Turnovers doom Oregon Ducks to another ugly CFP exit - ESPN

ATLANTA — With No. 5 Oregon trailing No. 1 Indiana 14-7 in the second quarter of Friday's College Football Playoff semifinal at the Peach Bowl, Ducks quarterback Dante Moore lined up in a pistol formation.

As Moore dropped back to throw a screen pass to his left, the football brushed Oregon running back Dierre Hill Jr.'s left arm. The ball popped into the air and bounced to the Ducks' 3-yard line, where it was recovered by defensive lineman Mario Landino.

The undefeated Hoosiers (15-0) scored another touchdown three plays later on Kaelon Black's one-yard run and the rout was on at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Indiana pulled away for a 56-22 victory and will play No. 10 Miami in the CFP National Championship in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Jan. 19 (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

«That's a freak deal, man,» Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein said. «Dante was just throwing it out there, and it was just like the story of the night. Just literally the very edge of the football caught the [arm].»

It was the second straight ugly exit for the Ducks in the postseason. Last season, top-seeded and undefeated Oregon trailed 34-0 in the first half of a 41-21 loss to No. 8 seed Ohio State in a CFP quarterfinal at the Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes would go on to win the CFP title.

«They started off hot, and they really didn't slow down,» Oregon coach Dan Lanning said of Indiana. «They were able to run it and have success. We were able to generate a little momentum there at times, but we were so far in the hole that you couldn't [climb] yourself out of that.»

It couldn't have started any worse for the Ducks, who committed three turnovers in the first half.

On Oregon's first play from scrimmage, Indiana cornerback D'Angelo Ponds jumped a route and