Oregon Football: 3 bold predictions vs. Stony Brook in Week 3

Oregon football is fresh off the biggest win in the Mario Cristobal era which was a victory over Ohio State in Columbus in Week 2.

No one expected the Ducks to hang with Ohio State, let alone beat the No. 3 Buckeyes on the road.

Now the Ducks are the No. 4 team in the country and there’s talk of them potentially running the table in a weak Pac-12 which has grown considerably weaker over the past week (Washington, Utah, USC all look awful).

But before we can worry about Pac-12 play, the Ducks have one final non-conference battle against Stony Brook of the FCS.

Let’s get bold ahead of Saturday evening’s matchup with Stony Brook.

3. CJ Verdell rushes for 150 yards again

CJ Verdell looked like a pro against Ohio State in Week 2 and probably improved his NFL draft stock exponentially, rushing for 161 yards and two touchdowns on just 20 carries against one of the best teams in the country.

Verdell bounced back from a pedestrian season-opener against Fresno State in which he rushed for 74 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries in a big way. He looked like he was a true Heisman contender and even added three catches for 34 yards and a touchdown against the Buckeyes. Yes, he accounted for three of the five touchdowns Oregon scored against Ohio State.

That type of confidence will be tough for Stony Brook to contain. That’s going to lead to yet another big day for the starting running back.

Verdell will only need 10 carries, but he’s going to break the 100-yard mark for the second straight game, and then some. He’ll finish with about 150 yards and two touchdowns.