Home Football Colorado @ Oregon State

Colorado @ Oregon State

295

I don’t have much to say about this game.

Based on recent history, Colorado has been terrible (though, maybe improving?) and Oregon State has been good (though, seemingly in decline). OSU is sick of hearing their defense is terrible, so they’ll have incentive to silence the critics vs this bad opponent, but we said that last week…

Colorado will be eager for a win versus a PAC opponent they see as vulnerable and very beatable. This will give them confidence and motivation. Until they play defense, the Beavs are chum and everyone else is a shark.

Oregon State is at home, in front of all their critics (ha ha yeah right, a Beaver fan not on this site who is a critic) and thus in a relatively high pressure situation. They never seem to excel in these situations. But the moment you write that and get everyone on board is the moment there are too many fans in the wagon for my liking.

So what to expect? Probably some combination of all of these things. I think the OSU program is in a slightly better place so I will pick them to win, but this is the last game they can “not show up” and still win. I also think it’s the last game they can win without establishing a running game. Everyone expects the Beavs to be exposed versus Stanford. I think it can and will happen earlier than that if things don’t change. Washington State is a better version of Eastern Washington. Enjoy this last game before things get real.

Beavs 28, Colorado 24

295 COMMENTS

  1. I worry about a situation like the WSU game at Reser in 2010.

    http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2011/10/oregon_state_insider_a_year_la.html

    A lesser WSU team knew to attack our strength (Quizz) on a dirty play to start the game, and it was all downhill from there.

    I worry that a CO player will risk penalty to put a hit on either Cooks or Mannion early in this game, since those are our only serious threats. Could be a long day. CO has had 2+ weeks to scout this game

    In a clean game, Beavs win. In a dirty game, Beavs crawl back in their shell and CO goes 3-0 on the season.

    • That brings up a point I was considering raising; OSU getting more physical than their opponents (but not in a dirty way).

      I don’t expect it this week, not after all of the talk from Riley about what a physical game SDSU was, all of players with minor injuries that won’t be practicing until later in the week….that’s one reason I worry about them starting their bye week a little too early…

  2. I like that Mageo(sp?) is in at MLB. Angry was correctly underwhelmed by Skotte from the start.

    I didn’t see Mageo play last weekend, but if his weight is accurately listed, Beavs finally have a legit MLB in terms of size. OSU viewers/fans seem to be consistently impressed with his effort, perhaps he overruns some plays?

    I am unsure how the scheduling affects the teams. Do Beavs start the bye early? Does Colorado benefit from all of that extra time off as OSU seemed to against Wisconsin last year, or are they rusty?

    SOME sign of systematic improvement from OSU would be welcome; good D for at least 3 quarters, since 2 per game is the best they’ve done so far against weaker opponents. Agressive, consistent run blocking….

    Get those things, and continue to stay away from the TOs, and Beavs could have their “best” victory of the young season if they don’t start the bye week early.

  3. After 4 games, we have a pretty good idea of what this team is and will be so getting “exposed” isn’t really accurate. They should beat the teams they are expected to beat and lose to the better teams. Maybe get one upset in and get upset too. They should be motivated for Colorado and with a bye week after, I don’t see them taking this game off. The critics are getting louder and nothing motivates players better than critics.

    Still it’ll be a closer game than anyone would like. Probably give up a few big plays that suck the air out of the stadium. But the offense has been looking strong at home and that should overcome the defense’s inability to stop anyone.

    I don’t think a running game is all that necessary as people are making it out to be. The short passing game can work out as a good substitute. SDSU’s defense sold out and blitzed hard. Most teams will come with that game plan until Mannion is able to get the ball out quickly to the hot reads. There were too many guys coming straight up the middle at Mannion last game.

    I expect to see these adjustments in the Colorado game,

    1. More swing passes to the RBs to make up for the running game.
    2. Mannion should take more time at the line to get the defense to show what they are doing and adjust.
    3. More hot read throws when Colorado blitzes.
    4. I think Riley will try to run early since Mannion will throw around 50 times.

    On defense, there’s not much that can be changed in one week to make a difference here. In spurts, this defense can play but not for 4 quarters.
    1. Mageo as MLB might help. He’s ok but people might think’s he’s good since he’s being compared to Skotte.
    2. Martin should be the nickel back. He’s just not fast enough to stick with WRs. I saw Larry Scott get some snaps late in the game. Not sure who he replaced.
    3. If Zimmerman can somehow relearn how to wrap up, then I see a good day for defense.

    I’ll go for the shootout score,

    42-35. Beavs

    • Martin should be playing left out. He’s scored 6 points but given up at least 42 (obviously an estimate but should be pretty accurate.) They burned Hunt’s redshirt so get him out on the field! His growing pains can’t be any worse then Martin’s lack of ability.

        • I guess I’m not 100% that he’s actually played in a game. He was planned to but then picked some minor injury around the EWU game. They made a big deal of it at the beginning of the season when Riley called Hunt, Bolden and Songy into the office to tell them they weren’t redshirting. I remember an article on olive where they spoke to Hunt about his reaction, trying to keep his poker face till he got out of the locker room then celebrated and called home to tell mom. I can’t find any action in the game logs so maybe he’s still eligible.

          • I think Hunt was in during the last two series against SDSU. He is #9 correct?

            Martin got injured during the game so Larry Scott and Hunt got playing time.

          • He hasn’t played. But by the end of the game Scott and Nelson were on the boundaries with Reynolds playing inside. Scott played most of the game from the middle of the second quarter on.

            Now we need to remove Braun from DT. He was absolutely handled all game long unless Mageo crept up and occupied a lineman. Then he was handled but was able to keep his feet enough to not get pushed too far off the play.

            And Rosa will be fine as a DT against a spread line. But his strengths are quickness and speed. He would beat his man first one way then another, but he would run into traffic everywhere he went. And he’s not a run-stopping plug. He should be on the edge.

            Bennett-Jackson was in for a couple series, and he looked really good. There was one play with Delva in at the other DT, and they destroyed the whole line between the two of them. I only saw Delva two or three times though. Is he rehabbing?

          • “by the end of the game Scott and Nelson were on the boundaries with Reynolds playing inside. ”

            That sounds intriguing, like it could put the more experienced Reynolds in the same position as Poyer to make plays. How did Scott look?

          • It looked like the dime package with Alexander and Johnson in the box with three DEs and Rosa, who should be a DE, Reynolds and TZ covering the middle and Murphy and Christian deep. That’s how Reynolds was where he was to tip the ball on Murphy’s INT. It’s also how Alexander got the late game sack up the gut. The interior line had to pick up three out of four rushers in the A gap, and they chose wrong. Barnett and James played quite a bit too, and they looked decent. And despite Kell’s dumb head shot he looked decent as well.

            Scott looked faster than I thought he was. He’s still a little raw downfield, not yet looking back for the ball. But instead of running behind the WR he keeps inside position stride for stride. So he wasn’t going to get called for running over his man. He’s not going to get beat deep or inside very often, but he’s susceptible to a deep stop to the outside once he’s turned if he doesn’t read the WR correctly. He’s also very good at coming back to the line on runs and flares, but he could be better getting off blocks when it’s just a WR on a run play.

          • It was Reynolds. I know it’s hard to see the numbers with the new font, and the replay doesn’t show the name well. But if you go back to the original play and watch it live you’ll see Scott covering the wide-out on the top of the screen, then he clearly runs into play then downfield so you can see his number and name.

          • The contribution from the JC DT’s has been a letdown. I agree with your assessment of Braun and Rosa. Would like to see more Bennett-Jackson and Tago. Even if Tago is raw, I would rather have a big body in there that could clog things up. Just tell him to hold his ground every play.

    • You think the run game isn’t necessary and Mannion is awesome because they’ve played bad teams. Nobody knows how good Mannion is yet. They haven’t played a good defense. Run game will obviously be important vs teams that can rush the passer.

