It is a moment that Oregon WR Cameron Colvin may well remember forever.

 

In the time it takes to blink, Colvin went from impending hero diving for the end zone to tie the biggest game of the season for his team to watching helplessly as the ball, the game, and Oregon's hopes for a dream season literally slipped through his fingertips.

 

Down 31-24 to Pac-10 powerhouse Cal at home in the closing seconds of the 4th quarter last Saturday, Oregon was in the midst of a furious comeback.  They had driven all the way down to the Cal 5-yard line when Oregon QB Dennis Dixon threw a short swing pass to Colvin, who darted for the end zone pylon.  But a funny thing happened on the way to a tied game, the intrigue of overtime, and two heavyweight offenses going toe-to-toe for a little while longer.

 

In a game that featured nearly 900 yards in total offense, it was the defense that had the final say.  Cal DB Marcus Ezeff knocked the ball out of Colvin's hands as the WR was getting ready to extend it into the end zone, and the ball trickled harmlessly out of the end zone.  Touchback.  Game over. Stunned silence.

 

Perhaps, two of the most stunned people in the entire stadium were Oregon's biggest star players, RB Jonathan Stewart and QB Dixon.  Both players had to be looking at this game as a clear opportunity to elevate themselves and their team into national prominence and chase away the ghosts of 2006.  In 2007, both Stewart and Dixon seemed to have turned a corner of sorts.  Whatever gaps existed in their respective games before simply did not appear to be there anymore.

 

In Stewart's case, he runs like a wrecking ball.  Mass and force in cleats.  At 5'11", 230 pounds, he looks too stocky to have any real speed, but appearances can be deceiving.  Though he runs with power, he can also flash breakaway speed once he gets into the open field.  It is that combination of strength and quickness that leads many to wonder how soon Stewart, if he hasn't already, will make a name for himself on the national level.  

 

  

In the two games leading up to the showdown with Cal, Stewart ran for over 160 yards in each, picking up 325 yards on just 36 carries (a 9.03 per carry average) and scored 3 times, including a 88-yard bolt in a game against Fresno State.  Now, the big, bad Cal Golden Bears were coming to Autzen Stadium for the biggest Pac-10 game of the young season, and Jonathan Stewart would be there waiting for them looking for a little payback. 

 

Stewart's backfield mate, QB Dennis Dixon, was also looking for some redemption.  His 2006 season went into tatters after a fast start.  In 2007, he was again off to a brilliant start - 69% completion rate, 932 passing yards, 11 TD passes, and, most importantly, no interceptions. 

 

However, the Cal game had marked the beginning of the end for Dixon, Stewart and the rest of the team in 2006.  In last year's Cal-Oregon match-up, the Ducks were embarrassed, 45-24, in Berkeley.  Dixon threw three picks (one on the very first play from scrimmage for the Ducks), and Stewart was given no running room.  The Bears completely stifled him, holding him to just 25 yards on 18 carries.

 

Though, as the saying goes, that was then and this is now.  Whatever partisan pick-me-up the Bears got from a jam-packed Memorial Stadium last October was transferred 500+ miles to Eugene and moved over to the opposite sideline.  With Dixon looking as confident as he's ever been, Stewart coming off of two of the biggest games of his collegiate career, and Jeremiah Johnson ready as that shifty, change of pace back just waiting in the wings to catch a defense off-guard, the Ducks looked hungry enough to chow down on a hearty plate of redemption.  And they needed to be plenty hungry, because the Bears showed that they're no shrinking violets on offense.

 

WR DeSean Jackson proved that he may be the fastest player in the conference.  RB Justin Forsett answered any questions about his ability to replace last season's star RB Marshawn Lynch.   And Cal even had a secret weapon - freshman RB Jahvid Best, who's little more than a blur once he gets to full speed and who averaged a gaudy 12.4 years per carry in limited action coming into the game.

 

Though Best was a non-factor on offense (he did make a brilliant special teams play forcing a fumble on a botched Oregon kick return), Jackson and Forsett were every bit as dangerous as advertised.  Jackson, in particular, simply owned the second half of the game.  After a modest first half, Jackson burned the Oregon D with a pair of electrifying scores - one, a dazzling stutter-step streak down the sidelines.  Cal's brilliant home run hitter finished the game with 11 catches and 161 yards, both career highs. 

 

Forsett also started slowly, the combination of a stout Oregon defensive effort in the first half and conservative play calling keeping him contained.  However, once Cal's passing game opened things up, Forsett found enough room to finish the game with just over 100 yards rushing and two scores, the last of which capped the scoring and provided the final margin of victory.

