College GameDay returns to Eugene Saturday, as No. 7 Oregon hosts No. 15 USC. It’ll be the first time since 2007 that the ESPN pre-game show visits the Ducks twice in a season. And it’s the third time the Ducks will be featured this fall — GameDay was in State College when the team defeated Penn State in overtime on Sept. 27.
At a press conference this week, Ducks’ Head Coach Dan Lanning emphasized the importance of this weekend’s game, and the spotlight on the program.
“Weekends like this, with the distractions, with all the pieces that are going on, can be huge weekends for you in recruiting,” Lanning said. “And we’ve been able to live off of moments like that here in the past, and certainly want to be able to take advantage of that this weekend.”
Saturday’s winner will get a ranking boost for this year’s 12-team College Football Playoff.
It’ll be Senior Day for the team’s final home game. Graduating players will be honored, including South Eugene native Inside Linebacker Bryce Boettcher.
This weekend also marks the induction of Marcus Mariota into the Oregon Athletics Hall of Fame. Mariota will be the celebrity “guest picker” on College GameDay.
The GameDay show will once again be broadcast from UO’s Memorial Quad. TV coverage begins at 6 a.m. Pacific time.
Kickoff in Autzen Stadium is at 12:30 p.m.
Oregon State has a bye this week, and will face Washington State in Pullman on Nov. 29.
