Indiana wasted no time in pouring the points on Oregon at Friday night’s Peach Bowl, and it began on defense.
On the first play from scrimmage, cornerback D’Angelo Ponds jumped a Dante Moore pass intended for Malik Benson on an out route, returning it 24 yards for a touchdown to give the Hoosiers a quick 7–0 lead. The Ducks would answer on the ensuing drive, but it was all IU from there on out; Curt Cignetti’s club scored 35 unanswered points and would cruise to a 56–22 win to advance to the College Football Playoff national championship.
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It would be easy for Oregon to be bitter about how things played out, but the Ducks were largely gracious after the game. “You have to give credit to them too. It’s not just what we didn’t do, it’s what they did do,” coach Dan Lanning said after the game.
That attitude extended to the equipment staff. One staffer, identified by CBS Sports recruiting analyst (and former Oregon recruiting staffer) Cooper Petagna as football equipment manager Kenny Farr, found Ponds on the field after the game and handed him a game ball—presumably the one he scored with in the first quarter.
Something incredible I noticed at the end of the Peach Bowl.
— Tyler Brooke (@TylerDBrooke) January 10, 2026
An Oregon staffer found D’Angelo Ponds to give him the ball he scored the defensive touchdown with on the first play of the game.
Complete class act. pic.twitter.com/d1HC608f9B
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Farr, a 2002 University of Oregon graduate, has been on staff with the football program since ‘08. He certainly would have preferred a different outcome on Friday, but it didn’t stop him from a very thoughtful gesture here, displaying the kind of sportsmanship that we can all appreciate.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Oregon Staffer Was So Classy in Gifting Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds Ball After Game.
