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Post Arizona State General Discussion

By
angry
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234

Okay, Beavlettes, have at it.

Some points of discussion:

  • Mannion's interceptions: I'm not bothered by them. I know I should be; 4ints is a big number (and he should have about 10 on the season instead of 5). But, I have seen enough positives to ignore the INTs. As I wrote before, Mannion reminds me of a Tom Brady/Derek Anderson hybrid, and I don't know which side will win out until the supporting cast is better. Right now I am thinking there's more positive than negative.
  • Langsdork's play calling: It was better, but I'm not ready to let off the gas. One thing I will say, and I think it's a point missed by many fans, is that the redzone woes go back to the offensive line. When in the redzone, offenses are boxed in by the end lines, and without a RB to chip away (those 3 and 4 yard runs are huge in the redzone) the short passing game becomes less effective. Longer routes are boxed in by the end lines. That being said, I don't think OSU was good in the RZ even last year with Quizz. So, the struggles are due to a combination of factors. Once the OL is upgraded next year and Riley takes over play calling, I expect drastic improvement.
  • Riley's demeanor: He looked animated. Didn't it look forced, though? Makes you wonder if he reads the criticism.
  • Banker's adjustments: Again, why all the sudden did the DBs look for the ball? Why all the sudden did we see stunts, swim moves, and LB blitzs? I don't get it. Do these guys need to hear criticism before they decide to coach/game plan?

The players who stood out to me were Fernando, Crichton, Unga, and Wynn. I loved Fernando's speed and swim moves. He looked bat-shit crazy (in a good way). I had Fernando penciled in as a 2-star. I'm going to go ahead and bite the bullet on that one. The guy looks very good as a pass rush specialist. Another guy who stood out was Obum Gwachum.

Players who stood out for the wrong reasons: Hekker, Romaine, Doctor (bad tackler), Enger, and Remmers. I'm giving Enger a pass since he is new. Doctor needs to step up his game.

Overall I left that game feeling encouraged. I know that is bad to say after a loss, especially since I preach high expectations. I'm not sure how to resolve that conflict. All I know is that I do have high expectations, and that the ASU game excited me more than bothered me. I guess you could say I see the potential down the line, and the shock of the dreadful start has worn off and allowed patience to shine through.

234 COMMENTS

  2. Biggest positive I saw: We did not get beat down field for a big pass play all night. Our secondary had the best game of the past two seasons against a legitimate P12 QB. We got murdered on the swing passes to the flat/back field – but not as a result of the odd CB play of past.

    Mannions INT’s DO bother me. Even when he did not appear rushed, he seems to have made up his mind where he’s going before he’s even set in the pocket. Some say “quick decisions.” I say pre-meditated decision.

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    • I would like to see more cover 2 to against those obvious swing pass situations. ASU went with 3 of them in a row to the wide side, why not cover 2 on the wide side and man up on the short side? In fact, I don’t know why ASU went away from the play at all late in the game, we didn’t actually successfully stop the play.

      Regarding Mannion, those aren’t pre-meditated. He is clearly hitting check downs and second reads on a number of plays. I know that the example is last week but the shallow cross/drag that Wheaton caught several times is not a first read on the slot drive play. It takes too long to develop to be a first read so he is clearly following his progressions on at least one play. I believe that he may not follow his progressions on all of his plays, afterall Riley’s playbook is rather extensive.

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  3. I didn’t think Riley’s demeanor looked forced at all. I saw him screaming into the headset a few times after 3rd downs…I think he’s lighting up Landsdorf, and it was good to see. Still don’t understand the 3rd and long slip screen pass to Jenkins over and over and over and….

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  4. I have high expectations as well…for next year. This year is just lost, as our offensive line is beyond atrocious. Just have to hope it doesn’t permanently damage Mannion.

    I do think the coaches have felt some heat lately, and that’s why we have the sudden improvements in gameplan and play calling. I was watching the news yesterday and Canzano was on TV ripping the Beavs coaching staff. That kind of thing wouldn’t happen if those of us here were good little soldiers, and if he didn’t already smell some blood in the water.

    But we still have a talent problem, particularly on the offensive line, kickers, and safeties. Mitchell has been flat-out bad this year, as has most of our offensive line, and just because we won’t be AS atrocious next year, doesn’t mean we’ll be “Good” which is necessary to compete in our division.

    And are we really settled at RB? Agnew had one good game(that wasn’t even a great game; he got a ton of carries against a bad team) and Ward has looked mediocre at best. Pro-style attacks need a good running game to keep the pass D honest; we don’t have that now, which is killing our offense, and I’m not sure it will get better.

    Both our kickers are bad; Romaine has huge control issues, and he’ll be around for a long time. I hope they improve, but Kahut really didn’t.

    I have hope for our passing game(Mannion, Wheaton, Cooks) and our defensive front 7(Dylon Win, Rusty, Michael Criton, and Akuna whenever he plays) but the secondary looks pretty shaky. Given how our young DBs always struggle, though(Browner went from “worst ever” to All-Conference) I expect Reynolds to improve next year. But that OLine, running game, and special teams scare the crap out of me.

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  5. Here’s the updated Pac-12 Power Rankings after the Week 5 scores:

    STAN 146.04
    ORE 144.87
    AZST 135.37
    UTAH 130.02
    WASH 127.97
    USC 127.49
    ARIZ 122.63
    WAST 122.63
    CAL 121.02
    UCLA 120.07
    ORST 119.84
    COL 118.59

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  6. Angry,
    I thought the same thing about Riley, a bit like a bad acting job to me. That might just feel awkward since it is not his personality. Either way, I liked seeing him involved.

    I am also encouraged by the play Saturday. There is a real chance we win the next 4.

    My take on the Red Zone: This should be where the Tank and Gwachum step up. Neither of them have been targeted and I think they don’t get as much attention as James or Marcus.

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    • I’d like to see shovel passes, screens, and QB draws inside the 20 yard line. They need to get creative…at least try something different. Misdirection/rollouts and throwbacks to the TE work great once inside the 5 (as do shovel passes).

      Gwachum is an option if they want to throw a fade, but that is a low percentage pass.

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  7. On a side note, Rivals is now doing interviews with ex-players, asking them about the recruiting process.

    Sounds very similar to what I’ve been trying to do with my interviews here, right?

    Yet they still claim that I rip them off, and insist that they don’t steal my ideas.

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    • I was also encouraged by some things I saw Sat.

      1. The D line put some pressure on the QB. I don’t remember if I said it here on somewhere else, but I thought Wynn was our best Freshman and he’s showing it. Fernando surprised me, I thought he was too light, but his speed rush and stunting is awesome. Crighton is a beast nuff said, all pac 12 for 3 years.

      2. Poyer played out of his mind for the first half and actually looked back for the ball. The muffed punt killed us….

      3. Freaking Mannion has a MUCH better arm then I thought. I am starting to believe….. That was not a bad game for a red-shirt freshman. That whole thing about he should have twice the int’s he has is normal. The reason half those guys are DB’s is cause they were WR’s in HS and couldn’t catch well enough to play WR in college. Them dropping int’s is normal.

