NCAA Football Saturday – Oregon Ducks at Purdue Boilermakers
The Oregon Ducks (2-0 SU & ATS) have rolled through their first two games of the 2008 season. Now the Ducks will go on the road to face off against the Purdue Boilermakers (1-0 SU, 0-0 ATS) in a key NCAA inter-conference matchup that is set to kick off at 3:30 PM ET at Ross-Ade Stadium (natural turf) in Lafayette, IN.
Saturday, September 13
BetUS NCAA football Betting Odds: OREGON -8
Here are some of the NCAA college football betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* ORE has won and covered 11 of its last 15 games
* ORE has covered five of its last seven road games
* ORE has won four of its last six road games SU
* PUR has won four of its last five home games SU
Oregon looks like it might have an offensive juggernaut on its hands, even after losing Dennis Dixon and Jonathan Stewart to the NFL. The Ducks, who walloped Washington 44-10 in the opener after having to turn to its third and fourth-string quarterbacks, rolled up 688 yards (a school record) against Utah State last Saturday in a 66-24 win over a team that had covered seven of its last eight as a road underdog. Justin Roper, who threw for four touchdowns in last season’s 56-21 Sun Bowl win over South Florida, was lost in the opener with a concussion, but came back last week to complete 13 of 18 for 173 yards. The Ducks gained eight yards per pass, 7.7 yards per rush, and turned all Utah State offensive advances into “garbage” after getting off to a 38-14 halftime lead.
Compared to the Washington and Utah State defenses Oregon has faced, Purdue looks like the second coming of the Monsters of the Midway. As such, the Ducks may need ail of Jeremiah Johnson, who left last week’s game with a dislocated shoulder.
Purdue was lightly tested in its opener, a 42-10 win over Northern Colorado, but all indications are that the Boilermakers, who averaged 34 ppg last year won’t be hurting for scoring punch. Curtis Painter threw for 29 TD’s with just 11 pickoffs last year, and is one of the most highly-regarded senior quarterbacks by NFL scouts.
With Kory Sheets, he’s got a pro prospect at running back to work with, as well as one of the top wide receivers in the country in Greg Orton.
Coach Joe Tiller feels he has his best defensive line ever at Purdue, and if they are successful in slowing down the Ducks ground game, which has rambled for 664 yards thus far, that will put some pressure on Roper, who will be starting for the first time in front of a hostile crowd.
Painter threw for 546 yards in the Motor City Bowl last year, and did a great job at cutting down on his interceptions last year (had 19 in 2006). With the more experienced quarterback at the controls, the Boilermakers can trade points every step of the way. We’ll grab the number with Purdue, the eight-point underdog in the BetUS NCAA football betting odds.
