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Like the 2010 season, the 2011 season begins with two Beaver staples: hope and unknowns. Injuries have become the new norm as well. There are plenty of reasons to be pessimistic, some reasons to be optimistic, and as always, all the reasons in the world to be realistic.

I'm not going to lie to you and say, "Things are never as bad as they seem. The truth lies somewhere in between." Try telling that to Washington State. Things can definitely be as bad, and worse, than they seem.

The problem I'm having with the overly pessimistic viewpoint (e.g. Ted Miller) is that it favors known quantities, even if they aren't good players, over potential or the unknown. What I am saying is that Ted Miller feels that having a senior Keith Pankey is better than a sophomore Michael Doctor, for the lone reason that the latter is "unknown".

Legendary basketball John Calipari had this to say about talent vs. experience:

If the choice is talent or experience, I’m taking talent. Then you can blame me for us not winning. But I’m taking talent.

When I look at the roster, I see players who have improved since last season, or I see addition via attrition. The lone exceptions being Center (Alex Linnenkohl > Grant Johnson), DT (Stephen Paea), and RB (Jacquizz Rodgers). I also see many of the players I was calling for last season now in the lineup. How can I not love that?!

The offensive line? All a year "better". Let's be honest, they should at least be average at this point.

The secondary? All a year better.

The linebackers? A huge upgrade.

The QB? He should be better…at some point.

etc etc.

Okay, so there's a downgrade at defensive tackle. Every D1 program is weak at DT. The guys who line up should be serviceable. The only obvious drop off is Paea to Castro. The rest of the guys are either the same (Henry/Wynn, Frahm) or better (Crighton > Miller). Heck, Frahm and Henry are a year older and thus should be a year better. That makes 3/4 of the line improved. Again, I don't see the reason for pessimism here.

And I'll give you that there's an unknown at RB. I'm not scared because the heir looks legit. Would people be worried if Yve Bernard were the RB? No. Well, Angew is better than Bernard. He is faster, hits the hole quickly, and can break longer runs. The offensive line is his limiting factor, and as mentioned they should improve from bad to at least average. Plus, they like blocking for this guy (translation: major chemistry issues with Quizz).

So, in my mind, last year's team was much worse, and they could have easily won 7 games if they had any heart or team chemistry. Speaking of the latter, chemistry is much higher this year. That falls into "intangibles", a category that shouldn't be overlooked.

Some people have brought up the fact that Quizz never fumbled, and therefore we're in for more turnovers this season. That is probably true. But these same people fail to mention the improved LBs and secondary, so the Beavers should get more turnovers, too. You can't acknowledge only one side of that coin. If the defense portended to be crap, I'd echo the turnover concerns.

Personally, I see potential weaknesses being rushing defense (no Paea) and the offense taking 3 or 4 games to "click"…specifically, Ryan Katz. That guy needs to convert 3rd downs and generally just be more efficient. His inefficiency was a killer last season, and it doesn't sound like he's improved in camp. So, those are my two concerns.

Now, as far as a prediction…I think last year's team had a horrible defense and yet they could have easily won 7 games versus the most difficult schedule in the nation. This year's team is better, so 7 wins seems like a logical assumption with a variance of 4, or +/-2. In other words, the lower limit is 5-7 and the upper is 9-3. My feeling is 7-4 into the final week, and then a 4th straight Civil War defeat. My prediction comes with an assumption that key starters will be healthy by game 3. Now, let's hear your guesses.

145 COMMENTS

  1. Great post. I agree with your direct comparison to the ’10 squad. Defense better all around and OL improved (as well as breadth/depth of the receiving corps). I think 7&5 is likely (UofA has a bunch of kep position spots with injuries) with upside at ASU and BYU – 8&4. Baring injury or a miracle I think sweeping ASU/BYU and upsetting Stanford makes getting to 9 wins tough. 4 days….

  2. Don’t overlook the schedule either. I think it will be easier to go 2-1 OOC this year than last year. I am kind of pessimistic though. I am thinking 6-6. Seems like the more pessimistic I am the better the Beavers do.

    I still can’t get over the fact Gabe Miller got drafted. The scouts at KC must have just looked at his combine numbers and looked at the success Dallas had converting Butler to a LB and thought they were getting a deal. I just don’t see it though. The only time Miller ever got past his guy was when he went 5 yards further into the backfield than the ball carrier.

    • The only time Miller ever got past his guy was when he went 5 yards further into the backfield than the ball carrier.

      Yep, and he did that on every pass rush. I liked Miller more as a TE, actually.

    • I don’t want to put too much weight on the schedule because I believe it’s still top 15 (maybe even top 10) in terms of difficulty.

      People complain about Sac State, but it’s a real disservice to schedule brutally year after year. I’d prefer two cupcakes this year tbh. The Beavers have proven they’re not ready for prime time games, so play the Boise card and slowly work up to that. A DII school and a bad DI school would be ideal. BYU is the game I have an issue with. Nothing to gain there.

      • I agree that it is best to schedule easy teams OOC. If you can run the Pac-12 gauntlet it really doesn’t matter much who you played OOC unless there is an undefeated SEC and Big-12 team… not that OSU should be concerned about the title game right now though. I do think BYU is a more winnable game then either TCU or BSU was last year.

        • The Fiesta Bowl season featured OOC games vs New Mexico, Eastern Washington and San Diego State. And the only “easy” win of the bunch was the San Diego State game. That team wouldn’t have beaten a Wisconsin or BYU that early in the season, but by the end of the year they were firing on all cylinders.

