Sportsinteraction.com have some early Heisman Trophy odds. Sean Mannion is currently 10th, which seems a bit high to me. Mariotta is projected 2nd and Brett Hundley 6th, so the Pac-12 is well represented this year.
The Pac-12 championship odds look about right. +3300 to win the conference outright, and +1200 to win the North. Oregon is the favorite across the board. I think a nice long shot might be Arizona State and/or Washington.
Mannion won’t win it with this line. I’m reminded of the year Joey Harrington and Ken Simonton were on the cover of SI. Simonton was supposed to be a Heisman contender, and his stats the previous 3 years were trending positively towards him having a great senior season, but the line absolutely sucked that year and Simonton had a rough time running the ball and finished with his worst year stat wise.
Different position, but Mannion will likely see a similar dip in production due to lack of protection/time to throw the ball.
Mannion will likely see a similar dip in production due to lack of protection/time to throw the ball.
That’s how I see it, too. I think many magazines and sportsbooks overlook the OL and just focus on last year’s stats and the fact he’s a senior. They do cursory glance.
I think Washington and ASU are too low.
Peterson scares me, and they have a lot of experience so Udub might be a sleeper.
I think you’re off on ASU and they take a bit of dip this year. They lost most of their D from last year (especially their line, which wreaked havoc in many a backfield.) Kelly although good on his feet has a noodle arm (look at the absolute ducks we picked off last year.) They’ll start off 3-0 and then might lose their next next 4+ games (UCLA, @USC, Stanford, @Udub, Utah, ND, @OSU, Wazzu, @Arizona) Pretty brutal. They might end up at 6-6.
UCLA should be tough. Hopefully Sark’s suckiness adds 2+ losses to USC because they have a lot of talent.
didn’t UW lose Sankey and Price this year? I don’t know….new coach, new qb, new rb…..i just don’t see this being their year.
Saw that UCLA has the #1 ranked most difficult schedule in D1 this year (according to ESPN)
Sark didn’t exactly leave the cupboard bare though. They return all starters on both lines, and have plenty of athletic weapons are receiver and running back. I see Peterson as almost 2-4 win swing (Sark gives -1-2, Pete gives +1-2).
UCLA had one of those Baptism by fire years where they had to play almost all freshmen who despite a lot of injuries still got them to 10-3.
Good points, and like you said, could be sleepers. I think we can all agree the Pac-12 north will be one of, if not the toughest division in college football. Luck O the Beavs……
I don’t get the UW love fest. All new play book, and they lose very high production guys at three key positions: QB, RB and WR. Very hard to replace Price and Sankey. Now, Peterson can probably get that program to a higher level but it won’t be this year or next
I could be off base on Udub (the one program/fan base I hate almost as much as the ducks). I just believe Peterson to be an elite coach with regards to getting the most out of his players and halftime adjustments. Washington had top 25 recruiting classes in 11, 12, and 13, so he’s got the most talent he’s ever had to work with. I was also in the stands last year for the most miserable game maybe in the history of the program for the Udub drubbing, and almost all of the players who were streaking for the end zone the last 3 quarters of the game are on the roster. And both of their lines (which really is what you need to consistently win in college) are physically impressive. Hope I’m wrong…
How times have changed…Mannion’s numbers last year blow away Harrington’s from that year (as was pointed out in media). With today’s offenses and dual-threat QBs, Harrington’s numbers look very pedestrian. Except the number of wins.
I think that 6(?) game losing streak last year might have hurt Mannion’s chances a bit…
Hurt his chances in being considered good? Losing doesn’t hurt your chances. It hurts your absolute value in any frame of reference.
Heisman winners must come from 1-2 loss teams max.
What’s wrong with you not believing the Beavs will win 10. Ugh, you Cassandras really sicken me.
Believing?
That’s quite a bit different than having expectations of 10 wins given what we know should happen when talent is allowed to shine… then dialing it down from there because we know it will likely be restrained.
