Home Football Washington Post Game Thoughts

Washington Post Game Thoughts

By
angry
-
175

Just some random thoughts:

– This is the team many of us envisioned last year, but we were a year early. They didn’t know how to close last year. Now they are a year older, wiser, bigger, faster, and they know how to close a game, even if they’re behind late. This is unique for OSU and special.

– Smith has been out of the way lately. It’s a very good thing. I saw him pondering punt vs going on one of those 4ths around mid field. Glad he punted. It was a sign to me he learned from the past, and he learned to grapple with his own (poor) tendency for gambling and poor understanding of in-game feel rather than just looking at a chart of probabilities. Improving. This is big.

– I like that everyone gets involved. Said this even last year, and then earlier again this year, that having guys like Gould and Colletto is huge. These types of players are good, yet they don’t quite fit into regular rolls. Players on the team see this and empathize. So when a player like that comes in and does well, it gives the entire team an emotional lift. I’m a huge fan of getting every player involved in some capacity. Even more interesting: those players were arguably the MVPs last night.

– Nolan isn’t as great as we thought. An elite D shut him down very well. So as we progress through this year, we have to keep that in mind and game plan around it. More QB runs, more running in general, and need to get “creative” (soft) and incorporate more trick plays against these types of opponents. Utah is probably the next test for this.

– Baylor should be a dark horse Heisman candidate. If they Beavs keep winning, and he keeps his TD and yardage pace. He has much better stats than TreVeyon Henderson, who is currently the top RB in that race.

– It’s nice that we look like a real team. I’ve said it before, but we’re doing all the basic things that teams always did against us; things that we couldn’t do to them consistently. We pass the eyeball test, and now we pass the mental test. That’s the big takeaway tonight: we passed the mental toughness test.

– The mental issue moving forward, and one they haven’t dealt with yet, is how to handle success. Coaches need to be on this.

– So this is what it feels like, for a fan, to be atop the North? It’s pretty sweet. Let’s keep it rolling.

Go Beavs!

175 COMMENTS

  1. 6
    1

    The offensive line got challenged last night against a relatively inexperienced Leghumper D-line. The center and guards got blown up on a lot of play plays. That’s something to keep an eye on going forward when we play stout interior defenses like Utah, Cal and Oregon.

    Reply
  2. 7
    3

    Reposting the huge referee issues; glad the d*cks lost but somebody has to keep an eye on that officiating crew…..huge fucking disaster.
    Did you watch the D*ck game? That same officiating crew that fucked-up the USC game royally fucked up the UO/Stanford game. There were at least 5 huge questionable calls against the d*cks — that booted two players for targeting including Thibidouex there best player. Stanford’s final drive in regulation had 4 questionable calls against the d*cks, Stanford had one targeting call reversed in OT, when it was clearly elbows to the head . In OT Stanford had a clear false start where three of their linemen stood up and the red grabbed his flag but never through it. Their interpretation of PI and holding on DBs/CBs is baffling and very inconsistent. None of the 50/50 calls went the d*cks way.
    Bottom line is, that crew is just plain awful, and heavily influences games — someone might want to figure who they are, if Beavs get them again, it could lead to another USC shit show — I hope they get reported to the league office.

    Reply
  4. 6
    1

    Musgrave was awful last night. Botched assignments, lazy blocking, poor route running. Kid needs to rebound and come out strong next week. I still think Chance is good, seems like more of a WR issue then him being over his head. Too many drops (4?) and they couldn’t get separation from UW’s secondary. Not a lot of windows to throw into. Just no rhythm in the pass game, but UW has an elite pass defense so it is what it is.

    Reply
  5. 9

    October 2:

    10 mile hike into Green Lake-perfect weather.
    Fresh hops at Cascades Lakes-discover Ducks lose.
    Beavs bounce back in a game that they would folded like a lawn chair in the past

    Find my post from Sept 30th; 2:36 PM

    Beavers 27-24

    Other than that-I got nothing.

    Reply
  6. 4

    Without a win against a ranked opponent, we’re another win away from top 25. We might sneak in on Saharan due to losses above us and Michigan making the UW win look better.

