Oregon vs. Stanford Free College Football Picks for Week 5

No. 3 Oregon has opened 4-0 for the first time since 2014 and looks to move to 2-0 in the Pac-12 for the third straight season. The Ducks will have to do it on the road as they travel to Stanford, who is 2-2 on the year, 1-1 in the Pac-12 and will be playing its third ranked opponent in the last five games. For your NCAAF picks, read my prediction below!

Oregon Ducks vs. Stanford Cardinal

Saturday, October 02, 2021 - 03:30 PM EDT at Stanford Stadium

Oregon has moved to No. 3 in the country after opening the season 4-0 for the first time since 2014. The Ducks look to go 5-0 for the first time since 2013 and improve to 2-0 in the Pac-12 for the third year in a row.

The Ducks will have to do it on the road, as they travel to Stanford for their first Pac-12 road game this season. Oregon’s previous road trip resulted in a win at Ohio State to highlight its non-conference schedule. Stanford is 2-2, 1-1 in the Pac-12 and will be playing its third-ranked opponent in the last five games.

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Limping Into Stanford

Oregon won its Pac-12 opener last week, against Arizona, 41-19, and the Ducks saw the return of a few key players who had been out with injuries.

Defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux returned from a sprained ankle, briefly, in the Arizona game, but went back to the bench midway through the contest. Coach Mario Cristobal is confident he’ll be able to play more against the Cardinal.

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"I think he responded well physically," Cristobal said. "I think he's in good shape to play an entire game. I think he will. It was important for him to get into that game."

Linebacker Mase Funa also returned from injury and played a little over half the game. Cristobal said that Funa “felt great” afterward. Defensive end Bradyn Swinson didn’t play against Arizona, missing his second straight game. He’s already been ruled out this week as well. Safety Daymond David is expected to return this week, but he will be on a snap count in the game.

Rash of Injuries

Stanford put up 24 points in its home loss to UCLA last week, which is impressive considering the number of players the Cardinal was missing. Three running backs—junior Austin Jones and sophomores Casey Filkins and EJ Smith—all missed the games with undisclosed injuries.

Smith, averaging 5.1 yards per carry, will also miss this week’s game. Coach David Shaw said he was “hopeful” the other two would be able to return for Oregon. Sophomore tight end Benjamin Yurosek also missed the game.

Kyle Philips #2 of the UCLA Bruins celebrates after catching a five-yard touchdown pass against the Stanford Cardinal. Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images/AFP.

Stanford also had its backup quarterback who comes in for short-yardage situations—Isaiah Sanders—go down to injury during the game. “He was not able to come back,” Shaw said. “So we lost our running quarterback as well, which made a lot of those third down and short things different for us because we had a plan with him. We have other plays of course that we went to, but that was tough.”

The defense was also hit hard by injury. Safety Noah Wiliams, DB Zahran Manley, and corner Ethan Bonner all missed the game with an injury, and the team was already missing a pair of projected starters in the secondary—Salim Turner-Muhammad and Jonathan McGill, who were hurt in the preseason and have yet to play.

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Stanford will need to improve its offensive line play. The one remaining running back, Nate Peat, was hit in the backfield on several occasions as defenders were able to get penetration. Shaw complained that his quarterback was also “running for his life” much of the day.

The Pick

According to the NCAAF odds, the Ducks are favored by more than a touchdown, but the game appears headed for more of a mismatch than that. Stanford has been hammered by injuries on both sides of the ball, and the Ducks had a heavy talent advantage even before Cardinal players started going down.

Stanford will struggle to contain an Oregon offense that has scored over 30 points in every game. Look for the Ducks to roll to a double-digit victory on the road at Stanford.

NCAAF Pick: (visit our Sportsbook Review)

*The pick reflects the line at the moment the writer made the play, the odds at the beginning of this article show the live line movement. Since the lines might vary, don’t forget to refer back to our live odds.