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The race for the College Football Playoff is heating up and the discourse around some of the bubble teams is at an all-time high. Oregon is sitting pretty s the only undefeated team in the FBS and is looking to cement its spot as the No. 1 seed in the 12-team bracket with a win over No. 3 Penn State in the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday night.
Before the Ducks take the field seeking their first Big Ten title in their first season in the conference, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning had a message for some of the teams on the CFP bubble, via John Canzano of 750 The Game.
“Doesn't the SEC pay the bills? Isn't ESPN's contract with the SEC?” Lanning questioned. “That's how it works. Let's not pretend it works different than that. There's a secret to all of that. Just win. Just win. They can't deny you if you just win. You can't complain if you just win. If you lose three games, shame on you. If you lose two games, shame on you. Win.”
Lanning has had no problem doing that this season, as he has led the Ducks to a perfect 12-0 record. Even with a loss on Saturday night, Oregon will be comfortably in the playoff field as the No. 5 seed and would get to host a first round game in Eugene at Autzen Stadium. Meanwhile, other bubble teams such as Alabama and Miami are campaigning for the final spots with multiple losses.
Oregon continues to roll in first Big Ten campaign
Oregon finished its first Big Ten regular season with a perfect record, and now there's just one ore mountain to topple in the conference slate. That will come on Saturday night in the conference title game against Penn State. Oregon is a slight favorite to take home the championship and lock itself in as the top seed in the CFP.
The biggest advantage that Oregon has in this one is on the perimeter. It will have a big speed advantage on the outside on both sides of the ball, but it's the Ducks' secondary that has a chance to really make things difficult. As it has been for the last few years, Penn State's biggest weakness is its lack of explosiveness at wide receiver. With corners such as Jabbar Muhammad, Oregon has the talent to make throwing the ball very difficult.
Of course, the name at the top of the scouting report on the other side will be Penn State's superstar tight end Tyler Warren. Warren is one of the most versatile tight ends in recent history in college football. The Nittany Lions give him the ball out of the backfield, they throw it to him a ton and he is an elite blocker in the running game. Warren will surely be a first-round pick this spring, so Oregon must slow him down.
Whether Oregon can get a win over a very good Penn State team or not, Lanning and company are one of the few teams that have a chance to win a national title. That makes their first season in the Big Ten a raging success.
