It's going to be slow until next week.
I'm taking a mini vacation up to Lassen National Park (Northern Cal) and will not be home until Sunday night. In the meantime, talk about whatever you'd like. Mannion was just named the starter. I'm sure that will be a talking point.
My opinion: it's good Riley named someone the starter. Mannion has put up good numbers thus far, but I'm not completely sold his long delivery, and I'm not fond of having a statue in the pocket.
Any topic goes, so have at it.
I’ll go first. Elk season has been slow so far for me…gotten on a couple herds but no bulls – at least none that I saw or answered my calls. Brother is on a 6×6 bull today – got them bedded in some reprod waiting for evening. Another buddy stuck a 5×5 last night – nice little 3/12 yr old bull.
Hoping this weekend kicks off for me here…did see a smoker whitetail I’m hoping will be around for a while.
Or did you mean any “football” topic? :)
Ideally, but any topic is fine so long as it’s interesting. I enjoyed reading that pseudo-Hemingway blurb.
One of my goals is to hike every National Park before I die. Haven’t been to Lassen, so it will be #28 (+3 in Canada).
Please don’t ever mention the number 28 when referring to Beaver football.
I should say on a Beaver blog.
I don’t think the number 28 should be avoided. It was Hass’ number, one of the all time greats!
We drew 2nd season rifle rocky mtn elk for the 3rd straight year. This means I’ll be missing the Stanford game and coming home empty handed yet again.
It’s still priceless to spend a couple weeks with my old man in the Eagle cap wilderness of NE Oregon.
Yeah..worth the trip for sure – beautiful country, now “overrun” by people (by wilderness standards) thanks to Cam Hanes’ publications…love the guy though. does a lot to improve the hunter’s image in the public eye IMO.
Good luck! We should start a thread in the fourm for posting glory shots during hunting season.
Hey GWH, you ever shot (and eaten?) a beaver?
as for hunting, i’ve always wanted to hunt an animal and use it as a food source. I feel like a shitty human buying meat in sanitized wrapped packages. I guess I find that I am disrespecting the source of the food by being 100% consumer and paying someone else to do the dirty work for me. Before I die I would like to at least kill and prepare a chicken myself. I guess that’s weird but whatever. i feel like running a small sustainable farm would be pretty awesome (and hard work) but that is a pipe dream.
I trapped a few…never ate one. They are a little strong smelling. My JR high coach told us that he knew a lot of guys that ate beaver…being the 13 year-olds that we were, we thought it was hilarious.
I’m glad to hear your point of view As a non-hunter. IMO anyone who eats a scrap of meat but opposes hunting on some moral ground is a blatant hypocrite. Feeding my family venison is the “greenest,” most environmenally conscious thing I can do – no grain crops, food plots, hay fields, pesticides, herbicides, etc. are needed to raise my organic, free-range meat. It’s a net-zero impact.
Many non hunters such as myself dislike hunting for trophy. I can’t believe there are people who would actually disprove of hunting for a food source.
net-zero? you’re probably at a net-+1 depending on your area and how many predators are controlling the deer populations. if there aren’t a lot of predators around you’re helping keep their population in check.
Beavgirl, most non-hunters don’t know that every single group of hunted animals in the entire country is managed year to year, taking all factors into account regarding herd health. Also, get this, every group of animal that is hunted in the US has INCREASED in population once they become managed by the local dept of fish & wildlife. That’s right, there are more deer, more elk, more bear, more birds, more cougar, more antelope, more sheep, more goats, etc. than there were before they started issuing tags & licenses to hunt these animals.
Anti-hunting groups forget/ignore what happens when a herd outgrows their environment.
Yeah, I am familiar with all that since I have lived in areas where deer season was a way of life. I have never actively participated though (just dodged a few bullets). I think people just have this gut emotional reaction to any person killing, well, bambi (or some other cute animal) and forget the bigger picture that hunting is well regulated and generally good for the environment
However, I respect hunters who eat the animal and use its body for different things more. Not a fan of the hunter who displays the antlers over the fireplace and dumps the body in the garbage or whatever. i kinda want to ban trophy hunting tbh haha
I’m a trophy huntin sumbitch, till a spike walks out in front of me.
Here’s another perspective for you regarding trophy hunters:
At one point in history, Africa’s big game population was in peril. Poaching was rampant (ivory trade, furs, etc), big predators were being wiped out, and habitat being altered for grazing lands.
Enter Teddy Roosevelt. The man loved him some vension, but a trophy hunter was he. Pictures of his well documented African Safari’s splashed across the covers and pages of hunting rags across the country, and helped ignite a phenomenon – the African Trophy Hunting Safari…a rich man’s trophy hunt, were ZERO meat was brought back to the States…only horns and hides made that trip. Just as this sport was expanding, there was also a growing segment of society that became outraged at the sight of portly hunters posing with elephants, rhinos, zebras, giraffes, lions, gazelles, wart hogs, ibex…and on and on an on. The photographs were an emblem of destruction and waste and greed to many.
An interesting effect was borne of this cause, however. Prior, these animals has zero monetary value to the locals. The animals were seen as a threat to their livestock – either through competition for grazing and water, or as predators. The money for the poacher’s black market ivory and hide trade was not wealth spread to the common man – it was a mafia-like system.
Once the millions of dollars started flowing through these villages, they had a tangible reason to protect these animals from poaching, and to protect the habitat from destruction. Reserves sprang up across the continent. Poachers were rooted out. Wildlife herd management practices took hold. Counter intuitively, these animals were SAVED as a result of trophy hunting.
Closer to home, Ducks Unlimited – an organization of waterfowl hunters, is responsible for more wetland habitat enhancment and protection than all anti-hunting organizations combined. Similarly, the Rocky Mounatin Elk Foundation, also a group of hunting enthusiasts, fight to perserve natural elk habitat both on private and public lands through strategic partnerships with ranchers, legislators, etc.
Duck unlimited would not exist but for the sport of waterfowl hunting.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation would not exist but for the sport of elk hunting.
Trout Unlimited…
Pheasants Forever…
Etc…
Most hunters, myself inlcuded, enjoy or even rely on vension as a food source…but most also do enjoy the hunt as much as the sustanance it provides. Does that make me a trophy hunter? I have wall mounts and a bear rug prominently displayed in my living room, after all, so maybe I do fall into that category although I’ve never labeled myself as such.
The image of the beer guzzling, chew spitting redneck hunter, while accurate is some cases, is largley a fallacy, especially for the hunter of this millenium. Hunters, Trophy Hunters included, are conservationalists – true stewards of the environment. Hunters save animals. Hunters save habitat.
Well said!
Did you really just ask him if he’s eaten a beaver?
Lol…I skirted it the best I could
i was thinking people would interpret it as me asking if you had ever shot and eaten a beaver fan as in a human as in cannibalism OH NEVERMIND
I like Mannion as starter. I understand the arguments for Katz but I feel like he has had a chance to work on his issues and he is showing no progress. Plus I think this is good for recruiting. Riley can tell recruits he has 9 true freshman playing and a RS frosh at QB and that they can play early too if they earn their time.
Either way I would agree picking Katz or picking Mannion is better than choosing both like the Wisconsin game.
I don’t like Katz.
And I’m neutral/skeptical on Mannion.
So for me, if those are the only two options, it’s a lesser of two evil scenario. Hoping I’m wrong on Mannion. Katz never progressed. He had a great arm, but that’s not what QB is about. Mannion shows better traits, but his long delivery and lack of speed concern me.
Mannion’s not perfect. Mannion does have the flaws you mention (long delivery and lack of footspeed) and probably always will. Mannion’s long delivery, in particular, may limit his chances of having a successful NFL career.
But Mannion’s long delivery and lack of footspeed should not — in themselves — stop Mannion from becoming a great college QB. Mannion’s skills seem like a strong fit with Riley’s complex pro-style offense and our talented receivers. Riley’s offense puts a premium on quick and correct reads and decision-making, plus a legit arm that can make all the throws. Those are Mannion’s strengths. I’m cautiously optimistic that Mannion is going to do big things as OSU’s QB for the next several years….
I am totally happy. Maybe Riley is starting to pull his head out of his butt. I think what Mannion has can’t really be taught… football instincts. What he doesn’t have, long delivery and lack of footspeed, can hopefully be taught to him. I loved the way this kid handled himself in the WI game. Think about how new this kid is in front of 85000 people, and he didn’t look totally rattled.
I don’t think lack of speed has to really be a concern as long as that lack of speed is not in decision making. A QB that is able to make quick decisions doesn’t need to run. But what I also saw out of Mannion was nice footwork that helped him to give a bit more time. That is what is needed in a pro-style offense.
“… Katz never progressed….”
Do we have Langsdorf and Riley to thank for that?
Angry,
I think you are placing way too much emphasis on this slow delivery thing. Have you ever watched Luck? He’s a big kid with a long motion just like Mannion. Secondly, guys with slow throwing motions have done big things in college. You remember Byron Leftwich don’t you? The issue really has nothing to do with the throwing motion and everything to do with how fast his brain thinks. If he knows the routes better than the receivers and can process the coverages, he should be able to make the decision to throw the ball so that it gets there when it needs to get there. It’s about the ball getting to the receiver on time. What we saw against Wisconsin was that he was making late decisions to throw the ball. These late decisions led to the defender already reacting to the route and being in a position to knock it away. If Mannion isn’t making faster decisions by the end of the year, then I would start to worry.
So after Mannion “starts” and plays 1 series, will Katz come in and play the majority of the snaps? That would really throw UCLA off…..clever Riley…….hehehe…..
Maybe Katz can be the new punter.
I’ve heard very good things about Elk hunting. My buddy goes to Idaho for deer and Elk. He’s been going for a few years and hasn’t bagged an Elk yet.
Guys ever gone fishing in the Sea of Cortes? Now that’s a good time. I’ve caught well over a dozen Stripped Marlin and about the same amount of sail fish. I rather fish for the large tuna(100 pd+) Those bitches pull like trains. If you guys are interest, their is a GREAT place called Hotel Palmas de Cortes. The trips are set up with boats, poles and crew. The damn dock is 150′ away from your hotel room. It’s located half way between Cabo and La Paz. I have been fishing for a few decades, but you don’t need any experience to fish with these guys, they will walk you through it.
Here’s a link guys http://www.eastcaperesorts.com/palmas_de_cortez.html
Good luck Angry
Now the Hotel Palmas is something I’ll chime in on. It’s my favorite place on the East Cape, best billfishing I’ve ever had, (and I’ve done plenty) and love the bloody mary’s at Buzzards Bay Cantina.
Speaking of fishing, the salmon are popping on the Yaquina, and all take coho opens tomorrow. It’s been killer fishing on all three local rivers, Nookies are here! My kindergartener has almost filled a tag and it’s only September. We’re going to have a helluva lot better fishing season than football season.
