The Penn State Nittany Lions (11-1) is headed to Indianapolis this week to play in their second Big Ten Championship Game under head coach James Franklin. The Nittany Lions have arguably their toughest test ahead in that quest, the undefeated and No. 1 Oregon Ducks.
Prior to Saturday's clash between the Nittany Lions and Ducks, Happy Valley Insider takes a first look at Oregon.
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Game/Broadcast Details:
Where: Indianapolis, Indiana
Stadium: Lucas Oil Stadium (Official capacity of 70,000)
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Television: FOX - Gus Johnson (PxP), Joel Klatt (Color), Jenny Taft (Sideline)
Odds: Penn State opened as a +3.5-point underdog, over/under is 49.5 points.
An opportunity for redemption:
James Franklin has long been one of the top coaches in the Big Ten, but a knack for losing big games has haunted Penn State's leader during his tenure in Happy Valley. Franklin and the Nittany Lions have an opportunity for redemption and vault the program to new heights, which was the question everyone was asking coming into the season.
The same can be said for Dan Lanning at Oregon. The Ducks had opportunities to make the College Football Playoff the last two years, before falling off late in the season. In 2022 it was losses to Washington and Oregon State and in 2023, a pair of defeats against Washington doomed the Ducks' playoff hopes.
Oregon now looks primed to put those struggles behind them, already having beat Ohio State and now looking to notch a Big Ten title in the program's first year in the conference.
Ohio State and Michigan are now out of the way, allowing for Penn State and Oregon to take advantage of their big opportunity.
Key Oregon stats to know...
Gabriel leads potent passing attack:
Star quarterback Dillon Gabriel has been everything Oregon wanted and more after coming to Eugene out of the transfer portal last off-season. Gabriel is second to only Case Keenum in passing yards and touchdowns in college football history as he leads a potent passing attack for the Ducks.
Gabriel leads the conference in passing yards with 3,275, while having 24 touchdowns to six interceptions this season. He is also 10th in the nation in passing yards through 12 games.
Oregon also has an embarrassment of riches on the outside for Gabriel to throw to, with Tez Johnson, Evan Stewart and Traeshon Holden all with 581 receiving yards or more this season. Johnson paces the group with 67 catches for 685 yards and nine touchdowns.
Tight end Terrance Ferguson is also a difference maker, hauling in 35 catches for 490 yards and two scores himself.
Pass rush ramping up in Eugene:
Along with the explosive offense orchestrated by Will Stein, Oregon also possesses one of the nation's top defenses. The Ducks have given up more than 20 points just twice this season, coming against Ohio State and Washington. That mark has helped vault Oregon into the top ten nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 16.1 points per game this season.
A new wrinkle presented itself in Oregon's win over Washington last weekend, as well, as the Ducks sacked Demond Williams ten times in the 49-21 triumph. That pushed the Ducks into the Big Ten lead for sacks with 39.0, which is also sixth in the nation.
Series history:
Penn State and Oregon have seldomly met on the gridiron, with just four games in the all-time series, all of which coming before the turn of the century. The Nittany Lions took two of three matchups in the 1960s, with the Ducks winning their first and only game in the series in 1964. The two teams played 30 years later in the 1994 Rose Bowl, with Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions winning 38-20 in Pasadena.
The series is set to become more prevalent in the coming years with the Ducks joining the Big Ten, and the first meeting as conference foes is a big one in Indianapolis.
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