Roundtable: Oregon vs Fresno State Predictions

We are just a couple of days out from the start of the 2021 football season. The Ducks will host Fresno State Saturday and are expected to win big.

The game with the Bulldogs still has a ton of value for Oregon. It will give the staff a chance to identify who’s ready, who isn’t and areas of improvement. That will be key for the week two trip to Columbus.

With ScoopDuck having expanded its group of contributors, we are happy to offer a roundtable of score predictions which we will do every week. That group includes Jarrid Denney, Joel Gunderson, Jacob Archer, Corpatty and myself.

Below are our picks for the season opener with Fresno State.

Corpatty: Oregon 31, Fresno State 17

This one is going to stay closer than most Oregon fans would like to see.  It will take a quarter+ for the Ducks to shake off the rust that Fresno St had the benefit of doing last week.  But Oregon will take control and pull away in the second half and win by two TDs.

Joel Gunderson: Oregon 37, Fresno State 20

Much like Oregon’s opener against Bowling Green in 2018, I envision Oregon getting off to a slow start. Factor in Fresno State having played a game already, and this one might look precarious for a bit. In fact, I wouldn’t be shocked to see the Ducks trailing at halftime. But as their legs and Anthony Brown settle down, Oregon’s offensive line will begin to overpower the Bulldogs.

I expect the same from the defense; a slower start, then too much firepower late. As excited as we all for the star power, this is still game one under Tim DeRuyter, and plenty of new faces will see significant snaps. Mistakes will happen. Miscommunication will happen. But as the game wears on, Oregon’s team speed, length, and power will take grip and the Ducks will settle in for a win that settles some questions but gives the staff plenty to correct ahead of Ohio State.

Jacob Archer: Oregon 45, Fresno State 17

While Fresno State did open up the year with a dominant win over UConn, Oregon’s speed and talent will be too much for the bulldogs to handle. With Anthony Brown under center you can expect this Oregon offense to come out and move the ball consistently since we’ve seen Brown have success in this offense. I believe the Bulldogs will keep this game competitive for the 1st quarter or maybe even up until halftime, but after that Oregon will comfortably pull away. 

Jarrid Denney: Oregon 38, Fresno State 17

Even though this matchup has a few ‘trap game’ elements to it, there’s no doubt that Oregon will be focused on the task at hand in Week 1.

Fresno State is a strong program that is headed in the right direction. Star running back Ronnie Rivers will cause plenty of problems for opposing defenses this season, and could very well do so against Oregon Saturday.

But the Ducks are locked in and will get a nice boost playing in front of a full Autzen Stadium for the first time in ages. Look for talent to prevail and for the Ducks to roll to victory.

Jhop: Oregon 50, Fresno State 20

This game will like just about every opening game does in a normal year. Oregon starts out sluggish, sputters on the first drive or two. Possibly even goes down early. This isn’t Fresno State’s first game, just the Ducks.

But that won’t last long. Somewhere in the second quarter it will click and Oregon will never look back. And even when the Ducks pull the starters, they’ll keep it rolling. I’m feeling a 50-burger coming on and hopefully a real offseason is just what Joe Moorhead ordered.