I was just kidding.
I know… I was just playing with that stupid word.
I can’t speak for anyone else who has been at practice, but Mannion looks much more athletic. Not saying you should expect a lot of scrambling from him. But I have seen him take off running when there is an opening more times this camp than probably his entire career.
Sounds encouraging? I guess it’s nice just to have the potential threat, but who really wants him running?
When the opportunity is there, I wouldn’t mind him picking a couple yards with the legs. But there was a play yesterday where I thought it was Vanderveen taking off but it ended up being Mannion 20 yards downfield–He’s done that a couple times so far in camp.
Seems like he’s more likely to bust a run out in camp than he is in a game, since he knows the defense can’t tackle him. I cringe though when I see him exposed like that in a game situation. Remember last year when he ended up as a receiver vs one of the patsies on the schedule?
I wouldn’t count on him running much this year. His longest run of his career is 13 yards, and that was his first game vs Sac. State. His next closest is only 7 yards vs UCLA in 2012.
He looks much less statuesque compared to previous years.
With our line he will be running for his life, so why not practice it?
But, but, they just did Cav’s bear crawls?!? And he cussed!
Which have what to do with blocking?
Oh. Forgot about that.
Trending…in Northern Oregon.
Since you all love new uniform combinations, here are some for the upcoming season:
Orange Pants/Black Top/Black Helmet, and all blacks:
All Oranges, and Black Plants/Orange Top/Black Helmet:
All Whites with Black helmet:
Orange pants/White top/White helmet:
I wonder what the arrangement is that NIke has to approve the combination? “Nike didn’t give that option. Did offer this tho ”
I’d like to see orange jersey with white helmet and pants at a home game.
The black pants with the orange jersey and helmet looks pretty good in the image.
In the only image with the white helmet, there’s no logo on it. I assume it has not been removed?
I tend to like the all whites with black helmet and don’t really dislike any of them.
OSU late to the “matte black party,” no surprise there. Matte black EVERYWHERE now, go hi-gloss black, stick beaverblazer’s avatar on the side and block and tackle well. The rest will take care of itself.
And tartan skirts for cheerleaders. Last time I’ll ask for ’em, promise….
Note to self. Never wear a Kilt around ObjCritic unless also wearing a chastity belt.
Is there a link?
my link above may not be visible to all? Angry, it looks like my post is “awaiting moderation”?
It’s because you put a billion links in it. That will trigger spam.
Mannion the 4th P12 QB on the list at #22. Mariota #2, Hundley #3 and Hogan (really?)#15.
The caption underneath his photo: “Will this be the year Sean Mannion leads Oregon State out of Oregon’s shadow?”
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/college-football-s-25-most-intriguing-quarterbacks-of-2014-202722451-ncaaf.html
A “potential first round pick?” Wouldn’t that require single digit INTs and 25+ TDs, and say, 10 wins?
Hogan is not very good.
Is it legal to gamble online?
Illegal is just a sick bird.
serious question? yes and no…It is easy to do, just transferring funds takes an actual physical process of wiring money.
Depositing funds is easy. It’s usually the withdrawal process that off-shore betting sites make difficult.
You have to use off-shore websites which seems like a risk, but what the hell, you’re gambling afterall.
Washington returns a huge O-line averaging 300+ lbs and 6 foot 6.5 inches tall. They are who helped Sankey and Price. But they have a younger QB, who is a beast. At least their Defense might be their weakness.
If Defenses win Championships, the Beavs have a chance, especially a D that wins the turnover battle and scores. After all the worry posted about the O-Line, receivers, RBs and Mannion, I am rooting for the Defense to win the games.
Go Beavs!
Don’t know about winning games, but I expect the D to at least keep the Beavs in most or all of their games this time around. Along with the LB’s and Wynn (hey, even Peko now) I think Grimble will be an important piece of the puzzle.