  3. I see 5 probable wins, a few swing games, a few I think are more difficult to read.

    I was hinting for a coaching analysis to go along with offense/defense/special teams, because I am wondering how coaching changes are going to affect swing games. I would expect for example last year’s staff to increase the chances of OSU losing swing games; this year its difficult to read with all of the coaching changes.

    I actually think having Banker coach the LBs (who are much improved over last year) will be a good thing, but the D line is just so weak this based on combination of size, depth, experience – if losing Frahm hurts, you’re in trouble.

    I also think the change in receiving coaches and rb coaching will be a positive. Does Langsdorf negate that with poor play calling?

    Here’s what I see this year:

    SAC STATE- W

    @ Wisc – L

    BYE

    UCLA – W
    But may have the pure physical talent to beat OSU early in the year – we saw what happened last year when OSU wasn’t focused.

    @ ASU – L

    AZ -W/Swing (I could also see OSU losing to an effecitve Foles)

    BYU – I don’t have a read of this game, other than BYU’s dominance of an OSU team that didn’t care about the LV bowl. This will likely be a big game to BYU for which they’ll be prepared.

    WSU – W

    @ Utah – I don’t think this is a gimme. Their implementation of a more pro-set offense could benefit OSU though, certainly increases OSUs chances given their pattern of weak play against spread offenses and running qbs. I think Chow may be slipping as an O coordinator, not sure this team is built for his offense either.

    STAN – L

    @ CAL – W But odds alone may be that OSU finally drops one at Cal….

    WA – Should be an OSU win, but Polk could give the Beavs all they can handle – I don’t think this is a gimme.

    @ ORE – L

    • expect a down yr from asu stanford oregon. this is the beavers year. beavers usually play best when nothing is expected from them. i wouldn’t be surprised to see a 10 win season from the beavs this yr. somehow it will work out for another bowl game that doesn’t matter (sun, emerald, vegas) though.

  4. Anyone know where you can watch/listen to the Mike Riley press conference that’s supposed to be happening right now? Want to find out what the status of Wheaton is….

  5. Sacramento State – W (no questions asked)
    @ Wisconsin – L (no questions asked)
    UCLA – W (could be a loss)
    @ Arizona State – L (no questions asked)
    Arizona – W (could be a loss)
    BYU – L (could be a win)
    @ Washington State (CenturyLink Field, Seattle) – W (could be a loss)
    @ Utah – L (could be a win)
    Stanford – L (could be a win)
    @ California – L (could be a win)
    Washington – W (could be a loss)
    @ Oregon – L (no questions asked)

    Probable Scenario: 5-7
    Best Case Scenario: 9-3
    Worst Case Scenario: 1-11

    • I still don’t think ASU is a “no questions asked” loss. I’ve never thought Brock Osweiler was a quality player. Their D is tough, but Osweiler makes slow reads and with our speed off the ends and at LB, I think we give him trouble. Plus, he’s so tall and gangly, making him more of a pocket passer than a mobile QB. Perfect for our D to attack.

      • Probably because we’ve lost like 95% of the games played there, but yeah, it is not an automatic loss. It’s impossible to predict game by game outcomes in the preseason. Mental state and other circumstances change (for both teams) from week to week.

        • Also true. I believe the main reason I’ve chalked it up as a very probable loss is the talent discrepancy compared to what Oregon St has to counter it, and the fact that it’s a road game. Home field advantage means a lot in this sport, and if the game was at Reser I would feel much more like we had a chance. However, it isn’t.

  6. That was a wonderful preview. Thanks.

    I was looking for an article somewhere to get a sense of how Wisconsin views their matchup with OSU and I cannot find anything. I searched through the ESPN Big 10 Blog tagged with Wisconsin – not even a mention of OSU in any of the articles I found. Has anyone read anything about this? I wonder if they think Oregon State will be a pushover.

    • Have the Beavers done anything in September to make them think otherwise? Wisconsin’s first four games are UNLV, us, Northern Illinois at Chicago, and South Dakota. Then the Nebraska game hits. If you are them, which one of those first four games are you paying the most attention to? Yeah, Oregon State isn’t getting the benefit of an overlook from the Badgers.

  7. I’m guessing they’ll looking forward to the opener with Nebraska. Lots of hype on that one already (Alverez connection to NU and Wisc…) Maybe they can be snuck up on…?

    • Sneaking up on 315+ lb offensive lineman and a running qb who can hit intentionally hit the goalpost crossbar from the 30 yard line on his first throw might be a good thing…

      I see OSU LBs and Safeties tacking, 5, 7, 10 yards downfield, and some big pass plays over the top via play action. Collins and Mitchell seem a bit fragile right now, I hope this game doesn’t worsen their condition. CB run support would benefit from the use of Ryan Handford IMO…

      • I see Washington as a 6-6 team. Their schedule isn’t too much easier than ours. Arizona State, on the other hand, has enough talent AND the right schedule that could very possibly see them go 11-1.

        • Really? Brock Osweiler gives you that 11-1 feeling? All he does is remind me that the Brothers Tyler got him a D1 ship by being an outstanding o-line for him, then they threw their opportunity away.

          Honestly, I’m glad Szakacsy was first hurt, then intelligent enough to resign. He was the best prospect they had at QB.

          We alaways have the capability to lose at Tempe, because we have done it so often before. But to say that ASU is remotely good is to throw the ugly baby out with last year’s bath water.

    • Agree 100%. We beat them last year, and our team is better this year. What has changes at ASU that has everyone thinking they will beat us?

    • They have the same terrible QB and the same O-line that gave up 7 sacks vs our weak LB/DL group last year? Sure they have that moronic man-boy that can’t go a 1/4 of a game without a personal foul at LB. Other then that, where is the fear coming from?

