Staying unbeaten on the year after a 31-10 win over Michigan State Friday night, the No. 3 Oregon football team will face its most complete foe yet in No. 2 Ohio State on Saturday at Autzen Stadium in a Big Ten showdown.

The game is set to kick off at 4:30 p.m.

"We're getting to play a great opponent this week," Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. "Strong in all three phases as a team. When you watch them, you really don't see a weakness. They're really strong across the board and this will be a great challenge for us."

Here are some highlights from Lanning during his weekly press conference Monday night.

Oregon's Dan Lanning complimentary of Chip Kelly's offense at Ohio State

Oregon is more than familiar with new Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who was the Ducks' head coach from 2009-12, before a stint in the NFL and then leading UCLA for six seasons.

The Buckeyes made the splash hire over the offseason, and have already benefited.

Ohio State ranks fourth in scoring offense (46 points per game), 14th in rushing offense (222.2 yards per game), 23rd in passing offense (288 yards per game), and ninth in total offense (510.2 yards per game) in the country in 2024.

"You can't take away one thing knowing that something else is a strength as well," Lanning said. "They aren't limited in what their strengths are. They're able to run the ball and they throw it well. Talented at multiple positions, their quarterback is able to run it as well, so there's a lot of things that present threats. You have to be sound in what you come up with and be aware of any risk you're going to be taking."

At Oregon and UCLA, Kelly was especially known for his run attack, coaching some of the most prolific running backs in Ducks history, and as recently as last season for the Bruins, leading the Pac-12 conference in rushing offense.

"He's always done a great job of utilizing his personnel," Lanning said of Kelly. "Moving guys around and allowing them to do things they do really, really well. He always finds unique ways to run the ball, I think that's one thing he doesn't get enough credit for is his ability to run the ball, regardless of situation."

Ducks excited for opportunity and spotlight on Eugene

Lanning has coached in plenty of big games before. The third-year head coach has won national championships while at Georgia and Alabama, and won big games in Eugene, too, including a top-10 showdown in 2022 against UCLA.

This Saturday, though, is a historic occasion.

It will be the first time a pair of teams ranked inside the top-3 have ever played at Autzen Stadium.

When asked about the significance of the game, Lanning wouldn't outright say it was perhaps the biggest regular season game in the program's history, but did understand the importance of the top-3 battle.

"I certainly can't speak to the entire history of Oregon," Lanning said. "I think that this is a really big game. I think that this is a great opportunity for two great teams to get to play against each other. I think that's why you come to a place like this. But I think it's going to be an awesome atmosphere for our fans and certainly our players."

When asked whether certain aspects of the game were maybe more important than in other games, Lanning also said the same recipes for wins in previous weeks would the same keys to victory against the Buckeyes.

"Winning football is winning football," Lanning said. "But you always look when you're playing an opponent what are some commonalities in games that they haven't had success in that you've had success in. Where are those places where you can find strengths? Where are pieces in the game that are going to matter the most?"

Red zone an emphasis for Ducks this weekend after struggles in recent weeks

Following three red zone interceptions in his last two games, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel said Friday that the issue would be corrected.

Lanning said as much Monday, when asked about his QB's turnovers in the red area.

"You put the ball inside the 20 and go communicate what do we want that to look like," Lanning said. "If you expect to see it in a game you have to see it in practice first. He knows he wants those plays back ... it's about how we can coach that better and make sure those situations are avoided."

Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football, volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com and you can follow him on X @AlecDietz.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon football's Dan Lanning on Ducks' showdown vs Ohio State