    Angry, Henderson was have better stats if he played the whole game. He’s been subbed out early in multiple blowouts this year. That said, Baylor is more of a MVP for his team than Henderson (as we saw last night.)

    Reply
    • 1

      Fair enough didn’t realize that about Henderson. Hasn’t Baylor been pulled from some games, too, though? I don’t think Baylor has the personality to truly make a run. A lot of it seems like a congeniality contest where you need the look and personality. Heisman is really Miss America for football players.

      Reply
  7. 5

    I wondered if the Huskies were switching coverage at the snap and confusing Nolan or if there just wasn’t time for routes to develop. Did UW play man coverage all game or were they able to get pressure with just the 4 lineman and we still needed max protect with the TEs?

    TV angles never really show what the defense is doing.

    If Huskies secondary is the toughest, and their d-line is the most disruptive we face, then Beavs performed admirably and will only grow from here on.

    I much prefer JS over Lake after that game management comparison. Lake instructing his guys to stop tackling. Fenwick even jumped up and spoke to the guy who made the phantom tackling effort. JS responded by shutting down any chance for them to respond. Lake seems like a smug leader, coasting on Petersen’s roster for about 2 more years, then he will be in trouble. I doubt that he will be able to recruit the same caliber of players, and already they are less potent offensively. This is Lake’s 2nd true road game in 2 years as head coach.

    Keep it going Beavs, no let-down at Wazzu. Go into the bye week 5-1

    Reply
    • 1

      Designed succession situations never work in college football. UW should have hired an experienced HC and will suffer in mediocrity for the next few years, but they have the budget and situation to recover relatively quickly whenever they make a change (like Nike after Helfrich.)

      Reply
    • 2

      Live at the game it looked like they dropped a lot of guys into coverage. Nolan had some happy feet. First or second progression wasn’t open and it took him a long time to find an open target. Coaches didn’t do him any favors though with adjustments. No quick it to the flat where the speedy guys could do something one on one. There was a play in the red zone where it was two against 3 on the outside. Easy pickings for a WR screen. Not sure why the lack of adjustments compared to usc game.

      Reply

  8. We came in at #33 on Sagarin (behind USC, of all teams). Up 8 spots from last week, so winning next week should get us into the top 25 unless there are just no upsets.

    I doubt human voters like us better, due to late game times and no marquee wins (and the general opinion of the conference, which took a hit with Nike’s loss.)

    Reply
  9. 4

    … having guys like Gould and Colletto is huge. These types of players are good, yet they don’t quite fit into regular rolls. Players on the team see this and empathize. So when a player like that comes in and does well, it gives the entire team an emotional lift. I’m a huge fan of getting every player involved in some capacity….

    I think this is real attractive to recruits.

    – Baylor should be a dark horse Heisman candidate. If they Beavs keep winning, and he keeps his TD and yardage pace. …

    His second TD run with a stiff arm of #5 was beautiful…

    Reply
  10. 2

    Angry you mentioned their wild cat guy getting hurt and that’s why they didn’t use him on the fourth and 1. I didn’t see that at the game or hear that on the post game radio talk show. Radio guys talked about Morris Telegraphing the sneak with his stance. They were dumbfounded Washington used their qb on that play as was I.

    Reply
  11. 2
    2

    To further illustrate the point that the transitive property very rarely applies to college football:

    Hawaii beat Fresno State 27-24 after being down 24-10 after three quarters.

    Reply
  12. 2

    From Ryan Nall’s double Duck whiff, to Jefferson running away from everyone, to Baylor running through people and stiff arming #5 on a TD run last night, OSU recruiting could put together a pretty good clip of recent impact RBs.