      • Mannion has made some fantastic throws this year but have you noticed it does not take much to rattle him? Just a couple sacks or near sacks and he starts rushing things throwing off his back foot.

        • Wrong. He was throwing off his back foot against SDSU when there were guys a half inch away from his face. And he still completed most of those passes. When he had time to make the throws, he made them just fine.

      • I said short passes can substitute for a run game. With the oline in in current state, it doesn’t matter if a team has a good pass rush, the run game isn’t going to make any impact. Short quick passes and screens can be just as effective.

        • Not really.
          You’re assuming a short pass has the same completion rate as a handoff (99.999%). It’s more like 60%. Which is why teams don’t short pass the entire time and still run.

          It also increases the rates of deflections (interceptions), sacks, etc.

          • It’ll move the ball better than running it. 99% of the runs will result in no gain right now.

            Mannion at 6.2 yard per pass attempt. Rushing at 2.1 per rush. Longest run of the year so far is 12 yards!

            We’re in the mike leach era now (pass, pass, pass). When the oline gets Enger and Andrews back, then I’ll expect more balance.

          • I agree the screen passes and other short routes are an extension of the running game. Granted this is college but NFL teams win all the time without running games. Short passes are completed 80%+ of the time.

          • Can you provide some specific examples of successful screen passes we’ve run? I’m not talking about bubble screens to the WR either. I mean screen passes over the middle to the RB. I seem to recall those not working out for us very often.

          • Pretty much how I remember it too. I have a memory of Cooks breaking off one other time too.

            Gotta wonder if ward just can’t catch for shit. Storm was moderately successful in the screen game, enough to use it to keep the defense honest. He also caught a decent number of dump off passes that mannion didn’t even attempt last weekend. Too bad Anderson was hurt, Riley probably would have called the wheel route a couple times.

          • I’d rather have an incomplete pass to the rb over a negative net gain running play any day. I hate seeing these running plays stopped for 2-3 yard losses and putting us in 2nd or 3rd and long situations. The main positive with the run game so far has been the time it takes off the clock, helping keep the defense from spending too much time on the field.

          • Yes, but those aren’t our typical run plays. Look at this game. Take away the last five runs. Take away the 4th and one when even people who weren’t watching the game stopped in the middle of their day to suddenly think to themselves, “OSU is going to run behind their left side.” Take away Mannion’s four “rushes” (a scramble for +6, a botched snap for -4 and two sacks for -25). Take away the knee to end the first half.

            That leaves Ward rushing 9 times for 32 yards. And even one of those could only be one yard long since it was a one yard TD. So we could say he went 8 times for 31 yards.

            And even that’s not fair since we just seemed to throw it in every once in a while as an afterthought. What would happen if we actually tried to run for once? We might actually be good at it. We’ll never know until we actually try.

          • It’s a bit odd. Every week we hear about needing the running game to get going, but even in the first two possessions, the run is still an after thought and it seems like 9 out of 10 plays are passes.

  4. I hear a lot about us getting the injury bug, comparing this year to least year, yes we definitely got it. But when you compare with other teams in the conference….Beavs seem a tad bit above average with number of injuries….seems like a number of other teams have about equal amount of players “out for the season”. Ironically the Ducks are the only team looking like close to 100%…..go figure, they are the last team needing to be fully healthy…..where’s Boise State on their schedule when you need them…?

    http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=usatoday&page=cfoot/injuries/InjuryConf.aspx?conf=Pacific 12

    • Don’t you think that has something to do with depth? Oregon plays a lot of guys all the time, the Beavs rely on their first string too much because they do not have much depth, when you are relying on the first string all the time guys get tired and the opportunity for injury increases.

    • Our issue isn’t really quantity of injuries- it’s where they occurred. They are all bunched up in key position groups, and in some of the worst position groups. We got slammed at LB and on the O-line, both bad positions for us. At LB we lack talent; on the O-line we lack bodies. And we will really lack bodies in ’14…

      I was disappointed that we haven’t picked up more O-linemen to complement the ’11 class, but honestly that shouldn’t have been a problem for the team until ’14. The O-line situation this year was truly crazy. And the reasons for guys getting hurt and/or leaving were diverse enough that I don’t see a trend (say, training or practice issues). Just really and truly Luck o’ the Beavs.

      Recall:
      LB
      Josh Williams – possibly MLB starter – dismissed from team
      DJ Alexander – quality starter – injured in fall camp
      Michael Doctor – quality starter – out for most or all the year
      *Based on William’s play, that could have been our entire starting lineup! *

      O-line
      Chase Eldrige – left for unknown reasons
      David Keller – concussion & quit football
      Enger – out for several weeks
      Weinreich – still not recovered from ACL – progress unknown
      Addie – concussion
      Sapulo – out for year
      Andrews – Mono
      * That’s 7 guys out of ~13…crazy*

  5. ESPN Insider Five-on-Five quote, for those of you who don’t have it. The question was, who in college basketball has the best chance to increase their draft stock:

    Pelton: Eric Moreland. Moreland, who plays at Oregon State, isn’t currently in Chad’s top 60, putting him outside the second round (if everyone declares). He’s got first-round talent as a rebounder and shot-blocker, and a solid season could get him to that point. However, Moreland has to stay out of trouble after getting suspended by the school indefinitely during the summer.

    • Moreland will never amount to shit in the NBA. Probably not even the D league. He can rebound when he wants to and block shots but that’s about it. He has no short/midrange jumper. His offensive skillset is offensive (limited). The only thing he has going for him is his height and wingspan. But what will hold him back is his attitude and work ethic

    • Richardson has drawn a lot of comparisons to Marqise Lee. His HS coach – who also coached Lee – considered Richardson the better player.

      Colorado actually is similar to OSU right now. Awful run game, great pass game led by Richardson. On a per game basis, Richardson has put up better numbers than Cooks. I would say Mannion > Col QB but Richardson > Cooks. Our supporting cast in the receiving game probably better.

      Not sure on D

  6. Caught the tail end of a Riley interview on the radio this afternoon. Heard him saying he’s expecting to get back 2, maybe 3, O-linemen after the bye week. He’s really hoping to get through this week unscathed.

  7. It’s wasn’t more than 2+ seasons ago that Riley and Co. were notorious for their slow starts and fast finishes. Getting out of September with a singular win was common place for the Beavs, and though I admit that the competition then was stiffer than 2013-2014, somehow the schemes and complexity of the system started to ‘click’ with the players as the season rolled on.

    My question is, if we returned some of the injured vets and saw consistent growth (equal to years past) over the remainder of this season, which games might we have a solid chance of getting the ‘upset’ win and improving our bowl selection?

      • Those teams were generally underrated and over looked whereas this team was probably overrated based on last years result. Top 25 to start the season , and picked 3rd in the Pac 12 north.. Riley and Co. kinda had some real expectations to start the season. After the surprising start and reaching the top 10 last year they were expected to start 6-1 or 7-0 and be a top 15 team again this season.

        Seems like they have just wilted in the face of those expectations. The coaches mostly.

    • Even with the injured starters back and healthy, the defense would be average at best. If the offense continues to have 400+ games, and average turnovers (+1 margin), then this team will go 5-3 at the very best. Most likely this team goes 4-4 the rest of the way — CO, CAL, USC, and WSUorUWorSTAN.

    • I have the same hope. I don’t think the “September effect” is fully dead. I think we will see a significant improvement in the run game as we get O-linemen back, and have two bye weeks to prepare.

      That being, our D is truly putrid, and we don’t have a lot of injuries on D. I think our D will improve somewhat, but I think we’re still looking at the worst Beaver D since I’ve followed the program. If we do get a decent run game going we’ll have a great offense, but it won’t be enough to have a chance against a really good team.

  8. In 2012, 4th down situation with 3 yards or less, we converted 5 of 7 (71%) or did a FG/Punt.
    EWU & UH games: 4th down & 3 yards or less, we converted 3 of 3 (100%)

    Although we haven’t seen a good PAC12 defense yet, i think Riley needs to trust the offense on 4th and short this year rather than give up possessions.

