Oregon Opens as Early Favorite Against Stanford

The Ducks are favored coming off their win against Arizona.

Author:
Nick Battey
Publish date:
Sep 27, 2021 5:56 PM EDT

Oregon remained at No. 3 in the latest AP Poll released Sunday and looks to continue stacking wins when the team travels to the Bay Area this weekend.

SI SportsBook released early betting odds on this matchup and have confidence in the Ducks.

Matchup: No. 3 Oregon Ducks (4-0, 1-0) @ Stanford Cardinal (2-2, 0-1)

Time: 12:30 PM PDT - ABC

Sports Illustrated Sportsbook Odds:

Spread: STAN +8 (-110) | ORE -8 (-105)

Moneyline: STAN (+250) | ORE (-300)

Total: 58 - Over: (-105) | Under: (-110)

The No. 3 ranked Ducks are going on the road for the first time since beating Ohio State three weeks ago and will face a stiff test in the Stanford Cardinal. Stanford has been a thorn in Oregon’s side over the past decade handing Oregon some of their most brutal losses of the season and there is a lot on the line this week once again.

The trenches will be what I’m watching for in this one, as Stanford’s run defense has been the worst in the Pac-12 to begin this season, and that is something Oregon will try to exploit with CJ Verdell following two games in a row where he didn’t get many carries.

For Oregon, they had their own defensive issues last week against Arizona and were gashed a bit in the run game as well. Mario Cristobal said Monday that Kayvon Thibodeaux should be a full go for this game, so that could be a major difference for the Ducks. Especially with as physical as Stanford is, Oregon will need to bring it to pull out a win in the Bay Area.

I believe Stanford is a high-profile team especially since they found their quarterback in Tanner McKee. Couple that with their taller wide receivers and Oregon will have their hands full trying to stop an offense that has looked solid against USC and UCLA thus far.

While there might not be a ton of possessions in this game, I feel like points can be scored and Stanford will keep this one close late, and with that, I think Stanford plus the points is the best call here.

Nick’s Pick: Stanford +8

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