      4. Ward ran better, he ran with his head down against UCLA and was scared. He will do better as the year moves along. He is starting to believe that he belongs on the field. He looked very unsure until Sat, but crap bro…… hold onto the freaking ball.

      The bad….

      1. Remmers, poor, poor kid, he was getting mauled, owned, skooled and destroyed….. The only thing more embarrassing then seeing him getting killed, was our inability to replace him. I felt for him, he must have wanted off that field.

      2. Special teams, our kicking game…. missed FG and kicking the ball out of bounds on kick off!!!! The punt returns will happen, Miles is one hell of a returner, the punt team was too aggressive on that return…

      3. The poor tackling……. an adjustment was made to have Doctor play the “field” side. He and Collins switched according to what side of the hash mark the ball was on. Doctor failed and failed bad. That swing pass was there anytime they wanted, he didn’t stop it once…. and to top it off he got a face-mask and a collaring personal foul called.

      But in the end, a much better OSU football team showed up. I think we have a shot at winning a few games.

      Angry, I don’t think Wilson played a down…..

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      • Wilson is #45, right?

        I saw him make at least two tackles right at the line of scrimmage.

        Also, our punt coverage is usually outstanding (well beyond most Pac-12 teams), so that one slip up to an all-conference returner is not a good reason for criticism. If it becomes a pattern, sure.

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      • Actually, the OSU outlier is more likely to be us for a smallish RB from SE Texas. He was likely compared to Quizz at every turn, so Oregon State is likely on his mind. But point taken.

        Remember, though, that all the info you’re sifting through is from a year ago. Now that he’s prepping, he likely has a different view of prospective teams. He likely wants to play in Texas for one of the two bigs, but they also likely tell him that there’s not a chance in hell they take a flier on someone his size with the talent pool they have to choose from.

        I was also surprised by Buker being the lead on this story. I didn’t go to any of the pay sites, because the pay sites are about as clueless Inspector Clouseau when it comes to diamonds in the rough. They don’t know how to evaluate talent, so when they finally find out that OSU has offered someone, they assume he must be good. On the flip side, if they have not offered the pay sites assume that a kid must not be very good, or maybe just not newsworthy.

        So I’m thinking someone at his prep (coach? admin? self?) contacted who they thought would best plant a seed in a BCS team’s fanbase. That prep has as much at stake as the kid does when it comes to future success. When they plant a kid at a major school and he turns out to be a good fit, boosters of the prep notice and get excited. Because he asked, he likely gets weekly tape sent to the Texas schools. But since he is likely compared to Quizz a lot, the prep likely suggested he do the same with Oregon State. And I have a feeling they also do the same with Rutgers given Ray Rice’s success and their proximity.

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  10. Angry, I’ve seen the comparison that you make between Mannion and Brady/DA. The funny thing on that is I lived in Michigan during the Tom Brady era. He was not good in college and was absolutely hated. Interesting article:

    http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/578961/tom_bradys_college_years_at_michigan.html?cat=14

    I agree with you that I’m not as concerned with the INT’s in this game as I see some very positive signs as well. As long as he doesn’t get beat up so much this year that he loses his pocket presence and footwork. What would concern me is if he doesn’t get better throughout the year (see R. Katz 2010).

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    • With an O-line like this I think it can actually regress a QB. Put them into a mind set of no security and when am I going to get sacked right here?

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    • I think Mannion learned a lot against ASU. Look for Mannion to improve as soon as this Saturday at Reser against Arizona….

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  11. What struck me about Mannion is that he (for the most part) seems very comfortable in the pocket, even with pressure coming. His movements are very deliberate, the opposite of Katz’s frenetic demeanor. There was one play where a DE (I think?) broke through almost immediately. Mannion saw him, let him get close, and then at the last second did a step and a spin move to make him miss. Didn’t panic or take off running, just avoided a tackle with minimal effort and bought himself another few seconds before tossing a nice pass. Honestly that play looked like classic Peyton Manning to me: dodging a big hit with seeming nonchalance and minimal effort, and tossing a beautiful pass afterward.

    Not ready to anoint him yet (Manning/Mannion?!) as he did make a lot of mistakes. However that play was awesome to see.

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  13. I think a lot of the stunts and the opening up of the playbook is just the way OSU does things. They always seem to ease into the system instead of jumping right in in the first game…. I think this ties in with the slow starts thing.

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  14. great post. i was very happy with some units, and disappointed with others but overall to me this was an encouraging sign of improvement overall. obviously the d line was was a big bright spot. wynn and crighton are beasts, and fernandos going to be a great edge rusher. 3 picks from the secondary was huge. poyer did a great job playing the ball and not just his man. overall i thought it was as good of a performance as anyone couldve asked for by the dbs considering the pass offense asu has. the linebackers were just so so outside of unga. i expected big things from cameron collins, but hes been a step (or more) slow this year to me. he was burned bad on a crossing route for one of asu’s touchdowns, which wouldnt bother me as much except that he used to be a starting safety and he looked completely overmatched trying to cover the receiver.
    offensively it was a predictably pass heavy night, so the four picks dont bother me as much as the line play (mainly remmers) did. markus wheatons a big time player. it was great to see obum gwatchum make some impressive catches. terron ward didnt have much room to operate but he seems like a tough runner. special teams is what lost the game. take away poyers muffed punt and marshalls punt return for a score (not to mention a kick out of bounds that lead to a score by romaine and another shank from hekker) then the beavers probably win the game. im left believing that a win saturday is definitly in the cards.

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    • I don’t have great things to say about Collins this year, but there isn’t a LB in the Pac 12 that could have covered that play. That result goes to superior play calling and miss match recognition by the ASU staff.

      They also saw that Doctor could not cover the swing pass and victimized him. As Jackbeavs stated, Doctor misplayed that swing pass over and over and over again.

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      • The comical part of Doctor getting schooled is that the OSU knew it was coming, they game planned for it. Fail for Doctor. Some guys made outrageous claims about how he is the answer, and that he missed 8 tackles. I knew Doctor was going to get the start even when the paper and Riley said different. I actually thought he would have done better, I really did. but in the end he is just what I said, athletic, easily blocked and small.

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        • True about coverage issues but I believe he is still a better run stopper. Our LB corp overall can’t really find a way to cover the pass in general, its killing us.

          Regarding Collins’ coverage of the drag. Go watch Leach’s offense, they murdered LB’s with that route. It is hard to cover even at the NFL level.

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    • Good point, Collins has been surprisingly bad. He almost looks too big/bulky. I think he went overboard in the weight room and lost agility and speed.

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      • And Angry, Robinson had 6 tackles in only a hand full of plays he was in for. He’s coming around, you’ll see. Poor kid is playing looking over his shoulder, he hesitates b/c he doesn’t want to screw up. He is taller and weights the same as Collins. I think he’ll get the start against U of A. He has the third fasted 40 of the LB’s, Doctor and Welch are faster. He played MLB in HS cause they didn’t have a true MLB. he’s getting his feet and head straight. It’s hard the read the stuff that ends up being said on this board, but it’s your guys right.

        Both ASU WR’s (Miles and Robinson#8) were team mates of his when he played in AZ. They won 3 state Championships together.

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        • He may be fast but he hesitates way too much and is soft. He needs to get in the hole when the run comes and take on the blocker. That will enable him to force the play in another direction and/or make the play himself.

