10 juicy college football revenge games we can’t wait to see in 2020: LSU-Alabama, Notre Dame-Clemson, more
By John Buhler
8. Oregon Ducks vs. Arizona State Sun Devils (Friday, Nov. 13)
An underrated game on the college football schedule this fall will be the one between the reigning Pac-12 champion Oregon Ducks and the Pac-12 South contending Arizona State Sun Devils. Though Oregon is the class of the West Coast, this game means a ton to the Ducks, given what happened last year in Tempe.
Herm Edwards’ team handed Mario Cristobal’s squad its second loss of the season in the Valley of the Sun. While it was the only Pac-12 blemish on Oregon’s resume, adding it to a neutral-site loss to the Auburn Tigers in Arlington resulted in the Ducks missing their best opportunity of getting to the College Football Playoff since 2014. The Rose Bowl had to do instead.
With this game being played at Autzen, it should be one the Ducks put away the defensive-minded Sun Devils fairly easily. However, we can’t ignore the terrific job Edwards is doing at Arizona State. Not to say they’ll win in Eugene this fall, but that’s the hardest game on the Sun Devils’ schedule. Oregon should win this one but expect a good fight from Arizona State.
7. Texas Longhorns at LSU Tigers (Sat. Sept. 12)
As part of a home-and-home, the Texas Longhorns will look to avenge their early-season home loss from last year against the reigning national champions in their place. Texas’ date with the LSU Tigers at Death Valley is the crown jewel of its non-conference schedule. Winning in Baton Rouge will be tough sledding, but the Longhorns might have the quarterback advantage in the ball game.
Sam Ehlinger wisely returned to Austin for his senior season. Though Myles Brennan offers a ton of promise at the position, he has massive shoes to fill in replacing Joe Burrow. If this game were in Austin, you could say the Longhorns might be favored to win it. But with it being a road date, even a rebuilding LSU team should have the leg up over their Power 5 counterpart.
What we’re getting here is two of college football’s blue-blood programs going at it in a rare non-conference affair. If LSU wins at home, it’ll put Texas’ championship aspirations on life support. Should the Longhorns go into Death Valley and survive, maybe Texas will finally be on its way to being back? This is an early-season narrative game if there ever was such a thing, it’s ridiculous.