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3 Biggest X-Factors For Oregon to Take Down Ohio State
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- 3 Biggest X-Factors For Oregon to Take Down Ohio State
(Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TO)
The Oregon Ducks were able to take down the Northwestern Wildcats at home a week ago, keeping themselves alive in the College Football Playoff race.
While the odds are against Oregon making it, the team was ranked No. 23 in the new College Football Playoff rankings. This gives the team some new life as they prepare for a big game this week against the Ohio State Buckeyes on the road.
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The Ducks will come into the game with a record of 5-3 on the season, while the Buckeyes are 6-2. Both teams will be playing the game with a backup quarterback, adding more intrigue to the matchup.
Here are three of the bigger X-Factors for the Ducks to get the win over Ohio State this week:
1. Pressure Luke Fahey
With the Buckeyes starting freshman quarterback Luke Fahey in this game, the Ducks have to do whatever they can to make him uncomfortable. This means putting all sorts of pressure on him, potentially even blitzing him throughout the entire contest.
Ohio State will likely have a game plan to neutralize the Ducks defense, giving Fahey easy throws to make, but Oregon will have to find a way to change this fact. If the Ducks can make Fahey throw some turnovers, it could change the entire outcome of the game.
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2. Dylan Raiola Takes Care of the Ball
Against Northwestern last week, Raiola played very well, helping the team get the big win at home. Raiola threw for 336 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions, continuing his streak of three games with no unterception.
As he gets ready to face off against an opportunistic defense in the Buckeyes, Raiola will need to take care of the ball again. If he can do this, the Ducks may have a good chance to win the game, especially if he can force the ball down field again.
3. Get Physical With Ohio State
The Buckeyes showed last week that when teams are physical with them, they tend to falter. The USC Trojans were the more physical team against Ohio State, leading to a big win over the Buckeyes.
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For the Ducks, if they can bring the physicality to this game, it could help open up a lot on both sides of the ball. Ohio State is still a very good team, but Oregon has a chance to take advantage of them, much like the Ducks did a week ago against Northwestern.