Eggers got this nice quote from Grimble, “From a personal standpoint, Grimble said, “The first thing you have to focus on is dominate, and then dominate every play. With that comes conditioning and technique. Joe drills technique. What he teaches, if you do it every play, there’s no reason why any offensive lineman in the country should be able to handle you. I believe in everything he tells us, because it works.”
http://portlandtribune.com/pt/12-sports/229842-93544-vanderveen-shows-progress-for-osu
OT. Beav’s and Goph’s now are shown on future schedules as playing in ’16, 17, & 18?
Normally I would chalk it up to a typo, but it is showing up on several sites. Anybody know
anything about this?
Two rodents. Double incisors. Three epic encounters. Fur is going to fly….
Lemme guess, one is at Reser. Two at Minnesota’s “The Bank?”
Actually the opposite.
Cool. That’s a good matchup and 2:1 is a “neat deal.”
You see Yve’s article on Olive? Direct quote :
“It was destiny for me to be back here,” Bernard said Tuesday after OSU’s 10th practice of camp. “It’s been a really neat deal.”
I noticed that too; the Riley influence. I actually think OSU ticket office should offer some “Neat Deal” ticket packaging as a marketing campaign…
Neat Deal Family Pack: Choose 1 preseason, 1 Marquee Matchup + WSU. Comes with 2 free bags of pop corn and a Heismannion Bobble head
But… what if I lose something while I’m at the game?
Ride your bike to the game because it Includes FREE bike parking at Reser stadium…
Here’ s a “neat” tradition to start, fans biking to the stadium on cruiser bikes a la Riley…wearing beaver gear, maybe changing “hip hip hooray! upon arrival at front of Reser….sure to get some screen time on ESPN/FOX….
The post game “Riding Under the Influence” police stops could be comical….
Biking is the way to go. I made the mistake of driving, once.
OT – just noticed on NOLA site that September 7, NO is @ Atlanta. Beavers abound; Quizz, Jackson (if hamstring ok), Cooks, Lewis, maybe Victor Butler…
The last time I saw that much Beaver in the same place was my visit to the Acropolis in Portland for my bachelor party.
I also went there for my bachelor party… 7.95 ribeye!
Our pal Lindsay Schnell picks OSU as a pre-season top 25 team.
Stormy told to do it.
her to
Oline looking much improved today. Think they are finally setting on the 5 that they want.
Isaac is also out of his boot today. Progress
What do you guys think the chances are that RB #1 will be Ward and RB #2 will be Brown this year? I personally can’t stand the way Woods carries the ball.
This seems to support Woods staying ahead of Brown at least.
Stormy?
Yeah I would prepare yourself to see Storm carry the ball this year. Unless something crazy happens I don’t see him dropping down to the third running back.
MR will waste Brown’s talent. Woods should be the 3rd down guy.
I’m not seeing it practice. He just hasn’t looked a guy who should be getting more touched than he is. I know he has a pretty good highlight tape and played well in garbage time, but you need to find a way to shine in practice, especially if you are getting to jump players on the depth chart.
After Storm gets hurt by the third game, we’ll see more Butterhands Brown. Ward will be getting most of the carries, though.
I think this is Ward’s year.
Riley on the running backs:
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2014/08/oregon_state_football_mike_ril_38.html
Brown appears to have the most burst of all our backs and Ward runs the hardest.
I would be Ok with Ward/ Brown carrying the bulk of the load and Storm being used as a 3rd down / passing down RB ala Darren Sproles.. Those Sproles packages are all a part of our current offensive makeup
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2014/08/oregon_state_beavers_ranked_no.html#incart_river I though I didn’t have to read Schnell talk about the beavs anymore. 23rd though?
Seems low
Mike Riley on Xavier Hawkins:
” love the freshmen. Xavier (Hawkins), we might not redshirt that kid, he’s got what we need. You saw him run the fly sweep. I’m excited about him.”
