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ScoopDuck Roundtable: Surprise Storyline vs Ohio State

On3 imageby:Justin Hopkins•12/30/24
Oregon Rose Bowl
The University of Oregon Ducks Football team played the University of California Los Angeles Bruins in an away game at Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif., on Sept. 28, 2024. (Eric Becker/ericbeckerphoto.com)

We are just a couple days away from the Rose bowl in Pasadena. The next 48 hours will feel like a week as excitement builds towards what has the potential to be the best game of the college football playoff.

The rematch between Oregon and Ohio State is highly anticipated among college football fans everywhere. Will the Ducks make it 2-0 this season?

Here are our surprise storylines for how the rematch might play out.

Linden Hile: Ohio State pounds the run game

In line with my opposing player prediction, I don’t think Ohio State will make the mistake of abandoning the run game against Oregon a second time. With an elite backfield of Tre’Veyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, they’d be right not to.

The only real way we’ve seen Oregon’s defense have trouble this year has been against good running backs, whether that was Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty early on or Penn State’s one-two of Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton in the Big Ten Championship. I think coaches Ryan Day and Chip Kelly are smart enough to identify that and attack it with a good degree of success.

Max Torres: Kenyon Sadiq tops 75 all-purpose yards

Evan Stewart was probably the offensive MVP the first time these two teams met, but I think Sadiq will hear his number called some more on New Year’s Day. He’s one of the most athletic players on the Oregon offense and can hurt you in a lot of ways. He has a season-high of 58 receiving yards and I think Will Stein looks for multiple ways to get him involved in the offense, including screen passes, reverse sweeps and pop passes.

Collin King: Oregon dominates the trenches on both sides of the ball

This wouldn’t necessarily surprise everyone with how dominant Oregon has been able to be in the trenches for most of the year. That being said, Oregon defensively allowed nearly 300 rushing yards against Penn State, something that absolutely cannot happen again. The time off has allowed for Oregon to get fully healthy on that side of the field, while Ohio State has lost their starting center since the last time the two teams played. 

Jhop: Oregon Strikes First, Up Early

Oregon and Ohio State both show up with much different paths to the Rose bowl. The Ducks have had a lot of time off and are generally healthy overall. Ohio State had a game last weekend but seem relatively healthy, at least with similar personnel the last few games. I think Oregon is ready to strike and we’ll see the offense score on its first two possessions. Will the defense counter with holds of its own? We could see the Ducks up at half and able to “run the game out” for much of the second half.

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