Oregon's College Football Playoff Hopes Slashes After 'Fumbling' UCLA Game

There are disappointing starts to a season, and then there is whatever is happening in Eugene this year. 

The Oregon Ducks came into the 2026 season as one of the favorites to win the entire College Football Playoff National Championship, but their year has gone incredibly sideways. In week one, they struggled mightily against the Boise State Broncos but were able to sneak out a win.

Then, they went down to Stillwater and got pushed around by the Cowboys en route to their first loss of the season. That was followed up by a bully win over Portland State and then a very good win against the USC Trojans that set up a showdown with UCLA.

Yesterday was one of those days that a coach and a player will never forget. The Ducks turned the football over a total of seven times, including five fumbles and two interceptions. Dylan Raiola was horrible, so much so that he got benched in favor of Brock Thomas, who kept the Ducks in it, almost to the point that they stole the win.

Unfortunately, they didn't get the win, and they come away with a two-point loss and now stand at 3-2 with the hopes of the postseason fading and fading fast.

As it stands on Sunday morning, the Ducks aren't even in the top 25 teams in percentage chances to make the CFP. According to ESPN's Allstate College Football Playoff Predictor, the 25th-ranked team is Mississippi State who has a 14 percent chance to make it. 

It's an uphill climb for the Ducks, but there is still a chance to get it done. 

There are no questions to be asked; the Ducks have to run the table over the final six games even to have a chance at the College Football Playoff. Those six games include a showdown in Columbus against the Buckeyes, plus home games against Nebraska, Northwestern, and Michigan. 

They need to handle the winnable games and then somehow find a way to upset the Buckeyes on the road.

It is going to be a really hard hill to climb for Dan Lanning's bunch, but they need to be up to the task. The biggest issue from Saturday was that, up until that game, their biggest issues were on the defensive side of the ball. Everything got reversed against UCLA, and they still came out empty.

It was a disappointing day that nearly put a dagger into their season before we even reached the halfway mark.