ScoopDuck Roundtable: Toughest Playoff Matchup for Oregon

Finishing up some of our roundtables from last week in which no Oregon football was played. Our final discusses which team in the playoffs would be the toughest game for the Ducks. Now this is not out of who Oregon will face or could face, it’s just our pick of the other 11 teams assumed on a neutral field.

There are some good teams and as we’ve discussed already, Oregon will face a few of them if they want to win a national championship. The road won’t be easy but Dan Lanning seems to be embracing that.

Here are our picks for the toughest team Oregon could face in the college football playoff.

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Collin King: Ohio State

Yes I understand the two losses and how I just argued that Oregon could have beaten the Buckeyes by more than they did, but beating the same team twice is not an easy task. Oregon’s first game of the playoff will come against either Tennessee or Ohio State, two opponents that both could challenge Oregon’s run defense that just surrendered nearly 300 yards to Penn State. I’m a little bit worried about the run defense but I have full confidence that the Linebackers will be able to fix their issues from the Big Ten Championship. The few weeks off should also allow for several players to come back fully healthy. 

Linden Hile: Texas

While you could make a case for a number of teams here, I’ll go with Texas as the toughest team in the college football playoff as it feels like they’re the only one that might have another gear they could shift into. I was tempted to go with Ohio State but injuries have piled up and there’s a chance the team has lost its composure following its loss to Michigan in the last week of the regular season.

My next thought was Georgia but it’s lost to two non-playoff teams including a 28-10 crumbling at the hands of Ole Miss while quarterback Carson Beck’s injury status makes them a bit of an unknown. This leaves Texas, who has likely the best offensive line and roster in college football and may have a better quarterback than starter Quinn Ewers on the bench in Arch Manning who’s been elite when utilized.

Max Torres: Georgia

Maybe I’m an outlier here, but even in a bit of a down year Georgia won the SEC and earned a No. 2 seed in the playoffs. It hasn’t always looked pretty, but they’ve gutted out some really tough wins. The Bulldogs are battle-tested, have a ton of talent and one of the best head coaches in the game in Kirby Smart. He and his players have been there before and we’ve seen how much of an asset that has proven to be in the biggest games. 

Jhop: Texas

I was going to say Georgia here because I think Kirby Smart just has a feel for big games. Which frankly isn’t Steve Sarkisian’s strong suit. But I have concerns about Georgia offensively with questions surrounding the status of their quarterbacks. So it’s Texas for me because they have as much, possibly more talent than Oregon. They are probably the best equipped team to compete with Oregon of anyone. If the Ducks meet them in Dallas it’s going to be a classic featuring some big boy football.