Home Football Arizona @ Oregon State (pre-game)

Arizona @ Oregon State (pre-game)

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“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.” – Mahatma Gandhi

Dare I say the Beavers get their first win this weekend?

I know folks are afraid of Nick Foles picking apart the defense. He will get his yards, no doubt. However, the Beavers have a handful of things going in their favor:

  • Arizona is the only Pac-12 school with a linebacker slower than Reuben Robinson. This, along with their defensive line play, has lead to an opponents' rushing average of 6.0yd.
  • Opponents average 38 points versus the Arizona defense.
  • As bad as Mike Remmers is, he won't have to worry about protecting Mannion this weekend. The Wildcats have only 3 sacks on the entire year, while opponents have garnered a whopping 13 versus them.
  • With Wynn, Crichton, and Fernando coming on strong, the Beavers should annihilate Arizona's offensive line, in the process marginalizing their all-conference QB.
  • Beavers have the home field advantage. Even though the Reser crowd is pretty lame, this is still a minor advantage.

So, all things considered, the lone reason I see to pick Arizona in this game is Foles vs the secondary. Completely valid, but I saw enough from the Beavers young pass rush this past weekend to believe they are coming into this game (a) brimming with confidence and (b) hungry for a win. If they generate a good rush, and they should, then much like last week the secondary will look better. Foles will get his yards, but the defense will keep him in check.

You could see and feel the Beavers growth in the loss to ASU. Their play improved, but more importantly their confidence improved. Assuming the coaches put the right personnel on the field, I absolutely love the Beavers in this game.

30-24, Beavs

158 COMMENTS

  1. I agree with most of what you say and think we’ll finally get a W. The special teams’ game will play a big factor again too. ASU played on a short field a couple of times because of Romaine’s kick out of bounds and Hecker’s shanked punt. If I’m not mistaken, those both turned into ASU scores. Add to that the return for a touchdown by Miles and Poyer missing the catch of a punt that would have put OSU in position to score and you have an ASU win. All were momentum killers.

    We cannot afford to give Foles and Arizona so many easy opportunities this week.

    • Special teams is important every single game and the Beavs need to maintain focus on this. Fortunately Arizona has a terrible kicker and it may make a difference in this game.

      • There hasn’t been consistency in special teams this season. Some games its decent overall, others it is terrible. Play it safe and make not mistakes here.

        Would love to see upgrades in the kicking/punting games next season. Hekker has a big leg, but takes too long to kick and ends up rushing which leads to shanks. Maybe if OSU threw some wrinkles into the punt game (the occasional fake) it would help keep the opposition honest.

  2. I thought Poyer, Watkins and especially Reynolds (even Murphy) stepped it up last week. If not for Poyer’s blown coverage on the longer pass TD and Watkins falling (literally) victim to a couple bad tackles, they played a solid to excellent game last week. Mitchell is another story. I think his injury is affecting him more than he’s letting on, and the coaches need to rotate TZ into the game more.

    Foles has the ability to hit the soft spots, and those spots are short over the middle and long routes where he looks Mitchell off. Secondaries get burned by good QB’s and WR’s, so there will be some of that. If they don’t drop three wide open TD’s against Nikegon, they are in a virtual tie in that game.

    We have to expect bubble screens early and often. So let’s hope adjustments were made in the OLB pursuit angles. Dammit! Run to where they are, not to where you think they might go.

    I say we look for indications that we may be moving toward a 3 man front. A 3-3, 3-4 or 3-5 are all easy adjustments to make from game to game, and we already recruit personnel who fit that scheme without our coaches being aware of such. If Banker actually does what we’ve been asking for years (and does it well), he can save his hide in my mind.

    • If the OLB runs to where the player is at currently then they will miss. They have to run to the point in space where the runner is headed. Our problem is that the tackler over pursues. They have to work their backside shoulder to the opponents inside hip and put they head and other shoulder against the front of their body.

      • Nope. When you pursue a pass in the flats from the middle, you flatten your pursuit and run straight at the man from his side. This forces him to move before you get there. And since you’re removing the inside, he has only forward and to the sideline to move (or backward if he’s stupid). You anticipate him moving forward, and you adjust as he does so. Optimally, you connect on a correct adjustment. But the least you should be able to do is get a good shove on him and make him go out.

        If you run to where you think he’ll be, then you need to be correct 100% of the time… and hope he doesn’t see you coming. It’s physically easier and quicker to sidestep someone coming from the front than it is to start running forward (or to jump back) away from someone coming full speed with a side angle on you.

