Statement made.

It wasn't the flashiest or most dominating win for No. 8 Oregon, but it was one of the most convincing of the season for the Ducks. Dan Lanning's team went to Salt Lake City to face No. 13 Utah and came away with the first victory for an opponent at Rice-Ecceles Stadium since 2020.

The Utes' 18-game winning streak had been a feather in the cap of the team, and it came crashing down thanks to a balanced attack on both sides of the ball for the Ducks.

Quarterback Bo Nix opened the scoring with a rushing touchdown on the first drive, and Oregon (7-1, 4-1 Pac-12) never looked back in what ended up as a 35-6 win.

In all, Nix finished the game with three touchdowns to help pace the offense, which gained 390 yards in the victory. Oregon again shined on the ground with 142 yards rushing led by Bucky Irving's 83 yards to go with a touchdown.

Receiver Troy Franklin, who ultimately put the game well out of reach in the third quarter, had a game-high 8 catches for 99 yards and a score.

The Oregon defense is truly what made the difference in Saturday's game, which ended up as Utah's worst home loss since 2014.

Defensive back Tysheem Johnson came up with 2 interceptions that both turned into touchdowns for the Ducks while fellow defensive back Khyree Jackson had 2 tackles for loss to go with a sack and 5 tackles.

Oregon's secondary shined as a group as Jahlil Florence led the team with 9 tackles while Evan Williams had several key plays to end his day with 7 tackles, half a tackle for loss and a pass breakup.

Utah (6-2, 3-2) was held scoreless in the second half and was limited to 241 yards of offense.

First Quarter

12:18, Oregon – QB Bo Nix 1-yard TD run (PAT GOOD, Camden Lewis); 7-0 Oregon

3:45, Utah – K Cole Becker 32-yard field goal; 7-3 Oregon

0:18, Oregon – QB Bo Nix 18-yard TD to RB Jordan James (PAT GOOD, Camden Lewis); 14-3 Oregon

Second Quarter

12:29, Oregon – QB Bo Nix 3-yard TD to WR Troy Franklin (PAT GOOD, Camden Lewis); 21-3 Oregon

0:00, Utah – K Cole Becker 30-yard field goal; 21-6 Oregon

Third Quarter

8:44, Oregon – RB Bucky Irving 9-yard TD run (PAT GOOD, Camden Lewis); 28-6 Oregon

6:08, Oregon – WR Traeshon Holden 5-yard TD run (PAT GOOD, Camden Lewis); 35-6 Oregon

Fourth Quarter

No scores

There were any number of moments that changed the game for the Ducks, including the first touchdown of the day that came on Nix's rushing score in the first quarter. However, Irving's 9-yard rushing score to put the Ducks up 28-0 was a back-breaking touchdown early in the third quarter. By that time the Utes had a mountain to climb to get back into the game, and Irving's eighth rushing score of the season put the game further out of reach.

Barnes was intercepted by Tysheem Johnson on the ensuing Utah drive leading to another touchdown for the Ducks in the key sequence to secure the victory.

He scored the first touchdown of the game on a rushing score to cap an important early drive for the Ducks on Oregon's first possession, and from that point on the veteran quarterback settled in and avoided any mistakes against a talented Utah defense. He finished the day with seven incompletions for 248 yards and a pair of touchdown passes to go with his rushing score.

There were several top performers for the Oregon defense on a day when the Ducks completely shut down the Utes' offense. Utah was held scoreless in the second half and only mustered 241 total yards including only 142 yards through the air. Utah quarterback Bryson Barnes had nearly as many incompletions (14) as he did completions (15) and two of those passes went to the Ducks.

Oregon defensive back Tysheem Johnson had both interceptions for the Ducks to go along with 2 tackles in the win. Johnson's interceptions both led to touchdowns for Oregon making them not only big plays but important ones for the Ducks en route to their seventh victory of the season.

One of Nix's two touchdowns on the day went to Troy Franklin, who finished the day with 99 yards receiving on a game-high 8 catches plus his score. The connection between the Ducks receiver and Nix was a thing of beauty with the Oregon quarterback avoiding the Utah pass rush before stepping up in the pocket to make a throw on the run to Franklin. It was a dart from Nix who found Franklin falling down in the back of the end zone after shaking a Utes defensive back.

The offense was certainly impressive and continued to showcase its talent by racking up 390 total yards, but it was the defense that was responsible for the lopsided result Saturday at Rice-Eccles Stadium. The Ducks were able to hold Utah to under 100 yards rushing and under 55% through the air. Throw in the two interceptions from Johnson, and it adds up to a dominant performance for the stifling Oregon defense.

Passing

Bo Nix – 24/31, 248 yards, 2 touchdowns

Rushing

Bucky Irving – 14 carries, 83 yards, 1 touchdown

Jordan James – 5 carries, 38 yards

Bo Nix – 4 carries, 8 yards, 1 touchdown

Jayden Limar – 3 carries, 8 yards

Traeshon Holden – 1 carry, 5 yards, 1 touchdown

Receiving

Troy Franklin – 8 catches, 99 yards, 1 touchdown

Tysheem Johnson – 6 catches, 51 yards

Bucky Irving – 4 catches, 36 yards

Jordan James – 2 catches, 22 yards, 1 touchdown

Defense

Jahlil Florence – 9 tackles (8 solo)

Evan Williams – 7 tackles (3 solo), 0.5 tackles for loss, 1 pass breakup

Khyree Jackson – 5 tackles (3 solo), 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack

Keyon Ware-Hudson – 5 tackles (3 solo), 1 sack, 1 tackle for loss

Steve Stephens IV — 4 tackles (2 solo)