    Reply
  13. 4

    After watching the game again, a couple things stood out.
    First, Fenwick dropped an open pass in the flat that would have been a first down, and later, the Huskies snuffed out a screen pass for a 5 yard loss (right before Nolan hit Gould on that beautiful pass). I think our offense is really, really good at “taking what they give us,” while also, somehow, imposing our will.
    Too many dropped passes by guys that haven’t been dropping them.
    The wildcat defense has to be fixed. We were yelling at the TV to load the box and stuff the middle. If I was UW, I woulda kept going with the wildcat until we stopped it. We got bailed out that McGrew got hurt and they did the qb sneak. On the other hand, easier said then done, somehow nobody can stop Coletto, even when they know what’s coming.
    Again, props to Coletto, lined up at Fullback for a good portion of the 4th, stuck his nose right into the dirty of it and did what was best for the team.
    25 total flags in the USC game, only 5 total flags this game….weird. Lasts weeks crew was officiating the ducks vs. Stanford game and that turned into a mess….weird, or a trend?!
    Glad we escaped with the victory, didn’t like the end, running the clock down for a field goal. Get the TD and make them have to take it the length of the field instead of leaving it up the the kicker. I guess the game was tied, so worst case scenario you go to OT.
    Seems like JS has gotten a little less aggressive and more towards the mean, but like the announcer said, I don’t like it, but I agree with it.
    Time to head up to Pullmam, and keep it going!
    Go Beavs, 1st place in the north!!!

    Reply
    • 4

      The I-form seems to be the next thing to evolve for this OSU offense. We have the personnel to rotate fullbacks (Colletto, Horton, TQ) and run strong- or weak-I formations.

      What this does is give us a method for adjusting to defenses that have the matchup advantage against our linemen (like last night).

      Reply
    • 4

      On the radio, Smith said UW was going to concede the score so they would get the ball back with as much time remaining as possible, which is why he decided to keep bleeding the clock to set up the chip shot.
      I was a little worried when they tried to gain 4 or 5 yards on 3rd down that they could fumble it. Glad it all worked out and helped show our kicker we have confidence in him

      Reply
      • 6
        1

        Fenwick basically flinched and stumbled to the ground. Linebacker and safety both didn’t even attempt to hit him. They wanted us to score, and I think JS ran the math in his head, realized we could take it down to 3 seconds and kick the FG. Just seems like it doesn’t show confidence in the D, or it shows confidence in the kicker. Not sure, but we won, so I’ll take it!

        Reply
    • 7

      Honestly, I liked allowing Hayes the ability to redeem himself from the missed field goal. It was a confidence builder and it allowed us to not rely on our defense to win the game. Clock management to win a game is a lot bigger deal than imposing your will on your opponent when a field goal to win will do.

      Reply
  14. 1

    Ducks remain in the top 10. Stupid.

    Teams are going to load the box and dare Hole to throw it deep, especially with Brown in. I don’t see them losing less than 3 more games.

    Reply
      • 8

        Yeah, having a preseason poll when no one has played and then basing everything more than a month after play has started on the initial flawed premise makes zero sense.

        Polls should start in October.

        Reply
        • 1

          Do polls have any impact? Isnt it up to the playoff committee to pick 4 teams and then the rest of the bowl games come down to conference finish?
          Or is there still some formula that polls factor into?

          Reply
          • 2

            According to wiki playoff team selection…
            “A team’s strength of schedule is one of the most pertinent considerations for the committee in making its selections.[36] Other factors that the committee weighs are conference championships, team records, and head-to-head results,[9] plus other points such as injuries and weather.[37] Unlike the BCS system, the AP Poll, Coaches’ Poll, and the Harris Poll, computer rankings are not used to make the selections”

            Still doesn’t explain a team like Oregon, with a weak SOS, poor performances and a loss to Stanford only drop to 8 from 3 in today’s poll. I have zero doubt that if they don’t lose again before the beavers that they won’t move up in the polls as teams above them lose. The committee then looks like boobs if they don’t put the nike brand into cfp discussions. All of that based on preseason nonsense whether they say it doesn’t or not

            Reply
  15. 7

    Random non-game thoughts:

    I’m curious what happened to the ‘OSU will never find a coach better than MR’ narrative

    Last nights win should have been a great boost to the recruits who were in attendance

    What’s with the online trolls mocking OSU students rushing the field, it’s as if they have zero clue the Beavs just went to number one in the Pac north

    I don’t miss big boy pants

    Last night may not have been full capacity but the crowd was into the game and brought a lot of energy, I was at the opposite end of the field from the band and there were times you could barely hear them

    I hate Nick Roloffabitch and hope Wazzu gets beat like a drum, also band travels to Pullman so yea for my kid getting to be there and watch it

    Still feeling a buzz from last night’s win

    #GoBeavs!