    • 4th and short against SDSU near midfield was a fail. Ward for a loss. Or did you forget that? Although I do recall converting a few 4th and longs against Utah

      • SDSU – they were 0/1 at midfield
        Utah – Mannion pass to Cooks for 48 yards –> 1/1 on 4th and short.

        4 games and 80% 4th down conversions of 3 yards or less.

        • Pretty sure we hit another 4th and 7-9ish against da Utes. It was on the drive after Utah had taken the lead in the 4th. I do remember Mullaney caught the pass over the middle and had to go up to get it.

  9. The thread to this point is why this is the best Beav football discussion you can find; which is why Canzano mines it for insight. (And man, isn’t it clear he was ready to launch cruise missile #4 at Riley/Banker when, miracle of miracles, the D stiffened and OSU stole one. He rescued himself with the none to convincing story line about how much fun the team is to watch.)

    But back to the Colorado game. The buffs will certainly be rested, healthy and primed to play; possibly a bit rusty. True, OSU was surprisingly good vs. Wisconsin with an unexpected week off, but that game was at home.

    Going on the paradigm we’ve seen so far, I think you can expect Colorado to cover. Beavs could deliver a knock-out blow with a quick and high point volume crowd enthused start; but if the Buffs hang in during the first half it will go down to the wire.

    The Defense is about where they should have been around August 15-20; that is, having figured out who should be starting. More Mageo and less Skotte is probably worth 7-10 points, and looking back, it’s easy to conclude that change alone would have resulted in a win vs. E WA and a more comfortable outcome vs. Utah. (rarely has Angry been more right in a talent estimation than this case in point.) We’re seeing less of Martin, so that’s a plus.

    I see OSU 45, Colorado 31. There are enough minor points of improvement to lead me to conclude that this is a vintage Riley team that gets steadily better during the season such that when we play conference title wannabes whose bubbles have been burst by Stanford and Oregon
    (see ASU, UW, SC) we might be able to inch toward an 8 win season.

    • Not to defend Canzano, but gotta say, he was tweeting during the game and said during the late 3rd and early 4th quarters that he still felt like OSU was going to find a way to win that game. He hadn’t counted them out and said he had tons of reply tweets form Duck and Beaver fans both, saying he was crazy for thinking the Beavs would pull it out.

  10. I think we cover this one. I’m thinking something like 37-24 Beavs. The next 2 games will determine if this team can improve enough to go to a crappy bowl game in Albuquerque or Las Vegas. Colorado, WSU, Cal, UW and USC. Win any 3 of those 5. And I don’t give two shits what anyone says about UW. I am not sold on them at all. They have played no one worth a damn. Boise State is average at best this year. Illinois and one of the directional Idaho schools? Please. We will not beat ASU, Stanford or Oregon. At this point our passing game is good enough to move the ball against anyone. If the O line can get healthy during the bye week and they can finger out how to run block the sky could be the limit. But the defense has been bad enough to allow a team of wheelchair confined grandmothers to go for over 500 yards against them. We can’t look past anybody no matter how good/bad our opponent appears to be.

    • we have not played anybody either, and UW has looked 3 times as good as we have.

      Read Dwight Jaymes article and I don’t like him but he wrote some interesting things that I agree with. Since we can’t recruit the high level athletes we are lucky that we have somebody like Riley that is able to take these undervalued kids and coach them into a winning football team.
      http://www.csnnw.com/blog/dwight/fire-osu-coaching-staff-my-goodness-give-them-raise

      We do look slow, and we do look small at some positions. We recruit these rocks and try to cultivate them into a shining diamond. SOme on here will tell you that is okay and that it doesn’t matter about size or speed as long as your a good football player. I believe there might be some truth to that, but I think that the players we get really puts us at disadvantage. The top recruits are based on their intangibles and size and speed are things you can’t coach.

      • “Since we can’t recruit the high level athletes we are lucky that we have somebody like Riley that is able to take these undervalued kids and coach them into a winning football team.”

        Oh please, who is responsible for recruiting? You’re saying we’re lucky to have a guy that can’t recruit but is good at coaching the kids he does recruit? Huh?
        I don’t call this “lucky”, I call this accepting a losing attitude.

        • I would say they have recruited better in the past two seasons, but they still have not recruited “very well” or even well in the past few seasons.

          Inability to grab a game ready linebackers, and defensive line and only one impact offensive lineman last year has hurt the program.

      • I am often the one that says size is over rated but speed is not over rated and that is why I wanted to see Scott on the field asap and would like to see Walter Jones on the field one day. Size, strength and athleticism would be great. Recruiting is an argument for another day. But lack there of (recruiting and size) is often used as a crutch here to play the poor me syndrome. It is much more interesting to explore how to deploy existing resources on the roster to overcome weakness and/or to maximize strengths over the other guy’s weaknesses. Would a guy like Gilmore be better deployed as a safety or linebacker? Are there not any big or bulky guys that could be brought in 3-4 times a game to specialize as lead blockers to help the run game?

      • UW has looked great, but my gut tells me that’s our big upset of the year.

        That assumes, of course, that we’re able to cobble some form of a run game together. Without that, our odds of getting any W past Colorado become very, very slim.

    • I’m not sold on ASU as they should have lost to Whisky and Stanford could’ve beat them by 40. I would switch them with Udub. Wilcox is the real deal and they’ve had the recruiting/athletes to get it done for years, they just manage to squander things away with poor coaching and thin lines. At the latter parts of the season I think we still match up well with Stanford, and they could be looking ahead to the Duck game the following week. This team still doesn’t have a good “identity”. Could be 6-6, could be 10-2. Bye week be huge.

        • Most likely not. If you’re in the camp that thinks this defense has talent but has sucked ass due to not being able to hit someone since the Texas game, and 4 games in is finally where they should have been at the end of fall camp. Combined with the fact that we get 3 O linemen back after the bye so the running game should get back on track. Glass 5/6 full, 10-2 isn’t totally outside the realm of possibilities.

          The other side of the argument is the d talent is mediocre and Poyer alone was good for 3-4 wins. Then 6-6 is your glass 1/2 empty look.

          We have 8 games left. Four against pocket passers, 3 against mobile qb’s who primarily pass but run when things break down, and 1 against read option. I’d say 7 wins is the number. 6 is more likely then 10 but crazier things have happened. Good thing they’ve had a softest starting schedule I can remember (almost SEC caliber). It’s either delayed the inevitable or given them a chance to correct a lot of short comings.

  11. So who is the third string safety? My guess is he should be playing instead of Zimmerman.

    I think we’re seeing another side effect of two hand touch spring ball. There’s apparently guys on this squad that can actually tackle but nobody knows it until the fourth game of the season.

    The pressure of taking a hit would probably have weeded out guys like Boom too. It’s all fun and games when you can make a highlight reel catch with no consequences in practice, but apparently the impending hit in a live game gets inside some heads.

  12. Colorado will rush 30 plays again and i’ll predict they end up with 100-120 yds on the ground. Their QB will only throw for 350 yds and could get picked twice again this week.

    Our rushing will be a work in process this week. Colorado didn’t do well stopping the rush in their first 2 games and there is no reason to practice stopping the rush against us. I’ll predict Mannion will get his 400 yards just so Riley keeps the press box excited.

    38 – 24 Beavs

  13. Colorado is 7th passing, 110th rushing, 32nd scoring, and 68th scoring defense — beating two mediocre teams by two touchdowns. They will come at the Beavs like EWU did….but won’t get lucky, etc……..they’ve got some decent athletes and playmakers, so I expect several blown coverages and big gainers at some point. If Beavs keep the keep hits to a minimum, minimize to field goals, or missed opportunites…..
    ….Beavs win by 14….41-27.

