Oregon vs. Stanford: Ducks' Spread Option Will Expose Overrated Cardinal Defense

At 9-0, the Stanford Cardinal are the No. 4 team in the nation. Because of that, you can't take much away from them. At the same time, however, I believe they are living off a reputation that was built by former head coach Jim Harbaugh.

Stanford undoubtedly has a good team, but it isn't as great as its record would suggest. On the surface, the Cardinal would seem to have a fantastic offense and defense, but that is only half right. Stanford is extremely dangerous offensively because of the sublime play of quarterback Andrew Luck, but the defense has benefited from an incredibly easy schedule.

The Cardinal have allowed an average of 16.6 points per game, but they haven't played anybody. Stanford has feasted on the cellar dwellers of the Pac-12, as well as Duke and San Jose State. The Cardinal have only played two ranked teams to this point, with those being Washington and USC.

Washington certainly wasn't as good as their No. 25 ranking suggested though, meaning USC has been the only true test. Stanford's defense nearly failed that test by giving up 48 points, but Luck and the offense bailed them out in a triple-overtime victory.

With that said, Stanford will undoubtedly face its stiffest test of the season on Saturday night when it takes on the No. 7 Oregon Ducks who are the defending National Championship runners-up. Oregon does have a loss to LSU this season, but its offense continues to be as dominant as ever.

Few teams have an offense more explosive than Oregon's spread option. Athletic quarterback Darron Thomas and unstoppable running back LaMichael James run the attack to perfection and are almost always successful in keeping opposing defenses off balance.

Both Thomas and James were struck by injury this season, but they have each gotten two games under their belts ahead of the Stanford game and seem primed to be at their best. The Ducks have averaged 46 points per game this season against a similarly-easy schedule, but they have proven themselves across multiple seasons.

If not for the fact that the Ducks had to play LSU in Week 1, they could very well be undefeated also. Even so, they are very much in the thick of the Pac-12 race, meaning a win over Stanford would be absolutely huge.

I expect Oregon's defense to give up plenty of yardage and points to Luck and Co. as well, but the Ducks will simply be too much for the Cardinal. Oregon put up 52 points in a win over Stanford last season, and we could see a similar result on Saturday night.