WHAT TO WATCH

Sound of silence: It’s unclear exactly how much crowd noise will be pumped into Pac- 12 stadiums this season as the conference isn’t allowing fans, and that’s a huge disadvantage for Oregon. The Ducks’ 54,000- seat Autzen Stadium often is packed beyond its listed capacity, and noise surrounding the sunken field can’t escape the small footprint that has registered as much as 127 decibels — similar to a jet engine taking off or an air raid siren.

QB mystery: Stanford knows its quarterback: Davis Mills, the nation’s top- ranked pro- style recruit in 2017. In his final five games last season, he completed 67.7% of his passes and averaged 321.6 yards while putting up 11 touchdowns ( one receiving). For Oregon, it’s not so simple as the Ducks try to replace Justin Herbert, who is averaging 303.3 passing yards per game and has a 104.5 QB rating as a rookie for the Chargers. Listed as “or” on the Oregon depth chart are sophomore Tyler Shough and Anthony Brown, a graduate transfer who threw for 4,738 yards and 40 touchdowns at Boston College.

Ground and pound? Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal said he expects a “15- round heavyweight fight” during the meeting of programs often defined by offensive line play. But don’t count on that, because Stanford has one of its most talented receiving corps ever — a group led by Simi Fehoko, who set a school record at 23.58 yards per reception last season. If the Cardinal do rely on the running game, look for sophomore Austin Jones, a Bishop O’Dowd- Oakland alum, to spearhead it.