  14. Top 8 college football head coach candidates across the nation:
    http://coachingsearch.com/article?a=CoachingSearchcoms-Top-8-assistants-on-the-verge-of-landing-head-coaching-jobs

    No surprise that Justin Wilcox is currently in the pole position of those in Pac-12 territory. I think the next Pac-12 school with an opening will have him as a prime target and suspect he will be scooped up in the next 2 years. His stock is going to be very high if UW keeps playing as well as they are this season. He might be smart to make the jump while the iron is hot. Kinda wish OSU would make him co-head coach for 2-3 years with Riley and Riley focuses on the offense and Wilcox on the defense. Then after those 2-3 years are up Riley will be OC only like Erickson for a few more years or retire and Wilcox the head coach.

    I think are team/program would be its very best like this, but BDC doesn’t mind at all letting opportunities slip or not being creative in how to sign coaching talent and premium recruiters. Someone else will get him unfortunately even though OSU should start thinking now about our future after Riley and ways to make it as successful as possible. Wilcox could sell out an expanded Reser in my opinion. Riley is mostly offensive talent and we could and should do more to grow the fanbase and national profile of OSU and recruit better moving forward with a bolder plan that puts OSU in a strong position for the next decade plus. We could get a pretty sweet program I think if BDC wasn’t a complacent AD.

    • Am I reading this correctly? You want co-head coaches? Even though Riley gets paid well below average as a singular head coach? And somehow this will be the catalyst to building Phase 3 at Reser? And our program would be pretty sweet without Bobby D? hmmm…..it just…..might….work…

  15. Simple questions to predict our wins and losses this year…

    1) is the quarterback fast?
    2) do they employ a read option, spread, high speed offense?
    3) do they have a QB that makes good decisions running the ball?

    If the answer to any of these questions is yes, we are boned. Instant loss.

  16. In regards to the San Diego State affair, lets not forget that Riley likes to treat non conference games as a glorified scrimmage. That being said, for the Colorado game I believe that the defense does come out motivated and the floodgates open early to the tune of 35-14 at halftime.

    Also, it sounds like Storm Woods will be out this weekend, what are the chances Chris Brown gets touches?

      • If Lindsay says it, it probably means he’s really good but not practicing on the first team. She has a terrible track record for player evaluation.

        It’s not as if our RBs have displayed stellar blocking over the last two years. Even Woods injured himself when he corrected a mistake he made on an assignment. Brown had a really nice spring and was just relegated to the threes in fall. Either his ball security is poor or we’re just not committed to the run and won’t be for the remainder of the season. I guess he could also be in the dog house, but we usually hear about that kind if thing.

        Maybe Lindsay is poor at player evaluation because all she does is look at the depth chart and defer to the coaches… who have also proven to be poor at evaluating their own talent… to the extent that they blame their players before they take responsibility for their own personnel decisions.

        Look at how the defense fundamentally changed for the better when Mageo came in for Skotte. Even the most ardent Skotte supporter had to ditch him after the Hawai’i game. But we didn’t hear about (or see in a game) him getting replaced until practice last week. That’s a coaching decision. Look at the supposed QB controversy (I still think there never was one, but players have said Mannion wasn’t wholly there until he got that nod).

        Look at Boom versus Mullaney. Did anyone here think Boom would suddenly not be Boom this year? Better than that, did anyone here think Mullaney would not be a better version of himself? I’m still scratching my head over what the coaches were even attempting to think with that imaginary competition.

        Martin over Scott? Braun over Bennett-Jackson or Delva (who I think had injury issues… but is still a bull)?

        There’s a legit question about the depth chart not because of personnel, but because of questionable evaluations by the coaches.

        • As far as Braun vs. Bennett-Jackson goes, from the little I saw of BBJ against SDSU he looked slow and ineffective. It may just be a case of us not having good options at that position.

          I saw Delva on the sidelines, but did he actually play? He was in full pads.

          • Well, slow and ineffective while not being moved from the gap and getting a sack and some good pushes is better than being picked up and carried out of your gap time after time… after time. I don’t know what SDSU’s scouting report said about them, but when Braun was in they ran over his side inside the tackle almost exclusively. When BBJ was in, they ran off-tackle to Rosa’s side. Rosa could still occupy his gap. Braun was getting rag-dolled.

            Delva came in for at least one play in the first half with about 8 minutes left. He tracked the QB into a hurry to the FB. I’d have run away and thrown it too if I’d seen that coming at me. Then he was in on the end of SDSU’s FG drive in the 3rd. After Mageo had a TFL on 1st & 10 from our 15, Delva just decimated SDSU’s left side with a bull rush, taking the C and LG about four yards deep. That left BBJ open to beat the RG to the outside knock the FB off his route and sack a QB who couldn’t step up. That was his sack. Delva went out, and BBJ lined up over C with a three man front. And on the next play BBJ got all the attention up front, freeing Kell to chase the QB down. Again he couldn’t step up because BBJ had the C and RG occupying that spot.

          • Dude, how many times do you watch each game? Do you do break down film in the wee hours of the night? Your recollection of these types of details is ridiculous. I’m typically 2 sheets to the wind by mid-4th quarter, but even sober I can’t see/remember specific plays with this kind of detail.

            Of course you could be making it up knowing no one will go back and check, but I’m pretty sure that’s not the case. Your an interesting dude Mr. Jack. I’ll buy you a beer if we ever cross paths.

          • I usually watch games a second time on a school night once everyone has gone to bed. I’m usually caught up in the emotion of a game or sometimes into a beer or two in the later games. But I’m always looking for certain numbers at these key positions. So when I re-watch the game I remember the emotions I was feeling at the time to recall how certain drives and plays ended before they’re run. Then I watch to see what key components made each play work or fail.

            One thing nobody has said yet that I did notice was that once Mageo was in and warmed up Crichton was playing like the Crichton of old. Regardless of where he lined up or who was at DT, he was wreaking havoc in several ways for the SDSU offense. It was just that our D-line looked scary good when the DTs were upgraded for those few plays. Alexander and Johnson responded very well to Mageo’s presence as well. And even Saulo continues to look good when he gets time.

          • I’ve wondered lately how the over-pursuit and lack of contain by the better guys on defense is a result of compensating for the weaker guys. Whether conscious or not, those guys probably are pursuing out of frustration as they watch the ball carrier get easy yards. It seems like it’s hard enough for those guys already to dial back being amped and maintain assignments if all skill levels were equal on the D.

        • completely agree with this, Jack. I’m thrilled with the Mageo for Skotte trade-out but the Boom vs. Mullaney decision is an absolute head-scratcher; arguably the worst “who’s gonna play” personnel decision I can recall in the Riley era. I mean, it was obvious LAST year Mullaney was better, but we have to go thru spring ball and summer/fall camp to learn again (viz. E Wa game) that Boom can’t catch in game time situations?

          But, in an odd way, I take some encouragement from this latter day accountability consciousness, plus the Riley’s increased propensity to go for it on 4th down. Not that he’s doing it as much as he should, but time of possession and field position are old school notions; what matters now is percentage of your possessions that result in scores.

          • Time of possession, maybe, but you don’t think field position matters anymore? I would imagine it correlates pretty highly with percentage of possessions that result in scores.

            I think Riley’s change in decision making is more a matter of having a better understanding of our chances converting 4th down vs. the odds of our opponent scoring on the next possession if we don’t convert.

            That said, if all that matters is the percentage of possessions each team converts into points, I have to think utilizing a punter as good as Kostol to pin your opponent inside their own 15 would still rate as an effective strategy.

          • let me clarify–punting at mid-field (defined as between the forties) on 4th and short, yes, means far less than it used to. If, for example, OSU is at mid-field on 4th and short it’s far better to try to convert that to a first down than pinning an opponent inside the 10, especially when in many instances the ball will roll into the end zone for a net 30 yards. That proposition has no logic when a team like Oregon, for example, can go 80 yards in 90 seconds of scoreboard time.

