The No. 19 Colorado Buffaloes will face their toughest test yet as they take a trip down to Eugene, Oregon, for a marquee matchup with the No. 10 Oregon Ducks.
After a 3-0 start to his Colorado career, coach Deion Sanders has walked the walk so far, but can he keep it up? Let’s take a look at the odds and make some picks for yet another fascinating matchup in this final Pac-12 season.
Colorado vs Oregon Odds
Track our latest CFB odds for the Buffaloes vs the Ducks.
NCAAF lines used below for Colorado vs Oregon are current as of Wednesday, Sept. 20, at 4:30 p.m. ET and courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
- Moneyline: Oregon (-1050) • Colorado (+675)
- Spread: Oregon -21 (-110) • Colorado +21 (-110)
- Total Points: Over 70.5 (-108) • Under 70.5 (-112)
Even though this features two ranked teams, the market is not buying the Colorado hype the same way the media is, and Oregon is heavily favored. This conference matchup is also projected to be a high-scoring one.
Oregon vs Colorado Prediction
SCORE PICK: Oregon 55, Colorado 38
Colorado has gotten off to a great start, pulling off a historic turnaround by starting 3-0 just a season after finishing with a 1-11 record. The Buffaloes kicked things off in impressive fashion with a road victory over last year’s CFP runners-up, TCU, before earning a nice out-of-conference win at Nebraska.
The newfound success is largely attributable to the arrival of coach Sanders, also known as “Coach Prime." He came over from Jackson State and brought in around 50 players via the transfer portal this offseason.
The list includes his son, quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who has been fantastic so far with over 1,250 yards in the first three games.
That being said, Colorado hasn’t played anyone like Oregon. TCU can’t defend as well as the Ducks, and Nebraska definitely can’t score like them.
Quarterback Bo Nix is at his absolute best right now, and it’s hard to imagine the Buffaloes picking up too many stops on defense, especially with Travis Hunter out after taking a dirty late hit in the overtime win over Colorado State.
Although Colorado boasts easily the best offense Oregon has faced thus far, the Ducks should win with relative ease.
Colorado vs Oregon Best Bets
Over 70.5 (-110)
DraftKings Sportsbook • WAGER: 1 Unit
This is my favorite play of the day, as opposed to anything on the actual outcome. Oregon has every ability to win going away, but I’m a bit afraid of the Ducks pulling their starters and allowing Coach Prime and offensive coordinator Sean Lewis to sneak back within a three-touchdown margin.
Speaking of Lewis, one of the big changes in Boulder this year is his “Flash fast” offense, which he honed and popularized during his time at Kent State. He completely turned that program around en route to its first-ever bowl win.
Colorado is not only moving the ball better but doing it at a faster pace. That means more possessions for both teams, which is good for the Over.
The Flash fast approach has led the Buffs to the 11th-highest pace of play in terms of total offensive snaps per game (73), and Oregon sits close behind (69).
These two offenses feature a ton of star power beyond QBs Sanders and Nix. Colorado has wideout Xavier Weaver and dual-threat running back Dylan Edwards, while rushers Bucky Irving and Jordan James are playmakers for Oregon.
With all of that talent playing at a high pace, there should be no lack of scoring, making this my CFB bet of the day.
Colorado: Over 23.5 Points (-115)
DraftKings Sportsbook • WAGER: 0.5 Units
Although the books agree that there should be a bunch of scoring in this one, the team totals imply the Ducks will be the main contributors. While I do see Oregon as able to throw any number they want on the scoreboard, it’s hard to know if or when they’ll pull starters, making their team total a bit risky.
Instead, let’s play Colorado, who will continue trying to score until the very last whistle. Coach Prime will want to keep things as close as possible for morale, stat accumulation, and maintaining the general hype around the program.
It’s more difficult to be marketable if you lose 55-10.
Oregon will set the tone here, but I like these near-even odds for Colorado to get well into that three-score range.
🏈 Find the best Colorado sports betting sites to bet on the Buffaloes.
Colorado vs Oregon Same Game Parlay
Colorado vs Oregon SGP (+215)
DraftKings Sportsbook • WAGER: 0.5 Units
- Oregon -10.5 (-275)
- Shedeur Sanders: 300+ Passing Yards (-225)
- Bo Nix: 300+ Passing Yards (-135)
This parlay expands on the main theme of prolific offense, allowing us to invest in Oregon at a number that should be comfortably covered. Even if the Buffs make a late push, it’s hard to imagine them trimming this deficit to single digits or anything close to that.
As for the quarterbacks, Nix is averaging just under this figure, but he hasn’t played many games where he’s been forced to keep throwing downfield for most of the contest. In the one game that stayed competitive, he passed for 359 at Texas Tech.
Even more damage could be done against Colorado’s porous defense. I’m slightly nervous that the Ducks might attack Colorado on the ground a bit too much, but with Hunter out, they should find endless air success.
As for Sanders, he’s second only to Heisman candidate Michael Penix Jr. with 417 passing yards per game and second to Hawaii’s Brayden Schager with 136 attempts.
With the Buffs likely trailing and the run game not as developed as Coach Prime or others might like, expect Sanders to breeze past 300 yards well before this goes final. Remember, he set the school record with 510 in the wire-to-wire road win over TCU.
