. He had a TD in the win over rival Oregon State that earned the Ducks a Rose Bowl berth, and scored again Friday.
``It's in the past. I was never a bad person,'' he said. ``Everybody has their moments. I just let my emotions get the best of me.''
Blount said he later apologized to Hout, and he credited his teammates for supporting him.
``They've been here to keep me out of trouble,'' he said. ``Everything they asked me to do, I did. I feel like I contributed to the team.''
The Ducks outran the Buckeyes 179-153, but Ohio State's Terrelle Pryor dominated Masoli in passing, 266 yards to just 81 - a season low. Masoli had directed an offense that racked up more than 37 points and 424 yards per game this season while ending Southern California's seven-year reign as Pac-10 champions.
``They had a guy assigned to the quarterback, so he has to hand the ball off, and that's what they wanted us to do, and we handed it off,'' Kelly said. ``Part of trying to defend us is you have to take something away, and they tried to take away the quarterback.''
