Buffs Stomp Ducks Colorado’s Defense Excels In Easy Victory Over Oregon

Rick Neuheisel is known for his prolific offenses, but it was Colorado’s hustling, turnover-producing defense that gave him a Cotton Bowl victory in his first season as the Buffaloes’ coach.

Marcus Washington stunned Oregon with a 95-yard interception return for a touchdown late in the second quarter, and John Hessler threw for two scores and ran for another as Colorado beat the Ducks 38-6 in a chilly Cotton Bowl.

“Our offense was sluggish in the first half, but our defense found a way to keep us in the game,” Neuheisel said. “Marcus had the big play of the game. The defense set the tempo for us and dominated the game.”

Washington said he was just sitting back in a zone when the ball suddenly came to him.

“The quarterback gave me a gift,” he said. “I was happy he did. It was the turning point of the game.”

Colorado’s defense had five turnovers, while Washington’s return was the longest in the 60-year history of the game. Colorado finished 10-2 under the 34-year-old Neuheisel and is set to play next season in the new Big 12 Conference.

Oregon, bidding for the first 10-win season in school history, settled for 9-3 under first-year coach Mike Bellotti. Only two other Oregon teams have had as many as nine wins.

Rain, cold and a wind gusting to 29 mph created a 26-degree wind chill factor that reduced the Cotton Bowl crowd to about half of the 58,214 tickets sold. It was the smallest paid Cotton Bowl crowd in 48 years since 47,000 paid in 1948, when the stadium opened.

In the first Cotton Bowl in 55 years without a Southwest Conference team, Colorado overcame a 6-0 deficit to take a 13-6 halftime lead.

Washington picked off a poorly thrown Tony Graziani pass and almost dashed the length of the field for his TD. The longest previous return had been 49 yards by Michael Kee of Ohio State against Texas A&M in 1987. The play earned Washington defensive MVP honors.

“We were in good shape until that play, and then the wheels kind of fell off,” Graziani said.

Bellotti said, “it really hurt us. We were going in with a chance to tie the score and all of a sudden, there is a two-touchdown swing. It was tough on us.”

Game summary can be found on C4