Good Luck Ducks, Week 7: Friday Night Lights

Oregon hosts Colorado on a late Friday night. 

Are the Ducks officially a defensive juggernaut? Some of the stuff they're doing on the field hasn't been seen in this conference since the '90s. Oregon didn't get any points on the board until the third quarter last game, something that hadn't happened in about fifteen seasons, but panic was minimal. The defense was holding down their opponent. The offense did what they needed, and victory was assured.

Oregon also saw the return of no less than three receivers last week, all making their season debuts (if not their Duck debuts). Justin Herbert had no shortage of targets to throw to, but a conscious decision to (re)establish the run probably kept the overall numbers down a bit. (Cal's defense was also a factor.)

Next up is the better-than-expected Colorado Buffaloes in a night game on a short week. The Buffs are led by senior quarterback Steven Montez, who notched his first victory as a freshman against Oregon in Autzen back in 2016. It wasn't a good time for the Ducks, but it was glorious for the redshirt freshman. Montez is the Pac-12's second leading passer in the current season, which means he'll likely provide the strongest test to date for the Ducks secondary. (They've faced two backup QBs so far.)

• The Last Game: The Ducks ran the ball a lot, forgot how to take of the ball, and then figured out in the third quarter to overtake Cal in a predictably low scoring affair.
• Know Your Opponent: Steven Montez is still dreaming of 2016.
• The Unis!: Yellow yellow yellow. You can't miss 'em!
• Mario Cristobal's "Crystal Ball" prediction: "We saw a lot of progress and we expect to build on that." Outlook good.

• Luke Skyywalker's Crystal Balls say: Colorado was one of the first states to legalize weed for "fun" purposes. Get that weave out!

Game time is 7:00 PDT on FS1. Joe Davis, Brock Huard and Bruce Feldman are on the call. Go Ducks!