Oregon Football: Preseason game-by-game predictions for 2017 season
By Zach Bigalke
Oregon should already be bowl eligible once the 121st edition of the Civil War game kicks off between the Ducks and Oregon State on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Last year the Beavers beat UO for the first time since 2007. Fans in Corvallis are hoping that the tables have finally turned in what had been a lopsided series over the past decade.
Like Oregon, OSU also returns a veteran team that is hoping to build on the momentum of last season. Gary Andersen is entering his third season in Corvallis after leaving Wisconsin to take the Oregon State job in December 2014. And for the first time, the Beavers have a roster that could at least get back to a bowl game.
At this point of the year, though, Oregon’s offense will have coalesced enough to stave off any challenge from the Beavers. Andersen’s team is still a decade removed from its last win in Eugene, and Autzen Stadium has traditionally been a tough place for the Beavers to win. Since the stadium opened on the north side of the Willamette River in Eugene in 1967, the Ducks have gone 17-7-1 in the rivalry game at home.
As usual, it should be another hard-fought game between the two teams. Look for Oregon State to jump to an early lead and keep things close through the contest. Ducks fans will be sweating the result on a grey day in the Autzen stands. But Herbert and Freeman will put together a long drive for one last touchdown that makes the result look bigger than the actual gap in play between the two teams.
FINAL: Oregon 42, Oregon State 31 (8-4)