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          • Soft he is not, watch the last two games closely, I have. You’ll see that he makes very aggressive contact, The UCLA tight end told him “take a play off man, your banging on me” I watch each game over and over, he is making very good initial contact, but is remaining engaged too long. In the UCLA game he caused the direction of the play to be altered a few times, but engaged too long. He will improve his technique. And in the weight room, only Collins out lifts him. He kills, Doctor, Welch, Unga and even Acuna. His biggest problems right know are engaging too long and hesitating on the play.

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          • Well you and I see film very differently then because I DVR each game because I work Saturdays. I watch each game and rewind plays to see the fundamentals when I see poor performance. I regularly watch plays and find his play to be the source. He is either out of position, remanining engaged too long (as you note) or playing soft. Overall I like Doctor’s performance better despite his poor pass coverage. But all of the LB’s have poor pass coverage.

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          • robinson cant cover anybody either but he seems to embrace contact more than doctor. i was actually much less frustrated with robinson than doctor saturday.

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        • Robinson didn’t have six tackles. He had one 10 yards downfield where he and Mitchell fell backwards on contact. There was another where he cleaned up Marshall falling over because Wynn threw an o-lineman at him as he was headed for the hole. His first one was a head-on hit of Middlebrooks fractions of an inch from the sideline three or four yards downfield. He was so late to the swing pattern that Reynolds (who I thought had a great game) was the first to attack and forced Middlebrooks out and to the sideline where RR finally met him and managed to hit him for a stand-off. He had another shared hit somewhere, but I don’t really recall it. And I don’t recall even seeing him near any other finishes on the night.

          I remember seeing Te’o on a couple. And there was a Rosa sighting early, which made me happy.

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  15. Good points, Angry. I saw enough of Riley on the sideline to believe he wasn’t acting. That belief was solidified when I read that Clif (http://www.gazettetimes.com/sports/article_8bad6fd4-ed53-11e0-9801-001cc4c002e0.html) felt Riley’s “uncharacteristic frustration” during the postgame presser.
    Here is hoping the fire builds and that he continues to be active in the play calling. Now, he has GOT TO get Coach Read to solve the Romaine out of bounds problem!

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    • I’ll just get this out of the way right now.

      No, Pettibonehead, I will not join your team as a walk-on. If you think holding pass/punt/kick competitions in the quad to see if the student body can supplement your poor recruiting is a brilliant idea, you are more likely to be a graduate of Duck High. Just shell out the bucks for players and leave us alone. Your services will be required down here in Eugene soon enough.

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  17. Offensively speaking, I think Angry’s Brady(Pro)/DA assessment of Mannion is spot on. Mannion showed moments of brilliance and moments that caused me to shake my head. Starting with the INT’s, no one should be upset about the actual 4 INT’s because that is a flawed stat. The first INT came with 40 seconds to go in the half, he could play with loose and not care about an INT. Two of the other picks came late in the game when we were down and he was pressing.

    Instead, I prefer to look at the rest of the game when he wasn’t pressing. Overall he played well but still forced a few balls but he was bailed out by Wheaton and Rodgers fighting for the ball. They are awesome pass defenders when the ball is thrown into tight coverage (and otherwise would be intercepted). That is where his pick number should have gone up. Also, he does move through his read progression on some plays but I think he limits his reads based on the talent of a receiver. He clearly loves getting the ball to Wheaton. Bishop should have had two easy long ball TDs in the game. Bishop and Wheaton both ran go’s deep (with Bishop fading just slightly to the goal post and Wheaton fading slightly to the EZ corner). Wheaton draws the corner and the safety (so ASU is probably in Man 2) while Bishop splits the safeties. One time this play resulted in an incompletion and the second time it was an INT in the EZ(late in the 2nd half). If Mannion gives a small pump fake to pull the safety to Wheaton, Bishop is perfectly open for a TD.

    I am in absolute love with his pocket presence, it is outstanding. His talent in this department saves several sacks and keeps drives alive. I believe that this alone is why he took Katz’ job, his ability otherwise is only slightly better. But a younger player with his talent is worth the start.

    Regarding Gwachum, he still needs to grow quite a bit as a route runner and also needs to grow in his ability to fight for the ball, the pick at the end of the first half occured because he didn’t fight for the ball.

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  18. Lol….I was gonna say how much I hate this season, but you fuukers are being so patient and positive, I dont want to bring ya down….

    Yes, things are looking up….there is a chance to win a couple yet this season! LOL.

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    • It sounds like Henry is going to practice tomorrow. I bet they haven’t decided but I sure as hell hope its Wynn.

      It looked like they took Wynn out a lot and put in Fernando as a rusher. I kind of expect something similar to happen. Although, I personally wouldn’t mind seeing one of the walk-on d lineman coming out on pass rush situations and keeping Wynn, Fernando and Crichton on the field. Put Crichton and Fernando in wide nine’s to give them leverage and stand Wynn up like the modified 3-4 they used. Let Wynn find the soft spot and rush also.

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      • I approve…find a way to get Crichton, Wynn, and Fernando on the field at the same time. Riley needs to forget about Henry…he is a backup at this point. I’ll probably take Riley 3 or 4 games to realize this.

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      • That would help create some pressure INT’s and also I think lead to some inspiring, drive and game changing plays that are absent now. Let the talented guys that play with emotion lead the team by results and example – what’s to lose?

        Watching the stunts and blitzes and seeing everybody’s surprise reminds me of Banker a few years back, several games into the season saying he couldn’t play “other flavors of defense when they can’t get vanilla right.” This again calls into question the staff’s ability to teach the game and get players (including upper classmen) playing effectively early in the season. the obvious answer is the results on the field.

        The big question now is will the coaching staff perform at a high enough level to make the most of the (mostly) young talent? I’ve seen too much complacency and lack of imagination to believe they’ll consistently and progressively put together good game plans and responsive play calling.

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        • You have to be kidding. The coaching staff is what couldnt get it together sufficiently to beat Sac State….

          If they pull off a miracle and start winning, that isnt just normal player and team evolution. It means they are dogging it early in the season.

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  21. In theory, the young talent should improve as they get more game experience. If that doesn’t happen then you have to look at the coaching. The positive I saw on Saturday was that indeed the talent discrepancy was not as wide as I was starting to believe and ASU is supposedly a contender. I find the parallel’s to last years basketball team interesting. Coach Rob played upperclassmen when he should have moved on and he didn’t so the season was a disaster. Riley could make a statement by moving on from Remmers, Hekker and others. It’s not like there is anything on the line at this point.

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    • I am not sure who would punt if we moved on from Hekker… the plan is to redshirt the back-up. I am not so sure it is worth burning the redshirt with the way things are going this season. I would like to see Enger moved to OT when Andrews comes back but I am not sure if there is enough guys ready to go to bench Remmers.

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      • Come on, live dangerously! Stop being pratical. No, I understand it’s not going to happen, but you can’t tell me these goofballs have not made the same mistakes in practices and we know they have in previous games. I hate that depth issues tie the coaching staffs hands, but then again that’s on Riley, he’s the head coach.

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      • Hekker is a good punter, minus his one blunder that comes every game when you need a good punt. But, you are never going to have depth at the punter position.

