Oregon’s second game of the season has suddenly taken on a little more edge.
The No. 2 Ducks open the year Sept. 5 against Boise State at Autzen Stadium, but the road trip that follows to Oklahoma State on Sept. 12 is the one drawing plenty of attention. It’s the first away game of the season, and it arrives with a very different feel than last year’s meeting, when Oregon rolled to a 69-3 win over the Cowboys in Eugene.
This time, Oklahoma State has a new look. Former North Texas coach Eric Morris is in the mix, and quarterback Drew Mestemaker brings serious firepower after leading the FBS in passing last season. That combination has helped make the Cowboys a potential trap game for Dan Lanning’s team.
The interest around the matchup has only grown because single-game tickets for the game at Boone Pickens Stadium are already sold out. After Oklahoma State finished 2025 with a 1-11 record and moved on from longtime coach Mike Gundy, the sellout signals a program trying to turn the page - and a fan base eager for a visit from a Ducks team expected to contend for a national title.
Even with all that buzz, Oregon enters as the clear favorite. DraftKings Sportsbook has the Ducks as 18.5-point favorites for the Sept. 12 game.
That number comes with a reason. Oregon has been steady on the road under Lanning, and its last loss away from home came on Oct. 14, 2023, in a 36-33 defeat to Washington in Seattle. The Ducks should handle the trip to Stillwater, but covering the spread is another matter.
If Oklahoma State is going to spring the upset, Mestemaker is the obvious place to start. In his final season at North Texas, he threw for 4,379 yards, 34 touchdowns and nine interceptions while leading the country in passing. For the Cowboys to have a real shot, that offense likely has to turn this into a shootout.
Oregon has its own quarterback ready to drive the conversation. Dante Moore is coming off last year’s win over the Cowboys, when he completed 16 of 21 passes for 266 yards and three touchdowns. He heads into the season as one of the nation’s top quarterbacks and a Heisman Trophy contender, with the Ducks chasing the first national championship in program history.
The Oklahoma State game is also the first in a run of difficult road tests for Oregon. Later trips include No.
14 USC on Sept. 26 and No. 1 Ohio State on Nov.
Kickoff against the Cowboys is set for 9 a.m. PT on ESPN.
In Other News...
Bryce Boettcher May Have Just Played His Way Onto The Colts
The NFL preseason wrapped up with several former Ducks getting their final live reps before teams turn to cutdown decisions, and Bryce Boettcher made the kind of case players are always hoping to make in August. The Indianapolis Colts linebacker finished with five tackles and forced a fumble in a loss to Detroit, a busy enough night to stand out on a field full of rookies trying to carve out roles.
For Oregon fans, Boettchers showing was one of the more notable developments from the weekend, especially with other Ducks in different spots seeing lighter work. Chicago safety Dillon Thieneman started in a win at Tennessee but did not show up in the stat sheet, while Houston running back Noah Whittington and Jacksonville guard Emmanuel Pregnon did not play. A handful of other Oregon rookies were around the action in limited fashion, but Boettchers performance was the one that likely left the strongest impression as the preseason closed. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon Transfer Andrew Olesh Opens Up About The Game That Changed Everything
Andrew Olesh arrived in Eugene with a pretty clear memory of what Oregon looked like from the other sideline. The former Penn State tight end, once a top recruit, pointed back to the Ducks double-overtime win over the Nittany Lions during his freshman year as a moment that stuck with him, and it is part of the backdrop to his move to Oregon. Now he is trying to carve out a role in a tight end room led by Jamari Johnson, where the immediate task is straightforward enough: earn backup snaps and fit into a program that has already made a strong impression on him.
Dan Lannings track record was always going to matter in a decision like this, but Olesh also cited the personal connection he felt with the Oregon coach as a major factor in choosing to transfer. For a player still early in his college career, that mix of winning, trust and familiarity can be hard to ignore, especially when the destination is a team that already showed him something memorable in one of the games he watched most closely. The next question is whether that connection helps him turn a fresh start into a real foothold in Oregons offense. [Read more 🡒]
Former Ducks Are Turning NFL Roster Cuts Into A Real Debate
The early NFL roster churn has already put a few former Oregon Ducks back in the spotlight, and not always in the way they would have hoped. Dillon Gabriel closed the preseason with a strong showing for the Cleveland Browns, throwing three touchdowns, while Bryce Boettcher turned heads with his play for the Indianapolis Colts and safety Dillon Thieneman flashed enough in three games with the Chicago Bears to stay on the radar.
Jabbar Muhammad also did enough in Jacksonville to make the conversation more interesting, even if the Jaguars ultimately went another direction when they set their 53-man roster. With Gabriel currently on injured reserve, the bigger question for Oregon fans is which of these ex-Ducks can turn a good summer into something more permanent once the regular season pressure starts shaping real opportunity. [Read more 🡒]