The Oregon Ducks and the Wyoming Cowboys have veered in many different directions over the past few seasons. In 2014, Oregon was playing for the national championship against Ohio State while Wyoming was rebuilding under coach Craig Bohl. Oregon got worse and Wyoming got a little better in 2015, but both teams were still on opposite sides of the tracks, the Ducks being a prosperous program and Wyoming still stumbling in the darkness. Last year, the teams switched positions. Oregon fell to a disastrous 4-8 record and watched head coach Mark Helfrich get fired. On the other hand, Wyoming won the Mountain West Mountain Division championship and played for the Mountain West Conference title before narrowly losing to San Diego State. Will these teams continue to flow in the directions that have defined recent seasons, or is this the year Oregon becomes a big shot again in college football? That is a question a lot of people are asking.
Details
Odds: Ducks -14.5
Date & Time: Saturday, September 16, 7 PM ET
Location: War Memorial Stadium, Laramie, WY
Broadcast: CBS Sports Network
Reasons To Bet On The Oregon Ducks
The Ducks scored 42 first-half points against Nebraska last week. Quarterback Justin Herbert is a growing and talented second-year player who is absorbing more and more of his team’s offensive playbook and is gradually establishing a greater rapport with his receivers. Herbert has not been Oregon’s problem in his career. The Ducks had a terrible defense the past two seasons – any quarterback would have had a tough time scoring enough points to overcome that porous defense. Herbert has stayed the course, and he is in position to make life very difficult for Wyoming’s defense.
The other big reason to take Oregon is that Wyoming quarterback Josh Allen has been dealing with a sore shoulder dating back to the season opener at Iowa. Allen played in Week 2, but the Wyoming offense was not particularly powerful or fluid. It could be true that Wyoming is trying to save plays in the playbook so that the Cowboys can surprise Oregon’s defense, but a sore shoulder is hard to conceal or work around. Oregon should be able to contain the Wyoming quarterback with the NFL future.
Reasons To Bet On The Wyoming Cowboys
The Ducks might have been good enough to score 42 points in the first half against Nebraska, but Oregon was also weak enough to watch a 42-14 lead shrink to 42-35 and become something very close to a disaster. This is a very young team with a new head coach, Willie Taggart, and two new coordinators. As talented as this coaching staff is, transitions still generally require a lot of getting used to on the part of players. Oregon might be outstanding next season, but the Ducks will have a bumpy road this season, and a September road game out of conference could be the kind of unfamiliar environment in which the Cowboys might be the only team which has a good feel for the surroundings.
Outlook
It’s an interesting betting line to handicap here. Had the Ducks-Cornhuskers game stopped at halftime last week, Oregon would probably be favored by more (they were up 41-14 at the half). But what happened to them in the second half? Did they take their foot off the gas or was it in fact a sign that the Ducks still have some issues to work through. A lot of people may have turned that game off thinking that Oregon rolled but this was nearly a catastrophe.
On the whole, though, it’s hard to look past the fact that Oregon scored 40+ points for a second straight week and totaled over 500 yards of offense. Remember that Wyoming could only muster a total of three points at Iowa in Week 1 – an Iowa team that nearly lost at Iowa State last week.
The sore shoulder for Josh Allen is really hard to ignore or look past in this game. All other things being equal, Oregon should gain a huge advantage at quarterback, and that alone can enable the Ducks to cover the number.
Prediction: Ducks -14.5
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