I miss the Oregon coast/coastal river fishing…closest thing I’ve had since moving here is a 17# rainbow…lots in the 3-8 pound range. Nothing like a king though…
What part of Idaho? There’s better places in the state than N. Idaho, but there’s definitely a few around.
Thinking about heading down to Rock Point on the north east shore of Sea of Cortez this winter…got a buddy who’s family owns a condo there and the fishing there is great from what I’ve heard. I used to be a fishing guide…but never actually paid a guide myself!
I certainly love getting out to catch the big fish, but I’ve settled on just playing in the water more than anything as I get older. I go more for snorkeling, surfing and spearfishing than anything now. Cortez is great for the fishing and the sights, but I have a crash spot in Punta Abreojos which gives me what I want in an ocean playground.
It’s funny on a football-heavy thread that we’re talking about a good BCS, and not the crap served up by corporate sponsors.
And it certainly doesn’t hurt my sensibilities that PA is a little socialist co-op of a town which told the corporatocracy and the Mexican Government to keep their greasy mitts off their ocean.
Still, in my experience, I’m happiest anywhere the osprey live freely.
¡buena suerte!
I’m the first guy to admit that I’m lucky to live in Newport, where the fishing is beyond compare. The boy slammed another chinook today at the Oyster House. The Yaquina is on fire.
But, if I could really have it my way, I’d live on Mexico, “I’d open a little hotel, take my guests out charter boat fishing.”
You know what the Mexicans say about the Pacific Ocean? They say it has no memory.
Lassen Peak is great this time of year. I have enjoyed traveling around Southern Oregon and Northern California. Lava Beds National Monument is a cool, uncrowded place to visit also.
I guess I don’t understand this. Katz’ numbers were not that bad last year and he hasn’t gotten enough snaps this year to prove he shouldn’t be the starter (outside of practice).
As I’ve said before, watching the Beaver offense with Mannion in there is like watching paint dry. His delivery so slow and mechanical, I find it hard for him to consistently move the chains. At least with Katz, I feel like the offense shows some excitment with him being able to tuck the ball and run.
Welcome to season #2 of below .500 football, folks.
After James Rodgers went down last season Katz had 9 touchdowns and 10 INTs. Let’s judge him on what he did without James Rodgers. James was able to mask his issues as a QB. He held the ball too long and took sacks. He stared down one receiver and refused to check it down to Quizz. Also, I would often see Katz panic and take off running even if he had a receiver open. Katz after Rodgers went down was who he was. Everyone fell in love with him cause he had athleticism and a big arm.
I don’t understand the thought process that Mannion is boring because he isn’t quick and you don’t like his delivery. Really makes very little sense.
The offense is no more exciting with Katz in there.
I wouldn’t put it all on the QB. Since James went down we have not been getting the separation necessary to make a bigger window to throw too. Wheaton, Cooks, and Bishop all had defenders draped all over them last week, and those were not exceptional DB’s. Once we get all of our weapons maybe that will free up some space from our below average wideouts. Plus, the wideouts were getting the ball knocked out of their hands and that would have improved the completion percentage, despite that Mannion had a good completion percentage. I like how he stands tall in the pocket and has a good view the rush and coverage. Is he fleet of foot? Not so much, but for somebody who can run Katz sure did get sacked alot, so Mannion will have to rely on getting the ball out.
Now we have to worry about the OL holding up to some stout DL. We will be almost all walkons up front. But if we can find a running game with Agnew or Jenkins, then it would take off the pressure on the QB and the OL. I think either of those two have shown the necessary vision to be able to create some lanes, as the OL isn’t going push anybody over.
Defensively this maybe our worst back 7 since 1990’s. I like Watkins but he needs a little more bulk to be able to come up on the run and take on either a bigger back or a tight end. Too bad Mitchell isn’t 100%. The linebackers and corners need to grow up fast as they are not the most sound technique wise. Now if the DL can start getting a push and get to the quarterback maybe we can hide the defenciances in the back, and they showed some glimpses of being able to do that last week.
I had the same thought about Wheaton especially. Is he injured or something? He was getting zero separation on the longer routes against Wisconsin. Maybe their secondary was better than advertised.
How many times did Katz throw for a TD last year? What was his percentage based on total passing?
Ok, then: How many times did Quizz throw for a TD, percentage-wise?
Issaquah: Were you at the Sac St. game? I actually found the second half offense quite entertaining. A nice balance of running and throwing. Occasional stretch plays that kept the D from over-committing. Wisconsin wasn’t nearly as fun to watch, but then I think we were obviously outmatched in that game. We have to be able to run the ball to make our O work.
PAC-14/16 thoughts:
http://beaverbyte.com
The line seems to block for Mannion (for whatever reason), so that is a big plus I forgot to mention.
I don’t think the line blocks any better for either QB. Mannion uses the pocket better than Katz, and makes faster decisions, including looking off one receiver to another. Katz has athleticism and a rocket arm, although no touch. The line blocks the same… the QB that gets rid of it faster gets sacked less.
We’ll see about that. Mannion took a few too many sacks where he collapsed into the fetal position ala DA. He needs to develop some pocket presence. A little shift to the left or right, forward or back in the pocket can give him an extra second or two to get off a pass. I did not see that last weekend. There was one time he took a sack when he had his RB sitting off to his right with nobody on him and Mannion never looked. A heady QB will know where his outlet is supposed to be and if he is getting pressure, he should be able to dump a quick pass to the RB. A zero yard gain on 2nd and 2 is a lot better than a 10 yard sack. If Mannion is now the guy, we will need to see his mental progression through the remainder of the year. The QB position is about more than just velocity and accuracy. Heck, Jonathan Smith was never better than a 50-55% passer. The difference was, he knew where to go with the ball.
Don’t mistake my comment about he who holds the ball longer gets sacked more as blaming all sacks on QBs. As a former OL, I’d sure like to do that, but one of the sacks from the Wisky game I remember where Mannion folded in the fetal position was shortly after Andrews went down and the back-up guard got toasted to the inside, forcing Sean to back up in to the speed rusher. He’s got a long way to go with his pocket presence, for sure, but this early in his career, I’ve seen him stand in there, deliver, even while taking a shot from a defender.
His “slow” delivery is masked by his quicker decision making too. I like Mannion as a starter, if that isn’t obvious.
Seems a bit soon, thought he was gonna wait tilll end of week.
Guess that means mannnion really is the man…..n
keep in mind that Katz is in his 4th year in the Beaver program. His 4th year!!! Does anyone out there think he has progressed in a commensurate fashion? There must have clearly been signs during fall camp that Katz’ progress was not continuing and that Mannion had caught him with respect to what the coaches were looking for. Am I thrilled with what I saw from Mannion last Saturday? Not really; how can anyone be overjoyed at seeing multiple 3-4 yard passes followed by quick tackles when we needed 7-11 yards. Now that Mannion is the guy, I will sit back and watch and hope the Beavs get it together and salvage this season.
I watched the second half of the Wisconsin game against last night, using slow motion to study each of Mannion’s pass plays.
Because Wisconsin had a big lead for the entire second half, and because the Beavers had proved themselves incapable of running the ball (thereby negating the effectiveness of play-action fakes to freeze/fool the defense), Wisconsin’s front seven was in attack mode almost all the time. Wisconsin used various stunts and blitzes to get pressure on Mannion, who was often hurried as a result, or made to throw over the hands of approaching d-linemen.
As I recall, Mannion was something like 18 for 22 in the second half (I didn’t go back and check the numbers, but I’m pretty sure it was 18 for 22, or something very close to that). Two on-target passes were dropped. Two incompletions were caused by heavy pressure, where Mannion did well to get rid of the ball and avoid the sack. Mannion did not throw a truly bad pass in the second half, in the face of serious pressure from Wisconsin’s front seven. Quite a performance for a guy playing in those circumstances in his first full game, as a redshirt freshman QB.
Mannion also did not have a pass blocked. Slow motion revealed several plays where Mannion’s passes were only a few inches above the outstretched arms of a rushing d-lineman. At 6’5″, Mannion was able to get those passes off, and (in almost all cases) get the ball to the receiver. At 6’1″, Katz’s passes would likely have been blocked on each of those plays.
Mannion took only one sack, towards the end of the second half. He also fumbled once, when his arm was hit while getting set to throw. Given all the pressure applied by Wisconsin in the second half, Mannion did well in this department. Not once in the second half did Mannion simply throw the ball out of bounds or into the turf to avoid a sack. Instead, when he was under heavy pressure, Mannion would find the check-down receiver and get him the ball. Although his footspeed is underwhelming, Mannion also showed an ability to move around in the pocket to avoid sacks, and even scrambled once to get off a pass and avoid taking a big loss.
Watching the second half again, in slow motion, I came away even more impressed by Mannion’s performance, and by his potential. Mannion did all this in his first full game, against a Top 10 team, without any running game to keep the defense honest. Give Mannion a running game — and give him James Rodgers and Joe Halahuni in addition to Wheaton, Cooks, and Bishop — and Mannion should be able to pick most defenses apart. I expect and hope we will see exactly that against UCLA on September 24 at Reser.
Yeah, I’m not sure why anyone thinks Mannion can’t be a dandy. I’ve not seen anything bad from him other than the jitters at the beginning of the last game. Add the QB swaps in the middle of drives to Mannion’s performance, and the picture of what he did becomes a little more sparkling. Since we’re too close as fans, I think Mike Riley lost credibility with us when he told us that Mannion is just that good AFTER he went ahead and played Katz for the full first half of the first game. As I recall, a lot of us were screaming for Katz to be yanked early in the 2nd quarter against Sac St.
So Riley may have lost his credibility for the team’s performance and the QB controversy to start the year. But when Urban Meyer goes from criticizing Riley to glowing about Mannion during a beat-down, I have to think both coaches really do know what they see in Mannion.
Yes, it takes a full count for Mannion to release the ball. But he has seen two-thirds of the field in the first count and releasing on the second count after his drop. In all our history watching Katz play, how often has he released the ball within two counts when it wasn’t a bubble screen? I don’t hear anyone calling for Riley to design roll-out plays for Mannion like they did with Katz last year (and this year) just to give him time to throw. And it’s not like our o-line has become all-world suddenly.
I personally did not think that Mannion was that slow to release the ball, I think his physical stature creates a bit of an illusion. I think we are so used to Katz being so “herky-jerky” back there that we forgot what a true pro-style QB looks like in the pocket with a proper drop back and footwork. That being said, I think Katz may have missed his calling, I could have seen him develop into a good spread-type QB in the right system. If Riley is dedicated to the Pro offense then I think it is clear that Mannion is the guy.
Hey SS, I just saw your tweet-versation with Brandon Sprague (who seems to be pushing for Katz to transfer?). When he tweets that we said that Sac St was no match at any position, you can tell him we were really looking forward to their game with perennial juggernaut Southern Utah.