  8. Riley’s gonna get some major crap from the media/fans for playing Castro in the Sac State game. Really surprised he’s made that decision. Plus, I’d rather lose him for this game than any other game on our schedule.

    • Riley getting crap from the media??? I’ve never seen it, and doubt it happens. Unless you consider this site the media.

      Fans? Maybe a small %. Most will whip out their creed, “In Riley we Trust!” and be done with it.

      • Canzano will be forced to talk about it once Duck fans catch wind. It’s not like they’re holding off on Cliff Harris’ suspension for Missouri St or Nevada. (although I’ve never heard if Kiko is getting suspended at all)

        • I think the Cliff Harris suspension is almost entirely based on his attitude and lack of following coverage schemes. The racing incident was just a good excuse. Just my opinion though.

  9. Looks like McCants is going to be riding the pine this season (except for special teams duty). Getting beaten out by TWO freshmen has to hurt….

  10. Best, and most reasonable, preseason write I’ve read yet. According to Cliff’s website Agnew has been named the starting RB and Terron Ward (not McCants!) is his primary back up. That is extremely encouraging to know that we aren’t going to have to suffer through watching McCants trying to run like he’s Quizz (just lower your head and run!) during the first couple games.

  11. Since we’re talking about predictions, here’s what I see the final conference and overall standings looking like this year (I broke down every game for every team to come to these conclusions, so it wasn’t done solely off what I think):

    PAC-12 CONFERENCE (NORTH DIVISION)
    Stanford Cardinal 9 0 – 12 0
    Oregon Ducks 8 1 1 11 1
    Oregon State Beavers 4 5 4 5 7
    Washington Huskies 4 5 4 6 6
    California Golden Bears 3 6 5 6 6
    Washington State Cougars 0 9 9 2 10

    PAC-12 CONFERENCE (SOUTH DIVISION)
    Arizona State Sun Devils 8 1 – 11 1
    USC Trojans 6 3 2 8 4
    Utah Utes 5 4 3 6 6
    Arizona Wildcats 3 6 5 5 7
    UCLA Bruins 3 6 5 4 8
    Colorado Buffaloes 1 8 7 2 11

    PAC-12 TITLE GAME: Stanford over Arizona State

  12. Here’s my Pac-12 Standings Prediction – i went down every game for every team in every conference (cause I had time on my hands) and this is what I came back with:

    PAC-12 CONFERENCE (NORTH DIVISION)
    Stanford Cardinal 9 0 – 12 0
    Oregon Ducks 8 1 1 11 1
    Oregon State Beavers 4 5 4 5 7
    Washington Huskies 4 5 4 6 6
    California Golden Bears 3 6 5 6 6
    Washington State Cougars 0 9 9 2 10

    PAC-12 CONFERENCE (SOUTH DIVISION)
    Arizona State Sun Devils 8 1 – 11 1
    USC Trojans 6 3 2 8 4
    Utah Utes 5 4 3 6 6
    Arizona Wildcats 3 6 5 5 7
    UCLA Bruins 3 6 5 4 8
    Colorado Buffaloes 1 8 7 2 11

    PAC-12 TITLE GAME: Stanford over Arizona State

    • I don’t think Riley is afraid. He is respectful and humble towards every opponent. Golly gee, he’d say that Western Oregon was a swell team if they were the opponent.

  13. Pac-12 Standings Projection (based on everyone’s schedule, game-by game)

    PAC-12 CONFERENCE (NORTH DIVISION)
    Stanford Cardinal 9 0 – 12 0
    Oregon Ducks 8 1 1 11 1
    Oregon State Beavers 4 5 4 5 7
    Washington Huskies 4 5 4 6 6
    California Golden Bears 3 6 5 6 6
    Washington State Cougars 0 9 9 2 10

    PAC-12 CONFERENCE (SOUTH DIVISION)
    Arizona State Sun Devils 8 1 – 11 1
    USC Trojans 6 3 2 8 4
    Utah Utes 5 4 3 6 6
    Arizona Wildcats 3 6 5 5 7
    UCLA Bruins 3 6 5 4 8
    Colorado Buffaloes 1 8 7 2 11

    TITLE MATCH: Stanford over Arizona State

  14. Here’s a question I have for Beaver fans: if I told you right now, before the season started, that you could gurantee yourselves a 9-3 season (the only losses being Wisconsin, ASU and Oregon) right now, no questions asked… would you take that to the bank and be happy with it for this year? Or do you think that is not good enough? Just curious where everyone is sitting on this.

    • Sold, I’m all over that for this year, knowing that this team is very young and the incoming talent is on the rise. Actually I would also take 7-5 with one of those wins being the Ducks.

      I see this as a rebuilding year with the potential to be a respectable year – 9 – 3 is respectable.

      • 9-3 is not good enough. if we don’t want riley and co. to settle then why should we settle as fans? i don’t believe that 10 wins is an unattainable goal for EVERY year.

    • yeah i’d buy that…

      more interesting question would be if you’d take 16 wins over the next two seasons in any combination… so you could have a 5-7 this year to 11-1 next year, or 7-5 to 9-3, etc….

  15. “True freshman RB Malcolm Agnew is the starter, with true freshman Terron Ward the main backup. Jovan Stevenson is in the mix with Jordan Jenkins.

    WR Brandin Cooks is the starting flanker. If WR Markus Wheaton (hip) can’t start at split end Obum Gwacham will start.

