The stakes are simple -- win Saturday and Oregon is in the Pac-12 championship game for the fourth straight year with a chance to put a punctuation mark on coach Dan Lanning's first season.
The No. 9-ranked Ducks (9-2, 7-1 Pac-12) travel to Corvallis for the annual "Civil War" game with No. 21 Oregon State (8-3, 5-3) at Reser Stadium (12:30 p.m. PT on ABC).
The Ducks have won 12 of the last 14 meetings in the series with the Beavers and own a 67-48-10 advantage all-time, however Oregon State won the last meeting in Corvallis back in 2020 (41-38).
The Beavers have also won five of their last six games, losing only to Washington on a last-second field goal during that span. Oregon State is one win away from matching its best win total of the last 16 years, making this one of the most anticipated editions of this rivalry in quite some time.
With that, Duck Sports Authority columnist Scott Reed and publisher Ryan Young have some final thoughts ahead of the matchup in the weekly staff roundtable ...
RELATED: Scott Reed's Flock Talk column | Matchup Breakdown: Scouting the Beavers | Top takeaways from interviews with Oregon's defensive players, Dan Lanning | Top takeaways from interviews with Oregon's offensive players, Lanning
What should concern Oregon most about the Oregon State matchup?
Scott Reed: "Emotion. The Beavers are not playing for a chance to get to a Pac-12 championship game or a Rose Bowl. They have a chance to destroy the dreams of their in-state rivals at the same time getting bragging rights over a team that has been top-10 caliber for most of the season. The Ducks, on the other hand, have pressure to win this game in a way Oregon State does not. To go on the road, in a hostile environment, against a rival with nothing to lose is tough. To do so with a QB who is not healthy is even more difficult. On the field, I think that Oregon has more talent and is better at every offensive position. Will the Oregon defense have the kind of game plan and performance they did a week ago? For a team whose defense has been uneven all season, that is a lot to ask. So that is my other concern – having the defense needed to contain OSU like they did Utah."
Ryan Young: "I agree, though I'll use a different word for it -- pressure. All the pressure is on Oregon today. The Beavers have already exceeded expectations and while a loss would certainly be disappointing, ultimately this season will be looked back upon as a huge step forward for the program regardless. For the Ducks, meanwhile, the same can't necessarily be said. If Oregon loses for a second time in three weeks and misses the Pac-12 championship game for the first time in four years, the narrative on this season changes a bit. There would still be a lot of optimism for what Dan Lanning is building and for the future, but the prevailing sentiment would be one of missed opportunity or what-if. Get this 10th win, get back to the conference championship game and it would be hard to fault the results under a first-year head coach.
"So all of that said, I think Oregon State plays with a nothing-to-lose freedom Saturday, before a home crowd that will be loud and raucous even if half the stadium is under construction. (I've been to a game at Reser Stadium this year -- it is plenty imposing in the current setup.) I also think Oregon State is legitimately very good. Two of the Beavers' three losses have been by 3 points -- to ranked USC and Washington teams. They aren't going to make many mistakes, and they're playing their best defense of the season as the Huskies are the only opponent to score more than 10 points on them in the last five games. With Bo Nix hobbled, this isn't the same Ducks offense we saw most of the season (as evidenced by the performance last week). This game will be close, the environment will be a factor and all the pressure is on the Ducks. Those are my concerns for Oregon."
