It won't be as easy as the last meeting, when Oregon won 49-21 in Autzen Stadium a year ago.
The 10-1, No. 6 Ducks need a win to lock up a home playoff game, and 8-3, Tony Tiger Bowl-bound Washington would like nothing better than to spoil it for them.
Oregon at Washington, Husky Stadium, Saturday November 29, 12:30 p.m. PT on CBS, announcers Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson and Jenny Dell.
A win guarantees UO a seed in the 5-8 range and the chance to host a playoff first-round game at Autzen Stadium the weekend of December 20. If current seeding holds (it might not) they'd be matched up against the ACC Champion. Currently Miami is that conference's highest-ranked team at 11, but they'll need help not to get bumped by Virginia, Pittsburgh or SMU, who have a better ACC record at 6-1, the inside track to the league title game.
Oregon is a 6.5-point favorite at Husky Stadium, where they have not won since 2021, the season before Dan Lanning took over from Mario Cristobal as Oregon coach.
The weather forecast has held steady, 48 degrees, winds 6 mph and a 25 percent chance of rain, conditions that favor offense and scoring. The over/under for the game is 51.5 and the Moneyline is Oregon -250, Washington +210.
A year ago the Ducks dominated the Dawgs in Autzen with a ferocious pass rush, sacking Demond Williams ten times. As a sophomore he's blossomed into a capable, even dangerous quarterback with the ability to check down, read defenses, strike deep or scramble for yardage.
He's thrown for 2,721 yards and rushed for 568, 25 total touchdowns as a sophomore.
Both teams are banged up. For the Huskies, star receiver Denzel Boston and running back Jonah Coleman have missed time, but they're both expected to play in the rivalry game. Starting offensive linemen center Landon Hatchett (hand, wearing a club) and right tackle Drew Azzopardi have been hurt but will try to give it a go. Edge rusher Isaiah Ward is out for the year.
Oregon's list (the official report comes out two hours before kickoff) is longer. Alex Harkey, Isaiah World and Iapani Laloulu all missed snaps against USC, center Laloulu limited to 13. Receivers Gary Bryant Jr., (ankle) Dakorien Moore (knee) and Evan Stewart (patellar tendon) may be out.
Jayden Limar, a Seattle native, has missed five games. Bryce Boulton and Kyler Kasper are out for the year.
The keys to the game will be containing Williams in the pocket and getting some pressure, getting some push in the running game and cleaning up explosive plays in the passing game--Huskies have a strong trio of wide receivers in Boston, freshman Dezmon Roebuck and tight end Decker DeGraaf.