I wish I had thought of that response! :)
A little over a week ago, Sprague published a blog post titled “Settling a QB Controversy”: http://www.csnnw.com/pages/landing?Settling-a-QB-Controversy=1&blockID=559686&feedID=10018
In that post, Sprague, using his best “know it all” tone, lectured Beaver fans about the obvious superiority of Ryan Katz over Sean Mannion. Set forth below is a representative portion of Sprague’s “reasoning”:
“Katz should be the guy. Katz has the strongest arm of the two, is more game ready, and is viewed among his teammates as “the man.” ” [Note: Sprague failed to explain why “the man” was not voted by his teammates to be one of the Beaver captains this season…]
“His arm is more powerful, he’s more familiar with the offense, and has chemistry with the wide outs. Oh, and when the pocket collapses, which it looks like it could several times this season, do you want the QB to at least get a few yards or first down? Or a sack?”
Here’s how Sprague ended his post:
“I think Katz has to be and will be the QB. If winning is the priority, than there shouldn’t be any second guessing. Than again, what do I know? I’m only around the team six days a week.”
It was the smugness of that final sentence that got to me.
So I sent a few tweets to @BrandonSprague, noting that AngryBeavs.com posters have been pointing out serious flaws in Ryan Katz for a long time, and were not surprised at all by Katz’s recent decline and Mannion’s rise. (Seemed to me a good opportunity to get some press for AngryBeavs.com and the high quality of discussions on this site.)
I also couldn’t resist adding the following tweet to @BrandonSprague:
A week ago, you wrote: “Katz has to be and will be the QB” and you added that “there shouldn’t be any second guessing.” Now that Mannion has been named Beaver QB, you will presumably not second guess Riley’s decision on that, ok?
Brandon Sprague responded by blocking me on Twitter. As my teenage daughter would say, “Whatever….”
You got banned for questioning a reporter? haha…that’s too funny. Brandon is you and has some growing up to do.
*young not you
CSNW? Who cares anyway. Isn’t that the Duck network for some games. Sprague should be man enough to discuss when is predictions don’t pan out.
what’s our Twitter handle?
There is no salvaging this season. The season is lost. Too many problems, too much youth. What you should attempt to take heart in is watching the development of the youth. I’ve already accepted we aren’t going to win much this year. But, I’m still watching because I’m looking forward to seeing which young guys develop and really position this team for next year. Can Mannion make quicker decisions and play the mental part of the game? Will Agnew run over people and become a 1,000 yard back? Will Cooks learn the finer parts of the game and be a real offensive threat? Will DEs Crichton and Wynn give us two of the best DEs we’ve had since Jackson and Grant (the presidents)? These are things to be excited about. Now, if they show zero development or regression this year as we lose 9 or 10 games, I’ll be very sad and probably depressed.
This should probably go in the Riley/depressed post, but does anyone remember the last time Riley challenged a call?
Was anyone able to find out if coaches challenges were in play for the Sac.St game? My guess is no because it seemed like both sides should have used it a couple of times.
Some of these comments are funny.
Jonathan Smith
Sean Canfield
Matt Moore
What do these guys have in common? Well, as I recall, pretty brutal assaults on their football acumen after their first few starts.
I’m thinking Mannion is doing better in his first snaps than these other guys, but whatever. Even if his skills inexplicably go south, it’s too early to make a judgment. I’m extremely disappointed in Katz’s progress, it’s hard to believe he still consistently gets the yips. I feel sorry for him. Unfortunately for him, big-time college football is a decidedly unsentimental place.
Give Mannion a chance. If it doesn’t work out, there’ll be plenty of time for the armchair QBs to get their harsh on.
Did anyone say those QBs were great from the get go? Most here know the struggles that young QBs have under Riley’s system. Smith was out of this world in his half against the Huskies, but yes I think he went something 17 for 53 in I believe the next game against Cal. We all know that Moore, Canfield, Anderson and even Moevao had “cover your eyes” type games in the beginning.
The irony is that Katz had the best overall first season statistically of any of those I mentioned yet the offense was anemic under his leadership. My guess is that Riley felt like last year should have been better and maybe Katz was part of the problem. Riley was looking for Mannion to take a leap in progress (and he apparently did so) and Katz showed more of the same against Sac St. Decision made.
I suppose that’s my point. Nobody said those QBs were great from the get-go, yet some feel anything less than immediate greatness from our current QBs means we should all get the vapors and head for the fainting couches.
There’s something more going on here than meets the eye. For some reason, Riley feels Katz isn’t progressing or something to the extent that he needs to take the drastic act of replacing him with a QB who didn’t get all those quality snaps with the first unit during training camp.
I know a lot of people don’t follow or even care about the off-revenue sports. But I do care, and I think their success could bring as much or more prestige to the school with current and future athletes making a name for themselves on a world stage. One of the reasons a boy named Lynn is so despised by OSU alums is that he lacked this vision or tried to alter it to his mindset as he had previously attempted at Linfield. But that incoherent or lack of vision resulted in us becoming a second tier athletic school after years of just being a joke in football.
Luckily, we have several supporters within the OSU community for a return to that vision. The most obvious is the renewed energy for bringing back track and field. But gymnastics and wrestling have miraculously survived not only our apathy during years of pain, they’ve managed to survive during the subsequent years of program cuts in these off-revenue sports.
So it was really nice to read Cliff’s article in the GT today about a vision which steps beyond OSU yet benefits it in a world view. Someone at OSU has a future vision of success and prestige, and it’s paying dividends now and hopefully next summer. Let’s hope this is contagious.
http://www.gazettetimes.com/sports/article_0c66a560-de2b-11e0-9e21-001cc4c002e0.html
I, too, care about off-revenue sports. The people who participate in them have worked long and hard and the Pac-12 (or at least the Pac-10 did) has good competition within those sports. Oregon State’s reputation in a world view needs the diversity (and what about OS winning in Germany with the race car?) that the off-revenue sports engender (pun intended). If any of you watched the Beavers without Borders, Macedonia – after the soccer game with the locals – one of the Macedonian players made it a point to congratulate the OS soccer player (I think her name is Kristen Carmichael). Read player bios about the non-football sports; the golfer from Spain, etc. I’m delighted these fine athletes are attending OS.
Imo DA had a rocket arm but never developed touch and the same thing seems to be happening with Katz.
Thus this question: Do the QB coaches work with the QBs in helping them learn to develop touch and if so how do they go about it?
I remember reading about Y.A. Tittle and one of the things he did to develop touch. He hung a tire from a tree branch and practiced throwing the ball through the hole while the tire was moving.
TIA
Touch is more of a depth perception issue than it is target practice. I knew one high school coach who would drill with 55 gallon drums at 10 yard intervals down either side. It was high school, so there wasn’t much consistency from his QB’s. But they did know how to drop it in the bucket by the time they left his program.
Yeah, I was thinking about Beaver football and then I thought….
maybe you guys should check this sick Dodo out (54pds). Caught this Bull while fishing the East Cape. Not sure the link will work….. When you order Mahi Mahi at the restaurant, this is what it looks like before you fillet it.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1838678807932&set=a.1583125419257.2082325.1269373523&type=1&theater
Hang some fishing picks guys. Or talk about the Beavs…..
Ack! I thought I had pics of a high country hunt from two years ago. My bro-in-law stalked a billy for four hours, and he finally bagged him with a 460m shot. It was pretty intense. 9-3/8″ horns and a B&C score of 45.
I’ll keep looking for those pics. They must be on an old hard drive somewhere.
But I rarely take pics myself. I can say that steelhead and trout are good on the McKenzie, but not as much luck for me on the Santiams. I’ve caught a couple eaters on the Siletz from the shore. So I’ve got some good steaks headed into the fall. I’m not big on anchor fishing, but one friend in Troutdale tells me the current run is really nice.
But the place I need to get before the season ends is the Deschutes. My uncle says it’s the best fishing he’s seen since he was a kid.
I’m going up to the Lewis and Cowlitz on Saturday to visit a friend and to see if I can remove the empty spaces in my freezer.
And anyone in Portland who is unemployed at the moment but thinks they know how to fish should do what I did when I first moved back to Portland some 10 years ago. Get a license and go catch a butt-load of squawfish.
Wow…that would be a dream hunt…amazing conservation story that we can even have a Mt. Goat hunt in Oregon. Hunt of a lifetime!
That was in Montana. I think he would be upset if he won a drawing for goats in Oregon (which he applies for each year) and only came out with a 45. 47 is the record for that region.
And man! Goat is extremely lean meat. We had to cut it with about 30% pork belly to make a good sausage out of it. Forget jerky. We diced the meat and dehydrated/sealed it for future camps. He tells me that and some dehydrated potatoes and stew veg makes a good hot pot.
Ah…just about as tough a draw in Montana and Idaho. My dad lives in Alaska and he’s taken a couple billies – I never did get a chance to try it though.
But yeah, he said “dream hunt” more than once.
“…I knew one high school coach who would drill with 55 gallon drums at 10 yard intervals down either side….”
I’ll donate the drums, tire(s) and rope if they’re of use.
DA could fire strikes into some tight spaces with that rocket. I’ll take 29 TD passes and 17 interceptions his senior season. The team road his arm and he got them a win over Notre Dame. The Beavs actually had a vertical passing game back then.
Had nothing to do with touch. It was a small component of his problems. DA, I’m afraid to say, never got his mind wrapped around what exactly he was supposed to do.
I’ve followed his career in the NFL and the number one thing I’ve learned is that DA either doesn’t study enough or he isn’t a heady QB at all. Last year with the Cardinals, he was quoted as saying that he’s most comfortable knowing where to go with the ball before the snap even takes place. He is uncomfortable trying to figure out where to throw once the defense reacts and the play in motion. That sort of strikes me as problematic. Yes, you can identify some mismatches before the ball is snapped, but you also have to be able to process what is going on once the ball is snapped. Is there a corner blitz? Is the LB dropping back into coverage? Did the receiver totally fake out a CB on a double move and now the WR has 10 yards of separation streaking down the field. If you make your decision where to throw the ball before the ball is snapped, you don’t take full advantage of the weapons on your team. think Katz, last year figured that James was so dependable that he could save himself time by just looking his way. If he had to stop and think who he should throw to, he was making too many mistakes.
Schroeder’s generally negative article (www.registerguard.com/web/sports/26872464-46/riley-state-beavers-schroeder-mannion.html.csp)
Has this curious comment, “…coaches and players say the attitude has changed, and there’s a sudden urgency.”
What do you guys make of this? Does “urgency” here=fire, or does it equate to panic??
“Hopefully grow and maybe win,” Riley said.
That doesn’t sound like an attitude change or urgency to me.
haha.
That’s awful. Maybe you should just stop talking for a awhile Coach.
hahah no panic OR urgency. i think i would prefer panic at this point
You picked up on that too. I read the article this morning, but did not have time to comment. I couldn’t believe I read “maybe win” and that was apparently a direct quote. Honestly, I have never heard language like that from a head football coach at any level. Maybe, he is just being brutally honest, but good lord you have to at least be able to fake some passion when you are leading a group of young men in the violent game. What the hell is wrong with that man???? Yeah, I know reference your previous post.