 

  

For his part, Jonathan Stewart kept the Ducks close, rumbling for 120 yards on 21 carries (a far cry from the 18-carry, 25-yard disappearing act in the 2006 game).  In fact, as the game went on, Stewart did what all elite backs seem to be able to do - he got stronger and tougher to bring down. Just ask Cal freshman DB Chris Conte.  On one of Stewart's runs in the second half, the big RB lowered his shoulder and simply ran right through Conte.  Were Conte to wonder what the license plate number of that particular truck was, the answer would be "28" in big yellow numbers.

 

Also, somewhat lost in the shuffle, were two brilliant moments by Stewart's backup, Jeremiah Johnson.  Johnson, who is all about speed and elusiveness, used his ability to change direction in an instant in turning a simple dump off pass into an amazing 26-yard open field gain on Oregon's ill-fated final drive.  Earlier, he had an equally impressive 26-yard run on the Ducks' first scoring drive, proving that you simply cannot tackle what you can't reach.  

 

  

Unfortunately, for Oregon, Dennis Dixon had no such similar renaissance.  He'd played 19 quarters of nearly perfect football in 2007, but picked the absolute worst time to show his flaws.  His ill-timed interception deep in Oregon territory (his first pick in nearly 130 attempts) led to Cal's go-ahead (and, ultimately, game-winning) TD shortly after.  Four plays later, he threw another interception as the Ducks were driving for a tying score when a tipped pass intended for Stewart was gobbled up by Cal DT Tyson Alualu at the 17.  

 

  

Though Dixon finished the game with 306 passing yards and both a passing and rushing TD, his two interceptions were backbreakers.  By the time Colvin's fumble sealed Oregon's fate, the Ducks had turned the ball over four times, and their heretofore opportunistic defense had created none.  And minus-4 in the turnover battle is difficult, if not impossible, to overcome, particularly against an elite team with a scary offense.

 

Still, give Cal credit, they walked into one of the most hostile environments in the conference - a place they haven't won at in 20 years - and kept their undefeated season alive.  They made the big plays they needed them most and cashed in on enough of Oregon's miscues to stay in front.  With so many of the perennial national college football powers falling by the wayside like so many bowling pins, Cal looks to be on a collision course with USC for the upper hand for at least one of the spots in the BCS title game.

 

For Oregon, it's a bye week, seven more days to stew over what might have been.  It is also time to contemplate how to keep the fight and fire going in the wake of serious injuries to star WR Brian Paysinger (knee - out for the season) and defensive leader LB A.J. Tuitele (broken foot - out 6-8 weeks).  Though disheartening, the Cal game should have shown the Ducks a number of things.

 

First, they gave the now-#3 team in the country everything it could handle.  Second, despite getting creamed in the turnover battle, the offense rolled to nearly 500 yards in total offense and came within a few feet of tying the game in the closing seconds.  Third, Jonathan Stewart's occasional disappearing act from 2006 seems to be a thing of the past.  Fast, strong, and angry 230-pound running backs are in short supply, and the Ducks should consider themselves fortunate to have one of them on their side.

 

On the other hand, Oregon had a number of tough lessons to learn as well.  Though Dennis Dixon had been nearly perfect in 2007 leading up to the Cal game, his tendency to commit crippling turnovers still lurks ominously.  The defense, which played well in the first half, got burned in the second half when they failed to pressure Cal QB Nate Longshore consistently.  Longshore, who had all sorts of time in the pocket in the second half, simply picked apart Oregon's overworked secondary, because the defensive line never got real any push into the backfield.  The absence of team leaders like Paysinger and Tuitele means others will have to fill those voids.  How Colvin's last second fumble affects his ability to do that remains to be seen.

 

So, at 4-1, the Ducks can still have a great season.  However, in order to do so, they need to recognize how little separates good from great and joy from heartbreak.  Like a fumbled football just inches away from the goal line.

 

Stats:

http://msn.foxsports.com/cfb/gameTrax?gameId=200709290060

http://msn.foxsports.com/cfb/boxscore?gameId=200709290060

http://www.cfbstats.com/2007/player/529/79040/rushing/gamelog.html

http://www.cfbstats.com/2007/player/529/77003/passing/gamelog.html

http://www.cfbstats.com/2007/player/529/77003/rushing/gamelog.html

 

Other:

http://msn.foxsports.com/cfb/story/7279628

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/playbyplay?gameId=272722483&period=0