Autzen Audibles: DuckTerritory's Oregon athletics podcast · 247Sports, Oregon Ducks, Oregon Football, Oregon Ducks Football, Oregon Basketball, Oregon Recruiting, Oregon sports

Breaking down Oregon’s brutal, big-time 2026 schedule

·40 min·2 clips

Eric Skopel calls Ohio State to Michigan back-to-back in November “real tough.”

1. Autzen Audibles: DuckTerritory's Oregon athletics podcast focuses on Oregon football’s newly released 2026 Big Ten schedule. 2. Matt Freem and Eric Skopel host the discussion, and their Oregon beat context matters because they react to the schedule minutes after the Big Ten release. 3. The episode asks what Oregon’s 2026 slate means for the Ducks’ championship chances and how hard the back half of the schedule really is. 4. The hosts start with the known early games: Boise State at home, Oklahoma State on the road, and Portland State at home. 5. They then identify September 26 at USC as Oregon’s Big Ten opener and note the bye week that follows on October 3. 6. Eric Skopel says the USC road trip is tough, and Matt Freem says he does not like the bye placement after that game. 7. The conversation turns to the eight straight games that follow, including UCLA, Nebraska, Illinois, Northwestern, Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, and Washington. 8. Matt Freem calls the November finish a bear, and Eric Skopel says going 12-0 or even 11-1 would be a major feat. 9. Both hosts say Oregon was not done favors by the Big Ten, even though they expected a difficult schedule based on previous seasons. 10. They place Portland State, Oklahoma State, UCLA, and Michigan State in the bottom tier because each had a poor 2025 type season or changed coaches. 11. Eric Skopel says those games would not surprise him if Oregon won by 30 points or more. 12. They put Boisie State, Nebraska, Northwestern, and Illinois in a more difficult middle tier, with Eric calling some of those matchups two- or three-score favorites for Oregon. 13. Matt Freem says Illinois is tricky because Luke Altmyer is gone and so many of Illinois’ recent playmakers are gone too. 14. They treat Washington and Michigan as similar teams, but Eric says Michigan after Ohio State is the more stressful game because of the physical punishment that comes first. 15. Matt Freem says USC in late September could feel like a crossroads game for Lincoln Riley because USC does not face a major test until Oregon. 16. Eric Skopel says the Ohio State game could be the national game of the week, but USC may matter more to Oregon’s playoff margin because a loss there would create immediate pressure. 17. The hosts describe the episode as a quick, reactive breakdown, with Matt reading rankings and Eric responding in real time. 18. The tone is analytical and conversational, with schedule tiers, rivalry context, and a lot of talk about travel, weather, and roster depth. 19. Listeners who follow Oregon football and Big Ten scheduling will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting broad college football news without Oregon specifics can skip it.

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