  17. if true this is another example of Riley’s system being perhaps too complex. a redshirt freshman, and probably your fastest running back, can’t get 10 touches per game? If all he can do is run, run. The O line needs to learn how to block even if everybody in the stadium thinks its a running play. maybe a couple of brown’s plays are play action, maybe a screen pass. Put ward in at fullback give him a quick hitter up the middle with brown at running back. Teams are going to stop respecting the play action if Oregon State will not show a commitment to running.

    • I like the thought of Brown and Ward in the backfield, or Anderson and Ward/Woods. Point being, more of the two back set would, at least, give Sean some protection even if it didn’t result in an actual running game. As the season goes on he is gonna need all the protection he can get.

    • Riley has always said if a RB can’t pass protect, he’s not going to see much time.

      Ward at FB is short yardage would be a good idea. Like quizz, the defense wouldn’t be able to see him.

      • “Riley has always said if a RB can’t pass protect, he’s not going to see much time.”

        He has said this. He also said Ward had those tools last year. But did we watch him do this last year when he was on the field? Watch Ward’s highlights from the ASU game last year, the game he ran for 140+ yards. He just about killed Vaz with his pass pro. And it’s not like he’s been great this year either. If Mannion doesn’t release it quickly on some plays he also gets killed.

        And I like Ward… always have. But he’s a workaday back, not a game-breaker. We need both plus a FB.

        So while this may wholly sound like a rant against personnel decisions, maybe the SDSU RB touches were more about not having Anderson than it was about anyone’s abilities or the coaches’ trust in any one player. Ortiz is no Anderson at this point.

          • He was a pre-game scratch at SDSU. That’s what I mean by RBs not getting the touches they normally get… which still isn’t enough IMO. But when you drop from 25 touches to 10 touches after a week of proclaiming the need for more running, why did it drop? And how many of those limited touches is the back-up going to get?

          • My referencing Lindsay talking about Brown not being ready was in connection to her saying Gwatchum wasn’t ready. She seemed to be accurate on that assessment. Her misses on a positive player eval don’t always come to mind. Probably because if I read something from her describing a negative about a player, it must really be an issue if it’s on her radar.

          • I thought there was something recently, but I may have been reading too much into it. I’d like to see him get some carries, though. Her report today is that there have been a lot of run plays in practice.

          • Reading through the comment section of olive Live chat yesterday, Lindsey said she doesn’t think he’s ready and the coaches are only going to put players in when they “think” they will succeed. Why do I still read through those? College football: obsess much?

          • Riley was never going to call runs at the SDSU game. It was a given for him. Riley said to the press leading up to the game that they had to simplify things for the OLine in order for the OLine to be successful. How is a young, cobbled together O-line that has shown it cannot run block, suppose to somehow magically start run blocking? Is a week or two of practices suppose to help with this? Doesn’t matter what Riley says “needs” to happen with this offense; I took it as a smoke screen.

            If I was Riley, my train of thought would be “ya we need to run more, but our run blocking sucks. Mannion is playing lights out and he is winning games for us, so why not just pass the shit out of the ball? We just need to get through this week, use the bye to get more healthy on our OLine, then we will worry about running.”

            Why even risk using Chris Brown at this point? He’s not going to gain any yardage anyway. He probably is no better or worse than Ward or the others at pass blocking. The few snaps he would get would just be for the sake of experience, and I give him a higher likelyhood to turnover the ball. So don’t use him.

            And I expect to see more of the same against Colorado. We may show a few runs early. Mannion will use short passing plays, with the occasional longball to Cooks/Mullaney (Coollaney?) I actually expect Mullaney has more receiving yards than Cooks this game because Colorado has a decent defensive backfield and will double down on Cooks. Beavs get out to an early lead because the defense has shown up and the Buffs can’t run either… then Beavs run a bit more at the end of the game for clock management. I expect to see the same number of running attempts and yards as last week.

            Am I wrong?

          • Outside of Harlow, who is young/inexperienced on O-Line? They’ve all had multiple spring/fall camps, practices. You ask them to run block even though they’re poor at it for the same reason you ask the defense to tackle; it’s fundamental to football success.

            As for “why play Brown,” why play Mageo? Scott? What’s the best that could happen? Experience is a good thing for Brown, even if it’s all that occurs (which is unlikely – if he breaks through he’s likely getting to the second level).

            If I were Colorado I’d ignore the play action until OSU shows their willing to try and run. In the meantime, you have a chance of forcing Mannion into INTs.

            OSU needs to develop a mindset that it will run block every game, and not just wait until after the bye week.

        • Aside from one play where he either slipped or whiffed on a chop block, Ward’s pass blocking was pretty dang good against SDSU. I’d never paid attention to that part of his game in the past, but I was impressed last weekend when I watched him.

          • I think you’re right. There were a couple plays where his number was either called or he was the secondary route, and he just ignored the rusher as he went on his route. He is certainly better than he was last year.

          • And the point (for me) isn’t to replace Ward or Woods. It’s to get real game time for a player who needs it. Since this is football, we can’t rule out the possibility of injury to any of our backs. Then we get to see what happens without any experience for our depth.

            Give him the ball a good five to ten times depending on the situations. If he breaks one, it wouldn’t be a fluke. But it also doesn’t mean he should immediately shoot up the depth chart. It means he gets meaningful time and learns to produce within that time.

          • Probably. So run blocking is required. Then the few times he doesn’t carry it – favorable down/distance – play action is very effective. Or, it’s a run play not to him.

            So the line has to improve, Brown gets some experience, and maybe he breaks into the second level like no other current OSU rb can.

            Agree with Jack’s point that it’s not about replacing someone in particular.

  18. OT. Watched a little of the special about Gary Payton last night. One really interesting tidbit was that the first three practices at OSU they did not even see a basketball. All about positioning. He also said Ralph told him shortly after they started practice that he had the physical skills to be as good as a defender as there ever was. The good old days.

  19. Anybody here ever brought an infant to a game before? I’m bringing my daughter to her first game this weekend. I’m assuming there should be no problem bringing bottled milk into the stadium, but has anybody here ever run into any problems with that? You think they would know to allow outside beverages if they’re full of breastmilk, but I’d rather know for sure rather than show up and find out I need to go back to the car for feedings mid game.

    Already picked up some cool little ear muff style hearing protection for her. She seems to like wearing it. So far, the Beavs are 3-0 when she’s been in the room while I’m watching them on TV. For the SDSU game, we didn’t start watching till after the final B. Cooks fumble in the 4th quarter. She must be good luck because I thought they were doomed after that moment but that’s when they turned it around and beat the Aztecs.

    • There were two major personnel changes which made a giant difference within this game. Mageo for Skotte I have to think was in the works after the Utah game. We heard the reports about Skotte playing on the second team in practice and all the disclaimers about not reading too much into it.

      Sorry, I like to read.

      The second came about through injury, which is the worst way to replace someone. But it’s a way. And Scott for Martin was huge.

      Now we just have to wait for however many games before Braun is replaced by BBJ and Delva. And once Hautau rehabs his arm there should be no reason Braun is in the rotation.

  20. Blitz has a story on us chasing a Nevada CB, Casey Hughes. He’s 6’1 with similar track times to Victor Bolden. Looks like he’s down to SDSU, the Ducks, and us. Haven’t gotten to watch any film of him; anyone have the time to do so?

    • First, it’s hard to gauge his real speed since apparently the wind never stops blowing in Vegas. Let’s just say he’s really fast.
      http://parser.dyestat.com/search.jsp?athID=254668#.UkRJKT-nd9Y

      Second, a two star on Rivals? Do they just have a big hookah over there? His measurables alone get him a high three stars.

      Third, then there’s the eyeball test. Whomever wants the kid at CB is just greedy… and stupid. It’s one thing if that’s where he wants to play. But this is a kid who gets the ball 25 times a game, minimum. How does anyone look at his tape and think he’s not a RB?
      http://www.hudl.com/athlete/o/815813/highlights/43086388

      • His (self-reported?) shuttle isn’t great. Vertical is just okay. Maybe they don’t have the manpower to review too many kids from Nevada? Those are the only reasons I could see them rating him as a two-star.