Not sure what film Angry was watching on this kid.. to compare him to Marble…but to me this guy was one of the best get of this class. Simply explosive.
I read a few Tennessee fan boards after he committed and there were a lot of local Vol fans upset they didn’t offer him.
What a great name! Xavier Hawkins sounds like a detective, a naturalist, a writer, an explorer, an actor, the protagonist of a crime series, or . . . football player for Oregon State.
….or a prostitute turned author.
Jarmon with a pretty noticeable limp in tonight’s practice.
Beaverblazer, they changed the practice time on Monday the 18th to 7 PM…wonder if it’s too late to tell them you can go?!
I’m planning to go now with a buddy of mine, unless the weather ends up rainy. I wonder if they’ll move practice to Reser since its at night? Might be cool to get any seat we want in an empty stadium.
I doubt it because I’m sure they would have mentioned that in the email.
FYI, just got another email saying they are indeed moving it to Reser.
I got that email too and I meant to thumbs up, not down…also, we can park anywhere around Reser…it’s free in the summer time.
oh good, thanks for the parking tip. i had meant to ask them about that because i was afraid the parking nazi’s would ticket me while down there
NOLA article on Keenan Lewis: http://www.nola.com/saints/index.ssf/2014/08/post_317.html#incart_big-photo
It will be fun to read about the results of his race with Cooks, if it happens. My money would be on Cooks…
Came across a Wednesday night practice report from PO user, Angus. It’s pretty long and mostly positive. Not sure if he’s overly optimistic, but it sounds like he really likes what he’s seeing from this team.
http://www.pure-orange.net/cgi/anyboard.cgi/bscpigskin2?cmd=get&cG=53532333&zu=35353233&v=2&gV=0&p=
Gotta assume the glasses are tinted Orange, but it’s all believable to me. Have high expectations for this team. Be in Vegas in a couple weeks and I’m super tempted to throw $100 on some of those 31-1 conference championship odds I was reading about a couple weeks ago.
Good call you honestly cant go wrong with that. $100 in Vegas is like $20 dollars everywhere else
Interesting recruit, he’s an acclaimed American Samoa soccer player FWIW.
Wiki page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shalom_Luani
Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/1634793/highlights/95423381
If there was a chance for brown to make a move it’s today with woods sitting out of practice.
Appreciate the updates. Sounds like you’ve been able to make it to a ton of practice this year. How do you feel about the team in contrast/comparison to the Pure Orange poster Beavblaz linked above? You seem to have a good bearing on things.
Thanks!
Just got an espn alert on my phone saying The Buckeye’s added the mighty Beavers of Oregon State to their 2018 Home schedule. Wow.
I would certainly make the trip for this potential blood bath.
Last matchup this one sided was the Christians vs the lions at the Roman Coliseum.
This must be the Craig Robinson memorial classic.
Quite the production at tOSU. They get close to 20K at the Friday night pep rally before home games.
It’s called the Skull Session and features their band, which is beyond anything you have heard. Director just got canned for some sexual hazing( can’t have any fun anymore?) that went on with the members, so they may take a step back. They so had to march around in their undies, so please no comments about insensitivity. The stadium is awesome! Only hope is if Urban Meyer quits before the season with burnout.
Was Meyer the one in the booth calling out Riley’s Katz/Mannion coaching gaffes when OSU was at Wisconsin?
I think so.
Yep.
Will Del Rio be a senior that season?
Home and home or just us doing the traveling as usual?
Just us traveling there of course. What else would be expected.
Eggers with an article about OSU’s assistant AD, as well as updates on Valley Center remodeling starting a year earlier than originally planned (starting after this season) and a Reser stadium expansion to follow the Valley Center job.
