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Week nine of the college football season is almost here, and this weekend's slate is packed with good games. There are numerous matchups featuring top-25 teams this week, and they will all be crucial as the race for the College Football Playoff is heating up. One top-25 matchup this week that should be interesting features Dillon Gabriel and the top-ranked Oregon football team taking on #20 Illinois. Both of these teams have high hopes for the final stretch of the regular season, and the winner of this game will be in great shape.
Oregon is a big favorite in this one, but Illinois has been quietly taking care of business all year long as they have just one loss, and it came in a tough road environment at Penn State. However, this road task will be on a similar level as Dillon Gabriel and the Ducks are firing on all cylinders right now. This should be a fun game.
Before we talk more about Gabriel and make some predictions, let's take a deeper look at both of these squads.
Illinois has College Football Playoff hopes
Not very many people are talking about the Illinois football team as a real contender to make the College Football Playoff, but the Fighting Illini can absolutely make that happen. A win on the road against the #1 team in the country would certainly go a long way. It's unlikely, but anything can happen in college football.
Illinois is currently 6-1 on the year, and their one loss is against Penn State as we previously discussed. The Nittany Lions are currently undefeated and ranked #3 in the country, and that game was a night game at Beaver Stadium. The Fighting Illini hung tough, but they couldn't get it done.
Other than that, Illinois has taken care of business. They have nice wins over Nebraska and Michigan that knocked both teams out of the polls, and their schedule after this week shapes up very nicely for a 10 win season.
Oregon football has national title hopes
The Oregon football team is also thinking about the College Football Playoff, but the difference between them and Illinois is that a lot of people can see the Ducks being the last team standing. Oregon is currently ranked #1, and they have one of the best wins in the country as they took down Ohio State a couple weeks ago.
Oregon is as legit as it gets, and a big reason why is quarterback Dillon Gabriel. Gabriel transferred to the program in the offseason, and he has been sensational. He is in the conversation for the Heisman trophy, and he can lead this team to great things.
The Ducks have lofty goals, but first, they have to worry about taking care of business against a pesky Illinois squad. Here are three predictions for Dillon Gabriel in the game:
Dillon Gabriel will only throw one touchdown pass
Dillon Gabriel is the most important offensive weapon that the Oregon football team has, but the Ducks won't need to use him a lot in this game. Illinois' weakness is run defense, and the Ducks will lean on that part of their game to get the win.
Dillon Gabriel won't have any turnovers
The biggest thing for Gabriel this weekend will be playing turnover free football. The only chance that Illinois has in this one is if Gabriel plays an uncharacteristically bad game and doesn't take care of the football. He doesn't need to do much in this one. Play clean football and let the run game do its thing.
Dillon Gabriel and Oregon will win comfortably
Gabriel will help lead Oregon to a comfortable win this weekend. Illinois is a solid team, but they aren't good enough to go beat the #1 team on the road. The Ducks will cruise to a 38-17 win.
Illinois and Oregon will kick off from Autzen Stadium in Eugene at 3:30 ET/12:30 PT on Saturday, and the game will be airing on CBS. It's a top-25 matchup, but the spread doesn't make it look like one. The Ducks are favored by 21.5 points.
Other notable week nine games
This matchup between the Oregon football team and Illinois could end up being a close one, and there are a lot of other good matchups across college football this weekend as well. Let's take a peak at the slate.
ESPN's College GameDay heads to the biggest game of the week every week, but they sometimes will choose another campus to hit more schools that don't typically get as much attention. They will be in Bloomington this weekend as Indiana is 7-0 and hosting Washington. The Hoosiers are hot, but there are definitely some bigger games this weekend.
Starting in the ACC, 5-1 Syracuse will take on undefeated #19 Pitt on Thursday night. That's a huge game in the conference race. We also have a rivalry game on Saturday as #6 Miami will be hosting Florida State. The Seminoles are 1-6, so this was expected to be a better matchup when the season began.
There are a couple intriguing matchups in the Big 12 as well. Kansas and Kansas State will get together for a rivalry clash, and the Jayhawks will look to spoil the Wildcats' season. Also, Cincinnati at Colorado under the lights in Boulder will be a good one as well.
The Big Ten has a lot of good games this weekend. Washington at Indiana is obviously an intriguing one, and Nebraska at Ohio State is one to watch as well. In the afternoon, the Illinois-Oregon game is the one to watch, and then there are a couple good night games as well. It's rivalry week in Michigan as the Wolverines will host Michigan State, and #3 Penn State has a tricky road test against 5-2 Wisconsin.
In the SEC, there are three top-25 matchups this weekend. #21 Missouri will visit #15 Alabama, and the struggling Crimson Tide need a win. #5 Texas will look to bounce back from their loss against Georgia as they will travel to play #25 Vanderbilt. Lastly, #8 LSU will visit #14 Texas A&M under the lights.
Not done yet! Teams not in conferences matter too, and we have a top-25 clash between #12 Notre Dame and #24 Navy this week. Buckle up, week nine is going to be fun.
