Saturday preview capsules
A quick look at this weekend’s major games around the Northwest. I heard there’s some game up in Seattle that a few people are excited about:
Oregon at Washington
When: 1 p.m., Husky Stadium
TV/radio: Fox Sports 1, Channel 408; UW radio AM 1550; UO radio AM 750.
Records: Oregon 5-0, 2-0; UW 4-1, 1-1.
Plot: No. 2 Oregon has won the past 10 games in the rivalry. But No. 16 Washington showed it can play with anybody in last week’s narrow loss to Stanford.
Oregon player to watch: Marcus Mariota’s eye-popping statistics (1,358 passing yards, 14 TD) have put the sophomore near the top Heisman race. Can he deliver in the Ducks’ first real test of the season?
Washington player to watch: The way to slow down Oregon’s offense is the dominate the line of scrimmage. That means nose tackle Danny Shelton, honorable-mention all-Pac-12 last season, needs to have a big game.
Line: Oregon by 14.
Oregon State at Washington State
When: 7 p.m. at Martin Stadium
TV/radio: ESPNU Channel 411; WSU radio AM 1360; OSU radio AM 620.
Records: OSU 4-1, 2-0; WSU 4-2, 2-1.
Plot: Expect the footballs to fly as two of the Pac-12’s top passing offenses clash. A much-improved WSU team would be in prime position for a bowl game with a win. OSU looks for its fifth consecutive win.
OSU player to watch: Sean Mannion (21 TDs, 2 INTs) leads the nation’s second-best passing offense at 420.6 yards per game.
WSU player to watch: Quarterback Connor Halliday shook off an injury the previous week to complete 41-of-67 passes for 521 yards and three TDs against Cal.
Line: WSU by 1.
Portland State at Southern Utah
When: 1 p.m. at Cedar City, Utah.
TV/radio: www.watchbigsky.com; AM 970.
Records: Portland State 3-3, 0-2; Southern Utah 4-2, 1-1.
Plot: Portland State looks to rebound from two straight losses to open the Big Sky season. The teams have contrasting styles as PSU’s potent offense meets S. Utah’s strong defense and a run-oriented offense.
PSU player to watch: Senior running back DJ Adams ranks second in the Big Sky Conference and 15th in the nation in rushing at 116 yards per game. His 7 rushing TDs ranks second in the Big Sky.
S. Utah player to watch: Linebacker Zak Browning leads the team with 53 tackles. The Union graduate was the Big Sky defensive freshman of the year last season.
Micah Rice
Columbian Sports Editor Micah Rice is the author of Tailgate Talk: College football from a Clark County perspective.