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Tennessee Tech coach Watson Brown wasn't expecting miracles against No. 4 Oregon and there wouldn't be any.
The Golden Eagles (2-1) were overwhelmed by the bigger, faster and stronger Ducks in a 63-14 loss on Saturday. Tennessee Tech managed 177 yards of total offense to Oregon's 652. The Golden Eagles gained 115 yards on the ground and 62 via the pass.
''We were overmatched when we walked out there,'' said Brown, the older brother of Texas coach Mack Brown. ''We knew that.''
Senior quarterback Tre Lamb completed eight of 13 passes for 46 yards and a touchdown to Da'Rick Rogers. He threw an interception and was sacked five times.
The Golden Eagles (2-1) have never defeated an FBS-level team in 28 tries. The game against the Ducks was the Ohio Valley Conference team's first against a Pac-12 opponent.
''I'm proud of my kids. We always go and we always fight our hearts out and give it our best. It's bittersweet because you know coming in you've got a tough road . but at the same time, I think we get a lot out of it,'' Brown said.
Rogers, who transferred to Tennessee Tech from Tennessee right before the season started, had three catches for 38 yards and the first touchdown of the game. He took a short pass from Lamb and ran for a 23-yard TD.
Rogers was suspended indefinitely by Tennessee on Aug. 23. He told reporters it was because of failed drug tests.
He was a first-team all-SEC receiver in 2011, with 67 receptions for 1,040 yards and nine touchdowns for the Volunteers. He faced Oregon when the Ducks visited Knoxville in 2010, finishing with a carry for 21 yards in Oregon's 48-13 victory.
Last week, Rogers had five catches for 88 yards and a touchdown in Tech's 42-14 victory against North Greenville. The week before he was named Ohio Valley Conference newcomer of the week after three receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown in a win against Hampton.
Rogers finished with three catches for 38 yards on Saturday.
The Ducks answered Rogers' TD with Kenjon Barner's 1-yard scoring run and De'Anthony Thomas' 59-yard touchdown sprint.
On Oregon's next series, Thomas had a 49-yard reception that appeared to be an easy touchdown, but he was caught from behind by Tennessee Tech's DaJuan Brown and fumbled. Ducks right tackle Jake Fisher pounced on it for the 1-yard touchdown to make it 21-7.
Oregon further padded the lead with Marcus Mariota's 4-yard scoring pass to tight end Colt Lyerla, but Rob Beard's attempt at a 25-yard field goal was blocked.
Thomas pulled down a 16-yard scoring pass from Mariota as the first half ended to give the Ducks a 35-7 lead.
Mariota found Keanon Lowe with a 3-yard touchdown early in the third quarter before Oregon subbed out many of its starters. Mariota finished with 308 yards passing and four touchdowns.
Backup Bryan Bennett had a 4-yard run to make it 49-7. Tennessee Tech scored on Darian Stone's 6-yard pass to Doug Page but Bennett added a 6-yard keeper to make it 56-14 at the end of the third quarter.
Freshman Byron Marshall ran for a 4-yard score in the final quarter. Marshall finished with 125 yards rushing in the game.
''They don't have any weaknesses,'' Brown said about the Ducks. ''They're really fast and they're much bigger than you think. Really tall kids, defensive linemen that we really couldn't do much with at all. I think the missing piece is their defense and I think they're a lot better on defense than people realize.''