        Now, if the blocking is set up as a screen, then you are 100% correct. But in those cases you only have gaps and angles to pursue that the runner also has to exploit. In the case of those passes at ASU, the area was vacated of all personnel, and they relied on the runner to beat a single tackler for positive yards.

        The science of defensive angles is pretty standard across all sports. If you are lateral, you make a bee-line for the man and read him the whole way, making sure you maintain speed and that you always have “the angle” on him. If you are in front, you approach in a defensive position with your shoulders square, your head up and reading his midsection for direction. If you are behind, you just run like hell and hope he’s slower than you or does something to make himself slower than you.

  3. Angry, I went to the ASU game last weekend….and our fans have nothing on ASU fans for lameness. I sat in the upper bowl and for maybe 3-5 plays, it was louder than Reser, but overall, Reser is louder than Sun Devils Stadium. I was actually surprised on how quiet the fans were when OSU came back to a 21-20 score. The fans in the upper deck sit on their duff and don’t really do ANYTHING! The OSU fans that were there were actually LOUDER than the ASU fans at certain points of the game. Also, ASU fans are pretty dang rude. They go because it’s something to do and it’s the “thing” to do. OSU fans go to support the team and actaully WANT to be at the game. Also, I think our Reser fans are quieter compared to Uck fans, but pretty sure we have the edge on noise this weekend.

    • I don’t care for Arizona people…they all look like desert dwelling Nazis….perfect tans, high cheek bones, perfect teeth, blue eyes, etc. I don’t get it. I’m not ugly or jealous, I just don’t like looking at colonies of perfect people–it’s too sci-fi/weird for my liking.

      The same is true of Texas (well, the females at least). I don’t quite understand that, either.

      • I don’t know…have you seen the crowd when they scan at Reser? As a transplanted SoCal Beav alum in Bend, I am not enamored with Billy the Timber Bucker….

      • Have to disagree with the Texas women. Best looking women in the country.

        But to go along with your theme – have you ever noticed how so many male Oregon students look the same in the crowd at games? They all look to be about 5’10, 170 lbs, wearing a duck jersey and a hat with a flat bill and a tilted slightly to the side.

  4. Some things worry me. I’ve watched a couple Az games this season. Az offense has the abilty to really drive the ball quickly. We know our secondary is not great and a good qb in foles will make quick reads and light us up at times. On the other side, arizonas defense has been awful. How that correlates to this game will be interesting.

    Our DEnds are great, but you can’t count on consistent rush from the exact same vanilla set. Likewise, our offence has this tendency to shift gears into terrible inside the redzone and our play calling becomes lame and predictable. Their kickers are bad but ours often look the worst ever. Talent wise I say yes, this team deserves the hope that we have, unfortunateky I believe our coaches to be too vanilla to take the most out of the opprotunities as they are presented. Such as, I could see us giving up on a drive at halftime, not risking a chance to go up big. Stupid stuff like that. Players are maturing, this staff isn’t.

    On the weather, I am concerned about a California kid qb who doesn’t like moisture on his hands. I was fine with the fumble, Crap happens. I really don’t like that it was blamed on sweaty palms. We do realize that it rains at Oregon State? I heard he’s has some grip issues in practice this week.

    I have lots of hope for the end of the season onto next year. But I’m getting very worried about the psychological impact of losing so much and seeing oneself as a loser. I’m afraid this mindset begins to impact almost every player in big and small game and pregame situations. I remember angry calling for a sport psychologist like 2 years ago. Did we ever get one? This team and this coaching staff really needs a killer sport psychologist right now.

    • fortunately it should be about 70 and mostly sunny on Saturday. but long term, I get what you’re saying about the slippery grip Mannion seems to have. Does he have small hands?

    • It was reported that Pat Casey used a sports psychologist but I, too, wonder if Riley has given it a try.

      I agree, the loser mindset can effect the whole team, including coaches. However, it didn’t seem to be in evidence last week and a win this week will be a good step towards minimizing it.

      • I was very happy to not see a blatant loser mindset last week. However,I worry about the continual cumulative losing effects. Adversity happens, sometimes consecutively. Hopefully the staff is mentally preparing for that.

        • Thus the need for a win this week and my feeling that it would only “minimize” but not completely eliminate the loser mindset.

          Regaining some swagger is gonna be a long process but it has to start sometime, sooner the better!

