How good is Oregon? How weak is Colorado? USC might give us clearer answers on both fronts

Over at Ducks Wire, editor Zachary Neel is evaluating Oregon after its blowout of Colorado.

Neel wrote:

“Through four weeks, Dan Lanning looks to have a team that is good enough to not only make it to the Pac-12 Championship Game in Las Vegas at the end of the year, but also compete for a spot in the College Football Playoff.

“Why not be optimistic and believe it’s possible? It costs the same…

“The naysayers will point to the schedule, and the level of competition so far, using the low-tier caliber of opponents that Oregon had displaced thus far as the main piece of evidence against the Ducks’ optimism. The team from Eugene has a winning margin of 216-53 through four games, which is the 6th-highest margin in school history. They blew out Portland State and Hawaii, while picking up a gritty win over Texas Tech down in Lubbock. On Saturday, they put an end to the No. 19 Colorado Buffaloes’ Cinderella start to the season with a 42-6 beatdown that looked over before the 1st quarter was even close to complete.”

Is Oregon really that good, or is Colorado really that bad?

Guess what? We have a USC-Colorado game which might provide clarity on that front.

A lot of people think Colorado’s offense will get healthy versus USC’s defense. USC certainly didn’t put its best foot forward against Arizona State, in marked contrast to Oregon’s clean, polished performance versus Deion Sanders’ group.

How USC plays Colorado will be measured against Oregon’s standard.

Questions will soon be answered in the Pac-12.

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Follow Buffaloes Wire for complete coverage of Deion Sanders and Colorado, as CU prepares to play USC on Fox Big Noon Saturday.

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