Oregon vs. Ohio State: Setting the stage for the biggest game of the season

Oregon has a head coach with experience in big games, even games like the one Saturday against Ohio State. Head coach Dan Lanning can count on two hands the number of top-five matchups he has coached in, of course, most with Georgia as a defensive coordinator.

Saturday's Oregon vs. Ohio State game will feature perhaps the highest-ranked matchup Autzen Stadium has seen in a long time.

Sure, there have been games with high stakes, but never a higher-ranked matchup between the home team and the opponent. For Oregon, a win keeps the Ducks in line with a Big Ten Championship and also undefeated. A loss does not keep Oregon out of the playoff picture, but the team will likely have to win out to keep pace. We have reached the point of the season where conference opponents are all looking for wins and as we learned last weekend, anything can happen.

On Monday, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning was asked about the Buckeyes, and what he said was simple: "Strong in all three phases. As a team you watch them you really don't see a weakness. They are strong across the board."

Former Ducks head coach Chip Kelly has also found a home as the offensive coordinator with Ohio State. Lanning was asked about his impact and if it still resonates with the Ducks and he had praise for Kelly's accomplishments.

"He's always done a great job of utilizing her personnel. Moving guys around. He always finds unique ways to run the ball. When he was at UCLA last year, they were the No. 1 rushing team in our conference for a lot of reasons."

Ohio State's run game is powered by two players, Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, who have combined for over 800 yards and nine touchdowns. Quarterback Will Howard also has success on the ground with four scores so far in 2024. The ground game for the Buckeyes is solid and clearly has the Kelly standard in place.

The Ohio State scoring offense has put up 30 touchdowns so far this season. For comparison, the Ducks have 20 touchdowns. Jordan James has five touchdowns. The wide receiver tandem of Tez Johnson and Traeshon Holden have combined for eight. If Oregon falls behind, it could be a long evening.

Getting off to a fast start could be key for Oregon on Saturday. This is also a game where former NFL coaches earn their respective paychecks. Both the Ducks and Buckeyes have several including Tosh Lupoi for Oregon and Kelly for Ohio State.

Oregon and Ohio State kick off at 4:30 p.m. PT on Saturday on NBC/Peacock.