  5. The Beavs should beat AZ this Saturday at Reser.

    Unlike the games against Wisconsin, UCLA, and ASU, this is a game where the Beavs have a realistic chance to win the battles in the trenches. Our o-line should be able to protect Mannion against a weak AZ d-line. Meanwhile, our d-line should be able to generate pressure on Foles (especially by employing the types of stunts and schemes that worked so well against ASU). Who knows — we may even be able to get some yards on the ground against AZ.

    OSU loses to AZ only if we kill ourselves again with turnovers and major mistakes by special teams.

  6. Supposed to be decent weather, I always check so that I know if I will be standing in the mud and rain during my sons soccer game. Slightly, off topic, but I am surprised that the BYU game is not going to be televised. There is a sizable LDS contingent in Oregon. I don’t get this, is it Root Network payback for the Pac-10 Network? Does Root lose all television rights next year?

    • Did you notice the ticket price for the BYU game is nearly double the Stanford game? $60 per seat!

      I’m pretty sure that has to be in order to take advantage of the LDS contingent.

      • No, I didn’t notice that, but makes sense economically, in a “screw you” sort of way. I guess I will have to look around for a feed for the game. I love watching games on my laptop!

  7. This is the one that gets me:

    “The other case involved UO cornerback Cliff Harris, who was traveling 118 mph in a car rented by a UO payroll clerk when he was stopped June 12 — two months after the traffic stop involving Barner.

    Harris’ license was suspended at the time because he had previous, unpaid traffic tickets in Oregon and California.

    Harris eventually paid $1,620 in fines in connection with the June 12 traffic stop. He since has paid off all of his outstanding traffic fines, which totaled more than $8,000.

    After learning of the Linn County case involving Harris, Ducks coach Chip Kelly suspended the returning all-American cornerback. Harris missed the team’s season opener against LSU, but was back on the field a week later.”

    Where does a college kid come up with $8K? Moreover, the risk they posed to themselves and to innocent motorist by doing 118 mph has been totally underplayed. Kelly also kept quiet the fact Darren Thomas was again riding shotgun…

    As I listed to UO fans brag about their football team and laugh at winless OSU, I bite my tongue and wonder if all of these victories end up getting taken away sometime within the next 3 years.

      • Criminology (along with Sociology) are two verrrry popular majors amongst athletes because typically the work load of those majors is significantly less than others. Most won’t graduate let along pursue work in the respective fields.

        • Always thought that “communication” (and Sociology) was the big field for athletes, I learn something new each day, thanks.

          Not showing up for court still tells a lot about his attitude, maybe he will grow out of it.

  8. i think getting TFL will be key this week, we got to get AZ/Foles in 3rd & long situations so we can bring heat and not worry about getting dink & dunked on 3rd & 5ish. some early stops will be key and sustaining drives by winning 3rd down. if we can win the turnover battle, we got a good chance. but AZ’s d may not be as bad as noted – they have played some pretty potent offenses. i think 75 yards rushing is the number we need to produce and would like to see cooks, wheaton and rodgers on plenty of fly sweeps to hopefully open up the gut a bit.

  9. Wondering why we don’t have Katz holding on field goals. I know Hekker has an arm but some fake plays with Katz as the holder would be cool. Some wrinkles to get him involved in the offense. Lets bring Katz out of the back field on some plays or James.

    What the hell is wrong with Mccants? The kid has been the system for how long and can’t get a snap? He has to be able to bruise through the line for a yard on 4th and 1 and make it!!!

    • Yes, McCants has been around and seems to have the physical assets. Too bad his rep for fumbling is keeping him out of the lineup. However, this is a case where the coaching staff has tried to break the pattern of going with experience whether that experience was good or bad. On balance, a good sign, IMHO.

    • Either Katz or Romaine would have to change jersey numbers since they’re both 12. The practice time involved to be a holder also could be an issue. Timing is crucial and they didn’t spend the offseason practicing that way.

    • Name should be changed to McCant……….as in he McCant get on the field. He should have been
      made into a DE three years ago. Seems like a great kid and team player that has been misused by the staff.

    • “He has to be able to bruise through the line for a yard on 4th and 1 and make it!!!”

      Apparently you have never seen McCants run. If he gets a dive call, he will inevitably take 2,341 steps before he reaches the line, and then he’ll fall down… hopefully with the ball.

      • I hear you! But with his size and basic physics, “He has to be able to” I mean the dude is physically big and strong!!!

