Oregon vs. Oregon State Prediction, Game Preview
Oregon vs. Oregon State prediction and game preview. Projecting who wins Saturday afternoon's matchup between the Ducks and Beavers.
Oregon vs. Oregon State prediction and game preview. Projecting who wins Saturday afternoon’s matchup between the Ducks and Beavers.
When: Saturday, Nov. 26 – 4:00 p.m. ET
Where: Reser Stadium, Corvallis, Oregon
TV Broadcast: Pac-12 Network
The 2016 season hasn’t gone too well for Oregon (4-7). The Ducks, who sit in fourth place in the Pac-12 North, entered this past weekend’s matchup with Utah after having dropped back-to-back games against USC and Stanford. However, a last-second touchdown pass from true freshman Justin Herbert helped give Oregon the upset win over the Utes, 30-28.
Tied with the Ducks in fourth place in the division is the Beavers (3-8). Gary Andersen’s crew had fallen in five straight games to Utah, Washington, Washington State, Stanford and UCLA before entering this past Saturday’s game with Arizona. Oregon State came out on top, though, after it took down the Wildcats, 42-17.
The Ducks have a clear edge over the Beavers in the all-time series, 63-46-10. Oregon has claimed the last eight meetings with Oregon State, including a 52-42 final in last year’s matchup in Eugene.
What To Know About Oregon
Herbert was absolutely brilliant against Utah. The former 3-star quarterback tossed for three touchdowns and 324 yards on 30-of-43 passing. One of those touchdowns was caught by Jalen Brown, who ended up with five catches for 89 yards. Royce Freeman also caught one of those scoring strikes and seven other passes for 36 yards. The game-winning touchdown was reeled in by Darren Carrington II, though. He somehow managed to tap his right foot in the end zone on a circus catch toward the back pylon to win the game for Oregon. Carrington finished with five grabs for 37 yards.
Freeman didn’t find the end zone on the ground, but he did run the ball 20 times for 129 yards. Tony Brooks-James added 78 rushing yards on nine carries. And Herbert tacked on 44 yards and a rushing touchdown on 13 carries.
What to Know About Oregon State
The Beavers got their own outstanding quarterback play from Marcus McMaryion, who completed 16-of-19 passes for 265 yards and five touchdowns against Arizona. All five touchdowns were caught by a different player. Jordan Villamin led the team with six catches for 124 yards. Trevon Bradford, Artavis Pierce, Timmy Hernandez and Ryan Nall all caught a touchdown as well.
Nall, who’s somewhat healthy again, did fumble once, but he also took 23 carries for 124 rushing yards and a touchdown. Pierce added 71 rushing yards on 15 attempts, but no other Oregon state player ran for double-digit yards.
Advantages
Offense: Oregon – Herbert has been money for most of the time he’s been starting for the Ducks. But the combination of Brooks-James and Freeman is what gives Oregon the edge.
Defense: Oregon State – The Ducks are No. 126 in scoring defense, allowing 42.1 points per game. The Beavers allow 31.1 points per game.
Special Teams: Oregon – Aidan Schneider has hit 8-of-11 field goals while Garrett Owens has missed seven field goal tries.
Coaching: Oregon – Mark Helfrich did a helluva job coaching up that Ducks team in the win over Utah, and he has taken his team to a national title game appearance before.
Matchup To Watch
Justin Herbert vs. Marcus McMaryion
Herbert has clearly had the better season in this matchup. He’s thrown for 1,756 yards, 18 touchdowns and four interceptions while completing 64.3 percent of his passes. McMaryion, on the other hand, has completed 58.7 percent of his attempts for 1,185 yards, nine touchdowns and five picks. Herbert has shown the ability to impact a game with his legs more than McMaryion, though, and Oregon State will have to game plan for that.
Betting Odds
Spread: Oregon -3.5
Over/Under: No line as of publication
Oregon vs. Oregon State Prediction
McMaryion had a great game last time out, but Ryan Nall is going to be the one carrying the Beavers against Oregon. The only problem is both Freeman and Brooks-James are going to supply more firepower for the Ducks than Nall will for Oregon State. Herbert will have another huge game. He’ll run for a touchdown and toss two more. The Ducks will go into halftime with the lead and will exchange it with the Beavers a couple of times in the second half before coming out on top.
Oregon vs. Oregon State Score Prediction: Oregon 34, Oregon State 28
