Oregon was one of the favorites to win the national championship this year, but they struggled after the first two weeks of the season.
The Ducks hardly beat Idaho in Week One and then Boise State the following week, and they aren’t the same football team they were last season.
A lot of it has to do with the quarterback change from Bo Nix to Dillon Gabriel. Gabriel is very talented, but he just doesn’t bring the same fire that Nix did last season.
Oregon will head to play their instate rival, Oregon State. The Beavers want something to prove since they and Washington State were the only two schools that didn’t leave the PAC-12 this season because nobody wanted them, and the Ducks left for the Big Ten.
Oregon State vs. Oregon is one of the best rivalries in college football, so it will be a great game. However, the Ducks can’t afford to lose it, or their season could be over.
Oregon’s Season Could Be Done With A Loss On Saturday
Oregon dropping a game to Oregon State right before Big Ten play would be hard to recover from. Oregon State is no longer considered a power conference school at the moment, so the loss wouldn’t be as bad as Notre Dame losing to Northern Illinois, but it would be a notch below.
The Ducks still have to play Ohio State, which they could very well lose, and go on the road to play Michigan, which will be tough.
Michigan didn’t look great against Texas, but they still gave a great defense. They will want to give the Ducks their best fight and show them what the Big Ten is all about.
Oregon could be staring at two losses if they lose to Oregon State this weekend, and that would keep them out of the playoffs. Even if they only lose two games, with one being against the Beavers and either Ohio State or Michigan, and they don’t win the Big Ten, there is a chance they still won’t make the 12-team playoff.
The Playoff Commtitee will look at how badly they performed against Idaho and Boise State, and a loss against Oregon State would be a terrible loss on their resume.
Oregon needs to make sure they boat race the Beavers on Saturday and make sure they are flying high heading into Big Ten play.