        There has to be more to this…

      • McCants reminds me so much of Ryan Cole, another impressive physical specimen whose calling card was running into the line of scrimmage and then falling down. Where does Riley find these guys? Do they just get psyched out facing D-1 talent because obviously they stayed upright in high school!

  10. I’m not seeing it. Yes, there is a chance the Beavers prevail. But losing to OK State, Stanford, Oregon and USC in the Coliseum. Good teams will make you look slow, and inept. Last year Andy Dalton looked like a Heisman candidate running back against OSU, when in most of his other games he never ran, or couldn’t run. Last year most fans penciled in WSU as a win without any thought. I think there is some of that hope in play here. If the Beavers can play smart for 4 quarters maybe. AZ must be thinking of shutting down the almost non-existent running game, then be free attack Mannion at will. Do they also think there is an open door to Mannion via Remmers? You think there would be a way to use Remmers ineptitude to our advantage kind of how the spread works maybe with Katz and Mannion in the backfield.

  11. Well Occupy Autzen was a short lived movement. The Ducks created their own version literally a minute or two before I did, and their version cheers on the Ducks. I do not want to encourage or be confused with that!

    I do think we should gather at Autzen and protest the Duck’s corruption and Knight’s stranglehold over the State. If anyone wants to arrange it write me an email.

    And for the record, I am not jealous of the Ducks, nor do I obsess over them. I think about them about twice per year. I do care about injustice et al, though.

    • and if Oregon fans do indeed choose to start an “OccupyReser” protest….I would like to officially announce operation “Protect the Beaver Hole” Who’s with me!!!

    • Where did they create one? Tailgating doesn’t start for ten minutes.

      Anyway, I think it will backfire on them if they decide to push it. This is what I wrote to counter the question “Since when did I/we care about how we’re viewed?” But I think it feeds the movement if they catch wind of what the greedsters are doing themselves in prostituting the movement’s name for their own purposes. I might go downtown and throw up some hand notes decrying corporate greed and Nikegon fans’ disrespect of the “Occupy” movement in “Occupying Autzen.”

      Then again, now that I’ve written about it I might not. This is what I was going to say on the other thread:

      We care when we’re out trying to be seen. The only confusion over Occupy Wall Street has been the more than idiotic reporting by major “news” outlets who have a vested interest in them going away. They marginalize the protests as “dope smoking hippies banging bongos” or “college ne’er-do-wells looking to score with some chicks” or something equally silly. Then they ask one protester a leading question (which he or she recognizes as leading and aptly throws it back in their face) and cut to the “experts” in-studio to comment on something whose failure is a necessity for their professional/financial well-being.

      The protests are none of these. They are everyone. There are college students fed up with graduating with a mortgage payment with no home to live in and no job to go to. There are Tea Partiers who recognize that many of the same issues apply to what they thought the same Wall Street vested media created a couple years ago in their own movement. They’re even the beat cops who are assigned to keep order during the protests (not the white shirted management types).

      It would be difficult to combat similar egregious practices by a NCAA athletic program without being equally marginalized and ridiculed. No matter how potent the truth, it will never reach the layman’s ears. It would be more appropriate to “Occupy Eugene” at Autzen while holding up Nike AND the Nikegon football and hoops programs as playing fast and loose with international laws, NCAA rules and inalienable rights. Hold up their program as one of opulence built on a foundation made of the blood and chastity of brown-skinned children in out of sight lands. Point to how back room deals and pay-offs radiate from the top down, from Nike to Nikegon. Where Daddy Phil shits on human rights and gets away with it in the name of profit, Daddy Phil will also shit on NCAA rules and get away with it in the name of pride.

      Since it’s the epitomy of corporate greed in this town, it would make sense for an “Occupy Eugene” to take place at Autzen. And since the message is grass roots, it would make sense when their football program is brought up in the list of egregious stains on this nation.

      • Your liberal rants grow tiresome. Obama has taken this country to a new low that even bush jr couldn’t accomplish. Stop fucking putting people into a GD box like the “media” is doing to this movement. Politics pisses me off more than beaver football this year.

        • That had nothing to do with politics and everything to do with a very light rant against real business practices in this world which are older than this country and were the cause for uprise when it was formed . There was a reason our forefathers had a major disdain for corporations and forced them to renew their charters every two years by proving their worth to the common good. Yes, the United States If you can’t handle truth, then do me a favor and don’t speak to the major lie you so believe.

