The top of the College Football Playoff standings feature Big Ten teams at No. 1 and No. 2, and one-loss Oregon might not have enough time to close the gap.
Ranked No. 8 in this week’s CFP rankings released Tuesday, Oregon gained one spot from last week and carries visions of a return to the Big Ten title game into Friday night when the Ducks host Minnesota in Eugene, Ore.
The Ducks (8-1 overall, 5-1 in Big Ten) scored a gritty 18-16 win at now-No. 21 Iowa last week. Ohio State is No. 1 in the rankings with Indiana, the only team to beat Oregon this season, ranked second.
Oregon received a lot of praise across the nation for being able to go into Iowa, deal with poor weather and put together a game-winning drive inside of two minutes to play that resulted in a field goal to retake the lead with three seconds left. The Ducks were without wide receiver Dakorien Moore and tight end Kenyon Sadiq, and turned to their running back depth on offense.
It’s not clear if Moore, Sadiq, starting offensive tackle Alex Harkey or linebacker Devon Jackson will be able to play on Friday as they work their way back from injuries. Oregon could also be without wide receiver Gary Bryant Jr., who was injured during the Iowa game.
That could mean another week of relying on a corps of running backs led by veteran Noah Whittington, who rushed for 117 yards at Iowa, plus Jordon Davison and Dierre Hill Jr., who’ve combined for 14 touchdowns this season.
“Every year is different and unique. You try to play to your team’s strengths and what they do well,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said. “We’ve also had some games that the environment dictated that we’re going to run the ball a little bit more. But really proud of our offensive staff and their creativity in the run game and what they’ve done.”
Since a 30-20 loss to Indiana last month, Oregon has three victories in a row. The Ducks gave up a combined 32 points in wins over Iowa, Wisconsin and Rutgers.
Minnesota faces Oregon for the first time since the Ducks jumped to the Big Ten. The Golden Gophers (6-3, 4-2) are coming off a bye, and before that, a 23-20 come-from-behind win over Michigan State at home in overtime.
Minnesota’s defense has 32 sacks in nine games, which leads the Big Ten. But the Gophers are 0-3 on the road this season, outplayed at Cal and dominated by Ohio State and Iowa.
On offense, redshirt freshman Drake Lindsey is in his first season as the starting quarterback, and isn’t a major threat to run with the ball. Lindsey, however, has a 62 percent completion rate with 10 touchdown passes and six thrown interceptions.
Minnesota doesn’t have the scoring potential that the Ducks have shown, but its defense could keep the game close. The Gophers will be making their second trip out to the West Coast this season.
“Whether it’s here (in Minneapolis) or whether it’s in Eugene, Oregon, you’ve got to find a way in November to play your best football,” head coach P.J. Fleck said.
“They (the Ducks) don’t have many flaws, that’s for sure.”
