This is an excellent match up for the Beavs.  The biggest weakness on our team, which is the defensive line, should be neutralized by the fact that Arizona has no passing game. They rely mainly on Nick Grigsby and the running game. Serendipitous, given that LBs are the strong-point of our team. I’d love the Beavs big in this one were it not for execution problems.

27-18, Beavs.

There is much chatter, both in my blog and other media outlets, about whether or not Sean Canfield is the man to lead this team. The people who like Canfield talk about his arm strength and NFL frame. Detractors are quick to note his slow release, poor decision making in the pocket, and passive leadership. Recently, a reader of my blog said that Canfield isn’t a Division I quarterback. I find that opinion insulting to my intelligence, given that there are 121 DI programs, including the likes of New Mexico State, North Texas, Temple, Utah State, and Western Kentucky. To suggest Canfield shouldn’t make any of those rosters is a ludicrous argument. However, to say Canfield shouldn’t be a PAC-10 quarterback has merit.

All that being said, I’m not as down on the guy as many. I do think Lyle Moevao makes quicker decisions in the pocket, but if you remember back, many of those decisions were wrong. He’s also not throwing at 100%. So, I say let’s give Canfield these first two PAC-10 games. By the end of that stretch, all issues on the OL should be ironed out and the team as a whole should be more settled. If Sean isn’t performing well at that point in the season, it would be time to make a switch.

What I find interesting about the whole Canfield situation is how the Oregon media portrayed Sean during spring and fall camp. They gushed over how lean he looked, raved about his arm and efficiency, and got Beaver fans riled up, truly believing they had a quarterback who could lead them to a Rose Bowl. The most guilty of this hard sales pitch were Angie and Eric Machado over at beaverblitz. That’s right, the same husband-wife due who wrote that Ryan McCant’s looks like Steven Jackson. It’s clear now that Canfield had a great spring and fall camp because, frankly, we don’t have a very good offensive or defensive line. The ends couldn’t get to Canfield, and if they did blow by (*cough* Remmers), they weren’t able to tackle him (camp rules). I’ve got a decent arm and can sling the thing around a bit…pretty confident I could complete 75% of my passes under those circumstances.

So what we have here is the OSU media unjustly hyping Canfield in order to keep hopes “rosy”, and a fan-base getting upset when Sean doesn’t live up to those overinflated expectations. As average as Canfield has played, I actually have more of an issue with the Machados, “Shoveller”, and other “experts” who are privy to practices, see the team on a daily basis, and yet still refuse to report reality.

1. Our offensive line cost us this game. Specifically, Mike Remmers:

a. Holding penalty on #50 on OSU’s second FG drive. Play would have resulted in a first down inside the 20. Instead, we backed it up 15 and settled for FG instead of TD.

b. Pass to James Rodgers before halftime. Would have been a 30 yard gain. Instead, backed up 15. Drive stalls. Cincy gets the ball back and scores 7.  Potential 10 to 14 point swing.

2. Out coached by Cincinnati. For example, our safety, #28, got burned for two TDs due to 5 WR sets and mismatches. Cincy’s play was an interesting juxtaposition, making our offense look archaic in modern college football. We’re one notch above the wishbone. OSU fans will say that we run a pro offense that prepares athletes for the NFL. The reality is that 99% of these players aren’t going to the NFL and we’re a college program.

3. We should have gone for a TD at 21-15. The way Cincy was moving, that FG was meaningless both at the time and in retrospect.

4. To put it nicely, the crowd was absolutely pathetic. It looks like the game didn’t sell out (equally pathetic), but the noise level was just not there. Simple 8 yard passes in the flat were back-breakers for this crowd. Sometimes they’re good, but today we were dealt a bad/quiet assembly of human beings. So much for a 12th defender.

5. I wish we had a coach like Kelly. The dude was full throttle the entire game. Even challenging Catchings’ [clear] fumble with 50 seconds left. Is it me or does Catchings fumble an awful lot?

6. Defense played well in the first quarter. James Dockery showed me something. Tim Clark even had a good game. The safeties killed us in coverage, but it’s not completely their fault since the front four only pressured Pike 3 times the entire game. People kept saying, “Angry, we didn’t even blitz against PSU, we can get to the QB.”  No.  What did we learn? The bottom line: don’t fuck with Angry. What I say is real talk.

7. Didn’t like Cincinnati’s hubris. I’m going to route against these guys the rest of the year due to the way they handled themselves. Gilyard shoving his helmet in the camera coupled with his post game comments. That dude is a clear douche. The Cincy fans were cool and respectful leading up to the game…the fan base seems like decent people…but their school’s players proved to be classless gamins.

8. Canfield holds on to the ball too long. Riley is in a predicament since Canfield has a pro frame, yet Lyle is clearly better for this team (i.e. quicker decisions, better leader, etc). We win this game if Lyle started it.

9. On a positive note, the FSN announcers were fantastic. Not sure how or why that happened, but those guys knew their shit and were spot on. On an extremely negative note: we had a bunch of national recruits at this game. Ruh roh.

10. Congrats to Cincy fans. Beaver fans, we’re in for a frustrating season. It’s clear at this point the Beavs will win a few to raise our spirits, only to crush them, making the fall harder. Better load up on the gin.