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  22. Great assessment from Angry. For all of you way too optimistic Beaver fans (like me), our next four games are all winnable games: Arizona, BYU, Wazzu, and Utah (Utah has not looked impressive to me at all). Will we win all four of them? No. But I really wouldn’t be shocked if we picked up 2 or 3 wins in our next four games. We just have to hope Mannion keeps progressing and the offensive line figures out how to block.

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    • If Oregon State doesn’t turn it over and keeps the penalties to a minimum they can win all 4. Utah’s QB is hurt and wasn’t exactly lighting it up either.

      Arizona has absolutely no defense and a bad O-Line. WAZZU has no defense and BYU has all sorts of problems at QB. UA is at home along with BYU. Wazzu game is in Seattle, so not exactly a total home game for WSU. Utah is the only true road game.

      They can all 4 as long as they don’t constantly hurt themselves with dumb mistakes.

      I think this team can 5 games, maybe 6 if things break right. That may be a stretch but I see no reason they can’t beat the 4 that were mentioned and beat UW @Home and Cal on the road as long as they don’t hurt themselves with dumb mistakes. That has been a major problem this year. If they get that corrected they’ll win some games.

      The only games on the schedule I see as sure losses are Stanford and Oregon. Those teams are definitely much better than the Beavers and the Beavers would need a lot of luck to beat them.

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      • To play devil’s advocate, what makes you think the turnovers will magically stop? They didin’t stop in Moore’s first year, they didn’t stop in Anderson’s first couple of seasons. The RB’s have already shown poor ball security in the few carries they have had. Agnew’s fumble against Sac St. was huge. Ward damn near fumbled against ASU and displayed freshmen fundamentals as he neared the goal-line. I hope the stars align, but I think we are asking a lot.

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        • I think Mannion is much better in his first year as starter than Moore, Canfield or Anderson were. But I really have no idea if the turnovers will stop. The poor O-Line won’t help things and ball security has been an issue as well. I think these things can be corrected. But the question is will it? I just don’t know. That’s why I said if they can stop making dumb mistakes, which includes turnovers and penalties they’ll win some games. Hard to be too confident that these things will be corrected though.

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          • I should say I think Mannion’s turnovers will go down but he’ll have some every once in a while, but Terron Ward is a fumble waiting to happen. Agnew had trouble holding onto the ball against Sac St. The fumbles could definitely be the highest in 6 years or so. I think Mannion will have around the same number of picks as Katz did last year but the turnovers as a whole will be higher cause of the fumbles. Definitely hoping the issue gets fixed but I can definitely see it being an issue for quite some time.

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      • I am not entirely sure Stanford is a SURE Loss because it’s at home. I’d put it at everything BUT a sure loss. The only game I have circled in red the rest of the season is Oregon. Unfortunately.

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  23. hmm…what did I see? Some exciting runs from Ward/Stevenson, a newfound ability to cock the rock DOWN the field, some horrific line play, and a defense that can be quick, reactive and fluid at times.

    Seeing how fundamentally poor we have been overall this year, I think ASU is the biggest #25 fraud of all time. They looked like shit (against us a majority of the game)–had they played against a team that could have capitalize on the turnovers with TD’s and control the clock when they had the ball-they would have been blown out.

    That said-I think we have a better than even chance to win the next three games…optimism or delusional? Only my psych knows for sure….

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    • Seriously. Not a big fan of ASU and their QB. He was not impressive at all. It could have been a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter for the Beavers and if Poyer hadn’t fumbled possibly a chance to go up 28-7 at the time. ASU caught a huge break in facing a team with a bad offensive line. If the Beavers had a good offensive line and a good run game the game would not have been competitive. Would have gotten ugly.

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    • I don’t think ASU is a great team. As all Erickson coached teams, they aren’t very disciplined. But I think there was a different OS defense that showed up that game than had previously lined up in their game film.

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  25. OSU does not have enough heathy lineman to replace Remmers and have him on the bench. OSU should supplement Remmers by adding big bodies next to him on situational substitutions ala Jim Harbaugh. There were many plays last Sunday when he had 6-7 lineman on the field, mixing O linemen and D linemen to supplement a crappy line, to neutralize a DE that was killing an OT and to provide matchup issues for defense on both run and pass plays. OSU has good receivers and does not need to send out 4 or 5 guys on patterns for every pass play.

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    • I would agree with this. Every time we talk about Stevenson running well in the UCLA game, it was because Halahuni sealed off-tackle. Why don’t we have a jumbo set with Enger on one side and Joe on the other? It’s not like the slot is getting anything other than slants and crosses. So make Joe a tight slotback and run seams, crosses and hooks instead. But have the big boys in to add a running dimension.

      It would also give the actual slot a “change of pace” dimension when he comes in. I’m not saying the opposition would make poor decisions, but making their coaches actually change personnel for change of pace or even obvious passing downs increases the likelihood that mistakes are made or packages come in stiff and not up to game speed.

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      • I always liked the way Harbaugh had big tight ends or pulled a guard to lead block. Makes the run game so much more physical. I’d like to see Riley work that into the run game.

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        • Riley also pulls lineman to block just not as frequently. I did see a bubble pass that they pulled a lineman on to go block, it was wicked.

          Reply

    • Last night, I re-watched the first half of the ASU game. The Beavers sometimes lined up Colby Prince next to Remmers, and assigned both guys to block #92 (Jamaar Jarrett). The double-team neutralized Jarrett (as one would expect). We lost a potential receiver on those plays, but it was worth it. Frankly, we should have done it more often. Jarrett was obviously too much for Remmers to handle (re-watching the first half, Jarrett made Remmers looks like he was plodding through quicksand — and Remmers could have and should have been called for holding on a majority of pass plays).

      Reply

      • What was with Enger engaging then releasing to the inside? He did it about three times, and each one was a hit on Mannion (one sack?). Is that a design where Johnson is supposed to be paying attention for the secondary block?

        Reply

      • I would have iiked to see them chip block more with the running back to slow up the D-end to help out Remmers. Then they would not need to keep an extra tight end into block. I thought they started doing that a little more in the 4th quarter.

        Reply

  26. Thomas Tyner will be at the Arizona game this weekend.

    Thomas_Tyner T.TYNER #4
    Heading to the Val this week. One freebee, anyone?
    20 hours ago
    Miguel Rivera
    PDX_Miggy Miguel Rivera
    @
    @Thomas_Tyner your going to the beaver game this weekend?
    20 hours ago
    in reply to ?
    T.TYNER #4
    @Thomas_Tyner T.TYNER #4
    @PDX_Miggy yup

    The guy is not gonna see much running going on in this game, but maybe he’ll see how easy it would be to start as a Freshman at RB for OSU if he came here.

    Reply

    • I’m wondering if my new season tickets are located near where all the recruits and guests sit. Both home games this year we’ve had several non-OSU types sitting near us and many of them have been athletic looking teenaged kids wearing brand new Beaver gear with their parents; also guests of Mark Banker (UCLA fans) sat next to us last game.

      Reply

    • It would probably be good to spread the word to Beaver fans to hopefully get the guy some attention from the fans. We already know he is prone to change his mind several times before his time in high school is up, and it wouldn’t hurt to give him something to remember this game by. Oregon does a good job of getting their fan base aware of potential recruits in the stands during games. We can play that game too.

