Oregon Ducks at Arizona Wildcats
Saturday, November 21st – 8:10 PM ET
Arizona Stadium
College Football Spread: Oregon -6
Oregon: The Week That Was
The Ducks cruised past Arizona State, 44-21, and put the memory of their loss to Stanford behind them. Oregon breezed to a 31-7 lead midway through the second quarter to establish complete control, and although coordinator Nick Aliotti’s UO defense allowed the visiting Sun Devils to score two second-half touchdowns to pull within ten points at 31-21, the Quack Attack was immediately able to regain command.
When ASU made Duck fans sweat for a brief span of time at Autzen Stadium, Chip Kelly’s offense calmed those fears before they could fully develop. Led by quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, UO’s offense promptly pushed the lead to 38-21 just 92 seconds after Arizona State began to make things interesting in Eugene. The quick score showed that Oregon could do whatever it wanted, whenever it felt the need to take action.
Arizona: The Week That Was
The Wildcats were in search of their first-ever Rose Bowl berth as they traveled to Berkeley, Calif., to take on California. In accordance with the Wildcats’ failure-filled football history, they slipped on the banana peel just when it seemed they’d prevail in Strawberry Canyon.
Trailing 18-16 with 2:06 left in the game, Arizona faced a 3rd and 3 at the Cal 25. A first down would have been great, but at least the Cats had a go-ahead field goal opportunity in their pocket. But then, everything unraveled: Quarterback Nick Foles caught his own pass, which was tipped in the air at the line of scrimmage. When Foles threw a second downfield pass on the play, he drew a penalty that knocked the Wildcats out of field goal range. When they failed on fourth down, a 24-16 defeat was sealed. No Rose Bowl, no Pac-10 title, for a luckless program.
The Week That Is:
If Arizona had defeated Cal last weekend, this game would feature two Rose Bowl contenders, but after the Wildcats snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in Berkeley, they’re reduced to playing spoiler against the visiting outfit from Oregon. When the two teams played last year in the Pacific Northwest, Oregon built a 48-17 lead before Arizona ripped off a 28-point run to close within three. With the outcome of the game suddenly in doubt, a running back named LeGarrette Blount (remember him?) raced 40 yards for a game-sealing touchdown, as Oregon won, 55-45.
The key to this game is on the defensive side of the ball. The first defense to establish any degree of consistency should pave the way for its offense to gain confidence. This season’s progression suggests that Oregon owns the defense which can make a difference in this game. Nick Aliotti’s group will sometimes struggle for a half, but rarely for a whole game. Only Stanford destroyed the Ducks for 60 minutes, and as USC can tell you, Stanford’s really that good at the moment. Take Oregon on the road in Tucson.
Football Betting Pick: Oregon -6