Those betting on NCAA football have heard some of the rumblings that the Pac-10 isn’t as good as the rest of the country, but there are a number of teams out west this season that are off to a great start. The top two teams in the conference are on a collision course this Saturday as Stanford heads to Oregon in what could be the best game of the week. Stanford Oregon Betting – Saturday, October 2nd, 8:00 PM ET
The No.9 Cardinal (4-0) showed a great killer instinct, scoring 18 points in the fourth quarter of a 37-14 romp at Notre Dame. Andrew Luck didn’t have his best game, going 19-of-32 for 238 yards, a touchdown and a pair of picks, but Stepfan Taylor stepped up with 108 yards on the ground for the Cardinal, who had 404 yards of total offense. The Cardinal also committed three turnovers, but they forced two and held the Fighting Irish to 351 yards, including a mere 44 on the ground. Nate Whitaker also nailed all five of his field-goal attempts for Stanford.
The No.4 Ducks (4-0) managed to escape Arizona State with a 42-31 win, mostly because the defense forced an outstanding seven turnovers out of the Sun Devils. That’s the only way they could have won because Arizona State hung 597 yards of offense on the Ducks, and they never let Oregon run away with it. Darron Thomas was 19-of-33 for 260 yards, two touchdowns and a pick, while LaMichael James had 114 yards and a score on the ground for the Ducks. Some online football betting players thought that the Ducks would take a step back when Jeremiah Masoli was kicked off the team, and while they’ve done very well, the Arizona State game brought up some concerns.
Betting services have the Ducks as a 7-point favorite at home, where they’ve won four of their last five against the Cardinal, and they’re a decent 3-2 ATS in those games. The Oregon defense showed some weaknesses last week, but they’ve probably had an intense week of practice, and they’ll look to take away James, forcing Thomas to beat them. But Oregon’s biggest advantage is Autzen Stadium, where they’ve won their last 12 and haven’t lost since falling 37-32 against Boise State back in 2008. Pound for pound, Autzen may be the loudest stadium in the country and the Ducks put up tons of points there. They also distract the opposing team, and if Luck can steer the Cardinal to a win there, he’ll be in the running for the Heisman. However, we think James will have a big day, whether Stanford keys in on him or not. Take the Ducks to cover when you’re betting online on Saturday.
