Predicting the Final Score of No. 5 Oregon vs. No. 3 Washington

All roads lead to Las Vegas as the Ducks and Huskies gear up for an epic rematch.

The No. 5 Oregon Ducks (11-1, 8-1 Pac-12) and No. 3 Washington Huskies (12-0, 9-0 Pac-12) will face off in Las Vegas on Friday in the Pac-12 Championship.

Both teams are coming off home wins over their rivals last week, with Oregon defeating Oregon State 31-7 and Washington escaping a thriller against Washington State 24-21. In what's shaping up to be the final game of the Pac-12, we couldn't ask for a better matchup.

As we do every week, we're here to bring you our score predictions for Oregon vs. Washington round 2, starting off with a new member of our writing team, Israel La Rue.

Israel La Rue

I expect a high-scoring game in this rematch as the two gunslingers (Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr.) will duke it out for a college football berth. But it won't just be about the passing game. 

Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix loads up for a pass against the Oregon State Beavers :: Scott Boldt/Ducks Digest

Whoever establishes the run earlier will be able to open up their elite receivers for big plays and touchdowns. Bucky Irving has been struggling in his last two games rushing for a combined 104 yards, while Dillon Johnson has averaged 85.5 rushing yards in his last two games. 

This game will be won in the trenches.

Prediction: Oregon 38 Washington 30

Max Torres

The Ducks don't need any extra motivation heading into this game, and you can see that from watching them run through their opponents in recent weeks.

Dan Lanning has been talking about playing your best football late in the season and that's the case with the Ducks. They're running a well-oiled machine offensively, Bo Nix has overcome every challenge thrown his way and the defense has stepped up to make plays when it's needed to.

Oregon Ducks safety Evan Williams in a game against the Oregon State Beavers :: Scott Boldt/Ducks Digest

I agree with Israel that the trenches will play a huge role in this game, but I'm more curious to see how Oregon's secondary holds up against Washington's elite wide receivers, especially with Jahlil Florence looking doubtful after being on crutches last weekend. That said, they have depth they can lean on in Dontae Manning, Trikweze Bridges and Nikko Reed.

It's incredibly difficult to beat the same team twice in one season, and Washington has been scraping by in some of their games while Oregon has been dominating. I think the Ducks get the win and earn their first playoff berth since 2014.

Prediction: Oregon 42 Washington 31

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