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No. 2 Oregon routs Wyoming

Sep 14, 2014 - 5:28 AM Eugene, OR (SportsNetwork.com) - Marcus Mariota and the second-ranked Oregon Ducks shook off a sluggish start to handily defeat the Wyoming Cowboys, 48-14, on Saturday at Autzen Stadium.

Mariota threw for 221 yards on an efficient 19-of-23 passing with two touchdowns and also rushed for 71 yards and two scores. Byron Marshall rushed for 80 yards on six carries and a touchdown, while Royce Freeman and Kani Benoit each had a TD on the ground.

Oregon (3-0), which trailed 7-0 after the first quarter, opens its Pac-12 schedule next week at Washington State.

"We were a little sluggish at the beginning in every phase," said Oregon head coach Mark Helfrich. "It could've been a bit of a hangover situation, but I'm proud of how our guys competed through three-ish quarters."

The Ducks had a stunning come-from-behind victory over then-No. 7 Michigan State last week, so a hangover as Helfrich put it could be understandable when playing a less-talented Cowboys team.

Colby Kirkegaard tossed for 284 yards on 19-of-33 passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions for Wyoming (2-1).

"We're disappointed in the loss. We knew it was going to be an uphill challenge and that we were going to have to play error free, and we certainly didn't do that," Cowboys head coach Craig Bohl said.

Shaun Wick led all rushers with 122 yards on 16 carries in the setback.

An 11-play, 98-yard drive from Wyoming opened the scoring in the first quarter. Kirkegaard hit Jake Maulhart for 24 yards on 3rd-and-20, then D.J. May helped the Cowboys into Oregon territory with a 25-yard run on the following play. Kirkegaard capped the jaunt with an 18-yard TD to Tanner Gentry.

Mariota proceeded to tie the game early in the second with a 15-yard run. After a three-and-out from the visitors, Marshall rushed for 18 and 30 yards on back-to-back plays, with the latter going for a score. Matt Wogan missed the extra point as the hosts had a 13-7 lead.

Erick Dargan intercepted Kirkegaard on the next Wyoming possession which set up a 19-yard scoring run from Mariota. Dargan again picked off Kirkegaard and Devon Allen hauled in a 16-yard touchdown pass from Mariota to cap the first half scoring with Oregon up 27-7.

The Ducks opened the second half with a 72-yard scoring march, with Freeman scampering into the end zone from 12 yards out.

Jonathan Loyd, who plays for the Oregon basketball team, caught his first- career touchdown, a 5-yard pass from Mariota, later in the third to extend the advantage.

Kirkegaard then found May for a 12-yard touchdown in the fourth before freshman Benoit plunged in from a yard out for his first collegiate touchdown to account for the final margin.

Game Notes

Mariota became the fourth quarterback in school history to record over 7,000 passing yards ... Wyoming had a 37:32-22:28 edge in time of possession ... The Ducks compiled 556 total yards, while the Cowboys racked up 439 yards in all ... Eleven different receivers recorded a catch for Oregon.