    Reply
    • 1

      Band travels to Pullman?…..is that new?
      Wonder if they plan to stay overnight, rooms pretty limited in the general area.
      Anyway, good for your kid getting the band experience.

      Reply
      • 8

        Thanks man! Not sure honestly if they usually travel, my kid is a second year. Happy they are getting some college life though, last year sucked for these kids. Another reason I was glad the students flooded the field, they need to be freakin kids

        Reply
    • 4

      I like that they stuck the UW band up at the top corner of the west stands. They were pretty much a non factor noise wise.
      Too many times in the past they have put the opposing band down close to the field and it’s helped the road team make their presence known.

      Reply

  16. Beavs come in at #28 in AP poll. Florida, Texas A&M and Clemson should all be below us, but their preseason standing is keeping them afloat.

    Reply
  19. 3

    My post game thoughts

    Offense got cute with Nolan. UW corners weren’t challenged much down field except maybe twice. Tried to keep everything short but UW kept the coverage tight. Didn’t run deep routes to open up underneath routes.

    What happened to attacking the edges with speed? The one time they ran a sweep, it went for 15 yards. Would have helped soften up the defense for Nolan.

    Nolan had two bad turnovers. Not sure what he was thinking in both. Fumble cost his team 7 points.

    Refs swallowed their whistles the entire game. No holding or pass interference calls on either team.

    Tibs did better but he still hasn’t made a case to be retained. The 3&18 conversion was just painful. Tibs is good for three downs. But one of the three isn’t third down.

    Crowd was louder but that’s bc all the students showed up. I don’t think there was a lot of uptick of regular fans. If the game time vs Utah is decent, would expect near 40k. Hopefully more staff is available for entry.

    Opening line vs wsu is -2.5 beavs. Figured it’d be higher. I’d take beavs at that number. Beavs don’t need to change much for wsu. Run, run, run and more run. Maybe use more formations but the same basic plays to keep the defense guessing.

    Reply
    • 1

      What happened to attacking the edges with speed?
      EXACTLY !
      Beavs have shown they have the personnel to do this as much more than a “change of pace” tactic.

      Reply

    • For Nolan’s int my wife both saw the same thing ans Morris had JUST done it. Both threw knowing they were going to get hit and rotated into the contact instead of staying square to the sideline with their shoulders. Both completely missed and tossed it up to the defense.

      Reply
  20. 5

    1. Love that Niner played the analytics and out-coached Lake at the end of the game. I hate the anxiety of leaving it up to a kicker, but a glorified extra point is a much more acceptable risk than the risk of a fumble or a penalty by running the ball. Plus, you don’t want to give the team the ball with time left on the clock.
    2. Tibs, coach Blue, and the rest of the staff better hammer home the need to wrap up when tackling. I have no doubt there will be a humbling film session that they will use as teachable moments.
    3. Loved the Power-I formation with Jack Hammer. I hope they do this against WSU 15+ times along with their other power run two-TE sets.
    4. Mental toughness. When’s the last time the Beavs won this type of contest? So impressive that they overcame the Nolan fumble and UW taking the 4th quarter lead.
    5. WR’s and TE’s (Musgrave) will get drilled hard this week. Way too many drops. LOVED seeing Gould replace Tyjon and come up clutch with the 2nd and 15 catch and the 19 yard fly sweep.
    6. Nolan: he better work on ball security. When he scrambles his ball hand is always loose and away from the body. He better learn this quickly or more strip sacks will come. This game brought him back to Earth, and I hope it humbles him in a positive way moving forward.
    7. O-Line and TE blocking was monster as usual. Would love to see the PFF grades this week for that group.

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    • 1
      1

      Notice nobody is defending lake for going for it on 4th down from mid field? Cause it was a terrible decision and cost them the game

      Reply

        • Heard Parker on the radio in the fourth talking about the refs moving the ball a half yard forward on every spot. Didn’t say for one team particular just that him and Jim were confused with the placement all game.

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      • 9

        Cracks me up that Lake is complaining about the spot after the debacle last year. Objectively, he wasn’t even close from the 6x I reviewed it on my DVR.