I would just like to ask the players why they didn’t have a sense of urgency on September 3rd? Did they think they just needed to put on the black uniforms and play the buzzsaw sound a couple of times during the game and Sac St. would just hand over the game? I thought it was pretty telling that they are just now developing a sense of urgency. That is probably the number one reason Riley teams aren’t ready to go on day one.
The poor starts have always driven me crazy about Riley’s teams and yes some of it is tough scheduling, but they’ve had their share of close games and losses against lesser teams .
The media turned it into this “cutesy thing” that this was just how Mike Riley teams were, but the great Riley always figured out a way to motivate and the team comes on strong. It goes on today in many a writer’s story. I have been screaming it’s not funny and who the hell is accountable for this for years!
I even called out Ted Miller one time on the slow start subject and was basically told to shut up and be happy about all of the bowl games Mike Riley got the Beavs into. Last year it bit them in the ass and this year could be a free fall (UCLA game should tell us a little more).
ss… you at practice today?
I’m hearing James is practicing lights out.
not a surprise. James with 1 1/2 knees is still better than 90% of the receivers in the Pac-12. It will be great having him back in full practice situations teaching by example. Has anybody heard if he’s playing vs UCLA? It will be totally worth the price of admission just to be there to hear the reception from fans when he steps on the field.
Rumor is that he’s going to have a conversation with Riley and his family in the next couple of days and they’re going to allow him to decide on whether he wants to come back and play even though there’s the possibility of reinjuring himself. 100:1 odds say if that’s true that he’s playing at UCLA.
Seems like Riley might be pushing for the sixth year option for James, I don’t have any inside knowledge just trying to decipher the quotes in the press. I am starting to think Riley knows this season is toast, knows that BDC won’t do a damn thing about it and knows that next years team will be much improved and a 100% recovered James would be icing on the cake. Also, Riley should check with Kyle Whittingham, when I lived in SLC the Utes seemed to get a sixth year senior approved almost every year.
Couldn’t make practice today. Maybe tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing how the offense looks with Mannion, JRod, and Halahuni all working together…..
Katz didnt produce … against Sac State. Mannion did…. and produced against WI. This isnt rocket science. Go with Mannion. It isnt like Katz did wonderful things on a regular basis last year. If Katz cant grasp it, too bad.
Well, at least OSU can kick the world’s ass at something. Forewarning, it’s a half hour long:
http://www.youtube.com/user/FormulaStudentTV#p/a/u/1/QFZyzhPkqyw
Just wondering as a topic of discussion, where are all of you leaning as far as expanding to a Pac-16? I think it’s a good idea under the following circumstances: It goes to a West/East Division (Old Pac-8 and non-coastal state schools in opposite divisions, and the Northwest schools should threaten mutiny if that doesn’t happen). It would give us stronger footholds into the Texas recruiting market as well. Create 4 pods (Northwest, California, Mountain Time Zone, and Southeastern) and play 1 school from each pod in the opposite division every year (1 road, 1 home) and 7 same divisional games. Saves on travel, and everyone still benefits from being in everyone’s backyard. Seems to me the most logical way to do it. I don’t care at all about what Utah and Colorado think, they were lucky to be invited.
A 7-1-1 is just a normal divisional alignment. That isn’t really pods.
Pods would be a 3-2-2-2. I am okay with either but think there will be more support for pods and the 3-2-2-2. Same access for everyone outside their pod. It would change for minor sports with most games in division. In general, pods within West and East divisions is a reasonable idea that will give the moaners more access into Cali but still have us set up in a Pac-8 West so we feel good.
Also pods would most likely be independent of divisions in that if they ever chose to do a semi it would more likely be the top 2 by conference record from each division. Especially if OU and UT were in the same pod. Now if we added OU/OSU/KU/MU then they could consider pod champions for the top 2 in division if they wanted to because the pod balance would be close enough.
I like getting OU and OSU signed up. We have fewer options than other conferences so from that “beachhead” we can assure we are very relevant at 14 and capable of ending up with a good 16 result as it is most likely getting there very soon and almost certainly within just a handful of years. We need to protect our interests since the SEC is quickly going to be at 14 and then almost for sure at 16 just down the road from now.
Dislike it.
Oklahoma is the worst state. And Texas has shown their true colors.
If you want more money, egos, and complications, and half the conference irrelevant (ala the SEC bottom feeders) then the Pac-14/16 is a great idea. If you just want to watch some competitive games and have your university (i.e. OSU) have a chance at something meaningful once per decade, then 12 is probably the max.
Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas thank you for your definitive critique of Oklahoma.
The question is whether the NCAA is headed for bigger leagues or standing pat. The SEC and aTm are moving toward bigger, and they aren’t going to stop at 13. From revenue standpoint they begin to outpace other leagues by swallowing up schools who provide national caché, regional TV markets or both. If the Pac 12 feels the need to expand in order to not be left behind, then they need to add programs which offer the same or greater value.
If it were a matter of academics and geography, we draw a line from ND to Texas, and we come up with this list: Rice, Houston, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, North Dakota State, Montana State, Colorado State, New Mexico, all the UC schools (except the two in San Fran who specialize in law and medicine), and Hawai’i. And British Columbia more than easily fits in with the current Pac schools. Davis is the only viable UC school to consider for sports, and they would have to be lumped in with UBC, NDSU and MSU as lower tier sports programs. UNM and CSU would be excellent fits, but we either already have their market (Denver) or they have too small a market (UNM). Hawai’i also has a smaller market, but a case can be made for the transient population which is always present during sporting seasons as well as its gateway position to the Asia market. Right now, athletic departments will deny Hawai’i inclusion in the Pac because football programs see it as a viable recruiting area which would dry up if it joined. The would claim travel time and cost, but those are offset easily by the Hawai’i Rule. And it’s not like traveling to Chicago, Houston or the East Coast are short trips which Pac schools don’t routinely schedule.
So we’re left with KU, UT, OU, Houston and Rice. Rice would be the Stanford of the eastern schools. If they were flush with athletic cash, they would instantly become a viable football and basketball school. They would still need to go through the process of finding that one coach who would take them there and build the program. Houston would be the same, but they need some real facility upgrades. I’ve heard they’re actually rebuilding their football stadium (think Parker Stadium days at OSU). So this would help them. And OU is OU. Those three would come to the Pac willingly. And since Larry isn’t moving until they do come of their own volition, anyone who wants in needs to ask… nicely.
But OU will want to bring Bedlam with them. And I think they could leverage it with their national value as a football program. oSu isn’t a bad school. But you might as well bring in Nevada or UNLV from an academic standpoint. I guess we wait and see how their investments which started in 2005 pan out. If they’re committed, they can step into academic relevance. But the worst part of oSu is that they are worse than Nikegon in terms of making admissions allowances for athletes. When you hear stories about kids who can’t read going to college to play ball (and those stories are true), this is one of those places. If oSu is allowed to come along, then the league would heavily mandate their admissions for athletes. But I think both schools want in bad enough that they would do anything.
I wouldn’t worry about Kansas. I would love to have them in the Pac, but if the B1G doesn’t swallow them and Mizzou in the near future, they’re idiots.
So that leaves Texas. Of course, they have value. But they will want to politic TTech into the league as well. Like oSu, they’ve recently committed a lot of money to academics. Unlike oSu, a commitment to community outreach has actually aided their academic endeavors. They have a ways to go, but they at least have the foundation set. But you could say the same of UTEP and UTA. Of those three, UTEP has by far the most Pac-like campus (it’s absolutely gorgeous), and they have an outstanding civil rights history. If we’re talking this level of school, then we have to add North Dakota, Montana, Idaho and Portland State to the list of the three Texas schools mentioned. Why would we do that while New Mexico was still out there (or CSU for that matter)?
If TV revenue and football prowess were no consideration, I would say include Hawaii, CSU, UNM and bring Davis out of athletic obscurity. And maybe foster UBC and MSU, the two remaining western schools who prove they give a damn about being a true research institution.
But TV and football do matter. So politics will win the day. And that gets one big “Oh well” from me. It would be more exciting to me if we added the 12 schools mentioned in my first list, divided us into four six-team divisions, and played a 5-2-2-2 (yes, 11 games) conference schedule. Just lock up the West, and relegate all others to also-ran status.
North Dakota State??? Where did you come up with that one? UND is far superior athletically and academicly. I’ve always like the idea of the Canadian team…
UND? In hockey maybe. :)
NDSU is a top tier research institution, and that’s what drives academics (perception as well as reality).
I think taking over play calling might reengage Riley. It would also allow Langsdork to focus on what he’s okay at: recruiting and coaching QBs
Riley and company have to realize there is a chance to save this season if they can get it back together and beat UCLA. They do that, and motivating the team will suddenly get easier. We are gonna see if this still means something to Riley. If he doesnt hang it out, play calling, and go for it in this next game, we know he is done.
I know I might sound like a… whatever…. but can Rogers wear a knee brace to keep what is probably a weak knee from getting hurt easily again and not slow him down.
Rodgers has been wearing a brace and I don’t think it has effected his speed much from the reports I’ve read. So he should be fine as far as speed is concerned in games.
Cool. I’m probably more gun shy then he is having 3 knee surgeries on one of my knees. Sensitive subject… knees.
The problem with knee braces are increased hip and ankle injuries.
I have to think part of Rileys calculus in this decision is “is it worth the risk of blowing his knee in a losing season?”
Boise State gets 3 year punishment by NCAA. http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/6966240/ncaa-hands-boise-state-broncos-three-years-probation-scholarship-reduction
So many of the top teams are breaking the rules…. go figure. Is that what it takes these days to be at the top. College football has always had it’s dirty little secrets, example USC, but it seems to be a cancer these days. Maybe that’s why Riley is depressed… he is too honest LOL.
63 violations and that’s all the punishment they get? And Petersen is “disappointed” because he apparently thought the self-imposed penalties were enough. Give me a break.
It didnt say how bad the violations were — could have been trivial….like a little cream cheese on the bagel. Nor did it say how many violations were in football.
Good for the NCAA, going after the top teams.
Wait til there is some UO sanctioning, and imagine the cries of outrage from Kelley and company.
I think it was 63 football violations for the time period, but apparently the tennis team violations were the most serious, LOL.
Yeah, tennis team had a player who wasn’t enrolled in school. Football was a bunch of minor stuff, but it was known and lasted for a long time. Stuff like letting kids crash at team members’ off-campus homes before dorms opened so they could enroll in summer school before their frosh year and use the training facilities before fall camp began.
