What will be the key factor for Ohio State to defeat Oregon this Saturday? Here’s the situation.

Before the season began, this Saturday was marked on the calendars of every Buckeye and college football fan, as it promised to be a clash between not only Big Ten title contenders but also national championship hopefuls. Now, six weeks into the season, the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes will travel to face the No. 3 Oregon Ducks in a primetime showdown at 7:30 p.m. on NBC.

As we anticipate this weekend’s high-stakes matchup, we want to gauge how Buckeye Nation is feeling about the game. In our weekly fan survey, we have a few questions to see where your confidence lies in OSU’s chances in Eugene on Saturday night.

Check out the questions below and make sure to share your thoughts at the end of the article. If you’d like to provide additional context or suggest an option not listed, feel free to do so in the comments section.

Question 1: What will be the biggest factor in Ohio State beating Oregon on Saturday?

While some Buckeye fans have pointed out flaws in Ryan Day’s team throughout the season, I’ve been mostly impressed with their performance so far. That said, I understand that they aren’t perfect, and Saturday’s game will be a real test.

The team has shown some concerning tendencies, like giving up too many third-down conversions and developing a bad habit of turning the ball over on offense. These are areas that need improvement for the Buckeyes to maximize their potential. However, I don’t believe any of these issues are fatal flaws that would single-handedly cause Ohio State to lose this — or any other — game.

I usually refrain from sharing my answer to these questions before seeing the results, as I don’t want to sway the respondents. However, I believe that linebacker play will be the most critical factor in the Oregon game.

Given the numerous offensive weapons the Ducks possess and quarterback Dillon Gabriel’s ability to run, the linebackers must execute fundamentally sound football and avoid getting misled by motion or misdirection that could take them out of position. Sonny Styles had a strong performance against a very different Iowa offense, but if the Ducks target this inexperienced linebacker and take advantage of his lack of experience at the position and his eagerness to make big plays, it could spell trouble for OSU.

Question 2: What will the margin of victory be in Saturday’s game against Oregon?

When FanDuel released its opening line, the Buckeyes were 3.5-point road favorites. The college football analytics model SP+ predicts that OSU will head into Autzen Stadium and win 29-26.

While all the metrics suggest it will be a close game, I honestly don’t think it will be that tight. Don’t get me wrong; when I share my official prediction on Saturday, I’m not expecting OSU to score 100 points, but I can assure you I won’t be predicting a three-point victory either. What’s your pick?