    • From the article:

      ***
      Jarrett treated Remmers – who had four penalties in the game – like a speed bump. “He’s a great player,” said Remmers, “And I felt like I wasn’t playing as well as I should have been. I blame myself. He got off the ball pretty quick and I was just too slow. … I’m looking forward to trying to redeem myself (against Arizona) this week.”
      ***

      Sorry, but if ASU’s Jarrett went up against Remmers again, the same thing would happen. “Slow” is not something that can be so easily “fixed”. Jarrett didn’t just beat Remmers, he exposed Remmers.

      Now that Remmers has been so exposed, you can bet that defensive coordinators will put their fastest DE up against Remmers each week. And if the DE proves too fast for Remmers, OSU will need to assign a TE or H-back or running back to help Remmers, to avoid another debacle like Remmer’s performance against ASU.

      If AZ has a DE with Jarrett’s speed,

      • What got exposed was the lack of in-game adjustments. Give the guy that is getting dominated some help. Or roll the plays the other way, something. Think about Paea last year, always getting double/triple teams. You can’t ever let their best option beat you. If the other guys step up and are able to beat you – tip your hat and begin gameplanning the next game.

  12. I haven’t seen anyone mention (might have missed it cus I’m driving down the 5 right now) that JR has to be amped for this game. I hope he tears them apart. Beavs 34 – AZ 28

  13. OT…
    I’m watching the Ducks play, and I just can’t stand that their WR’s and TE’s get away with obvious holds at the point of attack. I guess we’ll also see how many illegal picks they gat away with as well. Nothing like hurting people in order to win… then hearing the crowd boo because they think the guy their team tried to maim is faking it.

      • Oregon looks crappy indeed. If they faced an actual decent QB they’d be losing by at least a touchdown. Oregon has all kinds of issues defensively. They can’t stop the run and pass defense is shaky. They just aren’t a great team. They have an explosive offense but when they face a decent defense the offense is just okay.

        • You have to get freaking touchdowns against the Ducks, Aliotti is the master of bend, don’t break. I think that Luck with pick them apart.

          • Stanford has a good running game and they could run all over the Ducks if they wanted to. The Ducks will get pushed around. When they aren’t running Andrew Luck will pick apart the secondary. Stanford’s offense will have a monster game against Oregon. Can’t say I won’t look forward to that.

  14. Cals defense has been pretty good so far, aside from a few long runs down the sideline by james(can’t believe he’s stayed in bounds on those). If maynard could throw with any accuracy, Cal would have a nice lead going into halftime.

    • Cal’s defense has not been pretty good the way I’ve seen it. Far too often they’ve been way out of position and has repeatedly given up monster runs. Oregon has not been impressive at all. They’ve benefited from a bad Cal QB. Arizona State will do more offensively. Will be interesting to see they do defensively though.

      • Pretty much. For a huge guy he doesn’t demand much respect. Then again, Riley recruited him as an OL and then converted him, so he isn’t exactly in his ideal position.

        • I don’t know that OL is really his ideal position either. There are only a few guys that can play effectively with that much dead weight. Castro seems way out of shape.

          • Scout has him at 265 in 2006 and recruited as a DE (not that it is worth a ton what Scout says). Either way the guy is a junior. I hope he lays off the McDonalds and starts training better. We could use another serviceable DT next year too.

      • That’s riddance, but with a totally uncalled for and innappropriate comment like that, I wouldn’t expect you to exhibit any intelligence. About as out of line as you can get.

        • What ever. Makes me sick when I hear announcers go on about what a great person be is. Nikegon’s influence can get him cleared legally, whatever. Never trust a woman beater

    • I doubt it will do any good. I stopped watching in the third quarter when they made it to the edge on another WAAAYYYY obvious hold. I just can’t watch it. I guess it pisses me off more when they are a good enough team that they don’t need to do it. But it also pisses me off that the refs just don’t seem to care. Players get hurt when the rules aren’t enforced.

      • I know that they broke a huge run to the edge and their was an obvious no call on a chop block on that same edge. Craig James’ dumbass just kept ranting on about keeping contain.

        • You didn’t see the jerseys getting stretched by holds on the edges followed by the contain men yelling at the ref all the way down the field and grabbing and pulling their own jerseys?

          I didn’t even get a chance to watch my favorite over-hyped lineman, Carson York, that much. But every time I did watch he was grabbing some d-lineman and pulling him to the ground. But that’s how he’s learned to play now. I feel bad for him. He was a pretty highly rated lineman coming out of high school, and now he’s a too-light prospect with such poor habits and poorer technique that I would be completely surprised if he makes a dent on the next level.

