When the Oregon Ducks struggled to pull away from Idaho in Week 1, the crowd was already calling Dan Lanning’s team overrated. And while it’s true that the Ducks should have respected the Big Sky, since that shaky victory the Ducks have been every bit as dominant as they expected when they started the season ranked third in the country. That’s why, if Georgia upsets Saturday afternoon in Austin, the Ducks should be the top-ranked team in the country next week.

A close win against Boise State in Week 2 didn’t seem like a quality win at the time, but with the emergence of Heisman frontrunner Ashton Jeanty, the Broncos look like a deserving top 25 team, and that win is looking more impressive by the week. . Additionally, the team has done well in Oregon’s other games, beating its last four unranked opponents by at least 21 points apiece.

As it stands now, Oregon’s resume looks like this; a shaky win in Week 1, then two quality wins (including a win against then second-ranked Ohio State) and four dominant wins. Perhaps most important to this argument is the “0” in the loss column. By the way, that’s a zero, not an ‘O’.

Dillon Gabriel has skyrocketed up the Heisman rankings during Oregon’s 7-0 start, completing 77 percent of his passes on the season. The Ducks earn a spot at number one if Texas falls this weekend.

It wasn’t a bad loss — there’s no shame in losing at Alabama, especially when that loss comes on one of the craziest college football games many of us have ever seen — but it’s a loss nonetheless. A win in Texas would move Georgia up in the rankings, but it shouldn’t move to first place.

Georgia appears to be playing at the same level of competition this season; after a blowout win in Week 1 against Clemson, the Bulldogs looked shaky against Kentucky and Mississippi State. That could all be forgotten if Georgia beats Texas, and Kirby Smart’s team will no doubt get some first-place votes if they escape Austin with a win, but that loss could keep them out of the number one spot until someone moves Oregon can knock out – if anyone can beat Oregon.

We said this last weekend when Texas faced Oklahoma, but this time we mean it. Oklahoma’s offense isn’t quite what people expected, and the Longhorns had control of the game from the opening kickoff. When Georgia comes to town, it will likely be a different story. The Bulldogs are averaging more than 315 yards through the air per game, a test Texas hasn’t passed in six weeks.

Georgia quarterback Carson Beck totaled a career-high 459 yards against Mississippi State last weekend and is looking to make a statement against Texas in the biggest game of the year for both teams.