Portland State HC shoulders blame for 81 points allowed, says Oregon 'tried to pull back'
Portland State head coach Bruce Barnum took time to address Oregon’s 81-point outburst in Week 1, a modern scoring record for the Ducks.
While Oregon thoroughly trounced Portland State with a final score of 81-7, Barnum is not salty or trying to throw accusations around that Dan Lanning ran up the score. Quite the opposite, actually.
Instead, Barnum shouldered the blame for giving up 81 points, noting Lanning and the Ducks “tried to pull back the dogs.” Barnum also credited Oregon with having “some weapons on that team.”
The head coach elaborated a bit on his comments and said he made a decision “to get to the rest of the season healthy.” That included a decision to pull his starters in the second half with the Vikings playing 22 freshmen in the game.
Barnum: “I made a decision, right or wrong, that I was going to get to the rest of the season healthy.”
Portland State coach said he pulled his starters in the second half while down 50-7 vs. Oregon. Played 22 freshman in the game.
— John Canzano (@johncanzanobft) September 6, 2023
The performance of the Ducks included 3 touchdowns a piece for Bo Nix and Jordan James. Oregon also finished with 5 players with at least 2 touchdowns scoring in the game, an effort that resulted in the mascot collapsing in exhaustion from pushups.