        Reply
  21. 6

    So my comment yesterday about the nazi looking salute in reser. I tried to grab a pic but my shutter was to slow.
    It was when they were trying to instruct fans how to do this new “Beaver Slap” hand motion that OSU is trying to make part of the game day experience. It’s essentially a gator chomp like Florida fans do. But when youre slowly teaching a crowd of fans how to gator chomp, it just looked funny because for step 1, they instructed every body to raise their right arm and hold it out. We ended up having a stadium of people looking like they were saluting hitler until they taught the crowd step 2(bring your left hand and hold it out below your tight hand)

    So yes, my comment was specific to a brief moment in time and wasnt seriously trying to imply OSU was having us give a salute to the Fuhrer.

    Also, why does OSU feel the need to give step by step instructions to fans? I feel like theyve done this before with gameday gimmicks and cheers, and it never catches on

    Reply
    • 5

      No idea what you’re talking about, just crank it like a chainsaw mfers

      BTW what happened to…(east side) “O”… (endzones) “S” …(west side) “U”?

      Reply
      • 9

        I love the O-S-U chant, especially w/a good crowd. I consider that a defining characteristic of Beaver football home games…

        Reply
    • 4

      They should stop that. It’s like the cougs doing the gator chomp. Also it just didn’t fit.

      Just go back to the OSU fight fight fight chant. Works every time.

      Reply

      • We already have our first down arm thing. Just add timeout and quarter change sing slings. Everyone loves a good sing along

        Reply
      • 2

        Meh, it is at least topical, unless you can show me a similar coug tendency…

        “What does it mean when a beaver slaps its tail?
        Beaver families are territorial and defend against other families. … In order to warn family members of danger, beavers slap their tails against the water, creating a powerful noise.”

        Kids at leads were into it and not laughing/ignoring a tug om imaginary chainsaws

        Reply
  22. 3

    I made this comment after going to the Purdue game but as cheesy as the chainsaw is, it is a reminder to get loud. Purdue’s crows was larger than anything at we have but we’re unorganized and never got loud.

    Has much as I hate it, Keep the chainsaw, no need to add anything else.

    Reply
      • 3
        1

        We definitely need to upgrade that saw. It just looks real wimpy from my standpoint, a forestry grad who works in the woods with loggers and firefighters. Those are big guys holding up what looks like a department store saw. Not sure what they’re running but we need to get someone from Still or Husqvarna to donate a real saw. Sponsorship could be great advertising for a saw company? I’d like to see at least a 36″ bar and a real chain that’s been modified for safety. We could probably learn a few things from the Portland Timbers…

        Reply
        • 1

          Yeah i can’t tell if they are huge or it’s small but it looks like a 20”.

          There’s a few ways to disengage the linkage so you still have a chain and noise but it doesn’t move. 36” or 42” would be awesome. It would be even more awesome if a kicker or punter somehow get a turnover.

          Reply
          • 1

            084. We got big trees.
            Didn’t we do something with Timber Joey a few years ago? I seem to remember some sort of cross marketing that happened.
            I always thought they should have made Benny a logger character with a chainsaw. It just seems to fit to me.

            Reply

          • Lol. Well the players could handle an 084. Not sure what Timber Joey ran . Old school Benny with a saw would be classic.

            Reply

          • I think he runs a painted husky if I’m not mistaken. That whole gimmick is pretty cool, too bad it’s for a soccer team.

            Reply
  23. 5

    Things that can go,
    Beaver tail slap. – no one watching would know what’s going on. Everyone is confused. Maybe they didn’t hold freshman orientation because it was clear the students didn’t know the OSU Oregon state fight fight fight cheer.

    Things need updating
    – sing along? Even Miley Cyrus song was 2009, the students were in grade school for that one. They only cheered for the one song they knew. Choose something in the last few years for the students to really get going. They feed the rest of the crowd.

    Third quarter song, back in black is 40 years old, majority of the crowd wasn’t even conceived when this song came out now.

    I don’t recall one song that the students or the crowd got really into. Played DMX, who the students know is dead but that’s all they know about him.

    Basically pander to the students. They make the most noise.