    There will be 10 freshmen who play: Agnew, Ward, Cooks, S Tyrequek Zimmerman, S Peter Ashton, PK Trevor Romaine, OLB D.J. Welch, DE Dylan Wynn, LB Jarbral Johnson and LB Josh Williams.

    DT Dominic Glover (academics) is not cleared, yet, but he expects him to be for game time.

    The suspended players — DT Castro Masaniai, TE Connor Hamlett, TE Tyler Perry and DT Joe Lopez — will not sit out this game. Riley is putting the team first.”

    So, progress in the triumph of talented youth over experience, but coaching puzzling coaching gaffes…see my post above where I ask “how is this year’s coaching staff going to affect swing games…” this is a perfect, if unforeseen example. Wow.

      • Have to say I’m not finding it difficult at all….

        I’m excited to watch the young new players who will be on the field this Saturday (for example: Brandin Cooks, Malcolm Agnew, Terron Ward, Obum Gwacham, Dylan Wynn, Trevor Romaine, Tyrequek Zimmerman).

        I’m excited to watch our new linebacking corps fly around the field making plays (Cam Collins, Michael Doctor, Feti Unga).

        I’m excited (and curious) to if key veterans such as Ryan Katz and Johnny Hekker can pick up their games this season, and especially to see whether this season’s o-line can do the job.

        Can’t wait for Saturday. Go Beavs!

  16. I’m right with SS. I’m a realist. I don’t expect for OS to win the Pac 12 this year but I do expect to be better than last year. And I am really looking forward to seeing the youth. I’m excited that the coaches are being given a test between experience and talent and that they are leaning towards the talent. While last year was absolutely painful to watch, it may be a turning point for the program.

  17. For some reason my spam filter isn’t doing a good job. If you make a comment and ti doesn’t show up, shoot me and email and I can check the spam/approve it. If you create an account and post while logged in it helps.

  18. Sacramento State – W 42-13
    @ Wisconsin – L 21-34
    UCLA – W 26-17
    @ Arizona State – W 28-27
    Arizona – L 24-27
    BYU – W 31-23
    @ Washington State W 38-20
    @ Utah – W 23-17
    Stanford – W 37-34
    @ California – L 22-36
    Washington – W 41-27
    @ Oregon – L 24-39

    Probable Scenario: 8-4
    Best Case Scenario: 9-3
    Worst Case Scenario: 5-7

    Guys every year the Beavs beat someone they are not supposed to, and they lose to someone they are not suppose to. I think we were unlucky last year in the UW and UCLA games (our surprise game were the Arizona and Washington State games). No USC on the road this year, so I think we steal one at Arizona State and at Utah (remember we almost beat a pretty good Utah team on the road a few years back).

    • We’re more likely to steal the game at California than Arizona State, i think. (“We always win in Berkeley, remember?”) :)

      • True….but our road streak in California has to end some time. I am going to the Stanford game at home, and I think having home field advantage will give us the edge (I am undefeated at home games for the Beavs, and I plan on going to a lot of games this year now that I am not traveling as much — although I had to give up the Arizona game as a lost….my home streak can’t last forever), and I think we get lucky this year in a couple of games to make-up for last year. I could easily swap the Cal loss for the Stanford Win, and get for a win against Cal….but I think we surprise Stanford this year, and surprise the critics against ASU (although I don’t think ASU is all that good)….GO BEAVS!

  19. I feel like the media, especially local guys Buker and Cliff, are grasping every possible negative storyline and highlighting as brightly as possible. I don’t know if they are purposefully doing this for buzz this year, but it seems like a deviation from years past. They generally are to positive, so maybe they have self-corrected but are reversing to far. For example, Buker and Cliff have been very negative about the chances Wheaton could play this week. We all know that a hip flexor isn’t a serious injury and he’ll be back. And the Glover academic issue was really played up by both.

    Anyone else getting this impression?

    • It’s Canzano journalism but to a lesser extent. Say something contrary to popular opinion, then expect to get more “hits” in the comments section of your newspaper from the angry fans. Look at the average number of hits a Canzano column about Oregon gets, compared to the average number of hits a Ken Goe column gets. Those hits are what drive the advertising revenue for the newspapers, so whatever then can do to generate that revenue, they’ll try it.

      Angry doesn’t generate any revenue, yet gets more hits and better comments on this site. Go figure….

    • Funny, I was just writing about this in the post that airs tomorrow. It’s mostly due to ad revenue (i.e. “hits”)…but I think a small portion is overcompensation for being so wrong in the past. They fear becoming irrelevant so they’re being more critical. Problem is none of them are blessed with observational skills and even if they were, they have to abide to the paper’s rules and can’t speak the truth. This is why blogs have become a valid form of media (for all subjects, not just this one).

    • Have to say that hip flexor is not always a minor injury, they often can persist and cause a loss of speed and ability to decelerate.

      Also, glover worries the hell out of me. If he isn’t academically ready doesn’t that mean he failed and isn’t really taking action to rectify it? The university has policies about grade submission. Also, I believe glover has a history of poor grades right?

  20. I just finished the draft for the Sac State game. Felt good to write about football. It’s a pretty decent report with some interesting facts and a small dose of attitude/sarcasm/humor. Scheduled to print tomorrow at 5:23am.