          If they would have thrown flags on just the obvious holds that any fan can see in real time, then there wasn’t a Duck player who blocked who wouldn’t have had a Remmers night.

  15. Watching the Cal offense gives me a little window of hope for the Beavers when they face them in Frisco, Zach Maynard looked like a MAC level talent. If the Beav defense continues to improve and the D-line can get pressure, who knows.

  16. ASU has got to be licking there chops for next week. Without James, oregon is very average. He had almost all of there big plays tonight. Other guys like barner and thomas don’t compare.

  17. In his press conference, LaMichael James j said he would still play even if all his ACLs were torn…Eeesh. Good thing Mike Belloti isn’t coaching the Ducks anymore.

  18. Was at the Duck game, the Ducks are very beatable. The crowd was completely out of it by the second quarter. If Cal had been able to do anything on offense, they might have put this away. But they didn’t and the Ducks came back after half and got their crowd back. It was looking really bad for the Ducks there for a while.

    • Glad to hear this. Some people on this blog have called me “insane” for suggesting that the Beavs might have a chance to win the Civil War this year at Autzen. But if the Beavs keep playing the talented youngsters, keep improving, and get some breaks…..

    • Given their speed, and Banker’s inability to coach against the spread, an OSU victory at Autzen is extremely unlikely. Its not impossible, but I fear a blowout of the 60+ – 20-something variety…

      Oregon uses misdirection and speed to beat you athletically, then they break the will and heart of (most) opposing defenses to take them out of the game.

      Why BSU, with its 2-3 star talent can scheme and play disciplined defense against the Ducks and OSU cannot starts and ends with Banker. Clearly, the Beavers don’t have a D-line like Ohio State, Auburn, or LSU, but they’ve shown if you control the line you can keep UO’s speed in check.

      When OSU gave up 60+ a few years back, Banker said he made it too complicated for his team. The next year they simplified it and it was a great, competitive game. UO has so much depth and speed on offense, I just can’t see Banker getting it done.

      • I agree that a Beaver victory in this year’s Civil War is unlikely. But this year’s Beaver defense has improved speed. Banker is (slowly) making progress in figuring out Chip Kelly’s offense. In another seven weeks the Beaver offense could be potent.

        Put it all together, throw in some breaks and turnovers, play out of our minds on special teams, and the Beavs could pull it off. If the Beavs play their best game, and the Ducks don’t, it’s possible. That’s all I’m saying….

    • I can absolutely promise that if Robinson is still getting significant playing time at OLB by the time we play Oregon we are going to get blown out. They will run right at him each time he’s in the game (wouldn’t you?).

      • Yes, I would.

        Run right at Rueben Robinson.

        Run right around Mike Remmers.

        Rinse and repeat.

        What was I thinking?

        Still…..

  19. I’m skeptical that the Beavs can be competitive at this point. The offense will have to sustain drives without turnovers for four quarters and the defense cannot give up rushing yards in huge chunks. Cal’s defensive front seven received all kinds of accolades leading up to the game and they had a nice second quarter, but in the end the Ducks scored in bunches. It takes an amazing amount of discipline or elite SEC talent (or both) to defend against the Ducks. I just don’t see it.

    • He came on with the walk-ons. He and Vieru are the the type of walk-on o-linemen that deserve to be on D-1 rosters. They’re both maulers who have proven that they can play at their current weights. Projects, yes… but projects who already have size, athleticism and great hands. I believe both were champion wrestlers in high school.

  20. Hi Beaver Nation, its me again, the old coach. I know that five or six of you will be heading down to Parker for the Arizona game. It is critical, at this juncture, that we keep my imminent 2012 return on the “back burner.” If Riley was to catch wind of our plans he may actually try and win the game. Just like my vaunted, triple reverse zone fly option offensive we want to spring it on him. A Beaver upset could spoil our carefully laid plan!
    I’ve heard about the chain saw guy, how cool! I’ll beat the Ducks are really jealous that they didn’t think of it. They don’t have any imagination. Its too bad the football game has to ruin the great Parker Stadium atmosphere.
    Got to go.. Meals on Wheels is here. Its fishy-fry Friday. yummy

    PS: Susy wants me to clean out the garage. Look on Craig’s List for some 90 vintage jerseys. The backs are grass stained and the fronts have some cleat marks but otherwise they are fine. JackBeav.. I’m going to hold back some of the #’s 60-70 just for you. I know you’re a “big boned” lad.