        A 6’1 180 running back is pretty lean. Woods was around 6’0 190 last season and everyone said he was too frail to be a regular starter without getting hurt.

        Then there’s the really important question: can he pass block?

        • Ok… that made me laugh.

          Questions about Woods’ size didn’t keep him from being a D1 starter. This kid has a frame that can put on up to 210# without being over-pumped. And some reports put him at 195-200#. He runs pretty north and south. He’s the first high school player I’ve seen who looks like Dickerson in his long stride. And his shoulder dip in the hole is so subtle but effective as hell. He can juke the second level by pointing THAT WAY when he’s in traffic. The articles you can find about him also say he’s a grinder when he needs to be one. I’m completely sold on this kid as a RB. Playing him at CB or DB would be a sin unless that’s where he wants to play so much you can’t convince him otherwise. He’s a gem.

          • I stood next to DAT about a month ago. You can’t tell me he’s more than 5’8″ and 160#… if that.

            And none of it means shit if he can run by a defense.

          • If he was laying on his back, I would have said he was 11″ tall.

            Dude’s not that big.

            Mariota isn’t 6″4″ also. Someone has to add 1″ to his height while he’s already wearing shoes with a huge heel. And I haven’t measured myself for 20 years. So I might have lost height in that time. So I’m measuring off what I was 20 years ago.

          • I was just trying to figure out the justification behind listing him as a CB. If he’s an All-American at OSU, I don’t care which position he ends up at and I still haven’t watched the tape to decide for myself. It’s probably all moot because he’ll end up in Eugene anyway.

            As far as weight goes, Thomas only gets 12-14 touches per game. Compare that to our system where Woods gets 20-25. Remember the outcry over how little we ran against SDSU? It didn’t seem like much, right? Ward had 12 carries. That’s a typical game for Thomas. Size is a concern in our system because our backs get hit a lot more.

          • Ward’s touches at SDSU were not representative of a program which has a running game. They were the running game. Remember that.

            This isn’t a post against you. This kid is an NFL RB prospect. He could also make it as a CB or DB, but his skills are pretty damn good.

            I’m thinking Nikegon is greedy and wants him as a DB… and maybe he can be a RB if he “proves himself.” So that offer comes with some conditions. If we’re doing the same, then we need to fire some RB coach who can’t speak up about really wanting some kid.

            I think the younger coaches are the more impetuous types. So I don’t think there’s any problem with where this kid should end up…

            … when he dons the orange and black.

  21. From the Denver Post:

    “The Oregonian reported that a Broncos scout watched the junior take apart Hawaii. The scout wasn’t there watching Hawaii.”

    Broncos looking for a quarterback?

    • Manning needs an understudy. I really hope Mannion doesnt get too hyped this year and decide to go pro early. Next year could be really tough if we lose both of our starting caliber qb’s to graduation/nfl.

      • it’s funny. Before the season started all the spec was that Chricton would leave early. Looks like he’ll be in corvallis for his senior year at this rate.

      • Plus 3 quality starting O-linemen!

        Mannion or no Mannion, next years offense makes me very nervous. At best , we’re one or two injuries away from disaster. With almost no depth I see walkon contributions being very likely. 2011 all over again….don’t expect a spring game – or fall scrimmages.

        Now that Linebacker U no longer applies for us, we need a new moniker. How about Walkon O-linemen U? Seems fitting…

        • 2011’s O-line was a derivative of 2010’s O-line minus anyone good. We’re fine for O-line depth right now, but we need to keep recruiting them. We would be 0-4 if we had 2011’s O-line. Always remember that. Injuries may take some kids out, but our depth has performed admirably… in mostly pass pro situations.

          • Agree with everything except O-line depth. It’s bad now- there’s no one left! And next year, with 3 gone and no one in the works….I have a very bad feeling.

          • Umm… without depth we are playing tight ends on the line right now. Because we have depth, we can still field a team. What you’re saying is that we’re not fine for depth right now, today. I get that. What I’m saying is that we’ve gone through several injuries and a couple retirements, and we’re still putting a talented, albeit inexperienced, group on the field. You don’t do that without depth.

            I do agree we need a good three or four linemen in each class.

    • I’ve heard the same. And this morning I get another quote from a friend who works for some sports network.

      Ryan McGee and Dari Nowkhah on the Pac 12 (College Football Daily):

      DN: I don’t know… I just… I think this could be a fun Pac 12 weekend.
      RM: I tell people who don’t watch Pac 12 football… do yourself a favor, if you can watch Oregon State, watch Oregon State.
      I don’t know that anyone…
      DN: Oregon?
      RM: Yeah, er er Oregon State. I don’t know that anyone outside of Oregon knows much about Sean Mannion…
      DN: Oh!
      RM: I can’t stop watching the guy!
      DN: REALLY?
      RM: Well I just… I just… there’s something about him I like. And I tell people all the time, just… just… watch, I… I… just… there’s… East Coast people don’t even know that that school exists, and I say that’s… that’s worth a little bit of entertainment value.

  22. Mannion has come through so many ups and downs – primarily external; being thrown into the Wisconsin game 2 years ago, injury, being sidelined, the Alamo fiasco when Vaz was left in the game despite all reason, the competition? in spring and fall camps.

    • NIt picking on a guy with 15 TDs: 1 INT, but if he could just lead receivers a bit more, there would be more YAC and earlier or more TDs….

        • there was one in particular against SDSU where he floated one over towards the sidelines and cooks made the catch. The funny part is cooks hadn’t even made his break and wasn’t even in the picture on TV when Mannion lofted it out there. That was scary because we can get away with that against SDSU and the other sisters of the poor. However that won’t fly against the better defenses coming up on the schedule

  23. Buff’s talk….interesting.

    http://www.buffzone.com/cu-news/ci_24176098/colorado-football-buffs-will-hands-full-oregon-states

    …..sounds like they have some decent talent coming back for the game…..secondary seems average, but that might be all it takes compared to the Beavs. It’ll come down to the turnover battle (+1)….we barely won it against SDSU, and barely won…..thinking it will be the same for this game. Crossing fingers that Mannion keeps his mojo going, and doesn’t get flustered (don’t want picks in bunches).

    This’ll be a better game than most predict.

    • The commenters are pretty wacky. They are 3-19 in the Pac in the last 2 years and you’ve got guys predicting a 15-20 point win, and guaranteeing at least 1 pick 6. Saying OSU is the worst team they’ll play all year, but at the same time know nothing about the beavs.

      Richardson scares me, and that end Chidera Uzo-Diribe is legit. I think they’ll put up a fight but expect we should be able to pull away at some point. Colorado isn;t there yet, but are picking up steam. Mac might have them formidable within a couple of years.

      • Honestly the beavers shouldn’t be worried about Richardson and they are actually not to worried about him. I think the beavers are going to get some picks off that side of the ball. He has been over hipped!

      • ….we need to man-up against Richardson and keep him well below his average (they’ve had only two games, so I’m not worried)….something like half the yards and no TDs would be nice….could be a reflection of how the rest of the Beaver secondary plays. I haven’t paid attention to Richardson’s supporting cast, but I’m thinking we keep one guy and a spy on him at all times perhaps we snag an INT going his way — pop him in the mouth like UW did to Wheaton last year, but do not knock him out of the game….keep it football (although I thought was illegal hit — would be “targeting” under this year’s rules).

  24. Was just reading this article on Oregon prepping for this weekend. They’re planning to use their new football facility as an all day hangout spot for the team, rather than moving them into a hotel for the day as most teams do to avoid distractions. Sounds almost like a frat boy slumber party. Wonder if they plan to play soggy biscuit?

