Washington vs Oregon Prediction, Preview: Can the Ducks Finally Beat the Dawgs

Originally posted on College Football News
By Pete Fiutak | Last updated Nov 28, 2024 2:02 AM ET

All Oregon had to do last year was beat Washington once. It lost in a regular season thriller, and couldn’t hold up in the Pac-12 Championship making it three straight losses in the series - UW is 56-44-4 all-time, by the way.

Both teams have enjoyed two weeks off to rest up and get ready, and while it doesn’t really matter for anything big, it’s still a big deal. (However, if Oregon loses, it’ll still get into the College Football Playoff, but the seed could drop huge with another loss next week.)

Oregon is already in the Big Ten Championship vs Ohio State, Washington is already bowl eligible after beating UCLA, and now it’s just about this Pac-12 matchup settling into the new world of the Big Ten.

Washington vs Oregon: How to Watch and Game Preview

Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024
Game Time: 7:30 pm ET
How To Watch: NBC
Venue: Autzen Stadium, Eugene, OR
Teams: Oregon (11-0), Washington (6-5)
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Why Washington Will Win

The Huskies have the midrange passing accuracy Oregon hasn’t dealt with since playing Ohio State.

Yes, this is in Eugene, and yes, Oregon players will claim to be jacked up for this, but really, it should be resting everyone for next week’s rematch showdown with the Buckeyes.

Of course it won’t, but as long as Will Rogers and the Washington offense come in and get hot early, this should be a battle.

On the other side, the Washington pass defense has been fantastic. It’s allowing a few more yards over the last few games, but it still managed to bend without a ton of breaking against USC and UCLA. And …

Why Oregon Will Win

Oregon should get the ground game going right away.

Washington’s run defense isn’t bad, but it got hammered by an Iowa team that blasted away from the start, lost to an Indiana offense that ran over 50 times, and so far is 0-4 when allowing 174 rushing yards or more.

Oregon would love nothing more than to not take any crazy chances in this. Rely on the defensive speed and toughness to keep all those UW pass plays for a minimum, run it 35 times for well over 175 yards, don’t lost the turnover battle, and …

Washington vs Oregon: Who Will Win?

It’s on to the Big Ten Championship.

This is where a tone will be set. There might be a little bit of an early lull with the Ducks - honestly, keeping everyone healthy is the biggest goal here - but that will end fast once Washington gets up in the first quarter.

Dillon Gabriel will be Dillon Gabriel, but he’ll have a harder time than usual completing passes. The Ducks will make up for it on the ground.

By the way, Washington is 6-0 at home and 0-5 outside of Husky Stadium.