Oregon’s Week 5 bye doesn’t mean a quiet Saturday for Ducks fans. With the No.
15 Ducks off before their Oct. 10 meeting with the No. 23 UCLA Bruins at Autzen Stadium, there are a handful of games that could shape both the rankings and Oregon’s path through the Big Ten.
The biggest one on the board is No. 5 Ohio State at No.
14 Iowa. ESPN College GameDay will be there, and kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m.
PT on CBS at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City. For Oregon, there’s plenty riding on this one.
The Ducks are scheduled to play Ohio State on Nov. 7, and both teams enter the weekend ranked ahead of Oregon in the AP Poll.
That makes the outcome worth watching twice over. An Iowa loss would open the door for Oregon to climb in the rankings.
If Ohio State falls, the Buckeyes would already have two losses, giving Oregon a chance to potentially wreck their College Football Playoff hopes in November. Iowa matters, too, because the Hawkeyes have quietly worked themselves into the Big Ten conversation and could end up affecting Oregon’s CFP and Big Ten Championship picture.
If that one feels like the heavyweight bout, Nebraska vs. Maryland is the kind of game Ducks fans should track for the schedule alone.
Nebraska is 4-0, Maryland is 2-2, and the Cornhuskers are heavily favored with a 92.7 percent win probability, according to the ESPN matchup predictor. The game kicks off at 1:00 p.m.
PT on FS1 from Memorial Stadium.
The reason it matters in Eugene is simple: Nebraska is next on Oregon’s schedule after UCLA. The Cornhuskers will come to Autzen Stadium on Oct. 17, after another matchup with No.
6 Indiana on Oct. 10.
Oregon hasn’t faced Nebraska since joining the Big Ten in 2024, and the programs have met eight times overall, with six of those games coming before the 21st century and the last one in 2017.
There’s also a little extra intrigue because Oregon quarterback Dylan Raiola transferred from Nebraska in the offseason. That move has had a ripple effect on the Cornhuskers’ offense this season, with Anthony Colandrea taking over as the starter.
The other game with real implications for Oregon’s view of the national picture is No. 7 Alabama at No.
16 Mississippi State. That one kicks at 9 a.m.
PT on ABC from Davis Wade Stadium in Mississippi. The series has long belonged to Alabama, which owns an 88-17-3 edge, and Mississippi State hasn’t beaten the Crimson Tide since 2007.
The teams haven’t played since 2023.
Still, this is not a routine SEC matchup for the Bulldogs. Mississippi State comes in ranked higher than it has in a game against Alabama since 2017, and an upset would send a shock through the sport. From Oregon’s standpoint, either result would matter: Alabama could drop, or the Ducks could create more separation from a Bulldogs team that sits just one spot behind them.
One more game to keep on the radar is Washington against No. 18 USC, with Oregon’s previous opponent facing the Ducks’ rival in the Pacific Northwest.
That game is set for 4:30 p.m. PT on NBC.
There are also a few games tied to former Ducks coordinators. Will Stein’s No.
24 Kentucky Wildcats play South Carolina and quarterback LaNorris Sellers, with kickoff at 1:15 p.m. PT on SEC ESPN Network.
Tosh Lupoi’s California Golden Bears visit UNLV at 12:30 p.m. PT on CBSSN.
Kenny Dillingham’s Arizona State Sun Devils host Baylor at 7:30 p.m. PT on ESPN.
In Other News...
Joe Smiths Maryland Legacy Just Took On New Meaning
Joe Smiths place in Maryland basketball history is already secure, but it is about to get another layer. The former Terrapins star and No. 1 pick in the 1995 NBA Draft will be inducted into the Maryland Athletics Hall of Fame on Oct. 16, with the announcement coming during a Maryland Athletics Celebration in New York City. For a program that has long leaned on its tradition, Smith remains one of the most recognizable names tied to it.
What makes the honor resonate beyond the resume is how connected Smith still is to the school. He remains actively involved with Maryland basketball and has spoken with pride about what he meant to the program and what the program meant to him. The Hall of Fame call is a formal recognition of a career that already carried weight, but it also reflects a relationship that has never really faded. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Heads To Nebraska With One Problem It Has To Fix
Maryland heads to Nebraska trying to steady itself after the kind of loss that exposes more than one flaw at once. The Terrapins have spent the last week looking back at a disappointing outing against UCLA, and the issues are easy to spot: the quarterback play needs to settle down, the running game has to do more, and the defense is dealing with injuries that can make every drive feel heavier than it should.
Nebraska offers a tricky next step because the Cornhuskers have opened 4-0 and have the look of a team that can make opponents pay for mistakes. There is one wrinkle, though, as Nebraskas top running backs are doubtful for the matchup, which adds a little uncertainty to a game Maryland already needs to approach with urgency. For the Terps, the bigger question is whether they can fix enough of their own problems in time to keep this trip from turning into another long afternoon. [Read more 🡒]
Maryland Faces A Bigger Question Than Nebraska This Week
Nebraskas trip to Michigan State was a reminder that the matchup ahead carries more than just another early-season data point. The Cornhuskers came out of East Lansing with a road win, Anthony Colandrea helped drive the offense with two touchdown passes and plenty of production on the ground, and a defense that generated six sacks and three turnovers made sure the result never tilted the other way. For Maryland, which now waits as the next test, the Nebraska result only sharpens the spotlight on where the Terrapins stand right now.
Maryland has talent back on the field and pieces that should keep the conversation about progress alive, but injuries and uneven play have made the bigger issue hard to ignore. The concern is not simply how the Terrapins match up with Nebraska this week, but whether the program is getting enough out of a roster that should be doing more. In that sense, the upcoming game is about more than one opponent on the schedule. It is another chance to see whether the issues around consistency and coaching can be papered over, or whether they are becoming the story in their own right. [Read more 🡒]