Utah vs Oregon Pac-12 Football Picks and Predictions

Utah vs Oregon Betting Preview

WagerTalk college football handicapper Tony Finn offers his Utah vs Oregon Pac-12 football betting preview for Saturday, November 20. At the time of posting, the Utes are a 3-point home favorite over the Ducks with the total sitting at 59 points.

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Utah vs Oregon Predictions

Utah Utes -3 vs Oregon Ducks
Total: 59 Points
Each of Utah’s last six games have gone over the total.
Utah is 15-6 against the spread in their last 21 Pac-12 games.
The under is 11-2 in Oregon’s last 13 games as a road underdog.

Circa opened the Utes as 3-point home favorites on Sunday at noon right here in downtown Vegas. The total opened at 58.5 and has held firm since Sunday’s posting of this Pac-12 tilt. There has been back-and-forth, with Utah issuing Oregon a flat 3-points and shortly after that buyback on Oregon plus the 3.5-points.

The Oregon Ducks have not yet achieved the label on the ladle best described as “dinner soup.” The Pac-12 hopeful that seeks the gift of eternal life, closer to “Powerball,” need only seek the services of Tug McGraw. The truth is that any mention of the “summer of 73” and Tug McGraw’s Mets is a stretch even by the most vivid of imaginations.

Oregon’s record isn’t equivalent to the Mets’ 34–46 in that warm and sunny summer of 1973. The Ducks are not in last place of any division, certainly not the National League East and Eugene is a long way from Queens. Nevertheless, the “You Gotta Believe” feeling that Oregon University, the athletic department, football coaching staff, players, and fan base, is real. If you too believe the road to being a member of the January Four is but a win, or two, possibly three … away.

Oregon Ducks

The Oregon Ducks (9-1, 1st in Pac12 – North) football team is on the Yellow Brick Road to Salt Lake City for a Saturday date with empathy or destiny if you ask a Duck. The Utah Utes (7-3, 1st in Pac 12 – South) host conference rival Oregon on Saturday for an important Pac-12 matchup. This Week 12 matchup between the Utes and the Ducks is potentially a preview of the Pac-12 title game. Both programs lead their respective conference division, and Kickoff is set for 7:30pm ET from Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake on Saturday, Nov 20, 2021. The game is scheduled to air on ABC.

The Ducks have won five straight games—the most recent against the Washington State Cougars. Senior quarterback Anthony Brown threw for 135 yards and a touchdown and added 17 rushes for 123 yards and a rushing touchdown.

The Ducks retained their No. 3 spot in the CFP rankings Tuesday and are on a five-game winning streak. The 23rd ranked Utes, the No. #3 team in the CFP poll, will face its most formidable challenge since a September upset of Ohio State in Columbus.

The Ducks finished with 329 yards rushing in the team’s Week 10 win over the Washington Huskies. The 300-plus yards on the ground was only the second time this season a team rushed for at least 300 yards against the Huskies. However, last Saturday, the Ducks were feeling grounded. The Anthony Brown led-offense took Washington State to the woodshed, and the Ducks rushed for 306 yards and outscored the Cougars 24-10 in the second half in an eventual 38-24 league victory over WSU.

Utah Utes

Utah is coming off a 38-29 win over Arizona, earning a third consecutive win. Utah outgained the Wildcats 468 yards to 329. Utah rushing attack is alive and well. The Utes bulldozed their way to 294 yards against Arizona last Saturday. In the win, running back TJ Pledger had 25 carries for 119 yards and two touchdowns. He has had over 100 yards rushing and at least one touchdown in back-to-back games.

Utah has won 17 of its last 18 home games, and with a win, Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham would become the all-time wins leader at the school with 142. In addition, Utah has scored 16 of its 27 rushing touchdowns in the last four games.