    • I’ll wear a #60-70 with honor. If you could tailor it, I would appreciate it. I wear a 46L with a 34″ waist. Oh, and make sure the torso is long enough. Too often, the crap that passes for apparel these days doesn’t fit people as tall and slender as I am… not that I think 220 pounds is THAT slender on a 6’4″ frame. But I would like to be able to tuck it in please. Thanks.

      Is Arizona playing at Parker Stadium, home of Beaver Football this weekend?

      Btw… you are pwned.

    • I still haven’t figured out why hell you got invited back? I guess you still live in Oregon. I’ve got to hand it to you, you did have the balls to put out that “We Own The State” video when you went 1-10, but beat the Ducks.

  21. Here’s Phil Steele’s take for this week:

    Arizona is 2-10 Straight Up/Against The Spread being outscored 31-17 versus the Beavers while
    Oregon State has also outgained the Wildcats in 9 of the last 11 matchups by a 412-272 average. Last year the Beavers went into Tucson and knocked off the #9 Wildcats 29-27 (+8), a game Oregon State actually led by 9 until an Arizona touchdown with 1:52 left. The Wildcats spotted another team a big lead as they trailed USC 17-0 after the 1st Quarter which was
    too much to make up as Arizona lost by 7 despite QB Foles throwing for 426 yards (Arizona defense allowed 582 total yards). The Cats are now on a 1-9 run dating back to last year with 2 losses each to USC, Oregon and Oklahoma State (our toughest schedule this year). Despite taking a 13-0 lead early in the 2nd Quarter vs Arizona State (aided by 3 Sun Devil turnovers), Oregon State had turnover problems of their own (5 total) and were outscored 35-7 the rest of the way despite a 40-66-341 pass performance by QB Mannion (1-4 ratio). While the visitor is 6-1 straight up/against the spread and the last 3 games have been decided by a total of 9 points, the Beavers are 16-6 in conference games at Reser Stadium. Oregon State has struggled in
    September over the past 6 years (9-14 straight up) but from October on the Beavers have gone 32-14 straight up/against the spread.

    OREGON ST 37 Arizona 31

  22. There is a bit of deja vu to the game with another team coming in with its coach on the hot seat. It could create an intangible that favors AZ. Stoops may want the win more than Riley.

  23. OT… I was tooling around, and I noticed Grant Bays has his own site.\
    http://grantbays.com/

    I wonder why all high school players don’t have the savvy to do something like this. I realize many have limited resources at home, but their coaches and schools should be able to provide them with some kind of guidance toward a goal they all want–namely playing at the next level. This kind of effort makes Bays look like a future Rhodes Scholar compared to the skeezy pay-outs to “mentors” for suspect students.

    And who knows? Maybe Bays is a future Rhodes Scholar. But I think his creativity (as well as that of Peter Ashton with his site and that TE/DE from Vegas… Bond?) can be duplicated with little effort. I’m sure there are more who do it–Leroy Dobbins comes to mind. But I guess my question is why don’t they do it?

  24. I think we need Reynolds and Poyer to have career games in order to have a chance. Zona spreads the ball well because Foles makes great reads. Foles is probably the 2nd best QB in the conference playing on a bad team. Their only other strength is their WR’s. I don’t see our defense covering 4 WR packages that well. In order to do that Poyer is going to have match Criner (Criner is a top 5 or 10 WR going into the draft). In addition we will probably need our LB’s to have great coverage (which we haven’t seen yet). Overall, Zona averages nearly 400 yards per game passing. I think that results in about 30 points for them.

    I don’t see our offense reaching 30 points against Zona (haven’t reached that mark yet this year). Zona has a bad defense but it doesn’t help that they have played a touch schedule (with great offensive FBS opponents) to this point. I expect their defense to look better this week against our mediocre offense.

    Zona over Beavs 34-23.

  25. In the off-season, AZ lost all 5 starters on its O-line, and its 3 best D-linemen. That’s the main reason why AZ has struggled so far this season (along with playing a very tough schedule, including USC, Stanford, Oregon, and Oklahoma State — the last three being Top 10 teams).

    Injury problems have further weakened AZ up front. AZ’s left guard tomorrow is likely to be a third-string redshirt freshman.

