Week 0 of the college football season was just the appetizer, and now the three-month main course is upon us with Oregon opening up the 2021 season with a 1-0 Fresno State team.
Right before Week 1 begins, ESPN college football writers Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach have predicted the matchup for every bowl out there, including who will be participating in the College Football Playoff.
Unfortunately, neither one of them selected the Ducks to be in the playoff, but that’s why they play the games. They did have some interesting selections where Oregon is concerned, however.
Schlabach has Oregon playing in the Fiesta Bowl for the second straight season, but this time it would be against the Cincinnati Bearcats. He has the Ducks missing out on the Rose Bowl as he thinks USC will win the Pac-12 title game and then play Ohio State in Pasadena.
As for Bonagura, he has the Ducks going to Pasadena to play old Rose Bowl nemesis Wisconsin. Bonagura then has USC playing Texas A&M in the Fiesta Bowl, which would be a cool matchup.
If the Ducks are either in the Rose Bowl or the Fiesta Bowl, it means they had an incredible season with just one or two losses. But if they do go to Pasadena, it would be nice if the Big 10 could help out with a different opponent. Oregon has played Wisconsin twice in the last 10 years, beating the Badgers twice.
Both ESPN writers didn’t have any surprises for the playoff, going with a combination of Alabama, Oklahoma, Georgia, and Clemson. Maybe with a surprise win in Columbus, that would set the Ducks up to crash the playoff party.