    “We’ve got some things set up for them, whether it’s movies or watching games or rest and relaxation time,” Helfrich said. “We’ll have some dark, quiet rooms and some rooms where they can watch a game or movie that the squad leaders kind of picked out. A couple things to stay focused but at the same time, just relax and get their mind off football a little bit as if they were home or in a hotel room watching, (ESPN) Gameday or ‘Caddyshack.'”

    http://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/index.ssf/2013/09/oregon_football_practice_repor.html#incart_river_default

  25. Got some big recruits attending the game this weekend. Jaleel Wadood is a 4* DB committed to Cal right now (we’re his only listed visit so far.) 2015 4* LB from Texas Cameron Townsend. Supposedly a couple others not yet named. Need to land some big names ASAP! Hopefully D comes out playing like they should and give the crowd a chance to get into the game early.

    • have to say I agree with him. They’re called student athletes. Student first, athlete second. Sadly many of them (coaches included) don’t feel this way. I guess the value of the education they are being given, FOR FREE, plus all of the other many perks the get is lost on them. I agree with Delaney. Colleges are not the minor leagues. But it’s just part of the problem. The really good athletes are looking to get paid under the table and aren’t going to go to places where that isn’t going to happen. That’s where we have the rich and the also rans (OSU fits in this category) So we just take that out of the equation. You want to go make money, go to the minor leagues. If you want to get an education AND play because lets face it, the chances of you making it and sticking in the NFL are pretty small for most of these guys, then college is the place for you. Would probably eliminate many of the dumb inner city kids who barely made it in to school (or had help, nudge nudge) who are only looking for a hand out (gets paid, money be green. Cliff Harris anyone?) and a spring board to the NFL.

      • I can’t understand why people are so OK with universities not paying the players. It’s indentured servitude, plain and simple. The plantation owners (oops, I meant university presidents, athletic directors, conference commissioners) pay the athletes with company bucks, but in turn make billions of real dollars off of their labor. Then they have the audacity to expect the players to say a humble thanks for the opportunity to represent the university.

        Students get paid all the time for providing a service to their university. I’m a PhD student and research assistant, and for it I receive a tuition waiver (full scholly) and a stipend of $18k/year for it. Why shouldn’t they too? Free tuition is useless if you can’t afford the cost of living while taking advantage of it.

        • I didn’t bother to look where he went to high school. I don’t pay as much attention to where our recruits come from compared to many guys on here. Hence the question. But I do recall a couple years ago Banker going after some recruits from Afalava’s old area. I used to love watching Al hit, and hearing Mageo mention his love for hitting while mumbling something about Hawaii, I thought I had made a connection, my recollection of a couple years ago to a guy now being ready… I guess I was way off. However, I can also tell you that the great circle distance from Miami International to El Alto International La Paz is 2639NM vs From Honolulu to Pago Pago. And since a Gross Navigational Error on such a route is 3%, I’d say you were also way off.

  26. “Get the pig,…get the pig!”
    The story of Floyd of Rosedale, How a pig may have stopped a riot. If you get your rival kicked
    out of the conference, should they hold it against you?
    The History of Hate
    By @hipstergopher on Sep 25 2013, 10:51a 86

  27. I trust you’ve all noted the weather forecast for tomorrow. Beavblazer might want to be sure his baby girl has a raincoat as well as ear muffs. And, I wonder if the weather will put off the visiting potential recruits.

  28. Soesman chose us over Arizona State and WSU. Looks like a decent prospect, although his athleticism isn’t exactly off the charts.

    I can’t remember a year where we had this many commitments this early.

  29. The NWS says this storm will likely bring record setting rainfall and I’m a bit surprised that beavergopher hasn’t pointed out that we all hope that Mannion is just as effective with wet balls. Seriously though it will be interesting how the weather affects the play calling.

  30. OT… I knew after Saban whined about the hurry up offense and said it shouldn’t be legal that he would change his tune. Marv Levy did the same thing to the Bengals in the 1989 AFC CG. But Levy whined enough that he got the NFL to outlaw the no-huddle offense for just that game. Fast forward to the next season, and Levy was running the same damn offense. And he did it for the rest of his career.
    http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/9730914/coach-nick-saban-rule-tempo-offense-alabama-crimson-tide

  31. Looks like Andrews and Mitchell are back with the team, and both should be available in limited backup roles this weekend.

    Anderson is still a game time decision and Storm is likely sitting out.

  32. Some ESPN recruiting remarks:

    “The biggest problem for the Beavers this year was that season-opening loss to Eastern Washington. That killed any national momentum they gained from a very impressive 2012 season. Oregon State will always have difficulty in grabbing the top quarterback talent in the nation, unless they can flip places in the Top 25 with Oregon. But recruits are definitely taking notice of the aerial assault happening in Corvallis, and quarterbacks and wide receivers alike are giving the Beavers more of a look these days. If the numbers continue the way they are — especially with two wide receivers each year putting up huge statistics — Oregon State is going to start getting some big-name recruits.”

    Is anyone aware of particular QBs WRs that are giving OSU a recent, strong look?

    • Beyond the recent commits (McMaryion, Mitchell, Sanders), I know of nothing, and expect nothing within the ESPN 300.

      Does anyone know if these guys’ skills (McMaryion, Mitchell, Sanders) are very promising?

      • There are a few big-time receivers (Jalen Brown, Alex Van Dyke) giving us serious consideration amongst programs that tend to be strong recruiters. Sanders is a legacy Beav and local kid, so that’s someone we’re always going to have a shot with.

        Mitchell and McMariyon committed early, which tells me they had early offers, so they were probably A or B list guys. Plus, the higher rated QB’s with OSU offers that we didn’t get ended up at Alabama, Texas A&M, TCU and Oregon. Both guys are more athletic than our usual QB commitments.

        QB recruiting should be the least of our concerns, given MR and the staff’s track record with churning out NFL prospects. With Vanderveen (Arkansas, Oklahoma State offers) and Kempt (Tennessee, Ole Miss, WVU offers), we have some nice prospects in the pipe, too. I’m always most worried about the O and D lines. It’s harder to hide lack of depth there than just about anywhere else.

      • I have posted before about Tanner Sanders, a senior at Crescent Valley HS here in Corvallis. I’ve watched Tanner play baseball, basketball, and football (often with or against one of my sons) for many years. Tanner has always been the star athlete in his peer group. In Little League, Tanner was a home-run machine. In 8th grade basketball, Tanner was dunking in games. You get the idea.

        Tanner’s father, Scott Sanders, himself played baseball and football for the Beavers, and is currently the head coach of the local high school Football team, for which Tanner plays QB and safety. No surprise that Tanner committed early to the Beavers — it’s literally in his blood.

        Tanner wants to play QB for the Beavers, and he has been told he’ll be given a chance to do that.

        Tanner has also, in past years, played wide receiver for Crescent Valley. As a wide receiver, Tanner reminds me of Richard Mullaney — combining an above-average ability to get open, along with excellent hands, and the ability to win more than his share of 50-50 balls. On top of that, Tanner is taller than Mullaney, is a better jumper, and perhaps is a step or two faster (although I’m not sure about that last point).

        As you can probably tell, I’m more excited about Tanner Sanders as a wide receiver prospect than as a QB prospect. I think Tanner could be a really good wide receiver for OSU. I don’t think Tanner has nearly as big an upside as a QB.

        But the big question about Tanner is his durability. He has had multiple serious shoulder injuries, causing him to miss chunks of basketball and football seasons in years past. Not clear whether Tanner’s body will be able to withstand the rigors of PAC-12 football.

        In any event, I’ll be attending the big local football game next Friday — Crescent Valley vs Corvallis HS — and will get a chance to take a close look at how Tanner is performing as a QB these days. Maybe he’s improved a lot as a QB since I last saw him. I’ll report back next weekend.

