After missing out on a full season of cheering on the Oregon Ducks, the Autzen faithful found their way back to the home pond, on Saturday, giving "Coming Home" a whole new meaning and feel. No amount of smoke-filled air from neighboring forest fires or continued pandemic woes would hold back nearly 43,276 fans from cheering and excitedly waiting to count The Duck's pushups. As we now know, those pushups would not come easily.

There will be plenty of criticism of Oregon's tumultuous 2021 debut but without a doubt, there were at least a few bright spots in that smokey Autzen haze.

1. Forced Turnovers

When Oregon Defensive Coordinator, Tim DeRuyter, joined the Ducks this year, he wanted to establish an Oregon defense who's number one goal was to take the ball away. Head Coach Mario Cristobal already knew developing players who could create turnovers was one of DeRuyter's biggest assets, after facing DeRuyter's Cal defense in 2019 and 2020.

If anything from Oregon's performance against Fresno State should give some hope, it is the fact that the very young defense managed to force 3 turnovers, Without them and the momentum shifts that accompanied them, the Ducks most certainly would be heading into Columbus 0-1.

2. Kayvon Thibodeaux

Despite leaving the game with what is now known to be an ankle sprain, Oregon's star defensive end, Kayvon Thibodeaux. proved the national hype right, dominating the edge and forcing the first fumble of the game after a massive hit on Bulldogs quarterback, Jake Haener. Ducks Fans got an immediate look at how much of a game-changer he will be this season.

"[Kayvon Thibodeaux’s] sack and fumble is what you look for when you recruit a player, Cristobal said after the game"

"A guy that can explode like that because you change things. A guy tries to gap hinge, or tries to set him, but the set doesn’t get there and the set line is cut off and you blow by and hit the quarterback, and suddenly the ball is on the ground."

Here's hoping Thibodeaux's ankle makes a quick recovery. He is a much-needed X-factor for the Ducks as they face the Buckeyes this week.

3. The Autzen Crowd

There's no getting around the effects of a Labor day weekend and a global pandemic on the normal Autzen crowd size. Despite those barriers (and very poor air quality), the stands were over two-thirds full and at times, very loud- reminiscent of ESPN Game Day visit loud.

The passion-filled decibel level certainly made a difference, especially in the 4th quarter. Almost simultaneous with the smokey-haze heading east with the wind, Ducks fans found their own (second) wind and their collective"O" disrupted Fresno State's communication, giving the Ducks much-needed momentum. Believe it or not, it mattered.

"First and foremost, I want to thank the fans, everyone who attended today. Cristobal said. "They certainly made a big difference. There were a couple of penalties against the opponent offense there at the end and obviously a real big one made it 4th-and-15 there at the end. I’m really thankful to them for their support."

4. Justin Flowe

Coach Cristobal wasn't alone when he pointed out another bright spot in Oregon's season opener.

"So we have to continue to improve," Cristobal said after the game. "But all-in-all we had some bright spots with some young guys making a lot of plays."

One of those "young guys" was true freshman linebacker, Justin Flowe, a former 5 star recruit out of California.

In his first start with the Ducks, Flowe made a dominant impact, leading the defense with 14 total tackles and leaving no question as to why he belonged at the top of the depth chart. But the young star clearly has bigger goals, "I feel I can do way more," he said, after the Ducks' victory.

Flowe was, of course, all smiles after his first Oregon start.

"It felt unreal, he said. " The fans were jumping. The feeling in Autzen was something I've dreamed about."

The future is definitely bright for Flowe. Call me crazy but the immediate stardom reminded me of a young, confident, freshman linebacker from a few years back named Troy Dye. I assume I'm not alone.

5. Fighting Through Adversity

Given the ups and downs of the game, it would have been easy to throw in the towel, especially for the offense who struggled to get much going on the ground and in the air, despite its talented lineup. Quarterback Anthony Brown Jr., a transfer from Boston College, struggled to move the ball and didn't quite live up to the dynamic play expected of him, even in his first career start in an Oregon uniform. It would have been easy to mentally give up.

But he didn't.

In the 4th quarter, with mere minutes left on the clock, Brown Jr. made a game-winning touchdown on a 30 yard run on 4th and 2. That's grit. That's resiliency.

"The play was designed to get a big chunk and a first down,first and foremost, but then after that he made the rest of it happen," Cristobal said. "So, I think that’s where his experience comes into play. He has seen those situations before. He’s been in big ballgames and big stadiums. He did a lot of really good things today,"

There is a lot of work to be done in a week's time, but that big game experience will certainly come in handy next week against Ohio State.

Looking ahead

Oregon will head to Columbus on Saturday to face the Ohio State Buckeyes for a much-anticipated, headliner of a match up. The Ducks will definitely have their work cut out for them this week. There's no arguing that.

After their narrow defeat of Fresno State, linebacker Justin Flowe said it felt like he was "playing in a video game." That may be true but something tells me there will be an even bigger fight for next week's top spot on the "leader board."