The 2024 season is full of firsts for Oregon football. On Friday, Autzen Stadium will host its inaugural Big Ten matchup.
The No. 6 ranked Ducks (4-0, 1-0 B1G) enter the weekend coming off a dominant 34-13 victory at UCLA. Michigan State (3-2, 0-1 B1G) — whom Oregon will meet for the first time since 2018 — is in the midst of a two-game losing streak.
The Ducks came out of the bye-week looking refreshed last Saturday versus the Bruins. Oregon endured a bumpy start to the season with narrow wins against Idaho and Boise State. It has responded with two convincing victories since it last played at Autzen.
The trinity of Ducks’ quarterback Dillon Gabriel, wide receiver Tez Johnson and running back Jordan James are proving to be one of the most dangerous offensive trios in the nation. Gabriel threw three touchdowns on 278 yards in the most recent game. Johnson made 11 receptions for 121 yards and two touchdowns, while James ran for one score on 121 yards on the ground.
The Spartans’ offense offers a stark contrast to Oregon’s. Michigan State’s 38-7 loss to No. 3 Ohio State last weekend was in part due to three turnovers. The Spartans have now turned the ball over 13 times in five games this season.
Michigan State had the potential to be within striking distance of the powerhouse Buckeyes at the half last weekend. A fumble and a dropped interception changed the narrative.
“We’re gonna compete with just about anybody we line up with if we clean [the turnovers] up,” head coach Jonathan Smith said to the media after last Saturday’s loss. “We’re gonna be in every ball game with a chance to win it if we can clean up some of the turnover piece and get off the field on third down.”
Spartans’ quarterback Aidan Chiles and the offense have struggled in second halves throughout the season. Michigan State only has six second-half points in the last two games combined.
“Those point totals, to be honest, is not where we want it to be,” Smith said. “Work the process. We got a short week here. We’ll take a look at this film and look at ways we can improve but we’ve gotta be able to score more than that.”
The Ducks’ defense intercepted the ball twice and forced two fumbles through four games. They’ll look to continue to put pressure on the Michigan State offense.
Oregon enters the game off a defensive performance that had head coach Dan Lanning full of praise. Defensive end Jordan Burch set the tone with two solo tackles and a sack.
“I thought the defense played their best game yet,” Lanning said after the win.
The Ducks rose two spots in the Associated Press Poll this week. A victory against Michigan State will likely keep Oregon in a favorable position in the polls and confident as it heads into a potential top-10 matchup against Ohio State next weekend.
The Ducks and the Spartans will meet for the eighth time. The home team has won every time with Oregon’s last win in Eugene being in 2014.
Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Autzen Stadium on Friday.