With a month of the season in the books, Oregon’s remaining 2026 schedule deserves a fresh look. Each of the Ducks’ eight leftover opponents has now played enough football to reveal something real, and that makes the question a lot easier to sort through: which games are actually the hardest?
Here’s a new ranking of Oregon’s remaining regular-season matchups, from easiest to toughest. This isn’t the first pass at it, either - I’ve already taken a swing at this in January, again in June, and once more right before the season kicked off. This version will keep getting updated every week as the picture gets clearer.
- at Michigan State on Nov. 20
Michigan State sits at 2-2 overall and 0-1 in conference play, and it still looks like the weakest roster among Oregon’s remaining opponents. At this point, it’s hard to see the Spartans finishing with anything but the roughest Big Ten record on the Ducks’ schedule.
Nebraska handled them with ease in East Lansing over the weekend, jumping out to a 17-3 lead and never giving it back. There just isn’t much evidence right now that Michigan State can be a real threat.
In fact, it’s difficult to find more than one or two conference wins on the slate. Upcoming games at Wisconsin and home against Illinois and Northwestern don’t look especially promising based on how they’ve played so far.
- vs. Washington on Nov. 28
Washington is 3-1 and 0-1 in Big Ten play, but the trajectory hasn’t been encouraging. The Huskies opened conference play with a loss to Minnesota on Saturday night, and they’ve already had to grind through non-conference games that were closer than expected against Washington State and Utah State.
They came in as 11.5-point favorites against Minnesota and didn’t come close to living up to that number. Washington trailed by multiple scores for most of the night and couldn’t run the ball or keep quarterback Demond Williams Jr. upright; he was sacked seven times.
The Huskies have a brutal stretch ahead, with a trip to No. 18 USC this weekend and then a Friday home game against No.
14 Iowa.
- at Illinois on Oct. 24
- vs. Northwestern on Oct. 31
Northwestern is still 2-0 overall, though it’s 0-1 in Big Ten play, and even in defeat it made a strong impression. The Wildcats went on the road and pushed Indiana far harder than many expected, staying in a one-score game for most of the fourth quarter. Indiana caught a few breaks, but Northwestern still left the league with a message: this is not a soft landing spot.
Aidan Chiles was sharp in the loss, finishing 22-of-29 for 293 yards and two touchdowns. The Wildcats have been on this writer’s radar all season as a possible sneaky-good team, and that case is getting stronger. They’ve already beaten South Dakota State and Colorado, and they’ll get another big test this weekend at home against Penn State, with the Nittany Lions listed as only 2.5-point favorites.
- vs. Nebraska on Oct. 17
Nebraska is 4-0 and has done it in convincing fashion, winning by an average of 30.5 points. The Huskers are fifth in the Big Ten in scoring offense and fourth in scoring defense, and they’ve looked dominant through the early part of the season.
That said, the schedule has been soft - ESPN’s strength-of-schedule metric has Nebraska at 120th. They’ll host Maryland this weekend, then things get much more serious with No.
6 Indiana coming to town before the trip to Eugene. There are still plenty of questions about the Huskers, and Oregon should have a much clearer read by the time that game arrives.
- vs. Michigan on Nov. 14
Michigan is 3-1 and 0-1 in Big Ten play, and its conference loss was the most painful of the bunch. The Wolverines were locked in a tight battle with Iowa all afternoon, and for the second time this season, one of their games ended with a game-winning touchdown on the final play - only this time, it didn’t go their way.
Maybe that’s football karma. Either way, Michigan still looks vulnerable.
By the time it reaches Autzen, it could be a beaten-up team. The next three games will tell the story: at Minnesota this weekend, then a bye week, then home games against Penn State and No.
6 Indiana. They need to come out of that stretch with more wins than losses.
- vs. No.
23 UCLA on Oct. 10
UCLA has been one of the biggest surprises in the Big Ten. The Bruins are 4-0 overall and 2-0 in league play, and they’re the only conference team with two Big Ten wins so far. That’s a long way from where Bob Chesney’s team was projected in the preseason, when it was picked to finish 13th.
Now UCLA is one of six Big Ten teams ranked in the AP Poll, and its latest win was easily the most impressive. The Bruins absolutely flattened Maryland, 54-3, in a game that was never competitive.
Both UCLA and Oregon are heading into bye weeks, which means this matchup will come with the added weight of a ranked showdown. Four of Oregon’s first five opponents are currently ranked.
- at No. 5 Ohio State on Nov. 7
In Other News...
Oregon Suddenly Has A Bigger Quarterback Question After Beating USC
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Dan Lanning came away impressed with the way Raiola handled the moment, especially the confidence he showed in a spotlight game that could have unraveled quickly. Still, the bigger question for Oregon now is Moores health, and the Ducks will spend their bye week sorting out how serious the injury is and what it might mean for the stretch ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon Just Sent Lincoln Rileys USC Problem Into Overdrive
USCs loss to Oregon did more than hand the Trojans a damaging defeat in the standings. It also reopened the conversation around Lincoln Rileys tenure, with Paul Finebaum using an ESPN First Take appearance to press on the bigger issue hanging over the program: whether Riley has actually moved USC forward in a meaningful way.
The critique landed because the game itself offered USC plenty of offense, but not enough balance to survive Oregons pressure. Defensive problems again loomed large, and Rileys overall record has started to draw uncomfortable comparisons to Clay Heltons time in charge. Add in the shifting College Football Playoff prediction market and the margin for error is shrinking fast, leaving USC with more questions than comfort after this one. [Read more 🡒]
Marcus Mariota Just Gave Ducks Fans A Reason To Pay Attention
Marcus Mariota got another turn under center Sunday, and the former Oregon star made it matter. Starting for the Washington Commanders in place of injured quarterback Jayden Daniels, Mariota helped guide Washington to a 33-31 win over the Seattle Seahawks, delivering a steady performance in a game that stayed tight throughout.
Mariota completed 19 of 31 passes for 183 yards and three touchdowns, a line that will resonate with Ducks fans who still keep one eye on his NFL stops. Seattle got big production from Sam Darnold in his return from injury, as he threw for 379 yards and four touchdowns, but also turned it over twice, leaving Mariota and Washington with the final edge in a high-scoring finish. [Read more 🡒]