There will be College Football Playoff football at Autzen Stadium.

Oregon (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten, fifth seed CFP) held its place in the final CFP rankings, revealed Sunday, and will face Sun Belt Conference champion James Madison University (12-1, 8-0 SBC, 12th seed CFP) in a first-round game at Autzen Stadium on Dec. 20.

The game will be the first-ever meeting between the Ducks and the Dukes, and the first-ever College Football Playoff game to be hosted on-campus in Eugene.

“It’s going to be a unique atmosphere that doesn’t exist in the last 20 years, and now you get the opportunity to experience it now,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said in a press conference Sunday afternoon. “I know our players are excited to play this team; (we’re) just really getting started, hopping in and evaluating these guys.”

JMU won the Sun Belt Championship Game 31-14 over Troy Dec. 5, and shut out the Trojans in the first, third and fourth quarters en route to its first-ever SBC championship. The Dukes moved up to the FBS level in 2022.

With Duke’s 27-20 overtime win over Virginia in the ACC Championship Game on Saturday night, JMU moved into qualifying position as the fifth-highest ranked conference champion, ahead of the Blue Devils.

Quarterback Alonza Barnett III (2,533 passing yards, 21 passing touchdowns, eight interceptions, 14 rushing touchdowns in 2025) is starting his second season for the Dukes, backed up by running back Wayne Knight (1,263 rushing yards, nine touchdowns) and receiver Landon Ellis (33 receptions, 541 receiving yards, five touchdowns). JMU head coach Bob Chesney was hired in the same role at UCLA on Saturday, and will coach the Dukes in the postseason before heading to Los Angeles.

“Coach Chesney’s done a really good job with these guys,” Lanning said. “They’ve been really successful in several games…I think they had nine games were they rushed for 200 yards, and that’s a common component for them and their success. They play really good defense and really good special teams.”

Oregon completed its regular season with a 26-14 win over rival Washington Nov. 29 in Seattle, and did not qualify for the Big Ten Championship Game. Headed by a trio of 50-plus carry running backs and quarterback Dante Moore, the Ducks debuted in the CFP rankings at No. 9 and rose one spot in each edition of the rankings every week of the regular season. 

The Ducks currently rank ninth nationally in scoring offense, ninth in scoring defense and fourth in total defense (JMU is 10th, 10th and second). Quarterback Dante Moore is 40th nationally in passing yards, and sixth in passing efficiency. 

“We started this season with a lot of guys — Dante being one of them — that experience had been limited (for),” Lanning said. “Now, that experience is no longer limited. You’ve seen a guy win a game forced into overtime. You’ve seen a guy creating two-minute drives that have turned into success for our team…he’s a person that’s stepped up and has great maturity, a great disposition that I think have shown up for us throughout the season.”

Both Oregon offensive coordinator Will Stein (University of Kentucky) and defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi (Cal) have been hired as head coaches since Oregon’s last game, but both will remain on-staff to coach the Ducks during the playoff.

Kickoff between Oregon and JMU is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. PT on Dec. 20. The winner will face Texas Tech, the Big 12 champion, on Jan. 1 at the Orange Bowl.