Autzen Zoo
Fansided

It's time for Oregon football to prove itself as a top-10 team

By Connor Muldowney

Aug 31, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning in post game interview after the game against the Idaho Vandals at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images
Aug 31, 2024; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning in post game interview after the game against the Idaho Vandals at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images / Craig Strobeck-Imagn Images
facebooktwitterreddit

Through two weeks of play, Oregon football looks human.

While that may be OK for many teams, it's not for the preseason No. 3 team in the country and both Desmond Howard and Kirk Herbstreit's pick to win the national title. This team cannot be letting FCS and Group of Five teams hang around like they have through the first two weeks, resulting in a 24-14 win over Idaho and a 37-34 win over Boise State.

Beating Idaho and Boise State by a combined score of 61-48 was probably not on a lot of fans' bingo cards before the season, but here we are. The Ducks desperately need to wake up.

Since being ranked No. 3 in the preseason AP Top 25, Oregon has suffered the largest drop of any 2-0 team in the country. In fact, they have fallen six spots in the rankings to No. 9 after this underwhelming start to the 2024 season.

And honestly, the drop to No. 9 is warranted.

Oregon is expected to compete for a Big Ten title with Ohio State and a national title with the Buckeyes and Georgia. So it can't be struggling to beat Idaho and Boise State at home.

So that brings up to an even bigger game than the Ducks had seen through two weeks: at Oregon State. While the Ducks and Beavers are no longer conference foes, the game lives on and this one may be as important as ever for Oregon. People are starting to doubt Oregon and that could also stretch to the football building. These players might be doubting themselves a bit after two so-so performances, but a huge win at Oregon State would fix a lot.

Oregon State is in a new era under a new head coach and they've lost a ton of talent so it's important for the Ducks to take it to the Beavers and dominate for a second year in a row.

If Oregon wants to remain in the top 10, it's time to start proving it's worthy of that ranking this week.

Home/Oregon Ducks Football