I received an email today asking my opinion for wins. Before saying what that is, I want to hear some opinions from others here. This is the most difficult season to predict in all my time following OSU athletics.

Below is the email. If you want some exposure on Twitter I can tell him to read the comments and pick the responses he finds useful. I’m also adding a poll so you can vote if you don’t want to type a response. AB has no opinion of that website, gambling, etc, and I’m not responsible for any of your loses. ;)

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Hi,

The college football win totals have been posted by Vegas for the upcoming season and I’m putting together some content for each team on what various experts think.

Naturally, I thought of you as someone who knows Oregon State very well and could offer my readers some insight. The Beavers win total is currently set at 4.

You can see the point spreads that are out for the games on the schedule, along with our estimates for games they haven’t posted one yet at:

http://www.boydsbets.com/oregon-state-football-predictions/

The question I have for you is: How many wins do you think Oregon State will have in the regular season this year?

I know you are busy so a lengthy response isn’t necessary, but If you have a moment and could give me 50-100 words I would love to include your opinion.

For an example of what I’m looking for, here is the LSU article which has quite a few contributors already: http://www.boydsbets.com/lsu-football-predictions/

Of course, I’ll include a link to your site and/or social media accounts to give you some exposure. Plus I’ll tweet your Twitter handle with the update to my nearly 3,500 followers.

There is no rush at all. I’ll be adding opinions right up until the start of the season so feel free to wait until you have some free time if you would like.

Thanks,
Jimmy

So I realized I can’t do any more previews for position groups because I just don’t know the roster or players well enough. “How can you write a blog about the Beavs and not know this stuff, Angry!?” I can hear the anti angry crowd now.

Well, because I couldn’t watch Mike Riley football anymore, so I lost most of last year. Miss one year, and you are pretty much unable to review positions. QB, RB, WR are all easy. But do I know the health status of a bit player like Kellen Clute? Nope. So I can’t even review the TEs. I do love Nall and Smith, but they both need to toughen up (I’d also like to see Nall double as a LB).

Based on the official site’s roster,  on the offensive line I like Harlow, Andrews, Clarkson, Seumolo, Stanton, and I guess after that Mitchell and Delp. Brandel, Lucas, and Fifita should all be in the mix as true freshman, imo, if they can help right away. I think all three are good looking prospects. Regarding the OL, I don’t know if the guys I listed are all healthy, and I don’t know much about the other guys listed on the roster. I’ll be following all of this closely under GA, but I was just so done with Riley that I couldn’t watch games and lost touch with the roster. I asked readers to help out with an updated list, but nobody had one. So, that’s my O-line review.

LBs I like are Luchien and Willis. Bright Uqwoegbu is interesting. I’m not at all a fan of Songy, Saulo, or Mageo. Thin position, and Ryan Nall hopefully helps out here.

DTs: Grimble. Peko and Aydon are intriguing. The rest of the guys I don’t know much about.

DE: Extremely thin. Fuimaono (the C.C. transfer) should play right away and help out. I’ve always liked Lavonte Barnett, but the rumblings I’ve heard are that he doesn’t have passion for football. I’d pencil in these two guys as the starters. Jashwa James is probably the reserve.

CBs: I know some of these guys (Hunt..who else? Isn’t Hayes gone?) on the official site aren’t on the roster anymore. Anyway, there’s some depth at CB. Scott will obviously start; Okonoko is a guy I like. Irvine could compete right away. There are some other options like Crawford who some people like, though I am not a fan of his.

S: Justin Strong, and a bunch of other guys. Arnold was once considered a top prospect. Does he get his act together? He doesn’t seem like a GA type of player. Shawn Wilson is a good looking “athlete” who could wind up at safety.  Noland-Lewis is…maybe serviceable. Not a whole lot to get excited about here other than Strong.

That’s all I’ve got. Tell me who you like and why? Or someone I forgot, etc.

