ScoopDuck Predictions: Oregon Ducks vs Utah Utes

It’s Wednesday and we have finally reached that point of the week. No, not ‘hump day’ but rather the day we offer our predictions on the weeks games.

The Ducks have a tough one this week. We all know that. Utah will come ready and play a physical brand of football. This is really the best of the South meeting the best of the North. And perhaps it will only be round 1 of 2 this season.

But that’s a topic for a later time. Let’s just discuss this weeks game and see if the Ducks can finish 1-0.

Corpatty: Oregon 31, Utah 28

I went back and forth on this one.  I think the key for the Ducks will be to weather the storm early as I expect the Utes to come out energized in front of their home crowd.  If Oregon can stay close through the first quarter, I think Oregon’s offensive line can take control of the game and allow the Ducks to escape Salt Lake City with a narrow victory. 

DeRuyter will need to scheme up a way to contain Tavion Thomas and the Utah running game and force Cam Rising to try and beat them through the air.  In the end, I think Oregon’s running game wins out and it is the difference in this one.  

Jarrid Denney: Oregon 31, Utah 24

The Ducks have to find a way to get it done this week, and I think they will. Utah is a really good football team and it is vastly improved from earlier this season when it suffered a couple of tough non-conference losses. 

But the Utes have a dinged-up offensive line at the moment and will be short-handed while dealing with Kayvon Thibodeaux, Brandon Dorlus, and the rest of Oregon’s outstanding defensive front. In its last loss, against Oregon State four weeks ago, Utah also showed it can be run on. The Utes gave up 284 yards on the ground and never found a way to slow down BJ Baylor. Look for the Ducks to pound the rock all afternoon and find similar success. 

Joel Gunderson: Oregon 31, Utah 27

I rewatched Mario’s press conference from 2017 when Oregon hired him as their head coach. Before he addressed the media, he met with the team, where he delivered a heartfelt message about trust, respect, and not taking any shortcuts.

At the end, he said, “Make no mistake — we’re comin’.”

This is Mario’s third full season, as crazy as that sounds. But Saturday night in Utah is what he envisioned when he uttered those five words. It hasn’t always been pretty; it hasn’t always looked how the fans wanted. But Oregon is just three wins away from a playoff appearance, far sooner than perhaps they should be.

And Mario is at his best when the stakes are at their highest. It will be intense, it will be nerve-wracking, and it will be ugly. But Oregon will again rise to the occasion.

Jhop: Oregon 37, Utah 27

The last time these two teams met, Dec. 6, 2019, Oregon won 37-15. And similar to this year, Oregon was seen as a bit of an underdog, Utah would push them physically, the Ducks defense was in for a tough night.

Sounds familiar doesn’t it?

I won’t dispute Utah is a good team. They are. Just how good are they though? They have three losses on the season, BYU, SDSU and Oregon State. Not exactly a ‘hitters row’ of losses.

Last week they struggled to put Arizona away.

That’s fine, Oregon has struggled too certain weeks. But I trust this staff to answer the call and relish the underdog role. They’ve played in harsh weather already, they are getting healthy, Anthony Brown is managing the offense well,

I’ve got Oregon winning by 10 but I think they’ll handle this game.