Week 4: Boise State at Oregon

Three young quarterbacks will take center stage in this highly anticipated first meeting between the Broncos and Ducks.

Boise State redshirt freshman Kellen Moore has completed 76.2 percent of his passes and ranks 10th in the nation in pass efficiency. He doesn’t have a turnover yet.

Oregon counters with two recent newcomers to the program in sophomore junior-college transfer Jeremiah Masoli (a talented passer) and true freshman Chris Harper (a dynamic runner). The tandem replaces Justin Roper, who was injured in last week’s game at Purdue.

The two young quarterbacks may hand the game over to senior tailbacks Ian Johnson of Boise State and Jeremiah Johnson of Oregon, but they each have big-time playmakers on the outside, too. Moore, in fact, will have a full complement of receivers for the first time this season after stars Jeremy Childs and Titus Young each were suspended for one of the first two games.

Both defenses and special-teams units are outstanding, too — but Oregon appears to have a slight edge in both areas.

Perhaps more importantly, the Ducks will be at home in front of their notoriously hostile crowd. Boise State is 0-13 on the road against BCS-conference teams, often getting overwhelmed in the first quarter and failing to recover.

Notes:

Boise State has only beaten one Pac-10 team — Oregon State. The Broncos outscored the Beavers while splitting a four-year series from 2003 to 2006.

Boise State coach Chris Petersen was the wide receivers coach at Oregon from 1995 to 2000 under Ducks coach Mike Bellotti. Broncos defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox played defensive back for Bellotti.

Oregon safety Patrick Chung, a second-team All-American last year, helped convince Boise State to recruit tailback Ian Johnson, an All-American in 2006. They played high school football against each other.

Oregon leads the Pac-10 in rushing, total offense and scoring. The Ducks led all three categories last year, too.

The Broncos were 4-3 outside of Boise last year. They were 7-0 in 2006, when they went to the Fiesta Bowl.

Key Player (Broncos) — Ian Johnson, RB

Johnson often dominates games when the spotlight shines the brightest, and this is a big opportunity for him. He has been sharp in the first two games with limited opportunities. This might be a good time for the Broncos to feed him because a sustained drive could quiet the Autzen crowd. He needs three rushing touchdowns to break the school’s career record.

Key Player (Ducks) — Jeremiah Johnson, RB

The Ducks are the top rushing team in the Pac-10, so the Broncos want to force them to pass. That could be an effective strategy with two untested quarterbacks at the helm. But if Johnson, who has been a playmaker despite some injury problems this season, can hit a couple of big runs the Broncos might be in trouble.

Oregon by 3