Mighty Oregon. The Ducks. The Quack Attack. These are just some of the phrases used for the Oregon Ducks throughout their history. The recent history has been pretty good for the Ducks and they are obviously looking to continue that trend in 2015. However, we all know what will be different for Oregon next year. That little position under center. The Ducks are entering the P.M., the Post Mariota era. One thing that will help the new guy will be a favorable schedule.
The schedule seems like a fairly good one for the Ducks. They have a lot of talent coming back and that will hopefully take the pressure off of whoever takes over at quarterback.
Let's take a look at how the schedule rolls out for Oregon. The non-conference schedule for the Ducks is average. They start off with Eastern Washington who is a very good FCS school and did pull an upset at Oregon State two years ago and has gone into the FCS playoffs, but I don't see this happening in Eugene. Oregon should win this game.
Next up is the one the toughest games on their schedule, if not the toughest. They have to go to East Lansing, Michigan and take on the Michigan State Spartans. This will be a difficult game for them to win and on top of that they have to throw a very inexperienced quarterback into the mix in a very hostile environment. The Spartans will have revenge on their mind since the Ducks beat them last year in Eugene. I don't see the Ducks leaving East Lansing with a win.
Oregon gets Georgia State next. This should be a "lamb to the slaughter" type of game. Georgia State is an ok FCS program, but getting them to a win against the Ducks on the road will be really difficult. I see the Ducks winning this game and starting off the season 2-1.
As stated earlier, the quarterback play is going to be critical for the Ducks this year. They are trying to maintain their heightened image in the college football world and don't want to slide to far down the ladder. Now they will get into the rough and tough schedule of the Pac-12.
Two out of the next three games are winnable for Oregon. They start conference play with Utah at home in Eugene. This will be a good game. Utah plays a very in your face type of defense and it will try and make life difficult for the new Duck quarterback. This certainly could be a pick'em type of game. Next up are two programs that have struggled in the recent past and the games are winnable. They play Washington State and Colorado. I see the games coming out victorious for Oregon. The Washington State game will be competitive, the Colorado game I see being a blowout.
The rest of their schedule will be tough. They have to go to Seattle and play the Huskies. After Seattle, they head to Tempe and Arizona State. The Sun Devil game will a great test for Oregon. The Devils will have the weapons to beat the Ducks. I see the Sun Devils winning this game.
Three out of their last four games are at home. The one game on the road will be Stanford. Stanford will be looking for payback from last years beat down. They get California, USC, and the rival Oregon State at home. All three of these home games are certainly winnable. The Trojans will be good test as well. They have lots of talent, young talent, and an experienced quarterback to try and get a road win. With Oregon State, it's hard to tell because it's a rivalry game and both teams will have new quarterbacks, plus the Beavers have a new system that they are implementing. A Civil War game is always a roll of dice, so this could be a more difficult game than people think.
At the end of the day, Oregon will experience some the growing pains that comes with an quarterback that doesn't have a lot of experience. Duck fans should approach this season with hope, but a little bit of realism in terms of not having their Heisman Trophy winning quarterback under center. Of course, injuries are the great equalizer, and these thoughts are preliminary because we haven't got through spring ball and summer practice yet. It'll be interesting to watch what happens this spring and summer in Eugene. Duck fans will be watching. Oh, they will be watching.
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