4-8. Rock bottom. Helfrich fired. Herbert started as a true freshman on a team going nowhere. The rebuild started here.
4-8. Rock bottom. No bowl. Lost to Washington 70-21. The worst season in modern Oregon history. Helfrich fired. The program lost its identity.
Did you know? Herbert threw 19 TDs and just 4 INTs as a freshman on a 4-8 team. The future was already visible.
4-8
Record
33% Win Rate
2-7
Pac-12
35.4
PPG Scored
41.4
PPG Allowed
#30
Power Index
11.8 pts (of 30)
198.3
Pass YPG
173.5
Rush YPG
371.8
Total Offense
Yards Per Game
418.7
Total Defense
Yards Allowed/Game
22
Sacks
Team Total
12
Takeaways
INTs + Fumbles
-7
Turnover Margin
Season
35.2%
3rd Down %
Conversions
78.5%
Red Zone %
Scoring
59.8
Penalty YPG
Yards Per Game

Game-by-Game Results

GameOpponentResult
1UC DavisW 53-28
2VirginiaW 44-26
3@ NebraskaL 32-35
4ColoradoL 38-41
5@ Washington StateL 33-51
6WashingtonL 21-70
7@ CaliforniaL 49-52 2OT
8Arizona StateW 54-35
9@ USCL 20-45
10StanfordL 27-52
11@ UtahW 30-28
12@ Oregon StateL 24-34

Top Players

True freshman, first frosh QB to start at Oregon since 1983. 1,936 passing yards, 19 TDs, 4 INTs.
Royce Freeman
RB
945 rushing yards, 9 TDs. Production dipped with struggling offense.
Darren Carrington
WR
43 receptions, 606 yards, 5 TDs. Top target in a difficult season.
Troy Dye
LB
True freshman. 92 tackles, 6.5 sacks. First frosh LB starter in 38 years. True Freshman All-American.
Tony Brooks-James
RB
771 rushing yards, 9 TDs. Explosive complement to Freeman.

Frequently Asked Questions

Oregon went 4-8 in 2016, the worst record in 25 years. Mark Helfrich was fired after the season. The defense allowed 41.4 PPG, the offense lost its identity without a Chip Kelly system, and freshman QB Justin Herbert was limited by injury and played in only a handful of games. See all coaching eras.

Herbert played limited games as a true freshman in 2016 before being shut down with injury. He showed flashes but the team around him was the weakest Oregon had fielded in decades. He would return to become one of the greatest QBs in program history. Read about Herbert's career.

Oregon's last losing season was 2016 at 4-8 under Mark Helfrich. Before that, the last losing season was 2004 at 5-6. Oregon has not had a losing season since 2016. See the full Oregon football timeline.

Helfrich was fired after the 4-8 2016 season. The program had declined sharply from its peak under Chip Kelly. After going 37-16 in his first four years, the 2016 collapse made a coaching change inevitable. Willie Taggart was hired from USF. See all coaching transitions.

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Stats per Sports Reference. Records cross-referenced with GoDucks.com.

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