Apparently, the violations were for freshmen who were sleeping in upper classmen’s dorms, as far as football was concerned. This fell under the category of “unauthorized housing.” (This is according to the Friday night ESPN broadcast.” What follows is one of the better lines uttered by a commentator over the weekend: “You have trouble looking into Ohio State and Miami, yet you have time to police THAT!?”
Anyone know what the deal is with Pure-Orange? Did Lucky temporarily bring down the site due to the Beavers on-going meltdown or are there technical difficulties with the site itself that he’s working to correct?
Does anybody really think we can beat UCLA? They beat us last year and we were much better last season. We are a mess right now. There is really nothing that this team is doing well this year and I think every team in the league is going to zero in on us as a conference team that can be easliy beaten. I think until something changes (hopefully soon) this team is headed for an O-12 season. Oh, the Civil War will be ugly this year. This is so sad.
I think we have a pretty good shot at beating UCLA. We will be riding an emotional high from the return of Joe and probably James. The game is at home this year (no UCLA timekeepers). Plus things are never as bad (or good for that matter) as the fans think they are. UCLA has some issues of their own right now too. We’ll see though… it wouldn’t surprise me to see the Beavs get beat down either.
I think it’s right to be worried, but too early to be giving up.
I believe that we can and will beat UCLA. If we do beat UCLA, this team and this season could turn around fast. On the other hand, if we don’t beat UCLA, a hellish 0-12 season could actually happen.
Key to beating UCLA (and turning around this season) will be an effective Beaver offense led by freshman QB Sean Mannion, freshman tailback Malcolm Agnew, and receivers James Rodgers, Markus Wheaton, Jordan Bishop, Joe Halahuni, and Brandin Cooks. If all those guys play against UCLA, I think the Beavers will do fine. We’ll find out in nine more days….
Too early to give up for sure.
I’d add improved pass defense to the list of keys as the season progresses. Whether it is execution or technique something has to improve or we’ll continue to see third down conversions by opponents. BTW, Lance Mitchell tells Cliff he does his best work under pressure…guess we’ll be seeing his best work now, the pressure is on.
Its at home this year, some things have apparently been improved. Last year we played down to their level, and at their place, and still had a very close game that we could have won. They are not Wisconsin.
UCLA is one of the weaker teams in the Pac-12, so yes, we can beat them. In fact, all of our home games we have a shot to win just because we are at home. Granted, I admit the Stanford game looks a little dire, but hey, USC looked invincible coming in here in 2008 too… and we all know how that turned out (circumstances weren’t all that dissimilar from now).
OT, Tyner’s twitter profile pic is him wearing a Duck hat…
Figures…
That’s Ok. I see Chip Kelly wearing a Duck hat visor every week, and we all know he won’t be doing that in two years either.
Why wont Chip Kelly be in Eugene in two years? Unfortunatly I see him sticking around for a while. In Eugene he is paid well and has great facilities. Sadly, we have a lot of work to do to catch up with those guys. We should be more concerned with the face that Riley will probably still be here in two years and the distance between our teams is growing wider and wider.
Sorry: face=fact
Because the words “show” and “cause” will be attached to the conclusion of the NCAA investigation that will occur here in Eugene.
And the distance between our two teams can’t be any wider. We have nowhere to go but up right now. We have nothing to lose. We have more talent on our roster now than we’ve had in years, and more is coming. We just need experience and execution. Those come hand in hand, and the talent on the field will show as this year progresses. There will be no 0-12 season unless the team completely implodes. And that’s unlikely to happen even if we lose to UCLA, which is unlikely in and of itself.
Any team is capable of implosion. And if that happens, then there will be buyouts. That would mean that what we thought was good is rotten and lost. And you don’t give the people who destroyed a program an opportunity to rebuild from their own ashes.
How disappointing, but unsurprising. If he was really at that Sac State game I’m sure it’s going to take him awhile to shake the memory of that game off.
http://oregon.247sports.com/Article/Oregon-fans-to-five-star-RB-Welcome-home-Tyner-39719
“Tyner said he would like to run the 4X100 relay with Oregon running back De’Anthony Thomas.”
That’s nice. Thomas has great speed, but it’s not elite track speed. We have at least two guys on our roster who were faster than him in high school, and they’re not elite sprinters either. Although, if Welch concentrated on running, he could be close to All-American status during a collegiate track career.
Where is Zimmerman? I want to see him playing in the 2nd-dary. If we are going to play freshmen, then let’s brake-him in as well. We need some new blood to do energetic things. How about some “Boom” this game!
Just back from Thursday practice at Reser.
James Rodgers was running most of the reps with the first string, and looking good, but still not quite his old self, in my opinion. Will James Rodgers play against UCLA? Still hard to say….I’m hoping “yes” but wouldn’t bet my life on it.
Mannion started practice slow, but picked it up. Mannion threw a lot of passes to James Rodgers and to Joe Halahuni. Looks like Mannion is trying to hone his timing with those two guys asap, so they are in synch for UCLA (although, as noted above, still not clear whether James Rodgers will play…)
Katz, running the second string offense, looked pretty good today, too. Katz’s flaws haven’t disappeared, but Katz seemed engaged in the practice, and made some nice throws during drills. Looks like Katz is dealing with the situation reasonably well.
More later, when I get a few more minutes….
Katz is only a play away from being back as no 1. Life is full of stuff like that.
I am hoping he doesn’t play yet, just because he’s coming back from surgery so quickly and the injury risk.
I’d also like to think OSU wouldn’t need him to beat UCLA – I’d like to see Wheaton and Cooks start delivering – but there’s no reason to have faith in this team yet.
Agree OC. If they can’t beat UCLA without him the season’s toast anyway. Would then tell him to just concentrate on getting ready for the draft.
The team surely needs more confidence and swagger. If they can beat UCLA they will gain a lot. If I were coach I would pull out all the stops and use any angle I could. JR being back would boost morale, even if he didnt play a lot.
More comments on today’s practice at Reser.
Overall energy level seemed good. Players were hustling, and seemed upbeat. Same for coaches. No signs I could see of anyone sulking or feeling sorry for themselves.
I mostly watched the offense today, focusing on the receivers and the QBs
– The first string offense today had Sean Mannion at QB and (most of the time) receivers James Rodgers, Joe Halahuni, Markus Wheaton, and Kevin Cummings (substituting for Jordan Bishop), along with Terron Ward at tailback (substituting for Malcolm Agnew).
– Mike Riley in particular seemed more active and more vocal than usual at practice. Here’s one good example I recall, among several. The first string was running a 2-minute offense drill, 11-on-11, moving down the field, one play after another, as quickly as possible. Mannion completed a beautiful pass over the middle to Geno Munoz for about a 25-yard gain. The offense hustled down the field and setup for the next play. The ball was hiked to Mannion under center, and Mannion faked a spike, stood up, and then fired another pass to Geno Munoz over the middle (a nice trick play that we may see in the next game or two). The pass may (or may not) have been completed, but Michael Doctor pushed Munoz from behind before the ball arrived. Mike Riley, from 30 yards up the field, immediately yelled out “Michael Doctor, Michael Doctor, that’s a big time penalty.” In past practices, Riley rarely yelled so loudly, or made this kind of comment. I suspect Riley was doing this for a reason today…
– Mannion was throwing to Joe Halahuni a lot today. During the first part of practice, Halahuni dropped a few that he should have caught (almost all of them high passes that Halahuni had to reach up to snag — and that went through Halahuni’s outstretched hands). The coaches called out Joe for the misses. Later, Halahuni started catching these, and made some really nice grabs. Watching Mannion go through his progressions (which Mannion continues to do quickly and effectively), Mannion often seems to look for Halahuni if the primary receiver is covered. I’m guessing we will see a lot of Mannion-to-Halahuni this season, especially over the middle. I think that’s going to be a key part of the passing game.
– Mannion also threw a lot to James Rodgers today. James made a number of tough catches. In many cases, after the catch, James jogged back to the huddle and exchanged a palm slap with Mannion. Rodgers and Mannion also spent time talking in between plays (while Katz was taking reps with the second string). Looks like Rodgers is working actively to build chemistry with Mannion asap (and perhaps also doing this for teammates to see — to help everyone accept Mannion as #1 — but that’s pure speculation on my part).
– Mannion seems to consistently deliver passes at shoulder level or higher. When Mannion misses, he tends to miss high, rather than low. Maybe that was just today, but it was noticeable throughout today’s practice….
– Brandin Cooks took most of his reps with the second string today. It was clear that he was one of Katz’s favorite targets today, and BC did a good job getting open and catching the ball. During two-minute drills, Katz connected with BC on a 50 yard bomb (with BC making a tough catch as the DB caught up to him, on a slightly underthrown ball).
– Darryl Jackson (the 6’6″ 320 lb true freshman OT) was taking snaps at left tackle with the scout team. I believe he is redshirting this season. Still, good to see him out on the field in pads, getting some reps (rather than hanging around on the sidelines in jersey and shorts).
– Very few spectators at Reser today for practice. Other than reporters, probably fewer than 10 people watching. At one point in the middle of practice, I was the only person sitting in the West stands.
Thanks again, SS.
Great to hear Riley being vocal, whatever the reason, I hope it is the beginning of an overdue trend.
That fake spike play is sweet. The patriots run that every now and then when running the no-huddle and trying to catch a team off guard.
I remember Marino doing that at the goal line, resulting in a score.
A lot of disgusted, pissed off people out there, and that was before this season started. That’s why BASF donations are down 25% and many of us that usually make the first long road trip of the year didn’t bother. Until the coaching staffs of both FB and basketball start doing their jobs the right way, that’s how it’s going to be and should be. What’d Angry say a couple of months ago, hasn’t been to a game in years ’cause the athletic teams don’t play up to his expectations? Totally agree and give him a hearty fuckin’ A!!
Speaking of the first long road trip, did any of you make the trip to Madison? How was it? How many Beaver fans were there? (And boy am I glad I didn’t waste my money on that poor performance).
Kind of makes me wonder if James doesn’t prefer Mannion too. I would guess with him coming back from surgery he would want a QB that spreads the ball around.
Interesting point.
Katz would be likely to lock on James Rodgers as the primary receiver on many passing plays. On plays where James was able to get separation from his defender (which James often does), Katz would likely see that James was open, and would throw the ball to James. However, James — as Katz’s primary target — would attract a lot of attention from defenses (including special coverage schemes), and would get hit a lot, both before and after the pass. Not ideal for a guy coming back from two knee surgeries in the off-season.
Mannion, by spreading the ball around, would prevent defenses from focusing on James. As a result, James should find it easier to get open. When open, James wouldn’t always get the ball (because Mannion,unlike Katz, would often be looking elsewhere first, and might throw the ball to another open receiver). But James would get his fair share (because Mannion is good at scanning the field and finding open receivers).
So, with Mannion, James would almost certainly get fewer touches. But James would still get plenty of passes thrown his way, while also: (1) absorbing fewer hits from defenders; and (2) finding himself open more often. The upshot would probably be more yards per catch for James (although fewer total catches). Seems like these would be good tradeoffs for James this season, for lots of reasons.
