Having a wealthy benefactor means state-of-the-art facilities, myriad uniform combinations, regular stadium upgrades and a big bottom line to lure the best coaches.
Yet, that equation hasn’t delivered a single national title to Oregon. How, with Phil Knight’s blank Nike checks, have the Ducks failed to win a football championship?
That’s the conundrum as we begin conference-title games. No. 5 Oregon (11-1) can redeem itself here Friday, at 8 p.m. inside Allegiant Stadium and on ABC, against No. 3 Washington (12-0).
On Oct. 14, both teams were coming off bye weeks when the 3-point-favored Huskies beat the Ducks, 36-33, in Seattle, the lone blemish for either squad this season.
Ducks quarterback Bo Nix went 33-for-44, for 337 yards and two touchdowns, with no picks, in Seattle. For the Huskies, shifty lefty Michael Penix Jr. was 22-for-37, for 302 yards, four TDs and one interception. Penix came out of that one the Heisman favorite, a spot Nix now resides in, but both have a real shot to win it.
Even with that loss, the Ducks have a realistic avenue to football's final Final Four, as the College Football Playoff expands to a dozen next season.
T. Boone Pickens didn’t exactly mean a bushel of football trophies for Oklahoma State, either, same with rich figures Casey Wasserman (UCLA), John Arrillaga (Stanford) or Mat Ishbia (Michigan State).
With Knight having founded Nike in Oregon’s backyard, though, that makes the open spaces in the Ducks’ trophy case glaring. They get another shot at glory Friday, and after diving deeper into Oregon vs. Washington odds, we see their flight continuing.
Oregon vs. Washington odds: Point spread, moneyline, total
Here are the latest college football betting odds for the No. 5 Ducks vs. No. 3 Huskies:
No. 5 Oregon betting news: No ceiling for Nix and his Ducks
Bo Nix didn’t go a game this season without throwing at least two passes for a touchdown. He has 37 TDs and only two picks. In slim victories over Arizona and Arizona State, not one Penix toss wound up in the end zone.
Nix owns an efficiency rating of 189.9, second in the nation to LSU’s Jayden Daniels (208); Penix (163.3) is 12th.
Nix (78.6) is tops in completion percentage, while Penix isn’t among the top 20. The former is first with 3,906 passing yards, the latter places at 3,899. Both owe their offensive lines Rolexes for keeping them healthy all season.
Since that first meeting, however, their attacks have differed. Oregon has tallied 22 passing TDs and 13 on the ground; UW 12 and 11, respectively. The Ducks have allowed just nine TDs (three in the air, six on the ground) to the Huskies’ 20 (nine passing, 11 rushing).
On offense, the Ducks have turned it over only five times (two fumbles, three picks), with 155 first downs. The Huskies have 10 giveaways (five apiece) and only 125 first downs.
In fact, UW foes have more first downs (131) than it does over its past six games. Oregon opponents have garnered only 109.
Since that game in Seattle, the Ducks have been improving, the Huskies have plateaued.
Related: Best college football betting sites | Latest college football betting promos
No. 3 Washington betting news: Huskies still unbeaten, but have been cutting things close
Oregon has taken better care of the ball than Washington, and the Ducks are better at swiping the pigskin from the other guys, too. Both have low penalty penchants, producing a clean game in Seattle. Vegas should follow suit.
The Ducks own edges in rushing offense and defense, and passing offense, most glaringly in their overall completion percentage of 77.5, tops in the country. The UW secondary yields a 41st-ranked 59.3%.
Nix and the Ducks average a No. 1 349 aerial yards, but those UW backers, corners and safeties allow opponents 265 passing yards a game, 120th in the land—only 13 secondaries are worse.
Wazzu, Utah, USC and Stanford, four of UW’s past five foes, all registered more passing yards than that average. The Huskies might get tattooed by Nix.
UW also gives up 6.5 yards per run, mid-level for a college team, but Oregon counters with a sixth-best ground attack that averages 5.5 yards. In Seattle, Oregon gashed the Huskies for a season-worst 204 rushing yards.
Since then, the Ducks have allowed about 83 rushing yards a game, the Huskies nearly 131. Bucky Irving, who began his career at Minnesota, and Jordan James represent Oregon’s talented 1-2 tailback punch.
Read more: Could Pac-12 Championship decide Heisman race?
Oregon vs. Washington prop picks
At DraftKings, Nix, at , is the Heisman favorite. Daniels is , Penix . Those figures should provide another peek into this game.
Also, DK has a first-half total of . Oregon is second in the country in first-half scoring, with a 25.2-point average; Washington is third, at 24.3. Those alone pummel that total. Factor in defensive metrics and we have a worst-case-scenario 36. Take the OVER.
Oregon vs. Washington prediction ATS
In mid-October, the game between these two had six lead changes, the Huskies taking the final one with 98 ticks left. They combined for 956 total yards of offense, there was a single turnover and penalties were low. In a grand neutral site, this rematch is poetic, the victor likely advancing to the national playoffs. A plus for the Ducks is their 9-2-1 ATS record, a measure of dominance; UW is 5-6-1. Finally, Oregon is 15-4 in the past 19 between these two, with the Ducks’ average winning margin being a sliver more than 15 points.
Pick: Oregon
If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.