  21. Everyone is so worried about size on the DL. To be honest, look back at the 2000 Fiesta Bowl team. Delawrence Grant was our best DE and he was not the “typical size” of a DE either. In fact, we were small on the D Line all together. I actually prefer faster D Line because that equals speed. People can be strong without having the size, but it’s the speed that you absolutely need on the DE position. I’m not saying we’ll be outstanding this season nor that our D Line won’t be pushed around by stronger offensive line, but I am saying that if our D Line fires off the line faster thant the offense or that the offense gets caught off guard by stunts, blitzes, and twists, then I think we might have a chance in those situations. Here’s my win/loss/toss-up prediction:

    Sac State = W
    Wisconsin = L
    BYE
    UCLA = W
    ASU = W (overrated IMHO)
    Arizona = TU(Toss-Up)
    BYU = W
    WSU = TU(depends if we decide to show up)
    Utah = L
    Stanford = TU
    CAL = W(Overrated)
    UW = W(home game)
    CW = L(penciling in…always a chance for an upset!)

    so my prediction is 6-3-3….so I say 6-6 to 9-3…anywhere in there. Also, if we have 6 wins including Sac State…are we not bowl eligable?

    • This line is not like the Fiesta team D-line. Frahm starts for no one else in the Pac-!2 as a DT – I like his energy and attitude, but that’s a fact. Castro is probably a back-up for most Pac-12 teams because despite his size, he hasn’t shown the willingness or ability to play at a high level consistently. Their back-ups are not second string anywhere else in the Pac-12 – Motter? Semoula(sp? I know I butchered that) – they don’t play anywhere else but a depleted OSU or WSU team. Thompson will be a beast in a year or two at DT.

      The ends are encouraging with Chricton and Wynn; other like Henry and Fernando are fast, but haven’t clearly shown they know how to use that to produce consistently.

      In 2-3 years, the starters on the D-line will be looking great, but this year, the LB’s and Safeties are going to be busy as hell, and the limitations of the D-line are what I think hurt OSU the most. They couldn’t get people off the field on 3rd downs last year, I think they’ll have more trouble this year as opposing teams have a lot of third-and-shorts that give them great options on third down.

  22. My prediction. I would be shocked if the beavers werent far better this year than last. The more I think about it, the more last years team reminds me of 05. (Easily shouldve been a 7 win team, but glaring weaknesses kept them from a bowl game.) The offensive line must get better, but as an overall unit I think they will be (with Ellis being the biggest question mark). If Katz follows the same blueprint as past OS qbs, we should see more inconsistancies this season but a better overall year. (he MUST get better at going through his progressions without giving up and scrambling.) I feel really good about Agnew, Im hoping for close to 850 or so rush yards this season and an excellent career. The wideouts? Even without J-Rodge they should be good. Im concerned about the health of the defense. The beavers had a hard enough time generating a pass rush with Miller and Paea, (Olander will be missed as well) so I worry about this years group against guys like Fowles or Osweiler. Ive decided 6 or 7 wins and a bowl game is a reasonable expectation for this group, although we all know what the beavs have done with expectations down a bit…

  23. Sac St. W 45-10

    @Wisconsin L 35-24

    UCLA W 30-13

    @Arizona State W 31-27

    Arizona W 35-27

    BYU W 31-24

    @Washington State W 41-17

    @Utah W 31-17

    Stanford L 38-31

    @California W 27-14

    Washington W 37 -16

    @Oregon L 38-34

    I think they go 9-3 and end up in the Alamo Bowl. They will play close tight games against Stanford and Oregon but Stanford and Oregon make the big plays in the final minutes and come away with wins. I think then if they win the Alamo Bowl it will give them a lot of momentum to have a huge season next year with a lot of big time guys coming back and the talent coming in.

  24. I’ve got the Beavs at 8-4

    Wins: Sac State, UCLA, Arizona, BYU, Washington State, Utah (overrated) CAL, Washington.

    I think ASU is a swing game and could see the Beavs winning, as long as Halahuni and Rogers are back and playing well by that game.

    I also am predicting Oregon’s Thomas will get injured at some point this year. I don’t like to predict injuries, but that guy has chicken legs just like Denis Dixon (yer mouth). Defenders will key in on him and all of the hits he takes this year will take their toll. If he’s out vs Oregon State, I’m giving another W to Oregon State in the Civil War with a * next to it.

    Nevermind, screw the *. A win is a win.

    • Utah is on the road…the last time we went there(2 years ago)…we lost! And…we were a lot better and had healthy players. Even though it’s later in the season, I still say it’s a loss.

      • The Beavers lost to a Utah team that year that was undefeated and the Utes needed A TON of luck to go their way to pull that one out. Utah is nowhere near as good this year as they were in 2008. The Beavers will be the superior team and will win.

        • Totally agree, that was Utah’s best team ever. Same year they beat Bama in the Sugar bowl. They wouldn’t have beaten us that year if 2 things happened 1.)no phantom pass interference call on OSU on the 2pt conversion. 2.) Riley doesn’t blow it with poor clock management in the final 90 seconds. We were up 11 with 90 seconds to go!!! Should have been an easy win but we somehow choked it away.

          Last year, Utah got DESTROYED by TCU at home in a game that both teams were “up” for. It was a complete embarrassment. Utah has never had to play more than a couple of quality opponents in a single season. This year they have a Pac 12 schdule to deal with.

          Prediction: Utah fans will dress in all black again since it’s Halloween weekend. They will go home disappointed for the 2nd year in a row of wearing all black. (TCU was the last time)

          • Brian Johnson really wasn’t running on them at all. He ran it in for the 2 point conversion but other than that he didn’t run much at all. He beat them in the air cause the defense was trying to hold on for dear life late in the fourth and that never works out. Justin Kahut missed an extra point and a field goal. If he didn’t do that the Beavers likely win the game. Justin Kahut mistakes, I know, shocking.

