Heading into Saturday afternoon's game, Oregon football looks like it has all the momentum on its side after starting the season on a slow note.
In fact, following the first two weeks of the year, the Ducks have gone on a run and they're now 7-0 with wins over Ohio State and Boise State. Their other wins aren't quite as impressive, but beating the Heisman favorite as well as the Big Ten favorite is great for that resume.
And Dan Lanning's squad has skyrocketed to No. 1 in the rankings but the head coach knows that there's more work to do so the top overall ranking doesn't matter yet.
No. 20 Illinois comes to town on Saturday afternoon for a Top 25 showdown and all eyes will be on Eugene at around 12:30 p.m. local time and 3:30 p.m. ET.
Here's why I believe the nation will see another dominant display by the Ducks.
1. Illinois' pass defense has been lightly tested
I know what you're going to say: Illinois has played four ranked teams already this season so how the heck could its pass defense be lightly tested?
Well, when you look at the opponents, you'll understand. Three of those four ranked teams are no longer in the Top 25 and Jalon Daniels (Kansas) has been a massive disappointment this year, Dylan Raiola (Nebraska) is going through some freshman growing pains and still had a big game against the Illini, Drew Allar (Penn State) was actually held in check, and Michigan's quarterback room is a disaster.
Dillon Gabriel will be the best quarterback they've seen this year and he's going to have a monster game despite the fact that the Illini rank 41st nationally against the pass.
2. Jordan James will feast on the Illini
While the Illini haven't been tested too much by elite passers (Allar and maybe Raiola appear here), they have seen some solid running backs in Devin Neal, Kalel Mullings, and the two-headed monster at Penn State, leading to the 70th-ranked rushing attack in the country.
Jordan James is going to be the latest to run all over this defense.
Neal had over 100 yards, Mullings approached 100, Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen combined for 196 yards and two scores, and Purdue quarterback Ryan Browne and running back Devin Mockobee combined for 220 yards on the ground. This run defense has been exposed against solid backs and James will join the party.
3. Illinois' offense just won't be able to keep up
I'll just come out and say it: Illinois' offense just doesn't have the firepower to keep up with Oregon.
The Illini have had just one 100-yard rusher this season and the offense ranks 92nd nationally in yards per game. Luke Altmyer has been solid, but he can only do so much. The Illini rank 61st in points as well and you have to realize they've only played two legit defenses so far in Michigan and Penn State and had a combined 28 points in those games.
This offense is not going to be able to keep up with the high-octane Oregon attack.