      Reply

        • Well, we know the guy is blue collar and I’ve seen interviews in the past where he spoke about the pride he has in making Aloha a big name in High School football. Jesuit is the anti-Aloha and he hates Jesuit. The Aloha/Jesuit game has become a big deal lately with higher attendance than state playoff games. Anything that could compare Oregon State to Aloha and UO to Jesuit could be a start.

          I know this is totally grass roots, but the more we can get the word out between now and Saturday, it can only help.

          Reply

        • If the school had their shit together, they could play an intro video that heavily featured our recent history with successful running backs having huge careers at Oregon State. Highlights including Simonton winning the Civil war and fans rushing the field. Steven Jackson demoralizing the opponent with head on collisions. Bernard putting up big numbers and winning a bowl game on a 2 pt conversion. Quizz being Quizz. Flash all of their career stats on the board. Maybe follow that with a “Who will be next?” message…I don’t know, I’m not a marketing guy, but doing SOMETHING is better than doing nothing in my opinion. Would this be a recruiting violation if we didn’t specifically mention Tyner’s name?

          Does anybody have connections to the sports marketing department at OSU? Oregon State only gets so many opportunities to impress a top quality in state recruit. We really should make the most of it.

          Or we can spend our time blogging about how disappointed we are with this team for years to come and hope somebody else will fix it for us.

          Reply

        • The cheerleaders should lead a Tyner chant. Get 45,000 fans chanting Tyner about 15 times. Rebirth of OSU Men’s track and Thomas Tyner should go hand in hand. I consider it one of Bobby D’s and Riley’s key objectives in the next 1-2 years.

          Reply

      • He’s visiting Oregon for the CAL game Thursday also. Duck fans are already all over it on their message boards. We should be doing the same if we have any hope of winning the in state recruiting battles with Oregon.

        He’s talking with James Rodgers about the visit here:

        T.TYNER #4
        Thomas_Tyner T.TYNER #4
        Trying to catch up with the beavs this Saturday. Haven’t tlked to @J_Rodgers1 in forever!
        58 minutes ago

        James Rodgers
        J_Rodgers1 James Rodgers
        @
        @Thomas_Tyner what’s up my dude
        4 minutes ago
        in reply to ?

        T.TYNER #4
        @Thomas_Tyner T.TYNER #4
        @J_Rodgers1 battling a concussion! Watched you kill it against ASU, close game!
        3 minutes ago via Twitter for iPhone

        Reply

  28. I’m fine with Riley right now. But everyone on this site likes to talk about Leach taking over the program. This is a direct quote from a recent Mike Leach interview. Do you think OSU meets his criteria?

    “I want to go to a place that’s undervalued, where the potential is great, a place that wants to win, not just participate, in football. When I was at Tech, no public school was ahead of us in graduation rates. We got our guys to compete in the classroom, and if they’re competing in class and in football, that’s an attitude they take into life.”

    Reply

  29. Is the AZ game on the same shit channel as the last two games? I’ll be there in person but enjoy watching on TV the next day too.

    Reply

  30. And I have to say one thing about ASU. So long as other Pac schools put really, really ugly unis on the field, can you blame our school for sticking with the moronic angry muskrat with the 70’s/80’s combo font?

    Reply

    • Yes. We need to rock Giant Killers for all our games. No mascot, just orange and black. Why don’t we? They were hugely popular, and if Nike wants to make it a 1-time thing, say hello to UnderArmor.

      Side-note; how does everyone feel about the basketball team this year? I’d feel great about it if Burton wasn’t a starter, but our backcourt should be awesome.

      Reply

      • If they lose the white stripey thingies on the helmet, arms and legs, I’d be fine with them. But those stripeys were horrible with an off-white pant. Well, they were just horrible. That helmet would be a really sharp one with just the orange stripe… very much like the top was sharp with just orange numbers on black. I think the font needed to be toned down a bit, but I liked the plain orange on black.

        Reply

      • Feel good about hoops. UCLA looks like the team to beat in the Pac this year, but that’s assuming Howland utilizes his true talents in the back court. UA, UW and Cal will populate the next tier in the pre-season, but it’s more likely to be an open 2-6 with OSU and SU in the mix toward the end. And one or two of those five teams will find a way to challenge or just outright beat UCLA to the top.

        CU and Nikegon are unknown quantities who can contend because their coaches get their teams to scrap for every game and they will have some talented players who can take over a game at times. So I wouldn’t count them out this year. Though next year will be a downer for Nikegon when sanctions likely kick in.

        ASU has a couple really young talents to supplement one good player. Wazzu can kiss its rear end good-bye. USC can kiss my rear-end as well as their own. And Utah has nowhere to go but up.

        We have a lot of talent which will step up this year. Even Cunningham should reach new heights. But look for Starks, Collier, Nelson, Moreland and even Burton and Brandt to step up their games. And look for Barton to contribute from day one.

        Brown has the size to contribute rest and fouls at a minimum, and Murphy as a long range threat would be a factor which would put us over the top. McShane and Gomis will be looked to for defensive hustle and spark… good roles for them at this time.

        I’m not going to say that 20 games is a lock. Hell, the whole season could go in the crapper in game one if our boys don’t come to play. But right now we’re looking like a top-third of the Pac team with more upside than downside.

        Reply

      • Giant Killers looked good, especially the carbon-non-gloss helmet. I’d like to see that helmet with an orange center stripe (or pair, even with narrow white border) and, on one side only, an orange “O” or “OS” or “OSU”, whatever is finally settled upon.

        Really need some consistency, O…OS…OSU, which is it??

        Reply

  31. Hi Beaver Nation… old coach here again. The outpouring of affection and support for me to return has been beyond belief. It reminds me of how the state went crazy back in 96′ when we beat Northern Illinois. Good times….
    Lets not get carried though. Dutch would need to fire Riley and work out a new contract before I can actually call the movers. Lets hope!
    I hear Parker is improved. That inflatable helmet sounds great. Just shows what Beaver Nation can accomplish when they work together, That must have cost hundreds of dollars. I’ll bet the Duck fans are jealous, down there in their crummy little stadium.
    Thanks again… hope to see you all next fall!

    Got to go,,, Meals on Wheels is here.. its Tuna Tuesday! yummy

    Reply

  32. Angry — you say in your lead post “…and Riley takes over play calling…” ..next year. What makes you say that will happen? If he sees the need to, why wouldnt he just replace his OC?

    Reply

  34. I read somewhere today that Riley said Agnew would probably play this weekend if he could make it through today’s practice. Apparently, he didn’t make it through today’s practice….

    Reply

    • I’d just assume medical redshirt him for the year at this point. The guy needs to get his hamstring healthy or it could plague him all 4 years at OSU.

      Reply

  36. Tyner is a Beaver fan, and he’d be the starting back as a freshman. I think the Beavers will land him. In fact, I heard they have, and he’s just toying with the Ducks. We’ll see. The (lack of a) track program is the wildcard. I suppose winning 2 or 3 games could change things, too.