    All of this means that the Beavers, for the first time in a while, have a chance to dominate the line of scrimmage (and maybe even establish a running game and enjoy some offensive balance). That would be huge for OSU….

  26. Beavers 38, Arizona 30. I think the Beavers will get some sacks and stuff the run, however Nick Foles will have a big day in the air but they’ll come up short. I think Mannion throws for 385 yards, 4 touchdowns and an INT and they come out on top. I think the win gives them some confidence and they proceed to win the next three games afterwards to even up their record at 4-4 before Stanford comes to town.

    • Wow…..dude, you are a BELIEVER. Good for you.

      I look at it and see an OSU team with multiple ways to self-destruct. Bozos on offense (Remmers) and defense (Robinson). Fumbles, interceptions, silly penalties, shanked punts, kickoff out of bounds …

      If it werent for that, I might be more optimistic. 38-27, Az gets well.

      • I can’t see AZ scoring 38. The Beavers can generate a pass rush and AZ has an awful O-Line. That’s a recipe for complete disaster for the Wildcats. I doubt they get a running game going at all. They’re averaging just 75.6 yds/gm and I doubt they reach that total against Oregon State. Foles will be hit a lot and sacked 4 or 5 times.

  27. There is something to be said about the quality of schedule as listed above. We’re really not sure how good or bad Arizona is at this point. While I think we can all agree that Arizona and Oregon State are fairly close in terms of talent, skill and the like and OSU is at home, the Beavers shouldn’t take Arizona for granted with a 1-4 record. Look at the Wildcats’ schedule. The last four weeks they’ve played Northern Arizona at home, at Oklahoma State, hosted Stanford, hosted Oregon, and visited USC. Can you name the teams that WOULDN’T be 1-4 with that schedule?

    • There are quite a few who would be 2-3 but better than that would be tough. I’m pretty sure how bad they are. I’ve seen them play 4 times and there is no doubt in my mind they’re a bad team. Slow linebackers, D-Line gets no push, they can’t cover, O-Line can’t block. Foles and the receivers are really good, that’s it. Kicking game has issues as well. They’ve had a tough schedule but if you watch them play you know they have a huge amount of issues.

      I wonder how long Stoops lasts.

  28. Just finished re-watching the second half of last week’s Beaver game vs ASU. The pressure on Mannion was even worse than I remembered. Although Remmers was the main culprit, Grant Enger and Colin Kelly missed blocks, too (resulting in Mannion getting driven to the turf time after time, and leading to bad throws and interceptions).

    What struck me most, though, was Mannion’s demeanor throughout this ordeal. Never once did Mannion lose his cool. OSU’s o-line repeatedly failed to protect him, and committed penalties that nullified passes and killed drives. Mannion just got up, dusted himself off, and went about his business. No sign of frustration. No finger pointing. Not even a shake of the head. No complaining at all.

    Impressive. Bodes well for Mannion’s future. Looking forward with increased excitement to tomorrow’s game at Reser…..

    • Speaking of Mannion’s demeanor, here is Riley’s post-game quote (following Beavs 37-27 win over the Wildcats this afternoon):

      ***”
      He has remarkable composure for a young guy playing quarterback out here in a scene like this. The reason I say that is that when you talk to him on the sidelines, it’s like he’s been going for a walk in the park. He’s very calm and collected and sees things and explains what he saw and asks some questions. That’s why he can see out there and make some plays when he has to. He hung in there very well after throwing that early interception that was like, “Wow, what a way to start this thing.” Then he made a ton of nice plays down the field that I was excited about.
      ***

      Same thing that was apparent watching tape of the ASU game. Mannion has a remarkable ability to stay calm and focused when things seem to be falling apart around him. He just keeps going about his business, and he doesn’t get flustered. Great quality in a QB. Almost certainly benefits his teammates in the huddle, too, when things get crazy on the field….

  29. I knew our pass rush has been better, but I didn’t realize Crichton and Fernando each already have three sacks. Our team may still not be very good, but at least our pass rush is back after having gone missing for two seasons. And to top it off, Crichton and Wynn are only freshman! I’m really hoping to see four or five sacks on Foles tomorrow.

  30. I guess it has allowed younger guys to play, but what the hell happened with Glover? Did I miss something? He was so casual about clearing up his academic issues and now we don’t hear anything about him. Did he flunk out of school? What a waste if that happened!

  31. Getting ready to leave for the game, hoping for a Beaver WIN! I’m also looking forward to the pre-game F-15’s flying over! ROCK RESER and Go Beavs!

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