
1. All the pressure is on Ohio State
Is this really an advantage for Oregon? Absolutely.
Sometimes when a team feels like the overwhelming favorite and everyone is expecting it to win and do so comfortably (WynnBET has the Buckeyes as 16.5-point favorites), it can fold under the pressure. We saw that for a half with Ohio State in the opener at Minnesota. No one expected the Golden Gophers to put up a fight against the Buckeyes, but they had Ohio State on the ropes.
Oregon has no pressure on it heading into Columbus. The Ducks are heavy underdogs on the road against a top-five team and both teams are fresh off shaky wins.
Ohio State looked beatable against Minnesota and the pressure of being that targeted team nearly cost them a big win in the opener.
The Ducks will be playing pressure-free on Saturday afternoon and pretty much if things are even closer than 10-14 points, everyone will be shocked. This team has the talent to hang with anyone and that’s a good start. Having no pressure is a cherry on top.
If an upset happens, this will be one of the main reasons why.