J.D. Pickell Makes Bold Pick for Oregon vs. Boise State

On3's J.D, Pickell took to the air Thursday and picked Oregon to cover a 19.5-point spread against Boise State this weekend, calling the Broncos a "fool's gold" upset pick in the process.

"We talked about it during our upset watch segment. There is a reason we do not have Oregon and Boise State on there," Pickell said during The Hard Count podcast. "This is a massive fool's gold upset alert. Notice I said "fool's gold," meaning it's not really an upset alert."

Following their near-loss to Idaho last week, the Ducks have been subject to heavy criticism across the college football landscape , and while Pickell acknowledges their shortcomings, he's not selling his Oregon stock quite yet.

"The reason why I like Oregon, outside of the talent gap, is that if you're Boise State, seeing Oregon struggle against Idaho in that box score is the last thing you want to see," Pickell said. "Why? Because Dan Lanning, all week-long now, has had the undivided attention of his football team. Why? Because he's got ammunition."

Pickell took the stance that the Broncos would rather face an Oregon team coming off a dominant win over Idaho this weekend. In that case, there would be a greater chance of complacency from the Ducks.

But now, as Lanning noted after the result against Idaho , Oregon is anything but satisfied.

"I don't think those post-Idaho meetings were all that fun," Pickell said. "I don't think sitting through film and seeing Idaho run a trick play on you and seeing guys be undisciplined was all that enjoyable. I have to believe that Dan Lanning communicated as much in whatever fashion he does."

As a result, Pickell believes the upset conditions are far from ideal in Eugene this week. While it never rains in Autzen Stadium, nonconference losses are also few and far between.

"Why do more talented teams lose games? They're not focused, not taking it seriously. Maybe they don't have a great game plan in place. None of those things are going to be true about Oregon in this spot," Pickell said. "So I think that Dillon Gabriel has a massive day, I think that the Oregon defensive line shows up in a big way, I think they play their brand of football, and I think you see Oregon's best football this upcoming game against Boise State."

"Don't buy the fool's gold."

The Ducks and Broncos will be in action on Saturday night in Autzen Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. PST.