Oregon at Ohio State Earns Big Noon Kickoff Slot

All eyes will be on the Ducks in their most important non-conference game in years.

Max Torres | May 13, 2021

Oregon's biggest non-conference game in years is set to be one of the most-viewed games this season after it was announced that the Ducks will face Ohio State in Fox's "Big Noon" (9 am PST) broadcast window on September 11.

Mark it down.

Ducks at Buckeyes set for "Big Noon" kickoff on September 11.#GoDucks x @CFBONFOX pic.twitter.com/8464k2Mrlx
— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) May 13, 2021

Pac-12 teams have struggled to gain viewership, much less recognition in the national picture, and an earlier kickoff time is sure to increase viewership. The Ducks open their season with a home game against the Fresno State Bulldogs on September 4, and the Buckeyes kick their season off against Minnesota on the road.

This will be the first time the two teams have faced each other since the 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship, which Ohio State won handedly 42-20. In that same season, Oregon had another heavy-hitter non-conference opponent, when the Ducks welcomed Michigan State to Autzen and throttled the Spartans 46-27.

Come fall, each team will be breaking in a new starting quarterback with Tyler Shough now at Texas Tech and Justin Fields the new face of the Chicago Bears in the NFL. Anthony Brown is currently viewed as the favorite to win the starting job for the Ducks, whereas the Buckeyes have two stellar redshirt freshmen.

CJ Stroud was named the 2019 Elite 11 MVP and Jack Miller was a 2019 Elite 11 finalist.

The talent runs deep in the Oregon and Ohio State quarterback rooms, as both programs welcomed highly-touted early enrollees in Ty Thompson and Kyle McCord. Thompson was ranked the fifth quarterback in SI All-American's final 2020 Elite 11 rankings, and McCord seventh.

Whoever ends up earning the starting job for each team will have to lead his team in a game that could carry major playoff implications.

Other semi-notable week 2 matchups include:

Stanford at USC
Washington at Michigan
Iowa at Iowa State
Air Force at Navy

The headliner non-conference games won't stop for the Ducks after 2021, as they are set to face SEC power Georgia in 2022 and Texas Tech in 2023.

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Published May 13, 2021

MAX TORRES

Max Torres is the publisher and lead editor of Ducks Digest. He's covered the Oregon football and recruiting beats for four years. He's based out of Long Beach, CA and travels around Southern California and the country covering top high school football prospects.