Gabriel carries Ducks in wild surface vs

• Jake Trotter, ESPN Elder WriterOct 12, 2024, 11:32 PM ET

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  Jake Trotter covers college football for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2011. Before that, he worked at The Oklahoman, Austin American-Statesman and Middletown (Ohio) Journal papers. You can follow him @Jake_Trotter.

EUGENE, Ore.– After leading Oregon on the consent drive, Dillon Gabriel sat on the Ducks’ bench with his headset on, hardly able to look up with the final seconds ticking away and Ohio State driving.A few minutes later, the Oregon quarterback emerged from the victorious Ducks locker room dancing, taking it all in with the fans who stormed the field. He ended the night by singing throughout his postgame news conference.In his very first huge game because moving to Oregon over the offseason, Gabriel delivered, as his third-ranked Ducks dominated in Saturday’s thrilling 32-31 success over the second-ranked Buckeyes.”All of us knew we were getting a dogfight, two heavyweights going at it

,”Gabriel said.” That’s what college football is everything about.”Editor’s Picks 2 Related Couple of active players understand more about college football than Gabriel, who made his 55th career

start Saturday

. Gabriel, who formerly played for UCF and Oklahoma, opened the season as the Heisman wagering favorite. After a sluggish start to the season, he emphatically reinserted his name into the Heisman discussion with a scintillating performance in a Big Ten showdown versus the Buckeyes.Gabriel completed 23 of 34 passes for 341 backyards and two goals. He likewise scored the last goal of the game, hurrying for 27 yards on a beautiful phony handoff that fooled the Ohio State defense in the fourth quarter.With that score, Gabriel ended up being the very first FBS player ever to pass for 125 goals and rush for another in his career.”Whenever I went and looked at his eyes tonight, I saw a guy who was made up and all set for his next minute,”Oregon coach Dan Lanning said.

“He played really, actually well tonight and had some truly big minutes. “The most significant moment came on Oregon’s final drive. The Ducks routed 31-29 with 6 minutes to play. However Gabriel completed all 5 of

his passes for 41 lawns. The drive eventually stalled at the Ohio State 1-yard line. However Atticus Sappington nailed a 19-yard field goal to provide the Ducks the lead with 1:47 to play.Ohio State had its opportunity to win the game, marching the ball down to the Oregon 28. However freshman receiver Jeremiah Smith was flagged for offending pass disturbance, which pressed the Buckeyes out of field goal range. On the final play, Ohio State quarterback Will Howard scrambled down the middle of the field and moved instead of taking a shot into completion zone, as time ended and Oregon students and fans started pouring on the field.”[ Gabriel] revealed durability,”said Oregon receiver Tez Johnson, who took a 48-yard touchdown from Gabriel on third-and-9 late in the second quarter, offering the Ducks a 22-21 lead at halftime.

” He headed out there versus a top-two opponent and beat them. That shows a lot right there. … The poise he had the whole game boggled the mind.”The last time an AP top-three match was chosen by a point was available in 1991, when No. 2 Miami beat No. 1 Florida State 17-16, according to ESPN Research study. The Hurricanes went on to win the national championship that season.Oregon’s success over Ohio State put the Ducks(

6-0 )in pole position in the Big Ten title and playoff races. The Ducks are among 3 Huge Ten groups to remain unbeaten, signing up with Penn State and Indiana. They do not face either, however, in the regular season.Gabriel noted that Oregon still has a great deal of season left and a long way to go to fulfill its goals. But when asked about his journey from Orlando, Florida, to Norman, Oklahoma, to Eugene, and whether this win was his most pleasing yet, he began singing the words”coast to coast”before stopping to wait on the remainder of the concern.

“I have actually found out a lot at each stop and, more significantly, who I am as a person,” he said. “At this moment in my career, I simply appreciate where I am at today. … I’ve enjoyed every bit of it.”As Gabriel came back from the locker space to the hoard of fans waiting for him on the field simply beyond the tunnel, he spread his arms open, soaking in the moment.

He grabbed a large Oregon hat from one fan and put it on his head.Gabriel then turned around and hugged coaches and colleagues before slipping back into the locker room, where the event continued.”When you win versus

a fantastic opponent, you enjoy it for that time, “Gabriel said.”Winning is enjoyable. There’s a lot of pleasure in winning. … But we know it’s just an action in the ideal direction. Tomorrow, we have actually got to wake up and go make it.”