SportsDirect Inc. staff
Jan 2, 2012
De'Anthony Thomas rushed twice - both for touchdowns totaling 155 yards - and Darron Thomas passed for 268 yards and three touchdowns as Oregon outlasted Wisconsin 45-38 in the Rose Bowl Game presented by Vizio on Monday.
LaMichael James ran for 159 yards and a score and Lavasier Tuinei caught two touchdown passes as the Ducks (12-2) piled up 621 yards against the No. 6 scoring defense in the country.
Oregon had lost back-to-back BCS Bowls, including the National Championship Game last season. The Ducks are 2-3 in the Rose Bowl - their other victory came in 1917.
The high-powered offenses traded scores throughout the first two quarters, going into the break tied at 28 when Darron Thomas hit Tuinei with a 3-yard touchdown pass with 30 seconds left in the second quarter.
The Ducks got the ball first in the third quarter and took their first lead 35-28 when De'Anthony Thomas broke for a 64-yard touchdown run. De'Anthony Thomas had the highlight run of the first half as well, scampering 91 yards at the close of the first quarter.
The Badgers (11-3) would get the lead back with a field goal and a touchdown pass from Russell Wilson to Nick Toon with 4:44 left in the third.
But the fourth quarter belonged to Oregon. Darron Thomas and Tuinei hooked up again for an 11-yard score to put the Ducks back on top 42-38 and Alejandro Maldonado kicked a 30-yard field goal with 6:50 left to provide the winning margin.
Tuinei finished out his career with eight catches for 158 yards, while De'Anthony Thomas added 34 receiving yards.