        • I always think I shouldn’t bother to post my little FYI’s because you guys never seem to miss a thing, but jic, Utah is playing Montana State on Thursday night. A couple of searches give free live streaming links, but they may be bogus. I daresay MSU will be overwhelmed, but they are getting $350,000 for the game because they agreed to play based on Utah’s Pac-12 need to re-arrange its schedule. However, you’ll get a glimpse of Utah and most important – it means the season has begun!

        • Really? I think Utah will win the Pac-12 South. I’m not an ASU believer at all, four years of Erickson is too much for any program and USC still has nothing to play for. However, I do think Arizona is not getting enough respect, they will be a tough team to beat. Either way, whoever comes out of the south is gonna be a 7-10 point underdog in the championship game.

          • I think Utah wins the south as well. Only because nobody in that division is all that impressive. USC will be alright but they can’t play in the title game. ASU lacks discipline and will get inconsistent play all season. Arizona the same as the Sun Devils. Colorado is quite bad. Same with UCLA. Utah plays in the title game basically because they will be the most consistent of an inconsistent bunch. They also don’t play Oregon or Stanford. ENORMOUS break there.

          • Utah’s offense really fell apart towards the end of last season. You have to remember they have abandon the spread also, but they claim Chow’s offense will suit Wynn’s skill set better. My suspicion is that they might be a little worse then people suspect, but Willingham is a great coach.

          • I think Chow will not produce, and Wynn will NOT benefit. Chow just hasn’t been getting it done lately. At USC, he was a goddamn surgeon with icewater in his veins…since, mehh.

  25. My predictions:

    1. We end the season with a winning record;
    2. We lose at least one game that we should clearly win;
    3. The offensive play calling causes many readers to want to rip their hair out. The multiple runs up the middle over and over and over strike up the fire Danny Langsdorf bandwagon. Some fans start calling for Mike Riley’s head;
    4. We surprise at least one team and the season suddenly gets very exciting;
    5. We have a 1,000 yard running back;
    6. We praise Mike Riley as the most underrated coach in the country;
    7. One week we kick field goals on multiple 4th and 1’s from the opponent’s 20 yard line and we lose by 2 points;
    8. We wonder what in the hell Riley was thinking. To make it worse, ESPN continues to run thousands of promotional spots with Chip Kelly and the damn duck mascot;
    9. Many fans are so upset that they can’t face the thought of going to work on Monday;
    10. We win the civil war (I can never predict otherwise);
    11. The fans love Riley, but are left to wonder about what would have happened if it wasn’t for some of the bonehead calls.
    12. We go to an unexciting bowl game.
    13. The stress of the season causes fans to age 12 months in a 4 month span.
    14. As soon as the season ends we start waiting for the next season.

    I can’t wait for Saturday, but I’m not sure if I’m ready for this roller coaster ride again.

  26. The way I see it:

    Sac St. W 48-10

    @Wisconsin L 35-24

    UCLA W 35-13

    @Arizona State W 17-13

    Arizona W 35-27

    BYU W 45-17

    @Washington State W 52-13

    @Utah W 28-24

    Stanford L 38-10

    @California W 42-16

    Washington W 35 -24

    @Oregon W 42-38

    I see a bit optimistic with 10-2, but can easily see 7-5. I see a CW win. This is a bit more of what I want. I think we put a lot of points on the board in most games (on ST and def also) but also giving up a lot. I think the return game will be exciting and the DB/LB will be forcing turnovers.

  27. Wheaton claims he is fine and will play. Where did you get your doctorate from Angry? John Hopkins? You know I used to smoke pot with Johnny Hopkins…

    • I’ve had knee/leg issues, so I know that’s a minor injury that just requires stretching. The media have been a bunch of shills all week. Don’t quite understand it.

  28. Buker has now written 3 articles stating if you read the fine print, Sac State has a chance. Yet, I don’t see anything in the fine print. And he hasn’t shared anything persuasive from the fine print he’s apparently reading. I’ve concluded he wants the Beavs to lose so he can use a cheesy “Hornet’s Nest” headline.

    • Buker seems all revved up for a bad year. When OSU beats Sac State he will qualify the win, and be back on track when Wisconsin does their thing. Then he will be all surprised when they beat UCLA. Maybe thats for the best, as OSU does well when not much is expected of them.

  29. The initial essay seems pretty reasonable. I think the team goes back to its old ways, of “finding” itself as the season goes on. Yes, a few games look like predictable wins, but there will be a few others that Riley coaches into wins. When the team is responding, like in normal years, he can do that.

    The big question to me is when will Riley get UO’s number. This might be the year, esp if the UO loses a couple before the Civil War. There were a few last year they could have lost….this year the luck will run out. Plus, folks will really be gunning for them. Another factor will be the NCAA investigation which clouds their future. They will know there is no NC game this year, by CW time. OSU has done well against them the past three years, despite not winning. If this Beaver team comes on well toward the end, this could be the year.

  30. does anyone know if the beavers online thing is live or will it allow one to watch it later, I have to miss the game due to a wedding. why must I have friends lol

    • LOL!! I’m pretty sure that the long haired bearded guy is THE Face of the Students! He’s the one that always has the big O around his neck with a lot of signitures on it. I wouldn’t be surprised if OSU gives him season tickets in the student section for quite a long time

  31. My unwanted thoughts of the season to be

    SAC ST. There have been some good things hear about them, they are a 25 team of their division and they did score more against the tree than did the beavers. But, I think that the beavers will take this one and we should see the back up by the fourth quarter.

