Following its first bye week of the season, Penn State plunges into Big Ten play with a top-10 matchup against Oregon in Beaver Stadium, one of the most anticipated games of the season at a national level.
Though both teams have had vanilla play-calling on both sides of the ball against weak competition to this point, the Ducks have appeared to be the more polished team despite having significantly higher offseason turnover than the Nittany Lions.
Penn State couldn’t have asked for a better lead-in, with nonconference games against Nevada, Florida International and FCS Villanova followed by an idle week, though it could serve as a double-edged sword. The Nittany Lions haven’t faced competition anywhere near Oregon’s level and they’ve traditionally struggled after bye weeks under head coach James Franklin.
Penn State also has improvements to make schematically and mentally after subpar offensive outputs so far this season. Through three games, quarterback Drew Allar produced his worst statistical start to a season since taking over in 2023, while preseason first-team All-American running back Nick Singleton hasn’t looked like himself.
If the Nittany Lions want to earn revenge in a rematch of last year’s Big Ten championship game, they’ll need to play their best football of the season and get some help from one of the best home environments in college football.
Here’s what to know about the Ducks before they visit Happy Valley.
HEAD COACH
Dan Lanning is in his fourth season as head coach of Oregon, where he boasts an impressive 39-6 record, including an elite 14-2 mark on the road. Four of Lanning’s six losses at Oregon have come against teams that either won or played for the national championship. The other two were one-score losses against top-20 opponents. He’s also 2-0 against the spread as a road underdog, and the Ducks are 3.5-point underdogs in this game.
Lanning is renowned as a great recruiter and has put together two top-five classes with the Ducks, aided by a large NIL war chest from mega-donor and Nike founder Phil Knight.
Prior to arriving in Eugene, Lanning spent three seasons as the defensive coordinator at Georgia, including winning a national championship in 2021. Lanning also had brief stints with Alabama, Arizona State, Pitt and Memphis, primarily in defensive roles.
COORDINATORS
Oregon’s offensive coordinator is Will Stein, who arrived in 2023 for Lanning’s second season after his predecessor Kenny Dillingham left to be Arizona State’s head coach. Stein also holds the title of quarterbacks coach, the position he played at Louisville from 2008-2012.
He worked with quarterback Bo Nix for one season, turning him into a Heisman contender and helping him set the FBS single-season completion percentage record in 2023.
Stein also worked last season with quarterback Dillon Gabriel, who finished as a Heisman finalist and put up elite numbers. Against the Nittany Lions, Gabriel completed 22 of 32 passes for 283 yards and four touchdowns, resulting in the most points Penn State allowed all year.
“They’re multiple, is the best way I would describe (the offense),” Franklin said. “Multiple personnel groups, multiple tempos, multiple schemes. They’re able to run the ball with power; they’re able to spread you out as well.”
Defensively, Tosh Lupoi was part of Lanning’s original staff, arriving in 2022 after spending time with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons and Cleveland Browns in the NFL. Lupoi was previously at Alabama from 2014-18, including one year as defensive coordinator, which overlapped with Lanning’s first season at Georgia.
Lupoi also has West Coast ties after serving as Cal’s defensive line coach from 2008-2011 and Washington’s defensive line coach from 2012-13.
The Ducks have consistently played stingy defense under Lupoi, though they’ve been gashed against top competition, allowing 30 or more points 12 times since the start of 2022. Over that span, Penn State has allowed 30 or more points just five times. Still, his name has popped up in head coaching conversations due to his successes.
Lupoi’s defenses are characterized by showing pressure at the line of scrimmage before dropping into different looks, causing stress on opposing quarterbacks and offensive lines.
Oregon’s special teams is run by Joe Lorig, who notably held the same role at Penn State from 2019-2021. He also has previous special teams experience with Arizona State and Memphis. The Ducks’ special teams unit has been middle-of-the-pack over the last few seasons, per PFF grades.
STANDOUT PLAYERS
Though Oregon’s roster experienced heavy turnover this offseason, it’s still loaded with stars after several consecutive strong recruiting classes. During his Monday press conference, Franklin spotlighted quarterback Dante Moore, wide receiver Dakorien Moore, tight end Kenyon Sadiq, running back Jayden Limar, linebacker Matayo Uiagelelei, defensive lineman A’Mauri Washington, linebacker Teitum Tuioti, safety Dillon Thieneman, linebacker Bryce Boettcher, wide receiver/punt returner Gary Bryant Jr., punter James Ferguson-Reynolds and kicker Atticus Sappington.
