No. 6 Stanford Takes Down No. 3 Oregon Ducks For 2nd Straigth Year

STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -- Tyler Gaffney ran for 157 yards and No. 6 Stanford hammered No. 2 Oregon for three quarters, then held off a furious final kick by the Ducks to crush their national title hopes for a second straight season, this time with a 26-20 victory Thursday night.

Kevin Hogan ran for a touchdown and played a mistake-free game for Stanford (8-1, 6-1 Pac-12). The Cardinal put on a clinic in how to play keep away from a team that was averaging 55.6 points. Stanford ran for 274 yards and held the ball for 42 1/2 minutes.

Heisman Trophy contender Marcus Mariota was inaccurate and under pressure much of the night, but he threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes, sandwiched around a blocked field goal return for a score by Rodney Hardwick, to pull the Ducks (8-1, 5-1) to 26-20 with 2:12 left.

Oregon couldn't recover a second onside kick and Stanford ran out the clock.