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Pac-12 roundup: Oregon, Arizona State pick up key wins

Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) prepares to hand the ball to an official after scoring on a run against Stanford in the first half Saturday.
(Ryan Kang / AP)
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Marcus Mariota threw for 258 yards and two touchdowns and also ran for two scores as fifth-ranked Oregon pounded Stanford, 45-16, Saturday night at Eugene, Ore.

Thomas Tyner returned from an injury to run for two touchdowns to help the Ducks (8-1, 5-1 in the Pac-12) snap a two-game losing streak against the Cardinal.

Stanford’s stout defense had not allowed an opponent more than 30 points in its previous 31 games, the longest streak in the nation. The Cardinal (5-4, 3-3) had allowed just four total rushing touchdowns through the season’s first eight games; Oregon finished with four.

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Oregon, No. 5 in the first College Football Playoff rankings, is poised to move into the top four after No. 4 Mississippi lost to Auburn. The Ducks, who climbed to No. 2 in the AP rankings this season before stumbling with a home loss to Arizona on Oct. 2, have recovered to win four in a row.

All of Stanford’s losses have come against teams that were ranked at the time. A 26-10 loss to Arizona State dropped the Cardinal out of the top 25 after a streak of 72 weeks in the rankings. Stanford rebounded last weekend with a 38-14 victory over Oregon State.

The Cardinal defense had been allowing opponents to average only 250.6 yards and 12.5 points a game. Oregon had 525 yards in total offense.

The Ducks efficiently marched down the field on their first series, scoring on Mariota’s six-yard pass to freshman Charles Nelson. Stanford answered with Jordan Williamson’s 47-yard field goal. Mariota faked a handoff and ran 22 yards into the end zone to give the Ducks a 14-3 lead. Stanford countered with Williamson’s 43-yard field goal.

Tyner, who sat out of Oregon’s 59-41 victory over Cal last weekend with an undisclosed injury, muscled his way into the end zone for a one-yard scoring run to put the Ducks up 21-6. A field goal later in the second quarter made it 24-6, and the Ducks weren’t seriously threatened the rest of the way

No. 14 Arizona State 19, No. 17 Utah 16 (OT)

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Zane Gonzalez kicked a 36-yard field goal in overtime and No. 14 Arizona State overcame an uneven performance to take control of the Pac-12 South with the victory in Tempe, Ariz.

Utah (6-2, 3-1, No. 17 CFP) had the ball first in overtime and had to call a timeout just before Andy Phillips attempted a 35-yard field goal to avoid a delay penalty. Phillips pushed that attempt wide right and did the same thing when it counted.

Arizona State (7-1, 5-1 Pac-12, No. 14 CFP) managed just a couple of yards on its overtime drive, but Gonzalez made his kick count, driving the ball through the uprights to send the Sun Devils charging onto the field.

The victory, combined with Arizona’s loss to UCLA, gives Arizona State a one-game lead in the Pac-12 South and keeps the Sun Devils’ College Football Playoff hopes alive.

Washington 38, at Colorado 23: Shaq Thompson rushed for 174 yards, Travis Feeney had a 30-yard interception return for a touchdown and Dante Pettis scored on an 87-yard punt return as the Huskies surged in the second half to beat the Buffaloes.

The Huskies (6-3, 2-3) overcame a 20-17 halftime deficit to snap a two-game skid. The Buffaloes (2-7, 0-6) lost their fifth straight.

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