    Things that can stay,
    First down chant. As the game went along the louder it got.
    I guess chainsaw, it’s annoying but it does let everyone know to make noise.

    Reply
    • 2

      I’d prefer instead of the speaker chainsaw we give the cheerleaders chainsaws or something. 20 big STHL 36” blasting on 3rd down. That would be sick. Probably rules against it though.

      Reply

    • ‘Things that can go,
      Beaver tail slap. – no one watching would know what’s going on. Everyone is confused. Maybe they didn’t hold freshman orientation because it was clear the students didn’t know the OSU Oregon state fight fight fight cheer.’

      They actually did hold orientation/convocation. Not sure why you’re concerned with the beaver slap when on replay of the game, into the third quarter and only a brief shot of it anyone watching would just think its clapping, and btw, I’ve seen multiple visitors mock the first down chant so not sure why you approve of that?

      Ok so you hate ac/DC, what do you suggest? Send a note to Zach lassiter on Twitter he was soliciting suggestions today. BTW, any idea how old the song ‘shout’ is?

      Reply

    • Sing along worked well enough with the Miley song to show the bit has potential to stick around. The cell phone flashlights looked pretty good. Wish we had Purdue’s lighting system though. Maybe as part of Reser’s remodel?

      AC/DC is always appropriate if we have the all black unis. Plus the drunk coeds sitting near us were really into it when it came on, so I take that as a win.
      I do agree though, pander to tue students. They make the energy in that place.

      Also, the OOOOOO……SSSSSS…..UUUUUU
      chant wouldmt have worked yesterday. The stands were so empty leading into kickoff, it would have been weak.
      At least they semi-filled in as the game went on

      Reply
      • 1

        I’m fine with the sing a long. Just make better song choices. Students will win the choice every time.

        They did do the o s u chant with flags pregame but since everyone was still in line outside, it didn’t work. Be nice to see that after scores though. That would be nice and loud.

        I agree about the lights, most new stadiums or remodels have changed to the led lights that don’t need to be warmed up like the halogen lamps. Gill has the new led lighting system which looks great.

        Reply
  24. 5
    9

    Why not just steal Jump Jump from Wisconson and use it 3rd quarter instead of the AC/DC tracks? Isn’t there someone on marketing staff who knows music well enough to introduce some really fun songs for the entire crowd to enjoy? There is so much variety of indeopendent music, not just the bland labels over and over.

    OSU needs to never play “living on a prayer” at a football game again, no one sees the irony of such a song for Beaver football?

    Eliminate all classic rock songs, no more appealling to the 70-80 yr old set for game hype please.

    Drop the vaccine mandates and price gouging and they may actually sell-out a game.

    Digital ticket only is a terrible idea if no one assessed what might become delays as a result.

    OSU is kind of high school caliber gameday really, cute and homey, comfortable and never changing. But I always thought there were obvious things that could make it a galvanizing event each gameday.

    Reply
    • 3

      ‘OSU needs to never play “living on a prayer” at a football game again, no one sees the irony of such a song for Beaver football?’

      I actually lol’d when they offered that as an option, yep yep all aspiring football programs want livin on a prayer pumped into their stadiums. So goofy.

      ‘OSU is kind of high school caliber gameday really, cute and homey, comfortable and never changing. But I always thought there were obvious things that could make it a galvanizing event each gameday’

      The game day experience is actually markedly improved over say even 2 or three years ago…plenty of tailgating space, beaver walk, the beaver block party on 26th in front of Gill, the band plays then marches into stadium, no crank it like a chainsaw, beer available for sale inside reser (10bucks a pop, but available) …things have improved even if not perfext

      Reply
      • 1

        Not to mention the family area behind the south end zone. Haven’t checked that this year but prior to pandemic you could check on a stroller and they had kids activities inside.

        The band on the stairs outside of Gill was cool. Also enjoyed watching the ducks lose while husky and beaver fans celebrated in the parking lot. Best game I’ve been to since we beat usc at home in 09 was it?

        If more fans start going and tailgating it’ll make the game day atmosphere even better. The university has many food and drink opportunities if desired. Lots of empty spots in reset parking area. Those used to be packed and one big party.

