No. 3 Oregon and the rest of the Pac-12 opened up conference play last weekend with six games on Saturday. Oregon brushed past Arizona in the fourth quarter, scoring 17 unanswered points after barely leading 24-19 at the end of the third. The Ducks eventually took the win by a final score of 41-19.
The Stanford Cardinal also played on Saturday against No. 24 UCLA, coming off of two impressive wins against Vanderbilt and USC where Stanford scored a combined 83 points. However, the Bruins were able to outlast the Cardinal with a final score of 35-24, giving them a disappointing loss in their first home game with fans in 665 days.
Now Stanford will face its 4-0 rival Oregon Ducks this Saturday. The game marks Oregon’s first road game since its win over Ohio State three weeks ago. This game will be the Ducks’ first true conference test of the year. Historically, Oregon trails 34-49-1 in the all-time series. But Oregon has won the last two meetings with its last loss coming in 2018 — a game which the lesser-ranked Ducks controlled for the majority.
Looking toward the weekend, Oregon opens as the early favorite in the matchup. Stanford currently sits at the bottom of the Pac-12 conference with the worst rush defense, allowing 209 yards per game.
With CJ Verdell off to a hot start this season, already tallying 334 yards on just over five yards per carry, the junior running back could have an explosive game after a rather quiet performance against Arizona. Travis Dye will also be dissecting Stanford’s rush defense after having a season high against Arizona with 92 rushing yards.
On the offensive end for the Cardinal, they will continue to struggle in the ground game in the absence of their three injured running backs Austin Jones, EJ Smith and Casey Filkins. Their quarterback Tanner McKee — the 6-foot-6 sophomore from Corona, California — will have to rely on junior receiver Elijah Higgins, who had a career-high 103 yards against UCLA last week.
McKee will also face a turnover-happy Oregon secondary, led by safety Verone McKinley III. McKinley is already having a career year with four interceptions, 23 total tackles and a forced fumble through four games. McKee has yet to turn the ball over this season.
McKee will face pressure with the return of Oregon’s biggest defensive star, Kayvon Thibodeaux. Thibodeaux is listed as a full-go for the first time since the season opener.
With inside linebacker Justin Flowe out for the season, Stanford will have an advantage playing against freshmen Noah Sewell and Keith Brown who have taken up much of the workload in Flowe’s absence
With notable injuries on both sides for these teams, this rivalry matchup should be a real test for the Ducks and the Cardinals. The game will be under the national spotlight with kickoff slated for 12:30 p.m. on ABC.