I suspect that defenses would key on JR no matter what. He is the only projected all american on the Beaver team. A proven commodity — hammer on him whenever you can. He is going to have some heavy playing time when he gets in his first game.
Agreed that defenses are going to key on JR to start. But that should leave more openings for Wheaton, Halahuni, Bishop, and Cooks. Mannion should be able to find those guys when they are open. That means defenses will have to honor other receivers besides JR. When defenses stop keying solely on JR, that should help JR get open more often. Etc.
It’s all good in theory. Looking forward to seeing what happens in the real world — on the field against UCLA eight days from now (assuming that JR plays against UCLA, which we should find out early next week).
While I appreciate your practice reports silverstream055, do you think it is a good idea to publish trick plays and the personnel running them here for everyone including opposing coaches and schools to see? I mean with Chip completely closing practices and Lane Kiffin today telling reporters they can’t report how many reps individual players get at practice, we are very lucky that Coach Riley has open practices for us to watch. Overly detailed reports like this though may limit who has access to practice in the future.
I hate to be worried about things like this but I know other schools try to steal play calls during games, so them paying attention to practice reports would be possible.
Also, what’s the starting OL look like now that Andrews is out?
From Cliff’s blog…. “We had a good week with good intentions,” coach Mike Riley said. “Our scout teams didn’t really get it until this week how hard they have to work. It helps our team get ready for the game and it helps them improve as individuals. And we weren’t doing that. We had great scout team work and great interaction of offense vs. defense.”
So that was the issue? The scout team didn’t give the Beavers a good enough look. We’ll see if there’s a change in the next game.
I really don’t like how there is an effort to blame something other then the coaches over the last couple weeks. Even this timely article (for Langsdork) is suspicious to me:
http://www.gazettetimes.com/sports/article_46d86388-def7-11e0-bbae-001cc4c002e0.html
Update from Cliff’s blog is this question about whether JR is eligible for a sixth year of eligibilty. The only scenario for that would be if he missed this entire season because he wasn’t recovered. Not sure who brought this up – was it pure hypothetical on reporters part or from hints dropped by coaches. I didn’t care for the blame on the scout team.
If they’re already having serious discussions about him potentially coming back in game 3, I’m not sure how they’d be able to convince the NCAA that he needs to miss another entire season. Plus, how do we know James would want to spend another full year at the school. Sounds like the guy has his mind set on coming back this year so I really doubt anything stops him.
And if James does miss this season, but finds out later he’s ineligible for a 6th season, there’s always this:
http://nooooooooooooooo.com/
Here’s a question which is pretty meaningless but still fun.
1999, 2000, 2002 and 2003 are the only years since the streak when we didn’t have at least two losses before October. And the last time we had no wins before October was when Pettibone was coach.
So… if you knew going into the season that we would be 1-2 in the three games prior to October, what games would you personally choose to win?
I’d always take the league game first.
Yeah….until OSU gets to that next level, winning a big ooc game would just confuse the team and make them think they were better than they are. The business of getting them to come on during the season used to be a big and real deal. Last year was really depressing.
Hypothetical question – if you could have James Rodgers back against UCLA but had to decide whether he played flanker or returned punts, which would you choose?
On offense, he probably upgrades the entire unit even without touching the ball. Just send him out on routes and he draws a lot of attention. Even the threat of the fly sweep would help the rest of the running game. The guy is a playmaker.
However, on punt returns he would be a big upgrade over Poyer who 0 punt return yards. It would also let Poyer focus on his CB duties. Of course, there’s more risk on punt returns for a big hit.
Definitely on offense. Too much injury risk in punt returns. Poyer may be playing the return game conservatively with the fair catches this season, but he did a fine job last year when filling in for Rodgers. I’m not worried about Poyer. At least he’s catching the ball….we’ve had worse. Wouldn’t mind seeing Teron Ward or Jenkins try a little punt/kickoff returning to see how their speed is.
Terron Ward in practices dropped a number of punts and kickoffs. I seem to recall that Terron Ward also failed to make a clean catch on a short kick in the opener against Sac State, too (although maybe I’m misremembering that…) Not sure Terron Ward is the best guy for punt returns….at least not yet.
Sounds like Ward’s a candidate for a DB position.
I would use him a little sparingly. Get a morale boost but dont get him tired and injury-prone. He gets re-injured and there goes morale.
This could explain why OSU is struggling with a lot of different areas…like moving on from the last game to the actual game plan itself! http://www.gazettetimes.com/sports/article_46d86388-def7-11e0-bbae-001cc4c002e0.html
Same article as I pasted above. Doesn’t this seem like an article to help take the heat off Langsdork? They are making it seem like a group effort. The group is involved but ultimately in that 15 second window it is Langsdork who makes the call.
This part of the article concerned me: “By Thursday night Langsdorf knows how he wants to attack the opponent and begins the game plan. That goes through Friday.”
Is that normal? Wouldn’t you think the game plan would be in place earlier in the week to give the players more time to practice it?
Exactly what I thought when I read that! What exactly are we doing the rest of the week? I already got the feeling from watching the games that our coaching staff simply calls the plays they have scripted out, making no adjustments for what the opponent is doing. Reading something like that basically confirms that suspicion. There’s been so many times we go into halftime and I think to myself, “okay we’re going to make some adjustments and come out swinging in the second half”. And just about every time I’m disappointed. Makes sense now since it takes them five days to get a game plan in the first place they are obviously reluctant to give it up, whether it’s working or not. We must be the easiest team in the world to game plan against. So depressing.
Great comment about the half time adjustments, and lack there of. This may not be liked by everyone but I like Norm Chow. That guy doesn’t wait until halftime to adjust. He’ll do it anytime and always seems to put together a competitive offensive game.
Chow was smart enough to know that the UCLA pistol offensive was “shooing blanks”, but I wonder if Norm’s time has passed? It’s been a long time since the golden days of the BYU pass offensive and he bounces around so much it’s hard for him to make a mark. I was not that excited for him to go to Utah when I heard the news, but I guess he deserves a full season to show what he can do.
What’s to practice? The game-plan is the strategy of what plays to call in what situations. The players either know the plays or they don’t. The game-plan doesn’t change the plays the team knows and executes well, it only changes the plays the team runs in whatever situation arises.
An 0-2 start (particularly with the loss against a shit-tacular Sac State team and the general negativity of Oregon State fans even during 9-10 win seasons) leads to the questioning of literally every aspect of the program.
I think Langsdorf calls a pretty poor game in general and I wish Riley would take back play calling duties, but critiquing WHEN the game-plan is drawn up is silly.
Would it be better to draw up a strategy for next week on Saturday about 15 minutes after our game? No.
I just wasn’t sure if this was the norm. The way you explained it makes sense. I was kind of thinking they would practice the game plan after it was made but your right, they should already know the plays.
“…but critiquing WHEN the game-plan is drawn up is silly…”
Since most of us haven’t had the experience you’ve had playing at a high level perhaps you’d consider taking pity on us uninformed souls and enlighten us instead of putting us down. Yes?
That whole article was VERY STRANGE. One of the common criticisms of the last few years Beaver teams is the PLAY CALLING being excruciatingly predictable…..and here is an article about how that play calling came to be that way!! It appears as an article lauding Langsdorf for the job, but the job has been in the toilet for that same period of time.
So is this article reminding Riley that he should TAKE BACK THE PLAY CALLING??
I cant believe the author is that unperceptive, that the article should be taken at face value.
It’s a fluff piece to fill print space. Nothing new. You’re not going to get much editorial from Kirkpatrick, he has to cover the team, so he has to maintain access. He’s not going to rock any boats.
Cliff is a tool. Face value on that article is the same as face value on a three dollar bill. Usually he transcribes the box scores pretty well, but other than that, he’s done a very good job of figuring out just how far he can go without jeopardizing his access. But, to be fair, it’s the environment a hometown dog trainer always finds itself in.
I agree, but I think Riley is a big boy. Canzano hammers him on occasion and he still goes on his radio show. Now, it may be different if the small town media guy starts firing bullets, maybe then accessibility would close up. I would someday like to hear Kirkpatrick’s real thoughts in an editorial piece. Any way you slice it, 5 wins in the last 16 games is a pretty dramatic shift from where the program was and you would think one of the journalists closest to the team would have some strong insight into this.
At Beaver practices, the local journalists look bored. They spend much of their time talking with each other or playing with their mobile phones. They do their perfunctory interviews, file their perfunctory stories, and collect their paychecks.
Cliff has been on autopilot for years, churning out the same old stuff (including his ironically named but boringly predictable “Oddball Interviews”). Buker looks old and tired and mostly interested in post-game beers.
The only guy with energy is Brandon Sprague, the pup reporter for CSNNW (Comcast). But Sprague knows he is lucky to have this gig (he probably got the job through some sort of personal connection, because he doesn’t appear to know much about football). No way Sprague jeopardizes his all-access pass to the Valley Center by asking tough questions of Riley, or anyone else.
LOL … but this is the new 007 Cliff. You need a super computer to decrypt the hidden message in his articles now.
http://espn.go.com/blog/pac12/post/_/id/25848/oregon-gets-ncaa-notice
Conference Realignment Game:
http://beaverbyte.com
I’m watching the first half of the Washington vs Nebraska game and so far Washington’s offense looks very tough to defend. Washington’s Price is really moving the offense down the field and keeps plays alive with his mobility. Coach Sarkisian sure knows how to call plays! Shoot, even Wazzu is scoring 50+ points per game! The Pac-12 has some very good offense’s!
Anyways.
About Oregon State, I think if the offense continues to struggle and stays it’s predictable self, Mike Riley will take over play calling duties. If this happens, Mike Riley will make a change in the off season and hire a new O.C. Riley isn’t afraid to make changes, he made the necessary changes with Linebackers coach Greg Newhouse, and Head trainerBarney Graff.
The bottom line is OSU’s offense has NOT been the same since Mike Riley gave up play calling duties. To be successful in the PAC-12, your offense must be able to score points! The team down south is proving that the best defense is a good offense. Before Chip Kelly arrived, waterfowl fans were calling for Aliotti’s head, now he’s a genius. Same defensive coordinator, but a different offense.
I have a lot of respect for Mike Riley, but this team needs a killer instinct, a swagger, an A$$-Kicker mind set! Not, “well, I hope we can win some games.” I know Riley isn’t a “rah, rah” guy. He needs to fire up his team some how, get them stoked (excited for you old farts, ha ha) about playing great football! But, at the same time, these are young kids and they need our support. They have zero control over coaching decisions, types of plays being called, etc.. All they have control over is themselves, and trying to become better players, and better teammates. So, I will always cheer for “MY BEAVS” no matter what. I think we as fans should back off from being critical of the players. Remember BEAVER fans are better fans than the team down south’s fanbase. Let’s not become like them. The true test of a loyal, genuine fan, is to support your team whenever they need it the most. That time is now.