        Reply

    • NOBODY need ever play “Living on a prayer again.” Nobody.

      Is the Black Keys’ “Gold on the Ceiling” too old to play? I’ve heard them to as “Roller Rink Rock,” which made me laugh, but I like some of their stuff.

      Reply
  27. 3
    1

    Agree JS has evolved and fast for the better. Somewhat disagree that Nolan isn’t what we thought. He came through in the clutch. He’ll learn from the sack fumble. He was clearly confused on coverage which through him off balance but you could see him processing and get better. I think Nolan will get better the second time he plays teams in p12. Next year will be a jump and he has tools you can’t teach.

    Reply
  32. 15
    1

    For those questioning Smith’s end of game strategy as being Riley-esque I need to disagree. While it made me very nervous to leave to the kicker it was the right move statistically. It also brought to mind on of the Civil Wars for a trip to the Rose Bowl. If I remember correctly James Rogers scored a TD on a fly sweep to take the lead with a minute or two to go and the Ducks went the length of the field to win at the end. We could have bled the clock and kicked a field goal to win it just like yesterday. Instead we got hosed by the Ducks and no Rose Bowl berth. To me it was smart football yesterday. An extra point to win or worst case OT. That was very smart in game clock management.

    Reply
    • 4

      I said it was Riley like. I’ll agree it worked out well. But. That field goal was 24 yards, he missed twice before at 29. By twice I mean he missed when Smith called a timeout to review that out of bounds call, then missed the real thing. If you score a touchdown, then kick it out of the back of the endzone you make the huskies drive 75 yards to force a touchdown to go into overtime. Our defense was on a roll at that point and their RB who was dicing us up was knocked out of the game. They would have had at most 1:05 left to do it but more like 1:00 or less. So letting a hot defense who were amped up making a 4th and short stop vs a kicker who had already missed at essentially the same distance is a no brainer. I would have put the defense back on the field that’s my opinion. But in the end it worked out as planned but being a beaver fan means know things don’t go as planned very often.

      Reply

      • Deep Breaths Bandit…Riley ptsd runs deep.

        I’m almost forgetting those years and embracing what this team is becoming. I want to enjoy and savor these types of wins rather than expect the worst again. I’ve been doing that since about 2008, up to then it was all just fun, but RIley crushed something in all of us with those losses to CHipster.

        Reply
      • 1

        It was 39 yards. And the kick that was after the whistle blew for a review, he made according to the radio broadcast.

        * I have yet to watch the game.

        Reply

          • That box score is wrong now that I’m looking at it again. It says 2 from 24 and miss from 29. But it’s made from 24 and 29.

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          • Well, I just watched it on the dvr. The FG attempt just as the whistle blew was not good. You were correct. Parker was not on the radio broadcast.

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        • I owned up to calling it Riley like/ Riley-esque. I’m not correcting his description. And I think I typed “Riley type” anyways.

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    • 6
      1

      We’ve lost the game @ Nevada under Smith because Jordan Choukair missed a 33 yard chip shot at the end of regulation.

      Never, ever leave it to the kicker, unless it is a last resort. With 40 seconds left, you’re better off going up by 7 and making them drive 75 yards with no timeouts left.

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      • 10

        Choukair missed shorter kicks with some regularity. You can’t use the least accurate OSU kicker of the last two decades as your example.

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      • 1

        Not exactly….ive seen teams try to score and end up with a turnover. I didn’t like the strategy but Smith was playing high % and low risk. Had he missed the FG, it would have been disastrous. Bad snaps, bad placements and bad kicks were all possibilities but much lower possibilities than him missing the chip shot. I would have preferred him going for a TD but he was also intent on not leaving any time on the clock.

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        • 3

          I’ve said it many times and I’ll say it again. I really liked the call to kick the ball. I liked the wedge sneak before the last TO. That was to try to catch the defense napping to try and score, but keep the ball in the middle of the field. The kick Hayes missed earlier in the game was on a hash mark, not straight on. JS knew he needed to keep the ball centered for his kicker to have the mindset of PAT, not field goal to win. Hence the sneak before the kick.

