At No. 6, the Ducks are the highest-ranked one-loss team in the country, coming off of a 63-19 win over Cal.

But Oregon's path to the Pac-12 championship game isn't clear just yet -- despite a recent downward spiral, losses in three out of four games (including a non-conference loss at Notre Dame) and firing its defensive coordinator on Sunday, USC (7-3, 5-2) could still theoretically disrupt the Ducks (8-1, 5-1) in the conference race.

With the way the Trojans’ defense has been playing, Saturday’s bout between the teams in Autzen Stadium previews as another high-scoring opportunity for Oregon. However, the opposing offense is unlike any the Ducks have faced.

A win against USC puts Oregon in pole position for a rematch with the Washington Huskies in Las Vegas on Dec. 1, but there is still a reigning Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 2 scoring offense in the country to take care of first.

Oregon coach Dan Lanning held his weekly press conference Monday night, looking ahead to the matchup with USC, and here were the top takeaways from his comments.

When asked if Lanning’s seen an offense that’s comparable to USC’s this season, the head coach mentioned Washington’s, in large part because of the gaudy stats. The Trojans average 487 yards per game -- third in the Pac-12 but 8th nationally. They rank second nationally in scoring at 45.5 points per game, behind only the Ducks (47.4)

Apart from the numbers, though, this offense is dissimilar to any the Ducks have faced this season because of defending Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams.

If it’s Michael Penix’s quick trigger that makes him a nightmare for opposing defenses, then its Williams’ ability to extend a play that causes those similar fears.

“He holds the ball longer than anybody in college football and can make every throw,” Lanning said. “That’s dangerous, if you’re not able to get him down or cover for a long time.”

Williams has completed 69% of his passes this year for 2,958 yards and 28 touchdowns with just 4 interceptions, while also rushing for 10 scores. It’s not just a solo act either -- he has weapons almost as elite as Washington did.

To name a few, USC’s lead receivers Tahj Washington (43 catches for 833 yards and 6 TDs) and Brenden Rice (32-563-10). The Ducks will also have to prepare for running back MarShawn Lloyd (766 rushing yards, 8 TDs), if he’s healthy. Lloyd missed the Trojans' 52-42 loss to Washington last week due to an unspecified injury from the previous game, but he leads all running backs in the conference with 99 rushing attempts or more, averaging 7.7 yards per carry.

“You talk about trying to make a team play left-handed,” Lanning said. “This is a hard team to make them play left-handed because they do so many things really, really well. You have to be sound when you play these guys.”

Building off his comments about Williams' ability to keep a play alive, Lanning touched on how both the pass rush and secondary are preparing for that.

It’ll work in unison. If the pass rush applies pressure quickly, the defensive backs won’t have to cover for long, and if the secondary is draped over Williams’ weapons it will give the pass rush more of an opportunity to get home.

“It’s about being sound, being smart, being patient,” Lanning said. “When you get the opportunity to change-up a look and create pressure, you got to be able to do that.”

Even for as improved a group as this Oregon defensive line is, it will have to remain opportunistic and take advantage of the chances that arise to sack Williams. That makes the onus fall on Oregon's secondary as it seldom has with how effective the pass rush has been this year.

“Just go out there and run routes and tell them to cover for 10 seconds in practice,” Lanning said. “You kind of have to replicate untimed downs and situations where the ball can be extended.”

This hasn’t always been the case with how elite offenses have been in the Pac-12 over the years, but this Oregon defense is as good as any and would be able to test any offense in the country.

So, while concerns about a game like this, against an offense like USC’s, in a spot like where the Ducks are right now in the rankings — both conference-wise and nationally — may have scared fans in the past, it shouldn’t now.

“[Building a deep defense] starts with talent acquisition,” Lanning said. “You have to get guys who can play to the standard that you expect. If you have 11 guys that can play to the standard, you play 11 guys. Fortunately for us, we’ve been able to acquire great talent that can play to a higher standard -- we’ve also been able to develop talent.”

That manifested itself in the Ducks having the freedom to play a guy like Bryce Boettcher heavily in one game, and then reduce his role in another. Same with freshman Teitum Tuioti and safety Steve Stephens.

Two guys — one fitting the transfer category, and another a homegrown product — that have gained recognition and will likely have a significant role against USC are Jestin Jacobs and Daymon David.

Both Jacobs and David have dealt with injury. Jacobs has appeared in just three games this season and David just one.

Jacobs will have his hands full this week with USC’s athletes running underneath routes as well as covering five-star freshman tight end Duce Robinson at times.

“I’m really proud of Jestin, just how he’s approached everything this year,” Lanning said. “He’s certainly made a great impact for us. He’s proven to be a solid tackler. He’s tough to block. I think his size and athleticism make him really special on the field.”

Now that he’s returned, David will help fill in for Bryan Addison, who’s been out since late September.

“He’s a guy that’s gotten better and better each week,” Lanning said. “Unfortunately for him he’s gotten plagued with injuries since he’s been here so it’s nice to see him out there. This guy has a wonderful attitude every single day.”

Players with roles both big and small will be called upon to disrupt Williams’ rhythm on Saturday.