    Reply

  37. Hi Beaver Nation.. its me the old coach again.
    The secret of recruiting at OSU is getting players that no knows about or wants. It worked wonders for me! I think the Tyner kid may be a little to high profile for OSU. Walk-ons and two-stars are plenty.
    I can help remember the 2 win glory years!! Call me!

    Reply

  38. I can’t believe many people aren’t bothered by interceptions. That is totally nuts. Turnovers drastically reduce the chance of any team to win. Anyone watch true freshman Chuckie Keeton of Utah State? Yes they ultimately lost to Auburn, Colorado State and BYU but the kid does not make mistakes that constantly put his team in a hole…a kid without years of QB tutoring.

    Reply

    • You must look at when the interceptions were made and the circumstances. For instances, at least one came while he was taking a hit (thank the o-line) and also there is zero run game. So, it’s easy to intercept when you know what to expect and also have double even triple coverage on receivers. Go figure.

      Reply

      • So I guess you think that Utah State has a great O line and that Auburn D line are cupcakes. Circumstances? Here is a story of circumstances. Two boys from the same town enter high school at the same time. One goes to the local hs and the other one migrates (though family stays in town) to the East Bay of Northern California where he is groomed and polished by QB gurus and has enough success in hs to be the number one QB recruit to the number one college team in the USA (Miami) at the time. The first guy gets no firm offers though it is rumored that Illinois and Oregon State offered to let kid #1 walk on. Where are they today, Aaron Rodgers and Mark Guillon? There are no reasonable circumstances to justify 4 interceptions if you expect to win.

        Reply

    • If Mannion keeps throwing interceptions like he did against ASU, fans and coaches should be bothered. Will Mannion learn from last Saturday? Mannion’s performance against Arizona this Saturday at Reser should tell us a lot….

      Reply

      • And it should tell us if coaches are adjusting to what he is seeing or not seeing and then arming him with the tools via schemes, matchups and plays for success.

        Reply

    • For the game and even this year I hate the interceptions. But in determining the worth of Mannion as a QB, I think those will significantly drop as he progresses.

      Reply

  39. It is nice to see my fellow Beav fans speaking out with some quality assessments on the program.

    I will try not to be a broken record with my comments here, but man, I need to get out some frustration.

    Things I still love about the Beavs and other positives:

    1. For the most part, we recruit character guys who represent our team and university well off the field.

    2. I will take overachievers with little talent over “you owe me” little whiners with lots of talent, any day.

    3. The fact that Erickson basically had us in the top 10 picture gives me hope that the right coaching STAFF could get us there again.

    4. Dylan Wynn and Scott Chrichton are EXACTLY the mold and type of player that made us competitive in the Erickson era. They NEED TO BE REPLICATED. There is no substitute for a guy who works his ass off and won’t make excuses. These guys are the pillars of our defense in my mind. I also like Unga, but am not sure he has the athleticism or killer instinct of Chrichton and Wynn.
    What is pissing me off every day:

    1. A coaching staff with no sense of urgency. Case in point: SEPTEMBER! No excuse for our poor record.

    2. Our administration and head coach have set us up with preseason games against high profile opponents and we BOMB every time. Get a clue and schedule average teams we can at least have a chance to beat.

    3. Langsdorf, Banker, Cavanaugh, Locey, Riley. They all need to go. These five have had PLENTY of opportunities to prove themselves. They rode the coat tails of Erickson and his staff and now REALITY has set in.

    4. Beaver fans are the most loyal you could find anywhere, but Bobby D has to know that even we have limits. He needs to get off his ASS and shake things up. It is his job to set the tone with what is acceptable performance and it starts with the flagship program, Football. I HOLD BOBBY D MOSTLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DECLINE IN THE QUALITY OF THE PROGRAM. Evaluate the coaches and make them perform or get them out, it isn’t like there aren’t plenty of hungry coaches out there who would like to coach at the D1 level.

    5. Invest your recruiting efforts in the O and D line! They are like the foundation of a house, if not solid you are SCREWED!

    6. I am tired of hearing Cavanaugh talk about how there needs to be no excuses and guys need to get tougher…NO, you little hot head, YOU needed to be making sure that talented players were being recruited not allowing yourself to be set up with predominantly walk-ons.

    That is all for now. If you read this, thanks, I needed this.

    Go Beavs!

    Reply

    • Point #5 is the key for me: ” Invest your recruiting efforts in the O and D line! They are like the foundation of a house, if not solid you are SCREWED!”

      If there is one key mistake that the Beavs have made over the past several years, #5 is it. And this is clearly on Riley. MR obsesses about QBs and WR’s to run his complex pro-style offense. But, as you say, it all starts with winning the battle at the line of scrimmage. Until OSU makes this a priority, we aren’t going to win consistently. Period.

      Reply

    • Good o-lines can make an average RB world class! I think a lot of what is bothering me is that we haven’t won in a very long time! It seems like it’s been years. We need a win to build confidence and something to keep us the fans interested. Hoping we come out strong against AZ. Hopefully the rain will give us an extra advantage:) Angry, please get petihead out of here

      Reply

    • you use an interesting numbering scheme…I particularly agree with the second number 1, and the second number 2 – got to schedule weak teamsearly then destroy them…of course we tried that with Sac St. this year. I cannot believe our annual lack of passion in the early games – you’d think the kids would be so juiced to start the season that you’d have to reel them back in.

      Scheduling should go : weak, below-average, average for out OOC’s.

      Reply

  40. I faxed Riley some of my best most double secret triple option veer plays. If they use them on Saturday I guarantee a win. If they don’t it’s evidence that they have given up on the year.

    Everyone knows that you can’t win in college football by passing.

    Remember the 2 win glory days! I can help! Call me!

    Reply

  41. Malcom Agnew = Ryan McCants 2.0? Great potential, never makes a significant contribution…

    Hopefully not, but Mike Riley’s starting to make comments about Agnew that make it sound like he’s less than thrilled by the way this “injury” (i call it a sore muscle) is being handled.

    Also, Mike Parker, is there a better radio out there? We’ve heard these before, but it’s a great recap of some of Mike’s best moments. So much passion. (No the video of him eating a napkin is not included.)

    http://www.750thegame.com/pages/landing_doing?Whats-your-favorite-Mike-Parker-blow-up=1&blockID=553494&feedID=10154

    Reply

    • I enjoyed the link. I would take a napkin eating Parker over the Ducks Allen any day.

      But I don’t understand the RM 2.0 comment. Agnew is hampered by an injury, McCants by skill and technique. Agnew is a true freshman and McCants is a senior. Agnew tore it up when he saw the field, McCants coughed it up…

      Reply

    • Dude, hating on a guy for an injury is weak. Hamstring injuries are rough because they re-injure so often. It’s not a sore muscle, I doubt he would be turning down a starting job because he was “sore”. Besides, this injury dates back to his senior year. You can throw the injury prone label on him and that is cool but to question his toughness this early is cowardice.

