After a long nine months, college football is back for Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks.
Many of the players are new, the opponent is different, but the expectations remain the same in Eugene as the Ducks look to make their way back to the Big Ten Championship game and defend their conference title, hoping to get back into the College Football Playoff once again.
It all starts with this week’s game against the Montana State Bobcats, a highly respected FCS program that has been among the best at its level over the past few years.
Each team will field a different roster in 2025, beginning at the quarterback position. Oregon will trot out former five-star passer Dante Moore, who will be pitted against former Stanford dual-threat quarterback Justin Lamson. Both have high hopes of delivering a successful season individually and for their teams.
Both teams have had things to build on so far, but the Ducks have gotten the better of the Bobcats through one half. Montana State will make some much-needed adjustments, but Lanning likely won’t change much and just hope to escape the game with no serious injuries.
Well, that was fun. There isn’t much more to say that hasn’t already been said here. It was just domination by the Ducks from start to finish. The games will assuredly get harder throughout the season, but this is as close to a stress-free win as you can get. Offense, defense and special teams were all aligned and should have Ducks fans feeling great about where their team is.
The Bobcats finally reached the end zone for the first time with just over two minutes left in the game. They led an impressive, sustained drive, but it likely had to do with most of the Ducks’ starters on defense exiting the game.
Davison has score three touchdowns today. No, that’s not a joke. The Ducks had the ball down at the two, but after being stuffed on three straight plays, they brought in a reinforcement. Davison barreled into the end zone to increase the lead to 53.
After failing to register a single sack through most of the first half, the Ducks’ defensive line is teeing off now. With a 46-point lead, they’ve taken the run game out of the equation and exploded for three sacks in about a quarter of play. They are making things extremely tough for Justin Lamson.
The Bobcats currently have the ball, but now all they can do is make the score respectable. An absolutely dominant performance from all three Oregon units today has created one of the biggest blowouts in this first week of football.
Davison’s second touchdown of the day put the Ducks up by over 40 points. Yes, you read that correctly. Lanning took Dante Moore out of the game with such a massive lead, but the offense still isn’t slowing down. Let’s see just how many points these Ducks can put up.
Matayo Uiagalelei entered the season as one of the most promising edge rushers in the country and he is showing why today. After another drive looked promising for the Bobcats, they fell behind the sticks. On third down, Uiagalelei forced a punt by delivering his second sack of the contest.
It looked like Montana State was about to force their first punt of the game after a holding call took the Ducks back to 3rd & 14. But a massive 50-yard catch-and-run by Jay Harris and a physical 14-yard touchdown by Gary Bryant Jr. ended those hopes. This is just becoming a beatdown.
The Bobcats came out and gashed the Ducks’ defense with multiple big plays in quick succession. But once they got down close to the red zone, Oregon stuck to their guns and stalled out the drive, forcing a field goal.
The Ducks came out firing on all cylinders, determined to start stronger than they did last season. All of their drives have led to scores so far and the defense is playing lights out. Halfway through, Lanning has all three phases of the team clicking. One more half of this and Oregon will walk off the field with a performance to be proud of.
The five-star quarterback aced his first real test as Oregon’s starting quarterback. Moore led the Ducks on a seven-play scoring drive in just 40 seconds. He showed a tremendous amount poise and confident on the series and finished with an impressive touchdown strike to wide receiver Malik Benson.
It’s tough to shutout anyone in football. The Ducks’ defense didn’t particularly struggle on Montana State’s first scoring drive, but they got just close enough to knock in a field goal.
This game is getting out of hand quick. Oregon had its longest drive of the day, 10 plays and 52 yards. Whittington put an exclamation point on the series with a physical one-yard touchdown to put his team up four scores.
The Ducks have lived in opposing territory throughout the first half. Another short field provided by the defense allowed Moore to lead the offense down the field quickly, which led to a two-yard rushing touchdown from Jordan Davison.
The first quarter went about as well as Dan Lanning could have hoped with such a new team. The running game looks unstoppable, Dante Moore has made a few nice throws, and the defense hasn’t given the Bobcats much room to breathe. Vastly different start to the season this year compared to last year’s opener.
After a promising drive for the Bobcats, the Ducks’ defense hunkered down and turned over Montana State on downs, setting up great field position for the offense once again.
After getting great field position from the special teams unit, Oregon failed to move the ball. They settle for a field goal, though and increase the lead once more.
The Ducks got their hands on another punt! This time, they were actually able to gain some ground in the field position battle, instantly setting up the offense in the red zone.
After an end-around from wide receiver Dakorien Moore picked up a decent chunk of yards, tight end Kenyon Sadiq finished off the drive just two plays later with a strong 20-yard touchdown. Just a perfect start here in Eugene.
The Ducks defense quickly got Montana State off the field, forcing a 3-and-out. Oregon got a fingertip on the punt, leading to a short 14-yard punt, setting the offense up with great field position.
The Ducks wasted no time putting points on the board. The Bobcats had no answer for running backs Noah Whittington and Jayden Limar as they combined for 61 rushing yards. Limar capped off the drive with an explosive 16-yard touchdown run to put the Oregon out in front.
What channel is Oregon vs. Montana State on today?
- TV Channel: Big Ten Network
- Livestream: FuboTV, BTN+, FOX Sports App
Oregon vs. Montana State will broadcast nationally on the Big Ten Network in Week 1 of the 2025 college football season. Jeff Levering and Jake Butt will call the game from the booth at Autzen Stadium, with Brooke Fletcher reporting from the sidelines. Streaming options for the game include BTN+, the FOX Sports App and FuboTV, which offers a free trial to new subscribers.
Oregon vs. Montana State time today
- Date:Â Saturday, August 30
- Start time:Â 1:00 p.m. PST
The Oregon Ducks vs. Montana State Bobcats game starts at 1:00 p.m. PST from Autzen Stadium in Eugene, OR.
Oregon vs Montana State predictions, picks, odds
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook as of Thursday, August 28
- Oregon, Montana State: Despite the Bobcats going far in last year’s FCS playoffs, the Ducks are much more talented and are a four-score favorite before kickoff.
- Spread: Oregon -27.5
- Over/under: 56.5
- Moneyline: Oregon -4500
Oregon Ducks Injury Report vs. Montana State
- LB Devon Jackson — Questionable
- S Kingston Lopa — Questionable
- TE Roger Saleapaga — Probable
- S Trey McNutt — Out
- WR Evan Stewart — Out
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