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Oregon Ducks vs Arizona State Preview

This Saturday will pose a new challenge to the Oregon Ducks, in a season full of twists and turns.

Two weekends ago, the Ducks' manhood was challenged by USC, and Chip Kelly's crew answered the call to become, at the time, the Pac-10's undisputed heavyweight heading into November.

Last weekend in the San Francisco Bay Area, Oregon took the bulls-eye on its back to the Farm in Stanford, and got blasted by the rested and amped-up Cardinal despite another banner day from its offense.

Oregon, it is plainly apparent, has made all sorts of journeys this season, with three games still to be played. The Ducks were a national laughingstock after their week 1 meltdown in Boise. Then they became a factor again with the late-September lashing of California. The USC takedown lifted the Ducks to the top of the mountain, but as soon as they turned into the resident bigshot on the Left Coast, Stanford ambushed them.

America knows that Oregon's a hugely talented team, but anyone who lives outside the Western United States probably thinks the Ducks are vastly oversold after the Stanford loss. That's why this week's newest game, UO's present-day challenge, is so intriguing.

Will Oregon treat Arizona State - the week 11 visitor to Autzen Stadium for a late game that will end Sunday morning in the Eastern and Central time zones - as a serious foe, and as a stepping stone to better things in 2009? Or will the Ducks, following their high-profile tussles with USC and Stanford, get lazy and sloppy against the very limited Sun Devils?

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ASU gave USC a fight last weekend on the home turf of Tempe, Ariz., but not for any reasons relating to the Sun Devils' anemic offense. Regular starting quarterback Danny Sullivan has struggled all season, and against USC, Coach Dennis Erickson pulled his No. 1 man in favor of backup signal caller Brock Osweiler, a 6-foot-8 freshman as green and new as a fresh-cut spring lawn. Osweiler did throw for one touchdown against the Trojans, but a brief moment of success was tempered by an inability to generate any additional offense in the game's final minutes. Arizona State brings a hamstrung offense into Autzen Stadium, which should make the visitors easy pickings for the Ducks.

As long as the Ducks take the game seriously, that is.

Oregon is a top-10 level team, despite the ambush at Stanford. But now that they don't have any remaining margin for error in the Pac-10 race, the Ducks have to be sure to post results that match their abilities.

By Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Staff Writer