The BYU Cougars football took it squarely on the chin and absorbed their first defeat of the 2022 college football season at the hands of the Oregon Ducks. The Cougars fell to the Ducks, 41-20, on the road at Autzen Stadium. Here are some takeaways from BYU's loss to Oregon in Week 3.

The No. 12 BYU Football team got rocked by the No. 25 Oregon Ducks in a game where the final score made it seem closer than it actually was. It was straight-up an ugly game for the Cougars. BYU didn’t have an alibi, or any answers, in this humiliating loss.

Now let's take a look at four takeaways from BYU football's lopsided Week 3 loss to Oregon.

4. Those missed FGs, man…

BYU kicker Jake Oldroyd missed his third consecutive field goal, dating back to last week.

It was a 38-yard field goal with BYU down 17-7. In the previous offensive possession, BYU had scored a touchdown with Isaac Rex. So the offense was gaining a little bit of momentum.

The Cougars marched down the field during this stretch, and a shootout appeared to be in order. After overcoming two holding penalties, the Cougars' drive stalled at the 23, and Jake Oldroyd was called in. All of Cougar Nation held their collective breath after what happened last week.

Alas, Oldroyd missed again. The Cougars were deflated. The miss obviously raises questions about Oldroyd’s confidence moving forward.

3. BYU football's receivers aren't too shabby

With stars Puka Nacua and Gunner Romney out with injuries, Chase Roberts and Kody Epps were BYU’s top receivers against Oregon. Both players continue to show flashes of their high ceilings in their BYU careers.

Roberts had an opening snap 35-yard grab and Epps hauled in his first career touchdown as a BYU Cougar. Epps led the way with five receptions for 45 yards and a score. He accumulated 19 yards after receptions. In terms of Roberts, he was held up by Oregon a week after breaking the 100-yard barrier against Baylor, but he did have his moments. He ended with four catches for 60 yards and eight targets.

On a day that lacked many bright spots, Epps and Roberts looked like future stars for BYU.

2. Porous run D and awful tackling

BYU’s missed tackle problem on Saturday became a running commentary during the game broadcast.

One week after the Cougar defense was lauded for its effort in containing the Baylor rushing attack, BYU struggled at stopping the Oregon offense until the game was out of reach.

Oregon quarterback Bo Nix, in particular, caused the Cougars headaches. He accounted for all five of the Ducks’ touchdowns, completing 13 of 18 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns, and also running for 35 yards and three short touchdown runs.

The Ducks scored on their first six possessions, including five touchdowns, and ran for 212 yards with a 4.8 per-carry average.

After Oregon went to Nix’s backup for two possessions and the Cougars scored a pair of touchdowns to start the fourth, Nix returned to the game and again marched Oregon downfield on an eight-minute drive to seal the win.

The Ducks converted all three of their fourth-down attempts, including two on a touchdown drive just before halftime to extend their lead to 24-7, a key drive during a stretch when Oregon scored 28 straight points.

1. Absentee BYU run game

Another week against a Power Five team sees BYU’s ground attack as a non-factor.

If BYU was going to pull off the win in Eugene, they were going to need an effective rushing game. Entering the fourth quarter, however, BYU was averaging 2.5 yards per carry. BYU was too one-dimensional on offense, as the Cougars rushed for only 61 yards against the Ducks. That’s not going to get it done against quality competition.

It all started with Chris Brooks, the team’s lead back, who picked up just 28 yards on 10 carries. While he scored a fourth-quarter touchdown, Oregon bottled up the BYU rushing attack throughout the day and only gave up one carry longer than 10 yards all game.

One play that encapsulated the Cougars’ running struggles came in the third quarter after they fell behind 31-7.

Trying to build some momentum, BYU went for it on a fourth-and-1 from its own 36 and put the ball in Brooks’ hands. The Ducks stuck him for a 1-yard loss on the carry, and Oregon quickly turned the turnover on downs into a touchdown.

While Oregon and Baylor represent two of the toughest matchups BYU will see this season in the trenches, it’s worrisome for the Cougars with teams such as Notre Dame and Arkansas coming up later in the year.