No. 11 Oregon vs Washington State Preview

No. 11 Oregon looks to be the team to beat in the early going of the Pac-12, and while the Ducks are solid favorites on the NCAAF odds for Saturday’s game at Washington State, the Cougars tend to give Oregon trouble every year.

How to Bet Oregon at Washington State NCAA Football Odds & TV Info

When: Saturday, 7 PM ET
Where: Martin Stadium
TV: Fox
Stream: Fox Sports Go
Radio:com
Opening NCAAF Lines: Oregon -10 (total 57.5)

Last Meeting

Oregon edged Washington State last year 37-35 in Eugene. Ducks kicker Camden Lewis his a 26-yard field goal as time expired. Anthony Gordon’s 5-yard touchdown pass on fourth down to Brandon Arconado with a minute remaining gave Washington State a 35-34 lead. Gordon threw for 406 yards and three touchdowns. But then Justin Herbert completed four straight passes on the ensuing drive to get the Ducks close for Lewis’ kick. CJ Verdell ran for a career-high 257 yards and three touchdowns for the Ducks. Of course, Herbert is now a rookie with the Chargers.

The Cougars are 42-48-7 all-time against Oregon and saw their four-game winning streak in the series snapped last season. Oregon leads the series 24-22-2 when played in Pullman. but WSU has claimed the last two meetings.

Why Bet on Oregon? | 2020 NCAAF Expert Analysis

The Ducks and Cougars are the only Week 2 matchup in the Pac-12 that features teams who each won their opener. Oregon has won four of its last five Pac12 road games, but is searching for its first win in Pullman, Wash., since 2014.

Oregon is the Pac-12 favorite and opened its season with a 35-14 win over Oregon last weekend. The Ducks piled up nearly 500 yards of offense in the debut of new offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead. CJ Verdell ran for 105 yards on 20 carries. He moved into ninth in career rushing yards at Oregon with 2,343, passing Bobby Moore (Ahmad Rashad) and Jeremiah Johnson.

New starting QB Tyler Shough was 17-of-26 passing for 227 yards and one touchdown pass, to tight end DJ Johnson, a converted edge defender making his first UO appearance on offense. Shough also ran 11 times for 85 yards. Shough joined Vernon Adams Jr. (2015) as the only Oregon QBs to throw for 200 yards and rush for 80 yards in their debut start. Three different players rushed for 70 yards for the first time since 2017.

It was the first time since 1997 vs. Arizona that Oregon had starting an offensive line with zero combined career starts. Oregon saw nine players make their first career starts against Stanford while a number of others got significant playing time in their collegiate debuts. The Ducks started seven new players on offense, led by five on the offensive line, and two on defense.

It was Oregon’s 11^th straight home win. The Ducks improved to 11-0 under Mario Cristobal when rushing for at least 200 yards. They are now 14-0 under Cristobal when allowing less than 24 points. Oregon’s 22 wins since the start of 2018 are the most in the Pac-12 and its 14 league victories are tied for the most.

Why Bet on Washington State? | 2020 NCAAF Expert Analysis

It’s the home opener for Washington State, which opened with a 38-28 win at Oregon State last Saturday. Jayden de Laura passed for two touchdowns and ran for a score in his college debut. De Laura, a 6-foot, 195-pound freshman from Honolulu, completed 18 of 33 passes for 227 yards and also rushed for 43 yards.

Deon McIntosh had 147 yards rushing and a touchdown as the Cougars amassed 456 total yards. Nick Rolovich got a win in his first game as coach at Washington State, which was without running back Max Borghi. The junior has 28 career touchdowns, including 16 last season. He was out with a back injury.

Borghi accounted for more than 1,400 all-purpose yards in 2019, as he rushed for 817 yards and 11 touchdowns on 127 carries while also catching 86 passes for another 597 yards and five touchdowns. Borghi is the only player in the country named to watch lists for the Doak Walker (RB) and Biletnikoff Award (WR). It’s thought he will play in this game.

WSU’s 229 rushing yards were its most since rushing for 254 against Colorado in 2016. WSU tallied 4 sacks on defense, the most since recording 4 against Arizona in 2018. Rolovich is the 1st Cougar head coach to win his debut since Bill Doba won the 2003 opener against Idaho (25-0 in Seattle). Rolovich is the 1st Cougar head coach to win his debut on the road since Warren Powers in 1977 (19-10 at No. 15 Nebraska). Rolovich replaced Mike Leach, who left for Mississippi State. Rolovich was the 2019 Mountain West Coach of the Year at Hawaii.

De Laura was named the Pac-12 Conference Freshman of the Week. He was the first true freshman to open the season at quarterback in program history and the first true freshman to start any game under center since 2009. Pro Football Focus College gave de Laura the 4th-best quarterback grade in the country last week.