Joel Klatt outlines how Oregon could play its way out of College Football Playoff

Joel Klatt is a believer in Oregon and its abilities. However, of all the teams in the Top 10 of the initial College Football Playoff rankings, he’s thinking the Ducks are the likeliest to play their way out of the dance, considering their schedule.

“Oregon has a ridiculously difficult November. Oregon has to go to Kinnick,” Klatt explained, via The Joel Klatt Show. “It looks like it could be rain, sleet — nasty weather in Iowa on Saturday. They’ve got a USC team coming to town. And then they’ve got to go to Washington.

“So, of all the teams in the Top 10, the team that I think is actually the most likely to lose a game or maybe even two is Oregon. And I think very highly of Oregon, Dan Lanning and that staff, that team. Do I think that they’re going to lose? Probably not. They’re going to be favored in all of those games. But at Washington is a scary proposition.

“Washington owns Oregon and Husky Stadium. At Iowa is no picnic, in particular with the weather coming in that we’re starting to see for Saturday. You know, so Oregon of the teams in the Top 10 right now, if I was looking at a team and I was like, ‘I have to bet on a team something happening and falling out,’ it would be Oregon.”

Oregon losing and missing out on the CFP would certainly be a wild proposition, especially with how impressive the Ducks have looked over Lanning’s tenure. Still, Klatt makes some salient points — Oregon has a difficult schedule, and if the Ducks can’t come through, the committee will have no choice but to leave them out.

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Meanwhile, Kirk Herbstreit thinks Klatt’s prediction might come true. He foresees an upset in Oregon’s future.

During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Thursday, the ESPN College GameDay host predicted the Ducks would lose to Iowa on Saturday: “I’m telling you. We all love Dan Lanning. We all love the Ducks and their potential. But, there’s just something about certain teams at Iowa when you go to November,” Herbstreit said.

“The only blessing they have is—it’s not a night game, right? If it were a night game, it’d be a given it’d be a loss.“But at 3:30, it’s going to get dark in the second half. And I’m telling you, Iowa is just going to be typical Iowa. It’s gonna be ugly. It’s gonna be like 15-12. You’re going to wonder, ‘How the hell did we get 15-12?’ But that’s the fun with Iowa. We don’t know how we got to 15-12.”

Herbstreit ultimately changed his prediction to Iowa winning 16-15 on a game-winning field goal. If the Hawkeyes win Saturday, they’ll improve to 7-2 on the season and 5-1 in Big Ten play. Herbstreit believes Iowa could be a CFP contender if it pulls off an upset against Oregon.

“Right in the mix, especially if they win that game,” Herbstreit said. “No longer winning with punting and defense. … I’m telling you, just be careful. At the very least, [Oregon] is either gonna escape, or they’re gonna lose. That’s what’s gonna happen.”

— On3’s Grant Grubbs contrubuted to this article.