          • Will do. Meanwhile, for what it is worth, here is a Will Heck story. One of my sons was on a baseball team with WH several years ago (JBO baseball — 13-14 year olds). WH was a good hitter, but notoriously slow afoot. WH reached first base. The next batter hit a bomb to the outfield fence for a standup triple, but WH was thrown out easily at home (it wasn’t even a close play).

            Here’s hoping Will Heck has gotten faster since then. Looking forward to finding out next Friday.

        • What offense do they run at CV?

          I am thinking that even if Tanner plays WR, he can be a HUGE assest to have on the scout team as that Read Option QB, that we sorely miss right now. He could help prepare us against those offense I think at least his first couple of years?

        • we must travel in the same circles, my boy is a couple of years behind tanner and attends chs.

          chs won’t be a good test of sanders. you’d be better off waiting a couple of weeks and making the trip to silverton, who has a damned good team despite losing tonite.

    • We’ve had a nice haul of receivers the last few years with Bolden, Jones, Jarmon, Villamin, and Gilmore. I’d say it’s already an area of strength for us. I’m sure the coaches are telling kids they’re going to be catching passes from future NFL QB’s,

        • He has not seen a lot of time at receiver, but he was in a few plays at SDSU, and he is also a contributor on special teams. I went to a handful of practices and the main reason why there was question on Mullaney starting is because he was not practicing, sat out all of spring and majority of fall camp. And to give Obum credit, from what I observed he was having a successful camp and was making plays. But towards the end of camp once Mullaney got healthy and was practicing on a consistent basis it was becoming clear that he was playing better than Obum and that is why he started and all but I think one series against ewu. It is weird how different Obum plays in practice vs games.

  33. Can anyone clarify a play from last week’s game for me? I attended the game against SDSU and it turns out that they do rarely show replays in the stadium. The first turnover committed during the game was supposedly committed by Mannion. It appeared in the stadium that Mannion’s arm was going forward. I didn’t see a replay and there was no challenge. What actually happened?

    Also, why is it that the media keeps saying that Cooks had two fumbles in the game? He had one fumble (are they counting one that we recovered?).

    • He was hit before his arm was moving forward. The ball actually went forward, but it was a result of the hit, not his throwing motion while he controlled the ball.

  34. While I’m spewing on recruiting, I read that Fitou Fisiiahi captained the US U16 rugby team last summer (or two summers ago, maybe?) Someone at a tournament intentionally injured his foot and he swore off international rugby to focus on football from that point. The kid sounds like a fantastic athlete. Could be a beast at LB.

  35. Competent MLB will make great difference in defense tomorrow. He may not make all of the correct calls and adjustments yet. But. Aggressive tackling by MLB will make dline and dbs better instantly.

    • Ugh!

      I agree that football players are better than track stars. But what happens when two football players meet, and one of them happens to be a track star? Are we going to get in an argument about discipline when one player just gets beat by an equally disciplined opponent?

      The Beavs defense has performed precisely as they have been coached thus far. When are the grown-ups going to realize this? Coaches can talk all day about this and that and these priciples and those techniques. Talking is not coaching. Simply showing and telling someone how and what to do does not make one a coach. Well, it doesn’t make one a good coach. I’ve known many average “coaches” who do less. What I’m saying is that having a title and doing things because a book says this is the way you do it doesn’t mean you’re actually doing it.

      You are only succeeding at being a coach when your players are doing what you have shown and told them to do. If they do not or can’t do these things, it’s a coaching problem. The coach is either not explaining things properly or is asking people to do more than they can do, which means the coach is a poor judge of talent.

      When my kids are making a scene in public, I never blame them for not being disciplined. I may have to act in haste and use some field discipline techniques. But it’s not their fault they’re acting the way they are. I’ve somehow allowed them to think that it was appropriate behavior.

      Discipline is not something you just have or decide for yourself that you want. It’s something given to you by others. Sometimes that comes in the form of repeated failure and learning from mistakes. Sometimes you can learn from a mentor’s accumulated knowledge. Either way, it’s a gift.

      And Art of War is a horrible book for football references… unless we plan on commandeering their Gatorade table in the second quarter, extracting one of their assistants and laying siege to their sideline. Book of Five Rings is a much more appropriate tome. Art of War is pretty much a how-to for war and nothing else. And the first lesson in the book is to avoid war if at all possible.

      • I’m not familiar with Art of War, just threw it in since it had been discussed here.
        It really shot Euhus thesis when he assumed the opposition (size/speed) was undisciplined, I thought he had a good point till then.

        Sounds like you support, “if the student doesn’t learn, the teacher hasn’t taught”……..careful, you may upset the NEA!

  36. OSU Basketball Guard Jullian Powers Arrested. Why wasn’t this in the news until it was in the GT’s Crime Report? Not a peep out of Craig Robinson.
    DUII CRASH: 3:05 a.m., Southwest Monroe Avenue and Memorial Place. Someone reported that a man had pulled into a parking lot and was breaking windows around Winegar Hall. A trooper found 22-year-old Oregon State University student Jullian M. Powers on scene with bloody hands and glass in his hair. Powers’ vehicle had damage consistent with hitting a stop sign that had been knocked over at the intersection of Southwest Monroe Avenue and Memorial Place. Powers’ blood alcohol content measured 0.15 percent. He was arrested on charges of DUII, failure to perform the duties of a driver after a crash, first-degree criminal mischief and second-degree disorderly conduct.

  37. I don’t have any read on this game. If Colorado had played Fresno St. maybe we would have a better idea as to whether they are improved or a pretender. Who the hell knows what’s going to happen with these average teams with serious flaws like the Beavs and Buffs?

    I do know that it is “Luck O’ The Beavs” to finally be playing The Buffs when they look like they might be improving instead of when they were the worst team in the FBS like when the damn the f-ing Quacks got to play them! Thanks a freakin’ lot Larry Scott!

    • I feel the same way. I have no idea what Colorado is going to bring this weekend.

      I also have no idea what OSU is going to bring on defense either, so I guess we’ll just watch and see :).

    • That’s pretty basic stuff that I’m sure any DC knows on down to high school. And if Banker doesn’t know it, well I’m sure he appreciates the link.

  38. Very interesting comments by Nick Alliotti in a recent Canzano article regarding tackling:

    http://www.oregonlive.com/sports/oregonian/john_canzano/index.ssf/2013/09/canzano_blog_nick_aliotti_on_v.html

    Aliotti on how you teach tackling while also trying to limit injuries in practice.
    “You have to be smart about it because you can’t kill your guys… we do practice tackling every day in some way, shape or form. If it’s not full-out tackling, it’s a bag or a sled, or one of your guys. It’s an art. It’s amazing how much you have to teach tackling when these young kids come to you in college.”

    Depressing contrast to our team, where Riley has effectively said that “guys should already know how to tackle by the time they get here.” And the practice reflects that. Granted their depth affords them the luxury of more tackling, but this sounds like a significant philosophical difference.

    • Excellent post. And crisp contrast of their coaches understanding how to coach today’s game while our staff is stuck in the way things were long ago. Last I checked, the NCAA applied the same roster limits to everyone. This is a pathetic fail on our part that we’ve seen way too often now. But I’ve been calling for Bankers head since he failed to adapt following 08 civil war. Sucks to still be losing that game.

  39. Angry is picking some low scores the past couple weeks with Oregon State’s sling it offense and gaudy numbers from Mannion and Cooks. Richardson will test the OSU secondary and beat them deep atleast once but Cooks is ready to have a highlight day with zero turnovers and also should be at his best. Hopefully the weather isn’t much of a factor for the air attack as the tendancies to mostly put off the running game will continue. Right now Langsdorf especially just doesn’t have the faith in the run and would rather put his trust in Mannion. Colorado will hang around throughout and put a 4th quarter scare into the Beavs but unless OSU beats themselves the Buffs shouldn’t be able to quite match the Beavers’ offensive production.

    OSU 41, Colorado 31

    Oregon State seeks 4-1 vs Colorado:
    http://beaverbyte.com

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