    WI: I’m sorry but if the Beavers can keep this within two touchdowns I’d be happy. Just too many players out with injuries and that darn 0900 start time. This game reminds me of the
    Penn St. game a game that new player can step up in and a game the team can build around and always use as a point they don’t what to be in again. Or they could win and then all bets are off for the year lol

    UCLA: This game is at home most of our stars should be back playing again and given the bye week before Reily should have his players ready to go and refocused after a possible blow out that was the WI game. This game might be the beginning of the end for their coach.

    ASU: This one can go either way but seeing how it is down at ASU I’d give the them the edge but I don’t believe all the ASU hype I ‘m sorry they maybe good but I’ve heard this story before and it seems to never have the ending that people think it should or would if they are an ASU fan.

    Zona: I don’t think that people are giving the Wildcats enough credit. I dislike stoops more than any other coach out there; I’m sorry but why does he not get an un-sportmen like calls against him all of the time is beyond me. Either way I think that the beavers should win this one. It is at home and Reily has the cat by the tall (so to speak) and I do think that the Zona O-line is not very good.

    BYU: I have no clue about BYU I’ve not heard much about them and don’t know anything about them. So I’ll say win because it is at home and I’m a beaver fan (everyone has these sort of picks right???)

    WSU: We can take the cougs this year it will not be in Pullman so the home field will not be like home. I think the beavers are the better team. If the beavers lose it one of two things either WSU is better than everyone thinks or the beavers are as bad as we think they could be. I’d hope for the former on this one.

    Utes: This is another game that should be fun between these two teams. The beaver and the Utes play each other tuff. We get to see how the Utes can reach to a year of middle and top teams rather than a few good and a lot not so good (on offence MNT team but let’s be real here) I think that if this game will all depend on the Utes if they are playing will and holding up to the strain of a Pac-12 season they win so I’ll go with a beavers loss here. Unlike others I think the Utes can be good just not good enough to win the south.

    Stanford: I have the same feeling about this game as I do about the WI game but if something happens to Luck or if the beavers can pull some magic like they do against other highly ranked CAL schools that have red as one of their colors we win. But, their red is not the same shade and I don’t think it will happen

    CAL: The beavers will win this one Cal has a lot of rebuilding to do even more than the beavers and I don’t think their coach makes it past the end of the season. This will be a close game in the end and possible CAL coach’s last game also. Heck, from what I’ve read FSU is selling more tickets than them at AT&T Park (as the kids say just saying… at least I think that is what the kids say right?)

    UW: I do believe that doges are not at the bottom of the of PAC heck they may even be ok but they are not going to beat the beavers at home this year they have a new QB and a new O-line and did they not lose some top D players last year. The beavers should be back to form after a heart breaking loses due to the fall of the tree and a hard fought win verses the bears.

    Oregon: I just don’t want to talk about it nope will not talk about it lets just call it a loss the beavers D can’t handle spread Os.

    In short the beavers will be 7-5 if they play the way I think they could with some growing up to do. I know it is a long write up but hey you can just scroll past it if you like.

  32. This was a bit of a surprise to me, from the Portland Tribune:

    “The gunners on the punt team will be Gwachum and Marable.

    “Boom is pretty hard to press, with his size,” Read said. “We’ll find out if he can tackle.”

    Even with promising special-teams player D.J. Welch (elbow) out for the first two games, Read will use four true freshmen for punt and kick coverage.”

    Wow, probably the tallest and shortest players on the team. Be good to know if Boom can tackle before he plays gunner in the game.

  33. Off topic, Willie Lyles had a meeting with NCAA investigators and apparently he gave them all they needed. Interesting to see what happens.

  34. Oregon State has named its captains for the year (according to Ted Miller):
    LB Cameron Collins, Lance Mitchell, DT Kevin Frahm, OT Mike Remmers, WR James Rodgers

  35. Oregon State has been established as a 27.5 point favorite over Sacramento State in the first game (for those of you who find that sort of information interesting).

  36. News & Notes from the Oregonian:

    With Frahm out, and senior defensive tackle Dominic Glover still not cleared academically, Riley has decided to start Castro Masaniai on the defensive line. Masaniai won’t serve his one-game suspension for a spring domestic violence incident until later in the season.

    Riley said redshirt tight end Tyler Perry had surgery Monday (meniscus) and will be out three weeks.

    Two of the players involved in a Week 1 minor in possession of alcohol incident, redshirt freshman tight end Connor Hamlett and redshirt freshman defensive tackle Joe Lopez, will also play and serve their one-game suspensions at a later date.

    “I have to think about the team,’’ said Riley.

    Riley said fifth-year senior Ryan McCants is disappointed to have lost the starting tailback job but McCants is ready to concentrate on special teams.

    On the subject of Agnew starting Game 1 over greyshirt freshman Terron Ward and junior Jordan Jenkins among others, Riley said, “nothing’s set in stone here. We’ll continue to evaluate. He hasn’t been ordained as the next (Quizz).”

    Said aggressive true freshman DE Dylan Wynn will play Saturday. “Active, tenacious, high-motor, very talented … he kind of made more and more of an impact as we progressed,” said Riley.

    Riley has lost count of contingency plans in the wake of injuries, suspensions, etc. “Makes the staff meetings very interesting,” he joked.

    Riley said freshmen WRs Richard Mullaney and Tyler Trosin are likely to redshirt.

    OSU announced Tuesday that 2,200 tickets remain for the game at $35 apiece.

    The school has sold 25,836 season tickets as of Tuesday, second-highest total ever.