Dante Moore, who ranked as the No. 3 quarterback recruit in the 2023 class by 247Sports, originally committed to UCLA and spent one season with the Bruins, where he split reps with Ethan Garbers. When Bruins head coach Chip Kelly left to become the offensive coordinator at Ohio State, Moore transferred to Oregon where he sat behind Gabriel for a year.
Through four games as the Ducks starter, Moore has completed 192 of 316 pass attempts for 962 yards, with an impressive 11-1 touchdown-interception ratio.
Dakorien Moore (no relation to Dante), who ranked as the No. 1 wide receiver recruit in the 2025 class by 247Sports, was originally committed to LSU and was expected to flip to Texas but ultimately ended up at Oregon for his freshmen season. He’s lived up to expectations, consistently producing flashy plays through four games.
Reports swirled that he was carted off during practice leading up to last week’s game against Oregon State, but he earned the start and continued his dominance with three receptions for 63 yards and a score before being taken out of the game.
Sadiq is widely regarded as one of the best tight ends in the country, both for his receiving ability and blocking prowess. Last year, he had two catches for 30 yards against the Nittany Lions. This season, he’s on pace to set career highs across the board.
Uiagelelei, the younger brother of quarterback DJ, was named first-team All-Big Ten by the media last season but wasn’t eligible for the NFL draft as a true sophomore. This year, he’s picked up where he left off and will likely give Penn State some trouble.
Thieneman led the Big Ten in tackles last season at Purdue before transferring to Eugene, and he’s been a valuable addition to an Oregon secondary that was leaky at times last season.
Additionally, running back Noah Whittington, who Franklin didn’t name, is expected to return from injury this week and boost the Ducks’ ground game. He didn’t play against Northwestern or Oregon State but has 159 yards on 14 carries this season for a whopping average of 11.4
RECORD
Oregon enters the game at 4-0 after comfortable wins over a pair of “OSU”s who wear orange and black — Oregon State (41-7) and Oklahoma State (69-3), plus wins over FCS Montana State (59-13) and Northwestern (34-14). The Ducks have looked dominant even in games against power conference foes, though Penn State will be far and away their toughest test yet.
SERIES HISTORY
The Nittany Lions hold a 3-2 advantage in the all-time series despite dropping the most recent meeting. The first matchup came in the 1960 Liberty Bowl, which Penn State won 41-12, the largest margin of victory in series history.
The teams met shortly after for a home-and-home in 1963 and 1964, with the Nittany Lions winning the first bout 17-7 and the Ducks bouncing back in State College the next year, 22-14.
Penn State capped off its undefeated 1994 season with a 38-20 win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl, the last meeting as nonconference opponents.
Last year, the two met in the Big Ten title game, with the Ducks pulling out a 45-37 shootout win to advance to 13-0.
PREDICTION: OREGON 23, PENN STATE 20
Penn State is a consensus 3.5-point favorite heading into this matchup, but Oregon has played like the more dominant program through the first four weeks of the season.
Even after losing wide receiver Evan Stewart before the season, the Ducks have showcased a prolific passing attack. The team is among the best nationally in explosive plays and has a stable of options in the run game.
With Allar and Singleton struggling to find their footing against lesser competition, Penn State’s offense hasn’t earned much trust to this point. While the Nittany Lions’ defense has continued to play at an elite level, a combination of scheme and play-making can help the Ducks find the end zone multiple times.
Oregon’s lone weakness this season has been in run defense, but Allar isn’t a mobile quarterback and Singleton has been unimpressive through three games, allowing the defense to home in on Allen and force Penn State to make plays through the air, which it’s struggled to do against better competition.
The Nittany Lions’ elite defensive line should get consistent pressure against the Ducks’ offensive line, which has shown vulnerability, but Oregon’s passing attack has enough star power to cause fits if Dante Moore can get the ball out quickly.
The White Out environment should make things difficult and keep Oregon’s offense from truly finding rhythm, but Penn State’s offense has consistently come up short in big moments, and that may be the case again on Saturday night.