      Reply

    • It was supposed to be a surprise!
      You guys are good! A few questions: 1.) Can someone pick me up at the Greyhound Station 7:30 PM Friday the 14th? 2.) Anyone have a couch where I can crash for two nights? 3.) Should I bring my fishing pole? There was this huge pot hole in the Parker Stadium parking lot where I could snag a few crappie now and then. Is it still there or does it now require a small boat?
      I’m excited about the weekend and reconnecting with all of you. JB

      Reply

      • 1. I’m amazed you spelled Greyhound correctly. Good little boy.
        2. Boise has one.
        3. There’s great crappie fishing around Parker Stadium, the home of Beaver Football. Is that where you’re going to be on Friday the 14th? If so, there’s no excuse for not fishing.

        Reply

      • Hey if you play EA Sports College Football for Sega Genesis, you should be able to duplicate the Pettibone era. You should run the “flexbone” which I am surprised that it never became the title of a porno movie.

        Reply

  43. A pulled hammy is no laughing matter. Give the kid a break. He should never have been run 33 times right out of the gate. He will contribute and be good. But he is not a plough horse.

    Reply

  44. Hey there Beaver Bill… Thank you for the astute comments regarding blocking.
    Blocking is the key to my vaunted triple option double reverse fake veer offense! When I return next year I will place a heavy emphasis on blocking.
    I have been toying with some motivational slogans along that line; how does “OSU 2012 We’ll block your socks off!” I can see it on bumper stickers and tee shirts. Your thoughts? JB

    PS: Hint when you use the little typewriter hooked to the little tv, type slowly, otherwise you might make a typo and your entire message could be misunderstood.

    Reply

  45. Remember the discussion that took place about Angry having ads on angrybeavs.com to help offset the cost of running/hosting the site? Remember how most of us said we prefer the cleaner look and feel of the site so many of us stepped up and voluntarily donated to Angry?
    Making me scroll past troll comments is worse than ads. Dump the troll please.

    Reply

  46. Just heard Mack Brown interviewd on the Jim Rome Show. He talked about their 5-7 season last year. He said that he reflected after the season and saw that all the problems that they experienced pointed to him not doing his job the best he could do and that the let downs that they had the couple of seasons before the 5-7 season really affected the coaching staff that he feels contributed to him and his staff doing a poor coaching job last year. When I heard this it reminded me of angry’s post on how the Beavers missing the Rose Bowl two years in a row has affected Mike Riley and his coaching staff. Brown said that he had to make a decision to either step it up and do a better job or leave, because it isn’t fair to the players, school or fans if he isn’t doing his job 110%.

    Brown also said that saying the team is young/in-experienced is just an excuse for poor play and it goes back to the coaching.

    I found the interview very interesting because of how close some of the comments Brown said were closely related to what the Beaver coaching staff may be struggling with.

    The question is, will Riley be able to make a decision to step it up or leave?

    Reply

    • Interesting. Yeah, I wish we could all go back and look at Riley’s face after that 2nd Civil War. If he wasn’t crying, he was darn close. He also had a look of despair, probably realizing how much had to go right for him to get that close to a Rose Bowl, and how long it would be before it happened again. It is interesting how all of that can be clearly seen on a person’s face.

      This past week at ASU was the best he’s looked since then. Maybe he figured out a way to hit the reset/get over it button.

      Reply

      • Are you talking about how he looked after the 2nd failed red zone trip in the 1st quarter? He had his back to the camera, but they showed him walking up the sideline and you could tell he was shouting into his headset, tearing somebody a new asshole. I’m assuming he was talking to Langsdorf. He looked like he was on the verge of ripping his headset off and throwing it on the ground, but he held back a little.

        I saw some good body language from Riley in the UCLA game actually. It was after the defense stopped UCLA on a 4th down in the final quarter. He ran onto the field cheering his guys on and went up for the chest bump with Frahm. Frahm was so excited running toward Riley that he nearly knocked him on his ass. Funny moment that didn’t get caught on camera.

        This week, I’m hoping Riley takes back control of play calling. If nothing else, it will at least get him into the game, rather than leaving him a spectator.

        Reply

      • After the CW loss in Eugene that was for the Rose Bowl, he agonized about a couple of plays that could have changed the outcome. MONTHS later, he was still focused on a play where there was a Beaver wide open for a touchdown throw that Canfield didn’t get to make because he was sacked.

        There was an ESPN article about the season subsequent to that loss, and basically Riley was talking about how they were that one play away from the Rose Bowl and why he felt they would be good again (they obviously weren’t).

        But that said a lot to me that several months later, he was pulling out the video and showing it to the ESPN guy that was reviewing pac-10 teams. I think it was killing him for months after the game.

        And you’re right; he’ll probably never get that close again and he knows it.

        So, change assistants and see if you can get there, call plays yourself, or move on. If you’re done, you’re done. You made progress for the program, move on.

        Reply

  47. the tv schedule is so shitty this year. if it’s not on tv, it’s on fox college sports.

    who the hell has that channel? why isn’t root picking up anything?

    Reply

    • If you were a TV Exec, would you air the beavers? No one outside of the Willamette Valley could give a shit about them when they’re as bad as they’ve been so far.

      Reply

    • I called Comcast before the UCLA game and played squeaky wheel with them. They ended up giving me a 6 month free trial of the expanded sports package (including all Fox College Sports channels) That should almost be enough to get me through the basketball season too. Might be worth your time giving them a call to see what they can do for you.

      Reply

    • I agree with christianbale(loved you in Rescue Dawn)… this year’s TV schedule has been the worst. Pretty hard to build a fan base when no one can watch your games live, even in your own state.

      Reply

    • When you open the season by losing to Sac State at home, you maybe only get picked up by the Comedy Channel….

      You want to be on TV….do something that deserves it…

      Reply

  48. Is the coaching staff risking injuring Mannion by having him pass so much (either his arm or his body [from taking so many hits])?

    Was it Shaun House (QB) who had a throwing injury (perhaps the shoulder) which some speculated was because Riley and the coaching staff had him throwing so much?

    Reply

  51. I’m not sure mindlessly comparing our recruiting to Clemson’s is much better.

    Check out their last 2 classes…

    2011:
    Stephone Anthony 5 stars
    Mike Bellamy 5 stars
    Tony Steward 5 stars
    Sammy Watkins 5 stars
    Martavis Bryant 4 stars
    Corey Crawford 4 stars
    Cortez Davis 4 stars
    Eric MacLain 4 stars
    Charone Peake 4 stars
    Lateek Townsend 4 stars

    2010:
    Tavaris Barnes 4 stars
    Desmond Brown 4 stars
    Martavis Bryant 4 stars
    Corey Crawford 4 stars
    DeAndre Hopkins 4 stars
    Justin Parker 4 stars
    Garry Peters 4 stars
    Darius Robinson 4 stars
    Josh Watson 4 stars

    It comes down to talent first and foremost… and over the last 2 seasons, they have landed as many 5 star recruits as we have 4 star recruits.

    I’m not completely sold on the ‘star’ system for recruits – it’s fallible. But the guys with 4 and 5 stars are generally more prepared to play and help a team right away. They’re simply better athletes and can make up for lack of experience with athleticism.

    That said, the freshmen we’re playing are generally not the biggest issue – it’s the offensive line as we all know. But playing a ton of freshmen doesn’t help. It’s not THE reason we’re 0-4…but it’s probably PART of the reason.

    Reply

    • Stars mean very little to me. And they mean less in a region of the country where people who make stars have a financial interest in making more stars.

