Oklahoma State has never hosted Oregon before, and the last time these two met it ended 69-3 in Eugene. Now the Cowboys get their shot at payback in Eric Morris's first home game as head coach.
Bush’s Picks
OREOKST
OREOKST
OverUnder
Best BetOregon
Oregon walks in as the far better team on paper, and last year's 69-3 final in this series still hangs over it. Moore is a Heisman-caliber quarterback with a defensive front loaded with returning production, while Oklahoma State is starting over with 62 new players under a first-year coach. Back the Ducks to win this comfortably against a Cowboys team that's still figuring out who it is.
Oregon
+Dante Moore back for a Heisman-caliber year
+Elite D-line returns all 4 starters
+Reached CFP semifinals last season
−First true road test outside Eugene this year
−New faces like Raiola still meshing in
−Blowout wins can breed early letdown spots
Oklahoma State
+Eric Morris, proven QB developer, hired
+Mestemaker led all of FBS in passing yards
+Total roster overhaul, 62 portal additions
−Finished 1-11 last season, worst since 1991
−Mestemaker's numbers came vs a weak schedule
−Lost 69-3 to Oregon a year ago
Dante Moore turned down NFL Draft money to come back to Eugene, and it's easy to see why — he threw for 3,565 yards and 30 touchdowns last season and enters 2026 as a legitimate Heisman name behind a Dan Lanning program that just made the College Football Playoff semifinals. On the other sideline, Drew Mestemaker is walking into a brand-new job: he led all of FBS in passing yards a season ago at North Texas under Morris, and now he's following his coach to Stillwater trying to do it again — except this time against a defense that isn't Group of Five.
The problem for Mestemaker is what's lined up across from him. Oregon returns all four starters on its defensive line, and edge rushers Matayo Uiagalelei and Teitum Tuioti combined for 19.5 sacks a year ago — that's not the kind of pass rush Mestemaker piled up 4,379 yards against. Oklahoma State countered with 62 transfer portal additions, one of the biggest roster teardowns in the country, so this is as much a get-to-know-you game for the Cowboys as it is a measuring stick, and the market has Oregon as a heavy favorite walking in.
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ORE Oregon
OKST Oklahoma State
Still, there's a version of this where Stillwater matters. It's Morris's first game in front of his own crowd, the roster is fresher than it's been in years, and a team that finished 1-11 last season — its worst mark since 1991 — doesn't have much to protect. Oregon, meanwhile, is the one with something to lose: a trip-up here would be a disaster for a team that's supposed to be playing for a national title in January.
Oregon Ducks
Sep 5?vs Boise State—
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Sep 5?@ Tulsa—
Recent form.
Oregon's turnaround under Lanning has been fast and total — the Ducks are living in the top tier of the sport now, and Moore's return alongside backs Jordon Davison and Dierre Hill Jr., who combined for over 1,300 rushing yards last season, gives them a run game to lean on if Mestemaker and the Cowboys' offense manage to hang around. For Oklahoma State, this game is about identity — Morris built his name on quarterback development at North Texas, and how Mestemaker's game translates against a Power Conference front will say a lot about whether six or seven wins and a bowl bid is realistic in year one.
Oregon Ducks
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Oklahoma State Cowboys
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Both staffs know exactly what last year's score looked like. The version of this game actually worth tuning in for is whether Oklahoma State's overhaul buys them anything resembling competitive football, or whether Saturday, September 12 just turns into more of the same.
