Oregon vs. James Madison live updates: Ducks meet Cinderella Dukes in College Football Playoff first round

Live updates, highlights and analysis as Oregon battles James Madison in Round 1 of the College Football Playoff

EUGENE, Ore. -- A spot in the Orange Bowl is on the line for No. 5 seed Oregon and No. 12 seed James Madison, who open their College Football Playoff journeys Saturday. The final first-round game of the 2025 CFP sends the Dukes to Eugene for a battle against a Ducks squad that is hungry to erase the memories of last year's quarterfinal exit.

James Madison gets its first taste of playoff football when it debuts in the field with this first-round matchup. Oregon, meanwhile, is a CFP regular but has yet to host one of the coveted home games that goes to the teams seeded No. 5 through No. 8. Autzen Stadium promises to be a special atmosphere for a postseason showdown and could help Dan Lanning send his squad to the quarterfinals, where No. 4 Texas Tech is set to face the victor of this contest.

Numerous trends suggest Oregon will take care of business as a three-touchdown favorite and advance one step closer to its first national championship. For instance, the Ducks are undefeated against teams outside the Big Ten this year, while the Dukes lost their only regular-season game against a Power Four opponent. Additionally, no Group of Five team has ever won a playoff game.

But if James Madison pulls off the upset, Bob Chesney -- who will begin his tenure as UCLA coach at the end of the Dukes' postseason run -- will become an instant CFP legend.

Keep it locked here as CBS Sports provides you with live updates, highlights and analysis as Oregon battles with James Madison in a first-round College Football Playoff game.

[Dec 20, 2025 at 7:00 pm ET · Carter Bahns]

A staple of the Dan Lanning era at Oregon is that when the Ducks are decidedly more talented than their opponent, they leave no doubt of it on the scoreboard. James Madison is far better than the trio of non-conference foes that Oregon pounded into the dirt by a combined score of 169-23, but is it really much stronger than the Big Ten bottom-dwellers that stood no chance against this powerhouse, either? The Dukes fell by two touchdowns in their lone regular-season matchup against a Power Four team, and this one should be even more lopsided than the 28-14 loss to Louisville. Pick: Oregon -21.5

[Dec 20, 2025 at 6:30 pm ET · Carter Bahns]

According to ESPN FPI, James Madison played the 121st-toughest schedule in the country thus far. Only 15 teams faced a lighter load of opponents. Does that mean the Dukes' dominance has to be taken with a grain of salt? Saturday will put that idea to the test. Running back Wayne Knight torched defenses for a Sun Belt-best 1,263 rushing yards, defensive lineman Sahir West racked up 14 tackles for loss and dual-threat quarterback Alonza Barnett III passed for 21 touchdowns and ran for 14 more. In all, the Dukes boasted the nation's No. 10 scoring offense and No. 10 scoring defense. But now they have to prove they can do it against a national championship contender.

[Dec 20, 2025 at 6:00 pm ET · Carter Bahns]

Oregon played three of its toughest games in the final month of the season and won each of them, and suddenly the Oct. 11 loss to Indiana is far in the rearview mirror. The wins over Iowa, USC and Washington helped the Ducks re-establish themselves as national championship contenders and launched them into the No. 5 seed slot, which sets them up for arguably the most favorable path to the title game of any team outside the top four seeds.

[Dec 20, 2025 at 5:30 pm ET · Carter Bahns]

James Madison debuted at the FBS level just four years ago when former Dukes coach Curt Cignetti oversaw a successful transition from the FCS ranks. Between Cignetti and Bob Chesney, this program benefitted from two outstanding coaches in an unfathomable rise to the top of the Sun Belt and, ultimately, to the CFP. The Dukes have won no fewer than eight games in a season since making the jump to Division I's highest subdivision, and they made their first appearance in the CFP Top 25 rankings ahead of conference championship week.

[Dec 20, 2025 at 5:00 pm ET · Carter Bahns]

If Oregon gets closer to full strength ahead of its playoff run, it could be in for a long stay in the bracket. A host of Ducks participated in practice this week after missing extended time with injuries. That includes the wide receiver trio of Dakorien Moore, Gary Bryant Jr. and Evan Stewart. Moore missed the final four games of the regular season after hurting his knee in practice, Bryant sat the final three games and Stewart has not played due to an injury he suffered in the offseason. Running back Jayden Limar and cornerback Sione Laulea could also return to the lineup.

[Dec 20, 2025 at 4:30 pm ET · Carter Bahns]

The first round of the 2025 College Football Playoff concludes Saturday night when No. 5-seed Oregon hosts No. 12-seed James Madison at Autzen Stadium. With one of college football's most prominent home-field advantages and a loaded roster on their side, the Ducks are commanding favorites to advance to the Orange Bowl, where No. 4 Texas Tech awaits the winner. But the Sun Belt champion Dukes will head to the Pacific Northwest with their sights set on what would be a legendary upset.

They come from different backgrounds, but the Ducks and Dukes stand side by side in the FBS rankings for scoring offense and scoring defense. Both rank inside the top 10.

These sides also have something in common in that they will say goodbye to coaches at the end of their postseason runs. James Madison coach Bob Chesney will depart to take the UCLA job at the end of the CFP, and both of Oregon's coordinators -- Will Stein (Kentucky) and Tosh Lupoi (California) -- are set to begin their duties as Power Four head coaches once the campaign closes.

A win for Oregon would be its first in the playoff since its expansion to 12 teams. It would also help remove the bitter taste left over from last postseason when the Ducks squandered their No. 1 seed and dropped out of the CFP in the quarterfinals.