NCAA Football

2025-01-01 - Ohio State Buckeyes at Oregon Ducks

A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown

Oregon Ducks vs Ohio State Buckeyes
United States : College Football PlayOff Quarter Final
Wednesday 1st January 2024 - Scheduled 5pm
10pm (British Time)

Preview

The expectation was that these two Big Ten teams would have their rematch in the Conference Championship Game, but an upset on the final week of the regular season prevented that happening.

If the College Football Playoff had been re-Seeded after the First Round games, a real argument could be made to have the Oregon Ducks (13-0) and Ohio State Buckeyes (11-2) as 1 and 2, rather than 1 and 8 as they are heading into the Quarter Final.

Much of the blame lies with the Buckeyes losing to the struggling Michigan Wolverines in the final week of the regular season, which meant missing out on the Conference Championship Game. That meant missing out on a top five Seed and the chance to avenge the one point loss to the Oregon Ducks in the regular season.

Earning redemption in the College Football Playoff Quarter Final would be even sweeter than winning the Big Ten Championship, but there is plenty of pressure on Head Coach Ryan Day. The blowout win over the Tennessee Volunteers in the First Round just served as a reminder of why the Buckeyes have been considered a National Championship contender with the talent on the roster, but that loss to the Wolverines has really stuck in the throat and they have to prove themselves on the field.

The Rose Bowl is the venue for this huge game and it should produce a quality atmosphere with the winning team likely going into the College Football Playoff Semi Final as the big favourite to win it all in January 2025.

Both teams are going to be confident that they have the Offensive playmakers to win this game, but the Buckeyes and Ducks have plenty of confidence in the Defenders that will be on the field.

Establishing the run will be important for Ohio State who will have just seen the Oregon Defensive Line struggling to produce their best down the stretch. Having almost a month off between games is not ideal for the Ducks, even if the players will be rested, and the Defensive Line has to just show out a little better and try and put Quarter Back Will Howard behind the chains to try and stall drives.

Will Howard has over 3000 passing yards with 29 Touchdown passes and 9 Interceptions, while the Buckeyes Offensive Line have given him plenty of protection in the pocket. That Line will be tested by this Oregon pass rush which has made a huge habit of rattling the opposition Quarter Back and bringing them down, which has also contributed to the strong numbers the Ducks Secondary have put together.

The Quarter Back took the blame for the loss to Oregon in the regular season having failed to understand the clock management needed when running with the ball and watching time expire. This is clearly motivating Will Howard to bring his best to the Rose Bowl for this Quarter Final and he has the kind of Receiving talent to put the Buckeyes in a strong position to win this one.

There is plenty of talent on the Ohio State Defensive unit too, but the Ducks will feel their own Offensive unit can keep things ticking over.

Dillon Gabriel has over 3500 passing yards with 28 Touchdown passes and just 6 Interceptions and being careful with the ball, while also highly aggressive with the passing plays, has helped Oregon to an unbeaten record and a Big Ten Championship in their first season in the Conference.

In the first meeting, one that was hosted by Oregon, the Ducks were able to establish the run which opened things up for their Quarter Back to find his playmakers through the air.

The Oregon Quarter Back had a few more yards compared with Will Howard in the regular season meeting and Dillon Gabriel was well protected by his Offensive Line. It just offered Dillon Gabriel the time to make good decisions with his passing and the Oregon Ducks may just have the edge in what is expected to be another shoot-out between arguably the two best teams left in the Playoff.

Losing twice to the same team in the same season is simply not something that Ohio State have been used to doing and it has been almost 130 years since that last happened.

The Buckeyes may also feel having the First Round game against the Tennessee Volunteers will mean the rhythm remains, but this could come down to a final possession with little between the two top teams in the Big Ten.

With that in mind, taking the points looks the best way to approach this one and the Oregon Ducks have to be upset with being set as the underdog, especially after putting together an unbeaten season. It may be the motivation that helps them edge the Ohio State Buckeyes again, but taking the points looks the best play in a game that could be decided by as little as the regular season game was.