390 COMMENTS

  1. Calling tonight’s game as I see it. ASU 47, Beavs 17. More excuses by Riley in post game while smacking on Wrigley’s juicy fruit. Half the fans will leave before the end of the 3rd quarter with half of those by halftime. The few fans still there in the 4th will have empty stares that will be broadcast to the nation on ESPN. Another embarassment with a national audience witnessing that Beavers football stinks. Welcome to the bottom of the barrel. Riley wets his panties for the upteenth time. This beatdown getting Canzano to admit Riley is a lost cause is the only positive that may come.

  2. Im very interested in watching this one. Will we play well for a respectable loss, or we be embarrassed and feel our womens basketball team wouldve been more prepared to face AzSU.
    … I have lost faith in this program

  3. Would Del Rio coming in as head coach next year to guide the team with his son having a primary role have a reasonable shot of working? He has presence like Tinkle and is a man’s man unlike Riley. Team would be much more interesting than sad Riley reruns. He would bring an identity and one fans will support.

  4. Gonna be real tough for Riley to make a respectable showing. Some of the players must have checked out by now, realizing their damn coach isnt really engaged in the games. I guess we’ll see.

    As to a replacement, all the naysayers are wrong, saying we could do worse. For example its hard to imagine anyone doing worse at clock management at the end of a half.

    • Even if Barney was all world he’d eventually have to retire. Then what? These naysayers probably go through life expecting the sky to fall any minute. They probably wish Jimmy Anderson was till the hoops coach. They’ve always been the problem for poor old OSU – they’ve been an enabler for the weak ass Athletic Department (or head). I mean these freaks are the same folks that clap for Riley during post game interviews with Preece after Opie has received another shellacking, even to Sac St and EWU. WTF!? They’re a total waste of O2.

    • Can you imagine Barney speaking to his troops like this? Nevermind, I know the answer.

      BTW, if you were an 18-22 YO kid(s), primarily from larger metro areas, what the hell would you think having some disengaged dude yell “hip, hip…?” They’ve gotta be thinking WTF, right? I mean come on, is there anyone that thinks that has some sort of resonance with these young kids? At lest the haven’t had to recite that weak ass shite from the 20’s for the past 4 weeks.

      Congrats to Tinks for addressing that embarrassment against WOU and winning against a D1 team. Adjustments were clearly made this week.

      • I disagree with your problem with the ‘hip hip hooray’ line, there is nothing wrong with that and kids would buy in. Guarantee they aren’t thinking WTF.

          • Just my experience working with kids of a similar age (coached high school football for 15 years)….Kids get into things like that. Lets me honest, ‘win the day’ is just as hokey yet look around at all the kids whirring that. Slogans are hokey by nature but having a chant as a team is rarely if ever something kids say “WTF” too. They almost universally love them.
            I’ve had several players who have bought and wear the ‘hip hip hooray’ socks you can purchase. Granted, I don’t coach kids from LA but kids are kids.

  5. Isn’t there almost no chance Riley gets fired? I know this isn’t an accurate sample, but a lot of people on social media still defend Riley and agree with articles published in the media about the ‘fire Riley’ talk.

    I agree that it’s gaining attraction, but I don’t see how he could realistically be fired this off-season with the fanbase not totally on board and the financial burden it would place on the university.

    Is there actually a possibility he get fired?

    • I say no. Riley has too much established cred to be fired unless … two things. He were to go winless or almost a couple seasons, or … if the attendance really fell off.

      But … I think he might well retire if real success stays out of reach. He is not a bad guy, and will realize, if he hasnt already, that he is now a detriment to the program. So if it stays like it is, we wont see him even come close to his full contract.

        • He’s not very nice then. I agree with you sadly. His motive and BDC’s seem to be how much they can take OSU for. Low expectations is right where they want it to stay. Have to run them out of town like the Chargers did before anything changes for the better.

          • We’ll see. There is more and more heat. And there IS incentive for Riley to retire. Namely, his legacy. He keeps up the status quo and he eventually has to leave, as the fans will start to stay away. Even then he wont be fired, but will be told to retire. So he is going to see this coming, and choose to retire while he still has a decent legacy.