Go Beavs!
If angry was here he’d be angry at your post. Don’t be angry with angry that I said angry would be angry. Just be angry over the fact that the Beavs aren’t angry or playing angry. And yes we will be angry with angry over the coaching who seems indifferent instead of being angry with what is going on.
Signed Angry Fan.
Are you getting paid by each use of the word angry?
Just turned off the UCLA game, with Texas up 49-20. After this latest fiasco on national TV, Neuheisel’s job may be at stake next week at Reser. Next week’s OSU-UCLA game couldn’t be much bigger for both teams.
From what I saw today, the Beavers should match up against UCLA pretty well.
UCLA’s offense depends heavily on its pistol-formation running game. Yes, UCLA hurt us badly with the pistol and J.Franklin last year. But I think this year’s Beaver defense — featuring faster, better linebackers — should do a decent job containing UCLA’s runners. If we contain the UCLA running game, we shouldn’t have too much to fear from the UCLA passing game, which looks shaky (especially UCLA’s pass protection against blitzes — which looks more than shaky).
As for UCLA’s defense, it looks weak against the mid-range passing game. That’s OSU’s strength, especially with Mannion now at QB.
UCLA also made a lot of mental mistakes today against Texas (penalties, turnovers, dumb plays of various types). Overall, UCLA looks like a team on the edge.
It’s all setting up nicely for the Beavers for next Saturday’s game. If the Beavs come out strong, UCLA could self-destruct (as UCLA did to a large extent against Texas today).
Yeah, Texas had it’s way with UCLA. I think your analysis is good but the only thing that scares me is that Neuheisel’s job is definitely on the line where Riley is sitting on a life time contract. I think Neuheisel will have them playing out of their minds. Riley, not so much.
UCLA will be ready to play. I was a little premature with my Washington evaluation (however, their offense is a force to be reckoned with). UCLA can run the ball, and they have mobile QB’s. Mobile QB’s kill us for whatever reason?
Frankly, Oregon State’s biggest enemy right now is Oregon State.
Oregon State is having trouble with execution. The Beavers are inconsistent, this kills drives, keeps the defense on the field, loses games, etc.. Naming one QB as the starter, Mannion should help the offense. If the offense can sustain drives, and put TD’s on the board, it will help the defense out.
With the youth (playing 10 true freshmen) these growing pains can be expected , they will get better.
I know most Beaver fans don’t want to hear excuses, but OSU is very banged up by injuries, and very young. Most of us thought we would be 1-1, not 0-2 at this point. It is what it is unfortunately. They will get better, this team has a lot of talent. This team needs mental toughness, and confidence. The best way to gain these is by winning.
I agree with about everything you’ve said but imo the OL sucks. It sucked last year and it’s sucking this year. Manning the OL with walkons is crazy and proof that Riley can’t recruit the OL and DL players that are required to make a team successful. He’s taken OSU as far as he can.
Time to fire the AD and the football HC (and most likely the basketball HC too).
M&S, have you looked at the current recruiting class? We are reaping the bad recruiting classes 3 and 4 years ago. I really have a hard time agreeing that this year’s issues should be blamed on our OL. They were horrible last year, but this year they have been serviceable. They dominated the 2nd half of Sac State. They were fairly solid against WI, even though they were overmatched.
Sparky: Last time I checked this year’s recruiting class there weren’t many, if any, OL and DL who’ve signed up that made me think improvements are on the way.
I’m hoping this year’s OL surprises the heck out of me but for now that’s only hope and probably will never be more than that. :-(
Darryl Jackson looks to be a beast, hopefully ready to go next year after his redshirt. 4 OL have already committed for 2012, Seumalo probably starts as a true Freshman. Phillip should be coming back, not sure that means much as he has not exactly panned out (which is why the recruiting class 3 and 4 years ago were not good – guys didn’t pan out).
I’m not saying that the OL is great, I just don’t think that they can be blamed for the first 2 games as I think they have been serviceable.
If Riley and the coaches arent pulling all the stops to be ready to beat UCLA they are nuts. This is a winnable league game and a potential boost to morale. Last year they lost control of morale and the season crash landed. That will probably happen this year too, if they dont get a boost soon. OSU goes 1-11 or 2-12 and they will be asking for Riley’s hide.
I hope you’re right SS but so far I’m not convinced. UCLA threw three picks in the 1st haft which were critical to the outcome of the game. If not for those Texas might have found itself in a real tussle. Also, considering OSU’s history, the 3 picks Texas had would have been 3 pass interference calls against the Beavs.
I’m also concerned about UCLA’s BIG DL, especially since Andrews (our best OL) is out.
I’m thinking UCLA rolls and I hope to hell I’m wrong.
I watched the UCLA – Texas game. Sorry, UCLA was not even close in that game. Those 3 picks were because Texas was applying pressure. I sure hope Banker was paying attention to that and sends pressure.
UCLA should be beaten. OSU fans like to point out our problems with mobile QB’s, but that really was last year with Pankey and Co. What I saw last week showed that our front 7 is not nearly as suspect as last year. Our secondary is scary, but I don’t think UCLA has a QB that is good enough to take advantage (especially if we can get pressure.
After watching UCLA/Texas I have to agree that pressure on the QB will be the key to beating UCLA. With Agnew and Halahuni available, and Mannion named QB I expect the Beavs to score at least 4 TD’s.
Pressure on the Bruins QB coupled with zero serious miscues on special teams should keep UCLA in the 14-21 range. However, without an effective blitz this game is a toss up IMO.
You may be right, hopefully you are. However, imo WI didn’t take the Beavs seriously and as it turned out they didn’t have reason to do so. Imo UCLA will be taking the Beavs seriously because the coaches want to keep their jobs and in their schedule this is one of the few teams that they have a good chance of beating.
UCLA looked bad against Texas but they were able to do some things most of which the Beavs would not have been able to do.
Imo UCLA rolls and I hope I’m wrong.
@OSUforlife “…I think we as fans should back off from being critical of the players….”
I’ll bet you’re over here from PO. That’s the kind of bull shit we were constantly getting over there. NEVER, EVER SAY anything BAD ABOUT THE BEAVS. Bull shit. But I’m repeating myself. Fans can be critical and still be fans of OSU.
PO? I’m not sure what PO is?
Anyways.
You are more than welcome to have your opinion. That is the purpose of these blogs! I choose not to get down on the players because they’re just kids. Do you think they like to lose or have bad games? (Rhetorical question) They are competitors that want to become Champions, and be successful. They chose to come from all over the country to play for Oregon State, for that I’m grateful. They love Oregon State for the same reasons we all do. The Beavers have some fantastic, quality, solid, honorable individuals on the football team! High character guys. We should all be proud of them. The players aren’t paid, (well, at least at Oregon State they aren’t) but the coaches are.
If you want to criticize the coaching staff, uniforms, depth charts, game day experience(s), play calling, rotations, decision making, etc.. By all means, “Go for it!”
Saw this posted in Cliff K’s comments…
http://duckingbeaver.com/2011/09/16/time-to-punt-the-cartoon-on-the-helmet/
This is the first time I’ve seen a visual example of what the “OS” looks like on an updated football helmet. I don’t know why they haven’t made these yet…. these blow the beaver cartoon helmet away.
they look sick on there, especially on that style of helmet. Make the change!
Cool! Go for it.
If we want to hold on to recruits like Thomas Tyner we have to be bolder as a university. He was very excited to be the face of the revived Oregon State track program but like any recruit he expects his university of choice to be always doing what it takes to be and stay nationally relevant and exciting. The all is fine Riley and BDC attitude of snail’s pace of change needs to be amped up to inject serious life into what could be very exciting times soon in a PAC-16. Larry Scott wants bold leadership at his schools that fit the branding of a new aggressive stance for the PAC. Oregon State needs to get with the times and be exciting in a national landscape where there are many viewing options.
I agree 110% with what you said! Beavluker, I love the “OS” on the helmets, and I love having Black, Orange, and White versions too! Tinker Hatfield has some great ideas and great vision for the future of Oregon State athletics. Set him free! I wonder if the new field turf at Reser Stadium will have the “OS” logo at the 50 yard line (Next Year)?
I thought Hatfield was interested in integrating the letter “U” again. Didn’t he say its part of the most defining cheer at OSU games and it didn’t make any sense to leave it off? I tend to agree with him, it is one of the few unique and defining characteristics of the Reser experience (which is otherwise really lame).
Also, the interlocking OS is more of a riff on the interlocking UO of Oregon isn’t it? Oregon has staked out the marketing ground with the single “O” now, but they used to have the interlocking UO and OSU used to have a single block “O” correct?
Good example of one of the differences between Chip and Mike. Chip(as shown the last two weeks) does what he’s supposed to do vs lower division teams. It’s not going to come down to a missed field goal when you administer the ass-whippin’ you’re supposed to.
WSU is getting spanked by SDSU.
42-24 in the 4th. Ouch.
WSU is still a year away at least from bowl eligibility. Defense is not good but they have improved offensively. SDSU is good.
ASU lost 17-14 at Illinois. The offense had issues and the defense couldn’t hold on late. Not been a great day for the Pac-12. For the most part the defenses have looked really bad.
Looks like Wazzu got a dose of reality today, but I still think they are better than last year.
They are. However, it’s probably not going to show in the record. I predicted them to win their first two games and drop their last ten. WSU’s team this year would run circles around their last three teams, but the gap is so huge between them and everyone else (with the exception of Colorado) that its hard to notice in terms of wins and losses.
Osweiler has Katz syndrome.
When the pressure’s on he guns an uncatchable 100mph fastball.
Looked mediocre tonight.
Exactly. That’s why I wasn’t gonna buy in to him and ASU.
I like how Katz sets the example for all future QB’s failure lol.
Sounds like Osweiler needs some 55 gallon drums too. :-)
Geez, duke won today
Not a total shock. They aren’t terrible anymore. They’re capable of winning 4 or 5 games now, just not quite good enough to make a bowl game yet.
I mentioned it because they lost to a FCS team (Richmond) the same week as our heroes and came back and beat BC, but BC might be in free fall, they are now 0-3. Also, Weber State pounded Sacremento State 49-17 today. “The Loss” keeps looking worse and worse!
That’s right, forgot about Duke losing to them. Richmond does have their number, beat Duke like three straight times or something like that.
The loss does keep getting worse. Sacramento State isn’t even being competitive with FCS teams and won at Reser. So bad.
I’ll say this in defense of Riley: One game does not define the whole season. NOW that I’ve got that out of the way: it DID use up every drop of equity he had left for the year.
Zona still looks like shit.
Luck trying to force it.
Arizona has a freshman running back (Carey?) who looks good… making runs with no holes. Zona’s OL is horrible on rushing plays and not much better on pass protection. I’m not sure if it they really aren’t that good or if it is Stanford just being soooooo good that Zona looks so bad.
