Huskies Can't Afford to Duck Around in Oregon

There are rivalries all over the college landscape, but this one's damn near a blood feud steeped more in history than proximity.

The flashpoint happened in 1948, when what was then the Pacific Coast Conference had a tie for the title between Oregon and California. The rules called for a vote to decide who went to the Rose Bowl, and Washington opted for the Bears.

It was not taken well and hasn't been ever since.

 

They also clash over which is the originator of garage rock. Heavy stuff.

It's gonna get pretty heavy down in Eugene's Autzen Stadium this weekend, too.

Bovada has set the line at Washington -3½ and the total at 58.

Why bet on Washington ...

The Huskies are winners of five straight after losing their season opener to Auburn on a pick penalty that negated a touchdown. They've been winning by out-gaining and out-rushing each of their last five opponents.

Washington owns the Pac-12’s No 1 scoring defense and is allowing only 13.7 points per game. The Huskies haven’t allowed more than 35 points in 50 straight games.

 

The last time this game was played in Autzen, Washington made up for 12 straight losses to Oregon by running up a 70-21 score punctuated by Jake Browning's now-infamous Point during the first TD:

 

Why bet on Oregon ...

The Ducks haven’t quite returned to their glory years under Chip Kelly, but they're almost there. Oregon leads the Pac-12 conference in scoring at 45.6 points per game, rushing yards at 216.0 yards per, and total offense at 503.6 yards per.

QB Justin Herbert leads the conference in efficiency rating at 180.9. The only thing they didn't do to Stanford was beat them, but that's kinda the point. The Ducks are just hitting mid-season form and can't afford to be stats-high and score-shy again.

 

Instant analysis ...

The Ducks haven’t provided bettors with ATS value by going 1-3 against the spread in FBS play thus far. Their schedule to date hasn't impressed, either. Non-cons Bowling Green, Portland State and San José State haven't exactly provided stiff resistance. The Stanford result speaks for itself, and Notre Dame sorta spoke volumes about Stanford.

ATS Pick: Washington -3½
Total Pick: Under 58

Result: Oregon 30 Washington 27 OT ... Ducks cover
Total: 57 ... under covers

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Sportbet Columnist: Noah Williams

Noah lives and works with a simple philosophy of “Eat, Drink, Football.” This is embodied through a dedication to satellite TV, Indian delivery, Folgers in his cup, and Budweiser. He lives in a secret lair with his beautiful concubine.