Oregon
Best College Football Prop Bets for Penn State vs. Oregon in Big Ten Championship Game
Penn State and Oregon will meet in the Big Ten Championship Game on Saturday night with the potential No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff on the line.
The Nittany Lions have unlocked arguably the best tight end in the entire country in Tyler Warren this season, but is his receiving yard total too high for the Big Ten title game against a sturdy Oregon defense?
What about the dynamic Ducks offense that will look to finish an undefeated regular season with a conference title. Can the team deploy its host of skill position threats to offset an elite Penn State pass rush? I’m targeting two players in particular to cash in in the player prop market for the Big Ten Championship.
Odds courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook
Jordan James OVER 14.5 Receiving Yards
James does it all for the Ducks this season, rushing for 1,166 yards while also providing relief out of the backfield for Dillon Gabriel.
While he only has 21 catches on the season, James has been used more and more in the passing game, catching eight passes for 92 yards over the last three games.
While the return of Tez Johnson last week from a two game absence may have impacted the game script, Gabriel still threw to James plenty, leading to four catches for 40 yards.
Against a Penn State pass rush that is top 10 in the country, per Pro Football Focus, I believe we see Oregon lean on its quick hitting pass game and feature plenty of dump offs to Jordan, who is capable of getting over this total on one play.
Tyler Warren UNDER 67.5 Receiving Yards
Warren is in the mix to win the Mackey Award for the nation’s best tight end, but I do believe this number is overrating his game-to-game output.
After clearing this mark in four straight games, Warren has seen his number climb into the high 60’s. Overall, he has only cleared this mark in two other games.
While he factors into the passing game heavily, he has at least seven targets in all but three games on the season, the Oregon defense has been elite at shutting down the pass all season long, ranking top 10 in EPA/Pass. Further, the team is 33rd in explosive pass rate, so I don’t believe that the Nittany Lions will be able to unlock its top target for a chunk play throughout the game.
Overall, I need to play the averages and bet on some natural regression for Warren in the passing game. Considering he is deployed in different ways, including running the ball, there’s a chance that offensive coordinator Andy Kotelenecki has him impact the game that doesn’t involve catching passes.
Traeshon Holden OVER 30.5 Receiving Yards
Oregon got back its No. 1 wide receiver Tez Johnson from injury last week in limited fashion, but his impact was felt up and down the roster, including No. 3 wide receiver Holden.
The 6’3” pass catcher has been dangerous this season as a big play threat for the Ducks offense, averaging more than three yards per route run against man coverage, which is what Penn State does at a higher than national average rate.
Holden has been able to make big plays often this season, clearing this total in all but two games on the season. Given that the Ducks offense is back at full capacity, I believe that he can slide into a comfortable role as the third option and test the Penn State secondary.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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The good times keep on rolling for the Oregon Ducks in the recruiting world. Dan Lanning and the Ducks scored a massive commitment from five-star quarterback Will Mencl out of Chandler, Arizona.
Oregon had been rumored to be leading the race for Mencl’s services for months, but the No. 1 quarterback in the country, per Rivals, cleared the air and committed to the Ducks on Wednesday evening. Mencl chose the Ducks over Auburn and Penn State, both of which battled hard for him down the stretch.
However, Mencl has been connected to Oregon for a long time. While he was offered last fall before breaking out in his junior season, Mencl has been a fan of the program long before he popped up on the Ducks’ recruiting radar. In a post shared by Rivals recruiting expert Steve Wiltfong, Mencl was announced as a quarterback for the Ducks when he was a kid at the 2019 NFL Draft fan experience in 2019.
Now, Mencl is ready to don the green and yellow for real and make his childhood dreams come true. The Ducks have made a point to get Mencl on campus as often as possible and as recently as last week. The continued connection between both sides is ultimately what made the decision easy for the nation’s top passer. Mencl said he told Lanning and the Oregon staff about his decision on Sunday.
“The biggest thing was the relationship with the staff,” Mencl said after committing. “I feel like that continued to grow over time, especially when I first got there last spring. Being able to sit down with Coach Koa, really being an underlooked guy at that time, and kind of blowing up my junior season. And then, the path to the NFL. You can’t deny what they do with quarterbacks and the type of scheme they run. I felt like that was the best fit for me and my family to get to the next level.”
Koa Ka’ai, Oregon’s new quarterback coach, made waves earlier in the offseason after his recruiting test about ice cream flavors went viral, but that doesn’t appear to have scared Mencl off. In fact, the two have a close connection that Oregon hopes will translate to success on the field in the near future.
“My relationship with Coach Koa, I feel like that is super, super strong,” Mencl told Rivals. “I’ve had a lot of discussions with Coach Lanning about the culture there and how they’re going to continue to sustain greatness throughout the program.”
Mencl exploded onto the national recruiting scene with a massive junior season for Chandler. He completed more than 70% of his passes for 3,815 yards and 33 touchdowns against five interceptions in his junior season, leading Chandler to a state title berth. He also rushed for 741 yards and an additional 17 touchdowns.
The Ducks expect to have some competition for Mencl to compete with when he joins the team for the 2027 season, with Dylan Raiola and Akili Smith Jr. already on the roster and competing for a role as the backup. Oregon has gone to the transfer portal as well in recent seasons, finding success with Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel, and now Dante Moore.
Oregon has recruited well at quarterback in the past, establishing an NFL pedigree that attracted Mencl. Maybe he will be the one to buck the trend and give the Ducks a true, homegrown product under center.
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‘Pour in the largest glass you can find while slow dancing in your socks,’ a Wine Enthusiast contributor said of an Oregon wine
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Wine Enthusiast released a list of the top 40 sparkling wines around the world in 2026 – highlighting two bottles of bubbly from Oregon.
“While it can seem like you need a fortune to enjoy high quality sparkling wine, you honestly don’t. Excellent affordable bubbles are being produced around the world, often in places you might not expect. Each of the selections on our inaugural Top 40 Sparkling Wines list delivers personality, freshness, and celebration for under $75,” Wine Enthusiast wrote.
Wine Enthusiast divided its list into separate sparkling categories including, Champagne, Italian Bollicine, American sparkling and bottles $25 and under.
Snagging a spot on the American sparkling list: Corollary Wines in McMinnville.
Corollarly’s 2021 Momtazi Carbonic Rosé Pinot Noir scored 96 points from Wine Enthusiast.
“This is a Peter Max print of a wine, with vivid aromas and flavors to match the wine’s electric Kool-Aid color. It is filled to the brim with aromas and flavors of macerated strawberries, candied rose petals, apricots, and a bitter note similar to watermelon rind. Pour in the largest glass you can find while slow dancing in your socks,” wrote Wine Enthusiast contributor Michael Alberty.
The second Oregon winery to earn a spot on the list: Lytle-Barnett in Dundee.
Wine Enthusiast also gave Lytle-Barnett’s 2018 Brut Rosé Pinot Noir Chardonnay 96 points.
“Bubbles as persistent as an eight-year-old with a question deliver aromas of dried rose petals, macerated strawberries, and a touch of fresh hay and talc. This 70/30 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay blend is packed with flavors of lemon zest, Honeycrisp apple slices drizzled in caramel, and a dollop of raspberry,” Alberty wrote.
The nods to Corollary and Lytle-Barnett come as the wineries recently helped launch Method Oregon, a nonprofit made up of 50 Oregon wineries aiming to turn Oregon into a global sparkling wine destination.
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