2009 Oregon Ducks Betting Recap

Online betting players watched Oregon get off to, possibly, the worst start that any team got off to in 2009 as the Ducks lost 19-8 at Boise State, and to make matters worse, star running back LeGarrette Blount was suspended for the year after punching a Boise State player. However, the Ducks responded with seven straight wins, including back-to-back wins at home against then-No.18 Utah and then-No.6 California. The win over the Golden Bears was a 42-3 annihilation that made the league stand up and take notice of the Ducks, who followed big wins at UCLA and Washington with a 47-20 demolition of USC on Halloween, but they then ran out of steam in a 51-42 loss at Stanford. The Ducks would end their regular season with three exciting wins against Arizona State, Arizona and a 37-33 victory over Oregon State in the “Civil War”, as the average score was 42-32 over those three games. Also, when it comes to the “Civil War”, it was the first time that a Rose Bowl berth was on the line, which makes the rivalry win that much sweeter. The Ducks' season ended on a low with a 26-17 loss to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

Even without Blount, the Ducks' rushing offense was sixth in the country last year, and quarterback Jeremiah Masoli improved as a passing pivot throughout the season. Freshman LaMichael James replaced Blount, racking up nine 100-yard games, while Masoli was also a running threat in the Ducks' spread offense. The defense made it difficult to bet on the Ducks because you had no idea which unit was going to show up: the one that shut down Cal, or the one that got lit up by Stanford. But with their offense, which was sixth in the nation in points scored, the defense only really had to be decent.

2010 Preview To Bet Oregon Ducks

If you think things got bad for the Ducks last year, 2010 may not be the best year for their NCAA football betting odds. Masoli is suspended for the season after a burglary charge, and James will miss the season opener against New Mexico thanks to a harassment charge, and linebacker Kiko Alonso is also out for the year because of legal problems. Losing Masoli is a huge problem for the Ducks as he was the perfect general for their spread attack, and he was getting better through the air (he may redshirt and return for his senior year in 2011). Nate Costa isn't the scrambler that Masoli is, but he's used to the system, which is good for coach Chip Kelly. James will be back after the first game, and to replace tight end Ed Dickson, the Ducks have a freshman coming in, Curtis White, who is also a hometown boy. On defense, the Ducks lost some players up front, but Kenny Rowe is back to try and equal his 11.5 sacks from last year. Eddie Pleasant is also a threat to rush the quarterback from the safety position, but the Ducks gamble a lot on that side of the ball, and it sometimes bites them.

The Oregon schedule doesn't allow the Ducks to play two straight games either at home or on the road, so that's going to be something to watch for. As we said, the Ducks will open up at home against New Mexico before heading to Tennessee for a date with the Volunteers. Portland State will visit before the Ducks head to Arizona State, then welcome Stanford to town before travelling to Washington State. UCLA visits Oregon on October 21st, and then nine days later, the Ducks will head to USC, who could have revenge on their minds after the Halloween rout at Oregon in 2009. November will be tricky for the Ducks, who host Washington and Arizona, while heading to Cal and Oregon State for another edition of the “Civil War”.

It's tough to bet on the Ducks with all the major changes surrounding the program. Costa is a solid quarterback, but he doesn't have Masoli's explosiveness, which was the key to last year's attack. The line is decent and James had a great season last year, but now that Masoli isn't in the backfield, the opposition can focus on stopping him. The defense has to be more consistent and take fewer chances, but that's not likely. The Ducks are co-favored with Oregon State to win the Pac-10, but we think the loss of Masoli to the offense will be too much for their sports betting odds to overcome.