EUGENE — The matchup was set just over one year ago, but for Oregon it’s a home game four years overdue after a then-nonconference matchup with Ohio State was canceled amid the pandemic.

The No. 2 Buckeyes visit Autzen Stadium, which will host its first ever top five clash, with the No. 3 Ducks for a prime time showdown on Saturday (4:30 p.m., NBC).

For teams with Big Ten championship and national championship aspirations, the winner will be in the proverbial driver’s seat to secure a spot in the conference championship game in Indianapolis, where they could meet again.

“It’s why you play the game,” quarterback Dillon Gabriel said. “That’s why we all want to be a part of teams that win and go to the last game of the season. It’s taking it one step at a time; if there’s anything I’ve realized through my five now six year of playing it’s like, you got to take it one week at a time and this is the next step. Of course, the atmosphere, college football in general, this is what you dream of. But you got a job to do, you got to execute, you got to play hard and find a way to win.

“Of course, we live for it and I think you have to go back to the basics of the process and preparing the right way.”

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There is little argument that Saturday night will be the biggest home game in program history, and a win would be one of the biggest the Ducks have ever had, with just one win ever over the No. 1 or No. 2 team in the country and that came in the 2015 Rose Bowl CFP semifinal against Florida State. This is the highest-ranked matchup in Autzen Stadium since No. 3 Oregon beat No. 7 Michigan State 46-27 on Sept. 6, 2014.

No. 3 Oregon (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) vs. No. 2 Ohio State (5-0, 2-0)

• When: Saturday, Oct. 12
• Time: 4:30 p.m. PT
• Where: Autzen Stadium, Eugene
• TV channel: NBC (KGW in Portland)
• Stream: You can watch this game live for FREE with Fubo (free trial) or with DirecTV Stream (free trial). You can also watch the event live on NBC Live if you already have cable or satellite provider login information.
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Ohio State has been the leader of the Big Ten for the last generation, which Oregon knows well from the 2015 CFP National Championship game. The Ducks also upset the Buckeyes in Columbus in 2021, though neither finished the season the way they hoped.

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The star power on each side is abundant, as Oregon coach Dan Lanning said “you really don’t see a weakness” anywhere for the Buckeyes, who have the No. 1 defense in the country and a vaunted offense.

“I think this is a great opportunity for two great teams to get to play against each other,” Lanning said. “I think that’s why you come to a place like this. I think this will be an awesome atmosphere for our fans and certainly our players.”

With the added stakes of this being a conference matchup, with the leader taking pole position in the Big Ten race and the advantage in playoff seeding for at least the time being, and the magnitude of the game is enormous.

“This is the opportunity of a lifetime,” linebacker Jeff Bassa said. “I know the reason why I came back was to play in this game as well. We got to take it play by play before we can start thinking about heading back to Indy. There’s going to be a lot of more season left before we do get to the championship game. That’s in the rear view mirror for right now.

“But focused on the team at hand, focused on the practice tomorrow, dialing up the details that we have to do in practice (Wednesday), the things that we got to clean up. Further on down the road we’ll worry about that.”

Oregon is 3-6-1 in home games against top five opponents, with wins over No. 4 USC (Oct. 31, 2009), No. 3 Michigan (Sept. 20, 2003) and No. 4 BYU (Sept. 29, 1990), and is 28-4 all-time as a top-five team in Autzen Stadium, with eight of those wins coming against ranked teams.

The Ducks know the eyes of the sport will be on them on Saturday night. They also appreciate that to come away successful there is much work to be done in the final days of practice for the toughest opponent they’ll face this season.

“It’s definitely hard (not to think about); I’d be sitting here lying to you if I said it wasn’t,” cornerback Jabbar Muhammad said. “But coach Lanning is preaching take it day by day, be where our feet are. … We know that it’s going to be an unreal atmosphere come Saturday. We’re looking forward to the fans being there and everything like that.”

— James Crepea covers the Oregon Ducks and Big Ten. Listen to the Ducks Confidential podcast or subscribe to the Ducks Roundup newsletter.