NCAA Football – Oregon struggles but defeats California 15-13

It not only takes a great team to be ranked on the No. 1 spot in the NCAA Football betting season; sometimes you have to get a little luck to make it pass a powerful team and clinch on to the top spot of the BCS ranking for yet another week. This was certainly a good chance for the Oregon Ducks defense to step up and show that the Ducks are not working their way into the BCS National Championship game exclusively on the prowess of its offensive team. The Ducks defense can also walk the walk.

Oregon had to struggle in the road as the California Golden Bears, 5-6 overall and 3-5 in the PAC 10 division, found a way to stall and bring down the Oregon’s offensive end, which this year has been the best in the Nation. The Golden Bears brought Oregon’s offense to a season low 317 yards. And that’s not all, not only did they kept the team from scoring more then one touchdown, they also kept the Ducks scoreless during two quarters. Now, to really get things into perspective, you need to consider that the Oregon Ducks have been hold scoreless on three other quarters so far this season. But California’s defense did the trick and kept the usually pouring offense from shinning.

And then there was the luck factor. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, California had a great chance to complete a 24-yard field goal and get ahead in the score by one point. Even though the junior kicker Giorgio Tavecchio completed the field goal, the Ducks were able to get a huge break in an illegal motion by the Golden Bears’ kicker. Tavecchio took a stutter step forward before the snap and the play was cancelled. As if that was not enough, he then missed a 29-yard try on the following play.

The Bears could have won this game, and they could have really hurt the Oregon Ducks chances of getting into the National Championship Game. They played the game well. To get California’s performance into the right perspective you need to consider that the Golden Bears kept Oregon 40 points beneath their season average. That’s a lot. California had been quite dominant when it came down to defending their home team advantage. But it was just not the case.

Oregon took the win. But it was evident that this was the closest game of the season so far. The Ducks had not won a game by fewer then 11 points this season, and that 15-13 was a clear proof that the Ducks where struggling and just barely managed to win. Sure, they were far from covering the spread, but hey, the Ducks are still a very reliable wagering option. They are 6-4 ATS for the season.

Oregon will now play Arizona as the team tries to keep leading the BCS standings. They shouldn’t struggle that much, as they Ducks are a -19