These are the WRs, according to the official site:

6 Bolden, Victor WR 5-9 172 Jr.
88 Dockery, Rahmel WR 5-10 179 Jr.
18 Gilmore, Malik WR 6-3 217 Jr.
9 Guyton, Datrin WR 6-5 185 RFr.
19 Hawkins, Xavier WR 5-7 176 So.
2 Jarmon, Hunter WR 5-11 198 So.
87 Kell, Drew WR 6-1 189 RFr.
85 Ovgard, Gabe WR 5-10 188 RFr.
13 Villamin, Jordan WR 6-4 235 So.

I think Paul Lucas and Shawn Wilson could become WRs as well. Lucas’ speed could be a game changer, but given the depth at WR he will likely redshirt.

I think Bolden and Jarmon will be the bubble screen guys, with both capable of deep routes as well. Jarmon especially intrigues me. Villamin is a guy I expect to take a step backward. Not because of his ability, but rather the combination of new QB who [likely] can’t throw deep combined and the overall offensive style. If and when they attempt passes in the 25 yard range, Villamin will be the guy. Another guy I am excited about is Guyton. Very high on Guyton. Dockery has been serviceable. So the Beavs are 5 deep at WR.

Gilmore has been a disappointment his entire career, and this offense and depth chart isn’t going to help. I’m not bullish on Hawkins. He should move to DB — that’s his best shot at playing time.

I’d like to see 3WR sets with Jarmon, Bolden, Guyton/Villamin (depending on the play called). 4 WR sets of Jarmon, Bolden, Guyton, Villamin is about as good as it gets in the Pac-12. Riley left a lot of WR talent.

The official site lists Chris Brown, Storm Woods, Damien Haskins, Tim Cook (Juco), Jaylynn Bailey (never heard of him), Marcus Grieves (never heard of him), Shane Wallen (never heard of him). Then there are the new guys, Taylor Thomas (NQ, going to a CC) and Deltron Sands. Paul Lucas doesn’t appear physical enough to be a Pac-12 RB, so I think he winds up at WR.

The big three are Brown, Woods, and Haskins. Sands is interesting player. I think his 5″8 kept a lot of schools away (when will they learn size doesn’t matter, at least with RBs)?

We all know what these RBs bring to the table, so I don’t need to do a writeup on each one, but a quick synopsis would be:

Chris Brown: Most upside of the RBs. A balanced back with the best speed, fluid runner, a bit of a slasher, etc. We still don’t know for sure what this guy is because Riley never played him, but we do know half the Pac-12 offered him, and in his limited time he’s racked up nice stats.

Storm Woods: He reminds me of Priest Holmes, in that he can rip off big chunks, but it requires a gaping hole to do it. More of a bulky, galloping runner, but he gets the job done. He doesn’t have great raw speed. Better balance and vision than speed. Great leader and personality, and for this reason alone he has to be on the field a lot.

Damien Haskins: He’s gained some size and agility at OSU (spring game compared to his HS film), but he’s still limited. He’s probably in the Yve Bernard mold…slow, good vision, a bit of an undersized bowling ball. Not my type of RB, so I am not high on this guy. The fewer carries the better. Maybe he can carve a role as a goal line back?

Tim Cook: Looks like more of a FB. Maybe a goal line or short yardage back?

Deltron Sands: Shifty, quick, good cuts, good pass catcher. Good work ethic. He is a dark horse, imo. He could jump Haskins or Cook due to his versatility, but OSU would probably be best long-term to redshirt him. I definitely like him more than Haskins.

My guess is Andersen is predictable here and goes with Storm Woods as the 1 and Chris Brown as the 2 and Haskins as the #3, redshirting Sands. He might be better off playing Sands over Haskins, though.

In summary, Woods is a competent runner and great leader with a winning attitude. Chris Brown has more upside. Sands is a dark horse, if he doesn’t redshirt. He can do a bit of everything. Whoever winds up #2 should be more worried about Sands than Haskins or Cook. My guess is Sands redshirts, though. It makes no sense to waste a year with Woods and Brown around.

Update: Tim Cook signing likely seals Sands fate as a redshirt.

Who should start?

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