      That being said, they do try to differentiate players based on a couple real factors like size, speed and agility. But they still miss more at the “can’t miss” level than “can’t miss” would have you believe.

      On the note of actually playing those frosh and RS frosh, they are still frosh and RS frosh. Increased athleticism doesn’t account for their being a top ten team and us being a bottom ten team. All things being equal, it would destine us to a 20-30 ranked team. But all things aren’t equal. And you did mention the o-line. I would wager that all the o-linemen who have yet to play would make a more cohesive unit than the three seniors who do play. I would have made the same wager when they all sophs and playing. I have never believed that their skill is what put them on the field. I think it was just a freak event that they filled in here or there, plugged some holes and looked decent next to some actual talent. But as the actual talent graduates and moves on, everyone else starts seeing what I’ve been seeing for these three years.

      Reply

      • Just for the sake of comparison, here are the remainder of our o-linemen and how many years they will be here beyond this year:
        Kelly – 1
        Andrews, Enger, Garner, Philipp – 2
        Beaton, Nielson, Sapolu – 3
        Addie, Jackson, Vieru, Welch – 4
        Andrews, Eldredge, Mitchell, Seumalo – Incoming

        Reply

  52. If a coach says the team is losing because they are inexperienced freshmen, he is a fuuking liar. They are losing because HE DIDNT DO HIS JOB, and recruit in a decent manner, and now has to play freshmen.

    As to Riley, I dont care if he suffered a breakdown because he cant compete with UO, or whatever the reason. If you cant do your job, step down.

    Riley should apologize after every game this season.

    Ok, back to reality. Its good that the coaches and team are showing signs of not giving up. If they can get it together and be really competitive, there is hope for the future of the program, as its going to continue to exist….under Riley.

    Reply

  53. I guess I can kind of stomach the “inexperienced card” if they come through with a 9 win season next year, but you really can’t use that excuse forever. College Football is a “cycle through” process, you are always going to have young players who have to perform for the program to be successful. It’s on the coaches to get them ready.

    Reply

  54. Off topic but does anybody have any inside information regarding the NCAA investigation going on down at the People’s Republic of Spewgene? Is the NCAA investigation open ended where they can look into academic fraud, weed for memorabilia, free rental cars, along with the 25K for outdated recruiting material? It seems to me the offical word is the NCAA is only looking at the Will Lyles stuff but hopefully they are looking at all of the other possible issues going on down there.

    Reply

    • The letter of inquiry doesn’t state what allegations are being made (I believe). Just that an investigation is being conducted but a new letter would be issued if more topics come to light. We don’t know what the NCAA is investigating, only what the media supposes. The letter means that the NCAA has most of the evidence and is organizing and preparing for a ruling in the next few months.

      Reply

      • A letter of inquiry only specifies what program the NCAA is investigating. It also states that they can expand the investigation to include other programs, and the school will be notified if it does. And it gives a deadline for the investigation to be complete with notice of conclusion or continuation after every six months (or before if it concludes).

        Reply

  55. This may be a really cheesy analogy but its kind of how I feel about Riley: he is Henry Winkler from Waterboy. He has lost his mojo but once was awesome. He did win a few grey cups afterall as a hc.

    Reply

    • Maybe he’s a better Pro coach…don’t need to ‘motivate’ as much. Don’t discount his Chargers stint…they didn’t have Jack Shit to work with and he got them sniffing playoffs at least once. Players like him, fans liked him, media liked him. He didn’t win because they didn’t have talent.

      Reply

  56. what should the starting oline/dline look like next year & what will it look like? i think we win this wknd, beat wsu in seattle and likely beat byu as well, but already have turned my attention to next year.

    Reply

  57. We beat Arizona 34-24

    Our defense plays like they did against OSU. Arizona’s struggling defense gets picked apart by our talented wide-receiver unit and Terron Ward (As said by Puker, is playing more physical at practice and has stepped up) goes for 85 yards. Significantly increasing our run game from last Saturday.

    Reply

    • Ward’s big brother TJ will be in attendance, so I could see how he might have a little extra motivation this weekend. Just hope he remembers to hug that ball tightly and with both hands.

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  58. Anyone noticed that if you use a desktop keyboard, and pound it really hard with a fist near one end, some of the keys at the other end actually pop off and jump up in the air? Always cracks me up…

    (but then you gotta find em and put em back on…)

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  59. PAC-12 PREDICTIONS/SCHEDULE for this week:

    California at Oregon, Thursday 6:00 PM – ESPN – Ducks by 20.5
    Arizona at Oregon State, 12:30 PM – FCS – Even (Breakdown indicates Arizona SLIGHT favorite)
    Arizona State at Utah, 12:30 PM – ROOT Sports – Sun Devils by 3.5
    Colorado at Stanford, 4:30 PM – Versus – Cardinal by 23.5
    Washington State at UCLA, 7:30 PM – ROOT Sports – Bruins by 6.5

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    • I like how everyone wants to downgrade Stanford’s win over UCLA because they thought it was close… well, everyone except those who actually watched the game… and UCLA fans. The game was never as close as even the box score suggests. But many wonder if SU has lost momentum because they allowed even the slightest opening. But there were two things apparent in that win.

      1. UCLA sucked too hard to even pretend to win.
      2. Luck is now calling plays from the huddle.

      That’s right. SU is only a 23.5 point favorite because nobody wants to report that the UCLA game was just the first step in the coach ceding his power to his all-world QB. Once he settled into the game, it was beyond over for UCLA. By extension, Weasel’s job is done since he can’t beat Luck, let alone beating SU as a team with coaches who are supposed to be his peers calling the shots.

      I was thinking that UCLA’s win over us gave their AD cover enough to keep Weasel through the season before looking for another coach. But I’m re-thinking that idea. I think he’s gone the week before they play USC to give the AD cover for losing to them once again. And if they’re embarrassed this weekend I think the timeline speeds up.

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        • Isn’t Peterson like Mark Few in that his wife is from the city in which they currently reside? I think I’ve heard both talk about this dynamic in previous interviews telling the world why they weren’t going anywhere.

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          • Chris was trained in the Jim Sochor/Bob Foster system. Their view of life and success includes the football field but very definitely discourages a cult of personality and overindulgence in fame and fortune. The Sochor/Foster school rule is to achieve a high level of success and to sustain it for a long time, while pursuing other passions in life. These guys are definitely not from the crowd of “you are a national champ or a nothing”. Corvallis would be a good fit but he has already found his Shangrila. He has also plainly seen what has happened to the othe coaches who left Boise to seek fame and fortune. Most of those guys would give their left nut to be back at Boise making a million bucks a year, water skiing and fishing in the summer, and able to go out to dinner with the family any night without being bothered or hit on. Eventually he could go somewhere else, but probably only if something radical happened at Boise or if he radically changed his philosophy.

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          • Geez, give me a break. It’s the only time I’ll ever get to use “illegal Dutch football players” in a sentence and have it not be soccer related!

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    • Washington State at UCLA, 7:30 PM – ROOT Sports – Bruins by 6.5

      This one is interesting…the L.A. factor could come in, but it could be a distraction for a struggling UC team…I’d love to see WSU pick them apart and drop about 40 on them.

      Reply

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