It’s been a tremendous season for Oregon this year. The No. 5 Ducks (11-1, 8-1 Pac-12) have walked through the majority of their schedule and boast impressive wins over several teams that were ranked at one point in the season, including Oregon State, USC, Utah, Washington State and Colorado. There’s just one ugly, purple stain on the Ducks’ season: a 36-33 loss to the currently-ranked No. 3 Washington Huskies (12-0, 9-0 Pac-12) back on Oct. 14.
Since the loss, Ducks and Huskies alike have fought and scraped their way toward an inevitable rematch. The final Pac-12 Championship Game in conference history will feature a clash of two of the bigger rivals on the West Coast.
It’s a rivalry built on tradition, trash talk, heartbreak and, of course, incredible talent. This season has been no different as Washington and Oregon feature two of the best offenses in the entire country.
Washington just finished its first 12-0 season in school history. The Huskies are hoping to make their second appearance in the College Football Playoff and their first since the 2016-17 season. The Ducks, on the other hand, have dominated their schedule and have played in only two one-score games (Washington and Texas Tech). Oregon could make the CFP for the second time in program history — and first since the inaugural 2014-15 season — with a win over its rival to the north.
The Pac-12 Championship Game in Las Vegas will also be the stage for two Heisman-hopeful quarterbacks to make another push for the prestigious award at the end of the season. Both are well deserving. Oregon quarterback Bo Nix leads the nation in passing yards with 3,906 while Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. sits just seven yards behind with 3,899.
Nix had more passing yards than Penix Jr. during the regular-season meeting with 337 to Penix Jr.’s 302. The Huskies won the game on an Oregon would-be game-tying field goal miss as the clock expired. Washington fans stormed the field as Oregon fans’ hearts sank.
The rest of the season, Oregon has used its powerful offense to blow past opponents. The Ducks have an incredible +352 point differential this season and their offense ranks second in the nation in average yards per game.
The defense, on the other hand, looks like it gets better every week. Leaders Evan Williams — who leads the team in tackles — and Jeffrey Bassa have gotten their defense on the same wavelength. Oregon’s defense has held its opponents to single-digit scores five times this season, three of which came against ranked opponents (Colorado, Utah and Oregon State).
Two of the better wide receivers in the game will again face off for the Pac-12 title. Oregon’s Troy Franklin is third in the nation in receiving yards with 1,349 while Washington’s Rome Odunze sits fourth with 1,326. Covering these two provides many challenges, including potentially opening up other dangerous receivers like Washington’s Ja’Lynn Polk and Oregon’s Tez Johnson. Both Nix and Penix Jr. have utilized several weapons all season long and both defenses will have their hands full on Friday.
The Ducks and Huskies also rank first and second respectively in passing yards per game. The rematch in Vegas is shaping up to be a shootout, and it’s very likely again that the team that scores last is victorious and playoff bound.
According to ESPN’s FPI, the tool it uses to predict outcomes and playoff odds, the Ducks have a 75.8% chance to beat the Huskies in the rematch. It’s a number that seems incredibly high considering Oregon is playing an undefeated Washington team that’s already bested the Ducks this season, but the Ducks have been absolutely unstoppable since that matchup.
As far as the CFP goes, the FPI gives Oregon a 53% chance to make the playoff — the fourth-highest odds in the country. Washington, on the other hand, has just a 26% chance to move to the biggest stage. However, it has to be imagined that an undefeated Huskies team that would have beaten the Ducks twice would secure a spot in the CFP.
It’s been an interesting second half of the season for Oregon. The Ducks really haven’t played in a competitive game since losing to Washington, and the Huskies will be a test Oregon hasn’t faced since … well, the Huskies.
Everything is still on the table for Oregon, but the Ducks could also lose it all by falling to Washington again. One of the biggest games of the college football season kicks off Friday at 5 p.m.