    • doesn’t matter if we sell the tickets, it matters that fans actually get their butts into their seats BEFORE kick off! Not AS kick off is occurring! I’m hoping that those season ticket holders are the same from last year where they know they need to arrive in the stadium and not head over 10 minutes before kick off! I’m also curious to see how the new scanning system will work out to help move fans along and get them into the stadium faster, but what really slows down the lines is the checking of bags and purses.

  37. I guess I am not optimistic about this team at all. There are way to many questions about our squad this year. I think that Wisc, Stan and Ore will blow us out this year. Wisc loves to run the score up on opponents and I think this one may be really ugly. I even think BYU will be a really tough game. The only road games that looks like a victory in my book is the trip to Cal (we always seem to play well against them) and WSU (if we dont sleep through that game again). Unfortunatly I see this team at best winning 6 games: Sac St., Wash. Cal, WSU, AZ and UCLA. With a questionable running game, a weak Off line and questions all over the D I think 6 wins is very optimistic. I hope I am wrong.

    • Not so sure about Stanford blowing us out – the game is in Corvallis, and it actually is in the IDEAL position for the Beavers as Stanford has a trip to USC the week before and hosts Oregon the week after they come to Corvallis. It’s what we call the classic “sandwich” game. (On this note, Ivan Maisel of ESPN actually predicted that Oregon State over Stanford as his upset of the year). While I’m not QUITE going out on that limb, it’s not completely out of the realm of possibility, either, given the situations both teams will be in.

    • Also, I was watching “The Experts” last night on ESPNU and Mike Bitchilotti was on and he actually had Ryan Katz as his “under the radar” guy because OSU really likes him and he’s a dynamic football player. Most of the guys other than MB are SEC, ACC, Big 10, Big 12 honks! They always wait until the last 10-5 minutes of the show to talk about the Pac-10/12. Also, they suppress MB all the time, he doesn’t talk much if at all on the show. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a bunch of former players/coaches that sit around in a semi circle and the host for the day brings topics of discussion and they go around to each conference and discuss each particular main conference, but only the top 2-3 teams of the conference in the Pac-12 and they talk about the top 5-7 in the other conferences. It’s totally biased.

  38. If it wasn’t obvious before it will be after this post. I’m what could be called a distant Beaver and thus I don’t follow the team and the Pac as closely as a lot of you do. That said I’m having a lot of trouble getting my head around everyone saying that it’s in the bag w.r.t. the Beavs beating UCLA, UW and Cal. I find it hard to believe it’s an automatic since year after year the Beavs are outrecruited by those teams and thus they must have better talent. They get the guys who were on our A or B list so we have to settle for guys who were on lower lists. Sure, we’ve beaten them in the past but we had the Rodgers brothers then and we don’t now.

    • No game is a given. Last year should have told us all that fact. But we play well historically against those three teams even when we sucked. So to spend extra time analyzing those games is counterproductive. Yes, they all out-recruit us. But they always have done so. If we bring our game for only one half (as we did in each of those games last year), then we probably still win all three. We’re all assuming that we can play for three plus quarters and, as a result, turn the two close loses on the road into wins at home and the one blow-out at home into a solid road victory.

  39. Angry – a question – I just posted a new comment on the predictions thread and wasn’t given “edit” as an option after the message was posted. Why is that?

    However, on this post I do have the option of editing my post. Also I see that with this post I’m MudAndSticks whereas on the other I’m Mud&Sticks (which is what I prefer).

  40. I disagree with Riley on this suspension. First, I think 1 game is too short, second I think he sending the wrong message to the team and the learning opportunity. Let alone whether we have enough depth at that position. It’s his job to recruit enough players to avoid something like this. Then what does it say if you suspend him for Wisconsin or Ucla? That he doens’t think we can win those games? Ugh. If we can’t beat Sac St without him then thats on the coaches. I wish we wouldn’t go down the Uo route and make the suspensions when its convienent. Let’s hold them to a higher standard, I think the players would respond to that.

  41. The Pac 12 is going to be down a little overall. It could be a chance – with some luck – for the Beavers to do well. But I have an unsettled feeling about this team. Some teams are being overhyped (ASU and UW). Others might surprise (maybe Cal). Even UO, I feel, will have 1-2 losses this season. Stanford will be nothing like last season, though still a really good team.

    Some other interesting non-OSU things to follow. How will Boulder and SLC elevations and late season weather affect P12 south visiting teams? How will Cal be affected by playing home games at AT&T park? What will USC do in last year of post-season probation? What will the inaugural Pac12 championship look like (odds are good it is played in Eugene)? What affect will the loss of a bye week (2 down to 1) have on teams?

  42. Just saw that Philipp is asking to redshirt this season. I’m trying to decide if this is selfish on his part or not. There’s been a lot of debate on this site about his merits as a player and what position he should play (tackle vs. guard). He is still saying he is wanting to be tackle. Anyone want to weigh in?

    • Imo he should red shirt. In fact, he should have red shirted his freshman year but OSU was so thin in OL talent they had to play him. Riley is incapable of recruiting good quality linemen and for that reason I think he should go, but I digress. It’s my understanding that in the NFL tackles make a hell of a lot more money than guards and if the kid wants to play tackle then he should be given the chance ESPECIALLY if Riley could recruit linemen so there were enough guards. Ooops there I go again taking another shot at Riley.

      • Wrong on the OT vs. OG pay in the NFL. Yes, on average they are paid better. And yes, the elites of both mimic that pay differential. But Philipp will never be an OT elite on the NFL level. And playing OT on the NCAA level, even well, makes the transition to the NFL OG that much more difficult. Philipp has the tools and talent to be an elite OG, but the sooner he begins training as one, the longer his career as an elite OG can be if he’s destined to be an elite.

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