EUGENE, Ore. — To Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, taking criticism is part of the job. So is disproving it.

Masoli answered his naysayers by throwing for 253 yards and three touchdowns in Oregon's 42-3 upset of sixth-ranked California yesterday.

Masoli completed 21 of 25 passes for the Ducks (3-1), who had 524 yards in total offense and buried any resemblance to the Oregon team that fell so dramatically to Boise State in a nationally televised season opener.

"There's always critics — and it always falls on the quarterback," said Masoli, a junior and Saint Louis School alum. "You try not to think about it, because nobody on the outside really has anything to do with it."

Tailback Jahvid Best was held to 55 yards for the Golden Bears (3-1), who had 206 yards in total offense — less than half their average. Widely considered a top Heisman contender, Best went into the game ranked third in the nation with an average of 137.33 yards on the ground.

It was Cal's most lopsided loss under coach Jeff Tedford — Oregon's former offensive coordinator — and worst since it fell 55-14 to USC in 2001.

Oregon tight end Ed Dickson had 11 catches for a career-best 148 yards. He caught all three of Masoli's scoring passes.

"On offense the sky's the limit for us," Masoli said with confidence. "We're the only ones who can hurt us. These last couple of weeks we've been in a funk, but today we moved past that."