Sounds like there are 2 schools of thought with the Reser expansion. One would be to make the west grandstand mirror the east, and the other would be more of a facelift to the current west side, at a fraction of the cost. Guess which method will happen?
http://portlandtribune.com/pt/12-sports/229992-92450-massari-sets-course-for-osu-future
“Massari is working with Nike on home uniforms that will be labeled “Bold” for black and “United” for orange. Fans will be alerted in advance so they can wear the color of the day. The look, he says, will be “Beaver authentic.”
Are these NEW uniforms? Or just combinations of existing?
scroll up about midway through this thread. I posted pics of the new combinations the other day. They’re new (nike approved) combinations of the existing uniforms. Last year we just had solid colors head to toe. This year we’ll be mixing them up a little.
Sounds like tartan endzones are being considered for 2015 season
Mark Massari (@BennysGotMyBack) tweeted at 4:53 PM on Thu, Aug 14, 2014:
Black for this yr, vetting tartan for next yr @virtualdoug: How about Tartan endzones.Fans are screaming for them and will set us apart.
(https://twitter.com/BennysGotMyBack/status/500067787231199233)
Does anyone else think Riley might under-utilize Nall and waste his redshirt as he did with Wheaton? Riley seems determined to play him but concedes he doesn’t know what to do with him yet. If they turn Nall into a RB, I think he gets buried on the depth chart and winds up returning kicks. But with the RB depth, an unsettled Oline, and underwhelming ST kick return blocking, would it be worth burning his redshirt?
He could be an intriguing addition at RB, providing size – 6-2, 241 lbs – at that position that OSU hasn’t had since Steven Jackson.
I think his best value to the team is at LB (which Riley says may be his best position), but I don’t think he’s had practice reps there, it seems unlikely he’d get PT worthy of burning a redshirt. As an OLB, he’d have the necessary speed and unusual size for an OSU OLB, and would be able to provide some size on the field when OSU takes out its MLB. He’d probably knock the hell out of opposing QBs and be able to run them down from behind. I’ll be surprised if Alexander makes it through the season, and the second string players behind Doctor and Alexander don’t seem particularly imposing or special; seems like Nall would be an upgrade there.
Where do you guys think he should play, and once there, should he redshirt, or should he get reps in game time?
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2014/08/freshman_ryan_nall_impresses_a.html
I was thinking the exact same thing. Redshirt him unless injuries force the issue. LB>RB>TE.
Odds are he wastes him this year and we are lamenting that we don’t have him in 2018 when we go to the Shoe and when the mighty Gophers are running wild over us the following week at Reser LOL.
It’s easy to imagine Riley pissing away Nall’s redshirt on 20-40 plays, then having him change positions again his junior or senior season and saying “Looking back I wish I would have….”
I wonder if it has something to do with Nall being a local kid? By playing a local guy his freshman year, it might help entice other top local players to come to OSU, if they see they have the opportunity to play immediately? Just thinking about that teammate of Nall’s at Central Catholic, Cameron Scarlett, although I think it’s too late for him. We’re not in his top 5.
I just don’t remember Riley talking up a freshman so much since maybe Quizz or maybe Isaac, and sure I think Nall will be good, but I don’t think he’s at the same level Quizz was as a frosh.
I think they will take the same approach with Nall that they took with many of the freshman last season. They might dress him up for games and only use him if absolutely needed, as was the case for Harlow, Arnold, and Hunt last year. They ended up not using Hunt or Arnold and saving their redshirt. And I still not buying that they wasted wheatons redshirt year, when you redshirt you are at most on the scout team, which the focus is on learning and executing others offense or defense. For some players I think it is more benifical to accelerate their progress and get them working with the first and second team all year and being ready in case of injury. I don’t look back and wish we had redshirted Wheaton.
I was at practice yesterday and Nall was in fact deep in the RB rotation as they went through a passing drill. I don’t have a strong opinion on the question posed but I predict that if he’s as good a two way player as everyone suggests he’ll probably be on the punt and kick-off coverage teams, so we’ll get a little defense out of him. As for Wheaton, if he hadn’t played as a freshman he would have turned pro after his 3rd year of play so playing him as a frosh was the right decision. Imagine if Cooks had red-shirted and we only got two years of play out of him.
