The Oregon Ducks entered this week unranked in the AP Top 25 Poll for just the second time under Dan Lanning, and for the first time since his initial season in Eugene. This week put the entire program up with it's back against the wall, as Oregon had to answer a ton of questions after losing to UCLA. Given the way most of Saturday Night looked, it was starting to seem like another long week of questions were on the horizon.
Instead, Dan Lanning and the coaching staff finally made the move away from Brock Thomas, inserting Dylan Raiola into the lineup to try and save the season against his former team. Given how chaotic the entire weekend went, everyone should've known it would end with Dylan Raiola crushing his former team's hopes and dreams, giving the Ducks a win.
Will Oregon return to the Top 25 after a thrilling win over Nebraska
This weekend was filled with shocking upsets and big games, creating a massive shakeup in the race for the College Football Playoff and the outlook for the Top 25. On the surface, it's the perfect kind of weekend for the Oregon Ducks, as 8 Top 25 teams lost, but it's also not that simple. The vast majority of the losers were ranked in the Top 10 and are unlikely to fall out of the Top 25.
The most likely ranked teams to potentially fall out of the Top 25 are No. 16 Mississippi State, which was blown out by LSU without Kamario Taylor, and potentially No. 18 Oklahoma State, which lost in a close game to Houston.
The hurdle that could keep Oregon out of the Top 25 is the fact that some teams picked up massive wins while holding the same record as the Ducks. Florida has two losses, but now added a win over Texas to their resume while Auburn with two losses just picked off Georgia on the road.
If those two teams join the field, it may not be the week for the Ducks, even as Dan Lanning's group picked up a big win. Auburn, however, didn't receive any votes in last week's poll, which may end up working in Oregon's favor. The Tigers remaining out of the Top 25 would give Oregon a great chance to land in the 22-25 range, where they can try to start marching back up the rankings.
The other team the Ducks could vault ahead of is Northwestern, who entered the week ranked 25th in the AP Poll. The Wildcats struggled to beat Michigan State, and with Colorado, Indiana, and Penn State all losing, their resume took a massive hit on Saturday. The Ducks face the Wildcats on Halloween, so both teams will have the ultimate say on who ends up where this season.
Dan Lanning's team took a massive step in the right direction on Saturday Night, and plenty of the results that unfolded went in their favor. If this weekend isn't when the Ducks regain the Top 25, it was still a great weekend, as some of the upsets and losses around the country help create the parity this 2-loss team may need to make the College Football Playoff.
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