Oregon Ducks Could Be Heading To Most Exciting Playoff Run In School History

The No. 6 Oregon Ducks saw a jump in the College Football Playoff rankings in the latest release. The CFP committee viewed Oregon’s win over USC in week 13 of the season as strong enough to justify having Oregon jump over Ole Miss, who now sit at No. 7

The No. 6 spot for Oregon is a flat-out dream scenario for the Ducks, who sit at 10-1 going into their final game of the season against Washington in Seattle. The No. 6 spot in the CFP rankings not only guarantees the Ducks a first-round home game at Autzen Stadium, but it also allows the Ducks to dodge a potential matchup with Ohio State until the national championship game.

No. 6 Rankings Could Give Ducks Easy Path To National Championship Game

Oregon Ducks Dan Lanning Dante Moore Dakorien Moore USC Trojans College Football Playoff Rankings Virginia Cavaliers — Oregon coach Dan Lanning leads his team onto the field for their game against Southern California Nov. 22, 2025. | Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Perhaps the most interesting part of the Ducks' No. 6 spot is the path that would lie ahead of them to reach their first national championship game since 2015. The Ducks in the No. 6 spot would play whichever team ends up in the No. 11 spot, which appears to be a placeholder for the ACC champion.

As of now, Miami sits in the No. 11 spot, but their chances to appear in the ACC championship game are slim, meaning a more realistic matchup for the Ducks could be the Virginia Cavaliers or the SMU Mustangs.

No. 6 Ranking For Oregon Ducks Could Lead To Quarterfinal Matchup With Texas A&M

As of the latest rankings, the winner of the No. 6 and No. 11 matchup would have a showdown with the No. 3 ranked team, which as of now is Texas A&M, a matchup that would be played at a neutral site. Other changes that could occur include what would happen if the Ducks should lose to Washington in Seattle in their final regular-season game.

Ducks Could Have Slim Margin For Error Against Washington

Oregon Ducks College Football Playoff Ranking Dan Lanning Dante Moore Dakorien Moore USC Trojans Washington Huskies — Nov 15, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Washington Huskies head coach Jedd Fisch before the game against the Purdue Boilermakers at Husky Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

The Ducks jumping SMU in the latest rankings has given Oregon a slim margin for error, meaning a three-point loss to Washington may not necessarily be a result that boots them from the 12-team playoff. If the Ducks do in fact drop their final game against Washington, Ducks fans will need to root for Ohio State to beat Michigan, as the Wolverines are ranked at No. 15, and a win over Ohio State could propel Michigan over Oregon.

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The No. 6 spot for the Ducks could possibly change for the final batch of CFP rankings that will be released in early December. There are a lot of key matchups for teams that rank higher than the Ducks that could send the Ducks into the No. 5 spot and potentially into the top four. No. 4 Georgia plays No. 23 Georgia Tech in a game that could see the Ducks leapfrog Georgia if Georgia Tech wins that matchup.