Other impressions: call it the Garrett effect, but he and other assistants seem more voluble than I remember Langsdorf and his peers in previous years.
Vanderveen passes the eye test. He “looks” almost as tall as Sean, and has the quickest release of the top three. When Del Rio stands next to Brent and Sean he looks, well, short. He seems to have a “loose” demeanor, and that’s not a criticism. Relaxed, I mean. And for those who have suggested Mannion seems more “fleet” of foot: I concur. He doesn’t seem to run with lead boots on any more. Actually gets to the outside on rollouts on a timely basis.
Kempt has toothpicks for legs. Probably doomed to the scout team. When they ran the 7 on 7 he didn’t get any reps; not to anyone’s surprise.
Speaking of quarterback size. I’ve been following our 2015 recruit James Pensyl a little this summer. Have been seeing good things written about him. One thing that stands out though, is that he’s now at 6’7″ and 220lbs, as an incoming high school senior.
Also, read this, for what it’s worth.
Sounds like an Anderson-sized prospect. Wonder if OSU will be able to keep him when he starts getting more attention this fall?
I think Mannion looked good at times throwing the ball on roll-outs last year. It sounds like his focus on improved footwork is paying off.
In his 2010 and 2011 Wheaton had 5 receiving TDs. Only 1 receiving in 2011 so I don’t think he would have left early. In 2012 he had 11 receiving TDs.
He got 19 touches in 2009 as a true FR.
I like the idea of “bold” and “united” days. This school has struggled with “black outs” since 2007 (did I get the year right, about that time). Really clever way to side step the issue entirely. I like having this guy back already, a quick and clever option to deal with a real sore spot.
I go through Phil Steele’s power ratings every year (since he’s about the only magazine does thorough research anymore on every team), added in home field advantage stats and projected the games for each team. What you see below is each teams record if they win every time they are favored and lose every time they are an underdog for the upcoming season based on those power ratings. It’s a good water cooler discussion.
PAC-12 SOUTH
UCLA 9-0 (12-0)
USC. 7-2 (10-2)
Arizona. 4-5 (7-5)
Arizona State. 3-6 (5-7)
Utah. 3-6 (5-7)
Colorado. 0-9 (2-10)
PAC-12 NORTH
Oregon. 8-1 (11-1)
Stanford. 7-2 (10-2)
Washington. 6-3 (10-3)
Oregon State. 5-4 (8-4)
Washington State. 1-8 (4-8)
California. 1-8 (2-10)
OREGON STATE SCHEDULE (- is favorite, + is underdog)
Portland State (FCS – No Line)
@ Hawaii (-17)
San Diego State (-14)
@ USC (+8)
@ Colorado (-10.5)
Utah (-7)
@ Stanford (+10.5)
California (-13.5)
Washington State (-8.5)
Arizona State (-3)
@ Washington (+5)
Oregon (+9)
The SEC network:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2159746-the-rise-of-the-sec-network
They already had a network……..ESPN.
Excellent point. The south’s race to stupidity and obesity shifts into 6th gear…
Race against whom?
I guess “the rest of the country” would probably be a reasonable answer now that I think about it.
Right, since every other school has 1 network now, the SEC needs 2.
I guess there’s still a chance….although anybody know how it would affect our ability to sign Tinkle/Thompson Jr. next year if Manderson was on board? How many scholarships would we have next year?
He’s considering the *ucks, not Beavs.
Yeah, Connor just posted this too:
So F that guy. We didn’t want him anyway, right?
I guess there’s immediate playing time available down south at Forcible Sodomy U
Go play for Tubby you idiot.
Why student-athletes need to be students:
http://www.oregonlive.com/nfl/index.ssf/2014/08/colt_lyerla_diagnosed_with_tor.html#incart_m-rpt-1