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      • I don’t know. “leave it to the kicker” seems a bit over simplified. You’re leaving it to the line, the holder, and the kicker, in conditions where the wind, footing conditions, and crowd are not factors.

        Nolan struggle most of the night. Do you “leave it to the QB?” in that situation? You could, given he and Gould connected for meaningful yardage in crunch time. But, there’s lots of things that can go wrong on that drive too, isn’t there?

        OSU has been playing two tight ends, played a FB, so they went deep old school again and went to the kicker. : )

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      • 1
        1

        Yeah those two other Civil Wars ended very differently. Banker cost us the 2008 one because he put the corners on man coverage all game, then Blount and Masoli ran over everyone the next year.

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      • 5

        My old man memory isn’t so good. It was 2013 and a Victor Bolden fly sweep. Mariota came back to score a TD in about 90 seconds to win the game. For some reason I thought it was JR in one of those Rose Bowl games.

        I totally get it. I am not used to seeing Oregon St consistently execute high percentage plays to win close games so I understand wanting to score a TD and making them go the length of the field. We likely win either way, but I think for once JS actually played the percentages and wasn’t reckless like some of his 4th down calls lately.

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    • 6

      You always want to end the game on your terms if possible. Letting the opposing offense have the ball for an equalizer is not finishing on your terms.

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  34. 4

    Percentage-wise, kickers should be 90+% from XP range and in unless you know they’re terrible. You should always take that. We know Hayes is accurate from short range, so it’s a no-brainer.

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      • Dudes behind me were chewing nails at the decision, told my wife it made sense given the circumstances, but can see arguments either way and fans seem to be 50/50

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        • 1

          It builds confidence in your field goal unit. Had Hayes not missed his field goal earlier in the game…twice mind you, we wouldn’t of needed to go down and kick the field goal, we would have knelt the ball. So kicking the field goal to win is the same as running the clock out with kneel downs.

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    • 1

      Throw it in. Their D sucks. Lettin’ Russ Cook w/sandlot football isn’t going to get it done, though it may be entertaining about 25% of the time.

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  37. 19

    I think Smith should be commended for making the adjustment once he realized Lake was trying to let OSU score to preserve time on the clock. Smith played it perfectly so that UW could not win the game in regulation. A FG from inside 25 yards has about a 90% success rate. He played the high percentages and won the game.

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  38. Finally got to watch the game and it’s nice to see this team establishing an identity on offense and defense. They did what worked against USC and it worked again, even when the passing game wasn’t clicking (against possibly the conference’s best secondary). Nice!

    I do worry about how our D matches up with WSU’s offense next week. We’ve succeeded by blitzing a lot to stop the run and pressure the QB with a lot of stunts. WSU’s offense moves the ball quickly and should be less susceptible to that pressure that takes a little more time to develop. Tibs is going to be tested. We’ll se how well he can adapt.

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    • 1

      I just watched the wsu vs cal game and thought this same thing. Wsu offense seems like the hardest to defend for what we do defensively. I think the offense is going to be dominate, but defense is likely going to give up some points. The one thing defensively that should be in our favor is de Laura seems to be a bit “risky” so a couple picks and pounding the rock on offense, “should” be able to keep the game in Beavs favor. At least my early thoughts. I think Pullman is going to be tough without turnovers in our favor though

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    • 1

      Why?

      Take away the 44 they scored against PSU and the Cougs are averaging just under a meager 18 ppg.

      23 vs Utah St (loss)
      13 vs Utah (loss)
      14 vs USC (loss)
      21 vs Cal (win)

      Beavs will be fine

      Reply

      • Yeah maybe I actually like the vote for a sing a long so it stays fresh. Maybe pick more options from this century though.

        Florida does their Tom Petty thing which is pretty awesome. It helps that he was from the swamp though.

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  42. 1
    1

    It’ll be interesting to see how Tibs adjusts to de Laura based on last year’s experience. I think one adjustment is to have the DE’s straight bull rush the QB and force him to roll out. I think last year the DE’s went too far upfield, and de Laura was able to step up in the pocket and run untouched for 10 yards.

    Also, who does Tibs put as a spy on de Laura? Should we run a 3-3-5 scheme this game?

    Reply

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