College Football

No. 3 Oregon's loss to Stanford could prove costly to Ducks' playoff hopes

Updated Oct. 3, 2021 10:36 p.m. ET

Just as quickly as one can become a national championship contender in college football, it can all be gone just as fast.

The No. 3 Oregon Ducks learned that the hard way on Saturday, losing 31-24 in overtime to a Stanford team that was just 2-2 coming into the game. It was a defeat that could prove costly to Oregon's hopes of competing in the College Football Playoff.

The Ducks had climbed into the Top 3 of the AP Top 25 after a stunning Week 2 win at Ohio State, but now they might have their work cut out for them if they want to get back into the national championship picture.

And what could make the loss even more of a stinger is the fashion in which Oregon lost.

After the Ducks rallied from a first-half deficit to take a 24-17 lead with about two minutes remaining, what followed was a collapse of epic proportions.

The collapse, though, didn't come without controversy.

On Stanford's drive to tie the game, Oregon star defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux was ejected for targeting, depleting the Ducks' pass rush.

After Stanford drove the ball the length of the field, Oregon believed it had the game-winning stop on fourth-and-goal, but a defensive holding call gave Stanford one more chance to score with no time left.

They would convert and tie the game to force overtime and ultimately win the game.

The fashion in which the game was officiated became a big topic of conversation on Twitter after the game, with plenty of people questioning whether Oregon was given a fair shake.

Whether Oregon has a legitimate gripe with the officials after its loss doesn't matter at this point, with the loss officially being added to their record.

With Oregon having just one more ranked opponent left on its schedule, at No. 20 UCLA, it could prove to be hard for the Ducks to climb back into the playoff picture.

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