Oregon Still Given Strong Chance to Defeat Northwestern Despite Struggles

In what was supposed to be a special year for the Oregon Ducks football team, the opposite has occurred.

Oregon came into the season with high expectations of winning the National Championship, with many around college football thinking that they had the strongest roster. But from the opening game of the year, the team has underperformed, showing signs of trouble.

The Ducks now will be entering this coming week with a record of 4-3 on the season, coming off a tough loss to the Illinois Fighting Illini. Oregon had been trying to get back on track, but the loss to Illinois was a brutal one.

After the loss, Oregon did fire offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer, who had been blamed for a lot of the problems of the team. It remains to be seen if losing Mehringer will help the team get back on track, but this was the first of multiple potential dominoes to fall around the program.

Oregon will now be getting ready to host the No. 20 Northwestern Wildcats this week, giving the team a chance to get a big win. Northwestern has been very competitive this season, holding a record of 6-1 on the season, including going 3-1 in Big Ten play.

Despite all the issues going around the Ducks right now, the team is still being looked at as favorites to take down Northwestern this week. According to the ESPN matchup predictor, Oregon has been given a 70.2 percent chance to grab the victory at home.

For the Ducks to get the win over the Wildcats, the offense is going to have to get going. But it remains to be seen who will be under center for the team, with starting quarterback Dante Moore still out after a scary head injury a few weeks ago.

With the Ducks offense being a concern, the defense will be tasked with containing the strong Northwestern offense. Led by quarterback Aidan Chiles, the Wildcards have put together an efficient attack each week.

Chiles has thrown for 1,617 yards with 12 touchdowns and one interception this season so far. In addition, Chiles uses his legs to his advantage, having rushed for 189 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground.

The Ducks' defense will be tested again this week, but even with the issues going around, the team still has faith that they can salvage the year. Kickoff between the Ducks and Wildcats is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET at Autzen Stadium.