Oregon Ducks predicted to host CFP home game by ESPN's panel of analysts

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After debuting at No. 9 in the College Football Playoff rankings, the Oregon Ducks kept their playoff hopes alive with an 18-16 victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes in Week 11.

Just three regular-season games remain, with home tests against the Minnesota Golden Gophers and USC Trojans before a trip to the Washington Huskies on Thanksgiving weekend to close it out.

While the new CFP rankings have yet to be announced, the Ducks will presumably be in the final 12, potentially moving up a spot or two thanks to the victory. ESPN college football analysts Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach shared their CFP predictions in a recent article, with a positive outlook for the Ducks.

Bonagura has Oregon finishing at the No. 7 seed, while Schlabach has them at No. 8. Per the 12-team playoff rules, that would result in the Ducks hosting a playoff game — making it the first postseason event to be held at Autzen Stadium in program history. Bonagura has them facing off against BYU; Schlabach, Notre Dame.

Schlabach, already lower on the Ducks by putting them at No. 8, has them being upset by the Fighting Irish at home. Bonagura predicts that they'll take down the Cougars before meeting No. 2 Indiana in the Cotton Bowl, where Oregon's season ends.

"Oregon and Indiana both turned in iconic last-minute drives to win Saturday, keeping both on track," Bonagura wrote, explaining the difference between the two teams. "The win was particularly important for Oregon, which doesn't have the same margin of error as the Hoosiers."

It would be the second loss of the Ducks' season to Indiana, as they fell to them in Week 7 at home, 30-20. The loss was crushing, as Oregon went into the game with high expectations only for the offense to score a meager 13 points and the defense to allow an extended game-leading drive in the fourth quarter.

Three games plus nearly three weeks of pre-playoff practice give the Ducks plenty of time to prove both Bonagura and Schlabach wrong — as well as improving upon their ranking and making their path through the tournament slightly easier in avoiding fellow Big Ten powers in Ohio State and Indiana.

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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon Ducks predicted to host CFP home game by ESPN analysts

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