College football forecast: Bruins, Ducks should produce points

Dorian Thompson-Robinson was catching passes as a wide receiver at Bishop Gorman six years ago.

Now the UCLA quarterback is a bona fide Heisman Trophy contender.

Thompson-Robinson will look to continue his breakout senior season when he leads No. 9 UCLA (6-0) into a showdown against No. 10 Oregon (5-1) on Saturday with first place in the Pac-12 at stake.

In six games, Thompson-Robinson has completed almost 75 percent of his passes for 1,510 yards and 15 touchdowns against two interceptions.

He’s also second on the team in rushing and has four touchdowns on the ground.

The Bruins’ offense averages 41.5 points per game, with help from running back Zach Charbonnet, who is eighth in the nation at 123 yards rushing per game.

Both teams rank in the top 12 nationally in total offense and points per game, as the Ducks put up an average of 512.5 yards and 42.0 points.

That should make for a high-scoring game, and the total of 71 — not to mention the rain in the forecast in Eugene, Oregon — isn’t enough to scare me away.

Oregon has won five straight since a season-opening thumping by Georgia. But the Ducks will have a hard time corralling Thompson-Robinson and the UCLA ground game after an extra week to prepare.

Play UCLA-Oregon over 71.

Here are four more picks for Saturday:

UNLV-Notre Dame U47½: The Rebels limp into famed South Bend, Indiana, on a two-game losing skid and will likely be without quarterback Doug Brumfield and running back Aidan Robbins. UNLV isn’t likely to generate many points. It just needs to play enough defense against a Fighting Irish offense ranked 80th in yards per game and 99th in scoring.

Mississippi-Louisiana State U67½: The offenses for these teams have received most of the attention, but don’t overlook the other side of the ball. The Rebels are 16th nationally in scoring defense (17.23 ppg), while LSU is allowing 21.3 ppg. After both teams played high-scoring games last week, neither coaching staff will want a repeat showing.

Northwestern +14 over Maryland: The Wildcats are inching toward Mildcats territory once again with a five-game losing skid. But they are coming off a bye, and this is more about the health of Maryland quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa, who is a game-time decision with a knee injury and won’t be close to 100 percent even if he plays.

Pittsburgh +2½ over Louisville: Both teams had a week off to prepare, which should be an advantage for the Panthers. Both teams also have been wildly inconsistent. Pitt took Tennessee to overtime and lost to Georgia Tech; the Cardinals pushed Florida State to the edge and lost to Boston College. All things being equal, the Panthers are better.

Last week: 4-1

Season: 15-19-1

Contact David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter.