Oregon is back at Autzen Stadium on Saturday afternoon with a chance to steady its season, and the challenge is a good one: No. 20 Northwestern comes in at 6-1 and 3-1 in Big Ten play for a Halloween matchup that carries plenty of attention.
The Ducks are trying to snap out of a rough stretch after dropping three of their last five, including a 21-10 loss at Illinois last weekend. Oregon is 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the conference, and it will take the field as a 3.5-point favorite, according to DraftKings and BetMGM.
This one also comes with a couple of notable firsts. Northwestern is making its first-ever trip to Autzen Stadium, while Oregon is playing a home game on Halloween for the first time since beating USC 47-20 in 2009.
The Ducks’ issues have piled up in recent weeks. The season-ending loss of starting quarterback Dante Moore and the dismissal of offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer have forced Oregon to shift gears, with Jay Johnson taking over play-calling duties as the program searches for answers on offense. The results have been thin: Oregon has managed just 42 combined points over its last three games.
That offensive slowdown has put even more weight on a defense that has been the team’s most reliable unit for much of the year. Up front, the Ducks continue to lean on outside linebackers Matayo Uiagalelei and Teitum Tuioti. Uiagalelei leads Oregon with six sacks, while Tuioti has piled up 4.5 sacks over the last two games.
For Dan Lanning, though, the bigger issue goes beyond scheme or production. He wants to see how his team reacts when the game starts tilting the wrong way.
"I think we're still a team that, at times, just doesn't handle adversity well," Lanning said. "When it's good, there's a level of energy and effort.
When it's not good, it almost looks like your dog died. You just can't operate that way in our profession and in the job that we do.
You've got to bring it every single play."
Lanning said he has seen encouraging signs in practice this week, but he knows those improvements have to show up when the lights come on.
"You're not in charge of the outcome, but you are in charge of how you can influence outcomes with your effort, your energy and the things you're responsible for," Lanning said.
The series has been even so far, with Oregon and Northwestern splitting their two previous meetings. The Ducks won the last one, taking a 34-14 road victory in Evanston last year.
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