“We prepare the same way, meeting structure, practice structure, everything. That’s how you have to do it in the Pac-12 because if you don’t, it doesn’t matter who you play, you’re going to get beat if you’re not ready to go,” Whittingham told the Deseret News. “We approach it the same (way) every single week,” the Utes head coach added.

Oregon can snatch a Pac-12 North division title and secure a spot in the conference championship game with a win Saturday or an Oregon State loss. Utah earns the South crown with a win over the Ducks or an Arizona State loss.

These two teams are as close to kissing cousins as two college programs get. Utah averages 35.7 points per game on offense, Oregon 35.3. The Ducks surrender 22.6 points per game on defense, the Utes 23.8.

The Ducks’ 441 yards of offense per game is a handful of inches and three yards more than Utah’s average. For the Ducks, their offense begins and ends with the run. Utah can be described in the same term, words, and offensive scheme.

Oregon can clinch the North title and a spot in the conference championship game with a win Saturday or an Oregon State loss. Utah can clinch the South with a win over the Ducks or an Arizona State loss.

That all means that the Ducks and Utes are on a collision course for a rematch against each other in the Pac-12 Championship game on Dec 3 in Las Vegas.

The two teams are near mirror images of each other. Utah averages 35.7 points per game on offense, Oregon 35.3. The Ducks allow 22.6 points per game on defense, the Utes 23.8.

Oregon’s 441 yards of offense per game is only three more than Utah’s average. In winning five of their last six games, the Utes have scored no fewer than 34 points in each of the six.

“They’re a talented football team. They’ve recruited very well. They have a lot of staff continuity. They’ve done what they’ve done for a long time and worked together for a long time,” Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal said of the Utes. “They have a lot of guys who play with power. A lot of speed on that team, explosive players.”

For the Ducks, their offense starts with the run. The Ducks are tied for second in the nation with 31 rushing touchdowns, including 15 in the last four games. The leading rusher is Travis Dye, who needs 92 more rushing yards to reach 1,000 in a season for the first time in his career.

Oregon is fifth in the nation with a 51.56 percent third-down conversion rate, going 31-of-47 (65.9 percent) in the last four games, and the Ducks are averaging 297 rushing yards per game over the previous three.

Oregon owns more wins in the history of these two Pac-12 programs, but the Utes have won three of the last four head-to-head matchups. And Utah doesn’t lose on home turf in Salt Lake. So the dog in this Saturday night showdown has an immediate advantage. Any points given to the Utes in their backyard on a field they have lost once on in the last three years means a lot in a game that is set up like this one is.

Can Clemson spoil Wake Forest’s march to the ACC Championship game? Join Drew, Rob and Ralph as we preview the marquee matchups for Week 12 of the college football season https://t.co/9HV0zdrUg9

— WagerTalk (@WagerTalk) November 17, 2021

Utah vs Oregon Analysis from The GoldSheet

These two could well be playing the first of a two-game set, with the second leg being the Pac-12 Championship game scheduled for Friday, Dec. 3 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Both lead their respective divisions at 6-1 in conference play, but Utah, which can clinch the Pac-12 South with a win or an Arizona St. loss, has a potential stumbling block in this game with the availability of star RB Tavion Thomas in question. Thomas has 14 TDs on the season, and although backup TJ Pledger has topped the 100-yard mark three times this season (including 119 at Arizona subbing for Thomas). Ute coach Kyle Whittingham and his team were likely looking ahead to this showdown with the Ducks last week (perhaps resting Thomas just as a precaution). Oregon is in position for a berth in the CFB Playoff if it can run the table and looked impressive in handling Washington State Saturday. The Ducks rushed for 306 yards as QB Anthony Brown and frosh RB Byron Cardwell combined for 4 touchdowns.

Utah vs Oregon Video Preview

When Oregon travels to Salt Lake City on Saturday, will we be seeing a preview of the upcoming Pac-12 Championship Game? WagerTalk college football handicappers Drew Martin, Kevin Dolan and Bryan Leonard offer their Utah vs Oregon betting preview.

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