No. 1 Oregon looks to hang on to top spot at Wisconsin

Record-setting quarterback Dillon Gabriel and undefeated Oregon will be out to solidify the top spot in the College Football Playoff rankings when the Ducks visit inconsistent Wisconsin in a Big Ten matchup at Madison, Wis., on Saturday.

Oregon (10-0, 7-0), No. 1 in the CFP rankings released Tuesday, routed Maryland 39-18 last weekend behind three scoring passes by Gabriel, who broke the NCAA record for total career touchdowns.

Wisconsin (5-4, 3-3) is coming off a bye after a 42-10 loss at Iowa, one of the worst defeats in Luke Fickell’s two years as coach.

“We’re still having a lot of fun, coming up every single day to get better and find ways to improve,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said Monday. “The challenge of this new conference, the travel and some of the teams that we got to play, it’s been a lot of fun for us.”

Gabriel, a sixth-year transfer from Oklahoma, completed 23 of 34 passes for 183 yards against the Terrapins. That gave him 180 total touchdowns (147 passing, 33 rushing), surpassing the 178 touchdowns (155 passing, 23 rushing) that Case Keenum produced for Houston from 2007-11.

Gabriel leads the nation in pass completion percentage at 74.1 percent (237 of 320) for 284.8 yards per game, with 22 touchdowns and five interceptions.

Gabriel and the Ducks’ passing game present obvious difficulties for the Badgers’ secondary.

“They’re going to be challenged in different ways,” Fickell said Monday. “That’s the beauty of college football. You can be challenged each and every week in a lot of different ways and this one may be one we haven’t seen really the entire year.

“The ability for them to throw the ball downfield. The dynamic of the wide receivers that they have. Obviously, the quarterback and the ability of him to make plays both with his feet and in the air.”

James Jordan paces the Ducks’ ground game with 946 yards (5.7 per carry) and 10 touchdowns.

Oregon has been efficient in the red zone with 39 scores in 44 opportunities, including 32 touchdowns.

The Ducks, who have scored 30 or more points in each of their past nine games, average 35.7 points while allowing 16. Oregon averages 457 yards per contest and is giving up 293.7.

Wisconsin took consecutive early-season losses to Alabama and Southern California, then dominated Purdue, Rutgers and Northwestern during a three-game winning streak. However, the Badgers have since lost to Penn State, now No. 4 in the CFP rankings, and Iowa.

In their five victories, the Badgers outscored opponents 34.4 to 8.6 per game, with a 454-239 average advantage in total yards. In four losses, Wisconsin was outscored 37.5 to 13.5.

Redshirt sophomore Braedyn Locke, who took over at quarterback when Tyler Van Dyke suffered a season-ending knee injury against Alabama, threw two costly interceptions against Iowa. Locke has completed 56.8 percent of his passes for 177.3 yards per game, but he has eight picks along with eight touchdown tosses.

Against Iowa, the Badgers allowed 329 rushing yards, 6.1 yards per carry.

In the teams’ most matchup, Oregon edged Wisconsin 28-27 in the 2020 Rose Bowl when the Ducks were still in the Pac-12. The Badgers have not defeated a No. 1-ranked team since a 31-18 upset of Ohio State in 2010.

–Field Level Media