I think it’s a combination. Stanford to me is the best team in the conference. Arizona also is not very good. They have lots of issues. Nick Foles is a very good QB but he’s gonna get beat up with that poor offensive line.
Stanford is very balanced offensively, it sure would be nice to see OSU that productive on offense someday! They really mix up their plays well. If Stanford can recruit highly talented TE’s, and FB’s, so should OSU. It all starts upfront though, their OL is fantastic! Having Andrew Luck helps a lil bit too. I just love their “Smashmouth” style of play, and how physical they are! Stanford is beating Arizona 37-10 as I type this.
Yep Stanford looks real good but I don’t think they have had any real hard test yet. Stanford vs. USC and Oregon will be the proving ground. Then they have Notre Dame at the end of the Pac-12. So we will see. They have a good chance if they win through the season of being considered for the NC game.
I also love Oklahoma, and Oklahoma State’s offense too! Oklahoma State is playing Tulsa on Root Sports right now due to a weather delay. The game started after midnight central time, 10:00 pacific time! Brandon Weeden and Justin Blackmon are fun to watch!
I went to the OK State Arizona game last week. Blackmon is nuts to see on the field, so quick and responsive. If this Pac-16 gets off the ground, they will be a tough addition.
UW’s QB could give OSU fits – some nice mobility.
Here’s your chance to ask Mike Riley questions in person.
https://osufoundation.org/events/basf/index.shtml
I’ve been to these events before and he usually takes questions from the crowd. It’s usually a disgusting display of fawning over Riley but I’ve asked a few tougher questions in the past.
Ask him why the play calling has been so disgustingly predictable in recent years! LOL….then run for it….
Pitt and Syracuse to the ACC. Announced this morning.
http://espn.go.com/college-sports/story/_/id/6988468/acc-accepts-pittsburgh-panthers-syracuse-orange-14-team-league
Also being reported that UConn is aggressively pursuing moving to the ACC. The window of opportunity is closing for Texass
As expected, UCLA lost to Texas yesterday, and UCLA Coach Rick Neuheisel is in real danger of losing his job: Here’s the LA Times article: http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-0918-plaschke-ucla-texas-20110918,0,763386.column
The LA Times article ends as follows:
***Whether his head coach will be joining him is another question. UCLA (1-2) probably needs six wins to give Neuheisel a chance, and I’m having trouble finding those other five….Next up, a visit to struggling Oregon State, which shouldn’t be too much trouble except Neuheisel has yet to lead the Bruins to a win in a conference opener. “This is our chance to prove all these naysayers wrong,” said Neuheisel, and by naysayers he means darn near everyone.***
Lots on the line next Saturday at Reser. May the Beavers cause a lot more “trouble” than the LA Times seems to expect….
Well it seems that both teams have a lot on the line, so I expect both teams to play hard. It’s actually kind of a make it or break it for either coach.
If they dont, Riley should go….
My buddy just said Texas et al to the Pac-16 is official…haven’t seen anything on the net yet.
That’s been on the net for hours.
Where? I can’t find anything saying it’s done.
I may be in the minority and it appears to be inevitable, but I hate realignment. It hit home last night while I was watching BYU/Utah play in freakin’ September. University administrators are going to ruin college football for all but a few elite programs as they chase the all mighty dollar. Texas and Oklahoma have nothing to do with west coast football and never will. Someone needs to stop the madness.
I agree, I dislike it as well. I like when things are regionalized. Syracuse, Pitt, possibly Rutgers in ACC?! That’s just not right. OU, Texas, TT, Ok ST in the Pac? I’d rather not see that. I would have preferred there was no expansion at all. I would have liked the SWC teams to get together in a conference again though.
Yeah, but schools like OSU cant match up in money, and so become the have-nots. The realignment tv contract has really changed that.
Good thing is, a 16 team group should make the divisions back where the old PAC 8 used to be…
negative. they are talking about going to 4 4 team pods to minimize travel. You would play the other 3 teams in your pod each year and 2 teams from the other 3 pods for a total of 9 conference games.
Playing in a west division would minimize travel more than a pod system.
Agreed, I might stop watching/following.
i’ll probably give it a one year test drive, but maybe not.
I don’t think 16 team conferences will be that bad for football since teams will end up playing the majority of their games within an eight team division, I presume. Unless they blow things up and go to 14 or 15 game schedules, which I wouldn’t put past those greedy NCAA SOBs. If things settle with four 16-team conferences, I would be a proponent of having the conference title games be the first round of an eight-team playoff. I have a feeling anti-trust laws would prevent this however, so might be headed for a 64-team DIV 1A.
Basketball is another story, just look at the Big East the last few years with its diluted regular season. Conference tournaments could still be exciting however. With 16-team conferences, I would like to see teams play many more conference games, in the neighborhood of 20-24. Of course this will never happen because teams will cry about losing home games against Blind & Deaf A&M.
If money and greed weren’t the driving force behind realignment I would be excited for it. In reality the BCS is gonna take one giant dump on the NCAA.
My ideal realignment:
Pac-12 adds Texas, TexT, OU, OKST. Divisions break down easily into the old Pac-8 and the Big-12 rejects.
ACC adds Pitt, Syracuse (not excited about these two but it seems inevitable), Uconn, and WV. Easy north-south split and the ACC becomes the only Bball conference that matters.
BigTen adds Kansas, KSU, Mizzu, ISU, Notre Dame (taking Northwesterns spot). This is 100% unlikely but having ND in the madness would be fun. On second thought, who needs Notre Dame? It’s not 1972 anymore. The conference is split east-west which puts Ohio St and Michigan in the same division, as they should be.
SEC has to scramble to keep up and adds Louisville, Baylor, and mighty Bulls of UCF. Florida wouldn’t let this fly but who cares. Lville and Kentucky hoops rivalry lives on and Texas AM and Baylor get to settle their litigation on the field. TCU taking Baylor’s spot would be fine with me.
Regular season includes 9 conference games with 7 being played within your division. Division winners meet each other in a conference title game which becomes the first round of an eight team playoff. Tell me what’s wrong with this? Other than it will never happen.
Sorry I meant USF.
BTW what’s more lame than Ohio St and Michigan not being in the same division? Maybe the fact that they’re called the Leaders Division and Legends Division?
How short sighted are conferences like the BigTen and ACC which break their divisions up according to how good/prestigious the teams are at the moment? FSU/Miami and OSU/Michigan need to be in the same division.
Does anyone think the remnants of the Big 12 and Mountain West will form a BCS sanctioned super conference with BYU and Boise St. added and two divisions? BSU has to be trying to figure out what the hell their next move is going to be when all of this shakes out.
No because I think the Big-12 leftovers end up as members of existing power conferences as they expand to 16 teams. BYU and Boise St are fall back plans at this point. If I was TCU I would be trying to get out of my agreement with the Big East and join TexasA&M in the SEC.
I’d like to see Houston, BYU, SMU, Boise State, Missouri, Kansas State, Kansas, Iowa State, San Diego State, Baylor, TCU and maybe Rice. That would be a really good conference IMO.
Back from Wisconsin, here’s a few notes:
The good: deep fried cheese, New Glarus beer, ultra friendly fans, the 5th quarter(we should do this, helps traffic and shows sportsmanship), “Eat shit! Fuck you!” being chanted by the student section, their football team.
The bad: Camp Randall is old and it shows that it seriously needs renovation, ridiculously small replay screens(worthless), “jump around” after 3rd qrtr is overrated, “1st & 10 Wisconsin” repeated by both announcer and fans every time, our offense.
The horrible: our punter.
Expect Corvallis to get absolutely invaded by badger fans next year. Mark my words!
I don’t like the Pac-16 idea. I think it is a HUGE disadvantage for Oregon State. The Big schools, and schools with money will get bigger and richer. The others, are just other teams to help pad the stats of the Big money teams. Oregon State is having a hard enough time competing with the Pac-10 schools! This will make things nearly impossible. Oregon State doesn’t have an Uncle Phil, or other big time boosters, or 50+ years of winning tradition. If I’m wrong, then will somebody please tell me why?
Also, if Oregon State has trouble moving the ball vs the Pac-10/Pac-12 teams, imagine the increased difficulty by adding Oklahoma, Texas, Oklahoma State and Texas Tech! If Danny Langsdorf doesn’t drastically improve OSU’s offense in a hurry, he will be coaching somewhere else next season. Also, all four of these newer teams have prolific offenses, OSU will need to really improve on defense as well! The Pac-10 is changing at lightning speed, will OSU attempt to keep up? OSU must, it doesn’t have any other choice.
In addition to what you’ve said I’d like to add that it won’t surprise me if the Pac Whatever tries to ease OSU and WSU out in order to replace them with schools that have larger attendance and are easier to travel to.
I don’t like this at all.
The Pac-16 will not try to get rid of OSU and WSU. It just isn’t gonna happen.
It’s happened before. It’s all about money and the Beavs and Cougs are not going to be able to carry their share of the load. These clowns are going to be wanting their teams to have 60K+ stadiums filled to the max for every home game.
Doubt it. They’ve dealt with the Kansas schools and the Iowa States in the Big 12 for a while. I think we are fairly safe. We just need to start winning.
I’m not going to necessarily say you’re wrong with Oregon State being at a disadvantage, but the money thing will not be as big of a deal as you’re saying. You’re forgetting with the current Pac 12 that kicks in next year Oregon State will get about 21 million dollars per year because of equal revenue sharing. With the addition of these new teams you’ve got to assume that will probably bump up to around 30 million. We’ve done an alright job competing the last few years bringing only around four million dollars (I believe that’s the number I’ve heard – somebody correct me if I’m wrong). Either way our athletic department will see a substantial increase in the revenue we have. We just need to get somebody who can spend it the right way to make us more competitive.
Right you are. Every conference needs its perennial cellar dwellers to pad the records of the contenders. It’s rather sad that on some level you’ve collectively decided to go back to that level of program by giving Mediocre Mike a lifetime contract in a conference that changes at full speed ahead.
Riley needs to take back in game play calling. Period!
Oregon State was off this week. It does not mean there was not movement in the power ratings, so here is the Week 3 Power Ranking Update for the Pac-12:
STAN 145.33
ORE 143.83
AZST 133.82
UTAH 131.85
USC 128.99
WASH 125.76
ARIZ 123.59
WAST 122.13
CAL 121.40
ORST 120.76
UCLA 119.99
COL 119.34
Another note: Mike Parker and Jon Warren host a call-in show Monday through Friday from 12-2 PM and Monday is usually a day for them to take phone calls. If you want to get your voice out where people can actually here it, dial this number during this time: (541) 497-5356.
Their shows are archived in podcasts each day by 3 PM here:
http://www.hypothetical.net/beaver/beavercast-full.xml (you have to copy the link that matches the date you want). The show can be heard live in the Corvallis-Albany area on 1240 AM.