            As to being actually fired, it cant happen just because of the huge buyout necessary. So I say he wont be fired, and wont make it to 2021.

          • A friend of mine actually played for Barney (ex BYU LB). He retired and was living in SD and he told me the other day that the #1 issue with him was/is that he never had the team prepared, scheme-wise and emotionally. Fast forward a decade later and it’s the SOS, different uniforms.

    • Regrettably, no. Even the “mixed feelings crowd” will say Barney should be given a chance to “evolve his philosophy” and or “change up the staff and bring in new coordinators…” But even if that were to happen (it won’t btw) that’s never been the root issue. The constant in all of this is Riley (and BDC) who is baked. I’m always baffled when people end even critical assessments saying “but he’s a nice guy,” almost apologizing for speaking the truth. What the deuce!? Why should we justify our displeasure for a coach that’s completely and utterly inept? This isn’t a half pregnant deal – bite the bullet or it’s pain now or a hell of a lot more pain later. But it’s all for not since we don’t have the backbone within our culture to do the right thing. It will get so bad, like close to terminal, before decisions are made but that’s our MO. I mean we were shocked and then not really shocked when DeCareless came out with that ludicrous letter of support for Robinson. We’re to the point where there’s more focus on the “cheaters” down the road instead of taking care of our own shit.

  6. Snowing in Logan for the USU game. So far their defense is playing lights out. More I see of Wells the more I like the guy. Offense about to take field on Espn News (Channel 142 Dish)

  7. They just said USU is using a 4th string QB because of injuries and he still has won 3 straight. What could Wells do with a Pac-12 first stringer?

  8. Hey Beavblazer….. Are those tickets still available? I’ll go if you pay me $200.00.

    I would love to; drive two hours, freeze my ass off, watch the immovable Mannequin launch 40-50 scuds, watch Wanker’s defense give up 50 points and get home around 1:00 AM. On second thought make it $250.

    Wait a minute! Your’e trying to sell them? Never mind. JB

  9. Switching over to MSU-Alabama. #1 going down today. Will Ducks take over top spot Monday? Oregon State being left in the dust with Riley. Don’t see how we can afford to not make a change.

  10. Good to see some of your jump on the Wells bandwagon, been my guy for some time. If I had the power I’d pair him with Baldwin from EWU as OC and offer to make Orgeron an assistant head coach/recruiter with a sizable pay check. You could probably get all 3 for roughly what Leach makes at WSU (1.5 for Wells, .5 for Baldwin, .750 for Orgeron would get it done IMO) but of course OSU probably wouldn’t even pay that. That would create some excitement and OSU recruiting issues and scheme issues would disappear over night.
    Now back to reality.

  11. ESPN headlines: Alabama firing on all cylinders…. Overview of their last 3 drives, punt, missed field goal, punt…. While giving up 10 points to MSST… Do they (ESPN) have no shame, or do they just think we’re stupid?

  12. Kind of hard to get fired up for this one after seeing Rueck and Tinkle putting on a coaching clinic last night. I can’t bear to watch Mike Riley stand on the sideline chewing his gum or smiling while getting his ass kicked. Last night was the penultimate to my weekend.

  13. Why didn’t Peterson have WA take a knee with under 2 minutes left? Arizona had just 1 TO. Couldn’t they have essentially milked the clock? That was some Mike Riley time management. Then he calls a TO and the FG kicker misses. Wow. Someone had a beer with Riley…

  14. Since I’m not going to the game tonight and will be watching it at home, what’s the drinking game of the week?
    A shot for every info-mercial type commercial played during the game? (Always a sure-fire sign by the network that no one is watching).
    A beer bong every time the announcers mention Riley is one of the most admired/respected coaches in the country.

  15. Snow game today today in Minneapolis. tOSU has some imposing guys on the O and D lines. Joey Bosa is a stud and their frosh QB is fantastic. No way Braxton Miller beats him out next year.

  16. A loss in tonight’s game with a sparse crowd that keeps getting sparser is the one that puts this program firmly in the national laughingstock category. Talking at a level on par with Colorado from 3 years ago. Nobody keeps a coach who goes 1 for 13 in conference. Even more so after they have already been given several more years than they would see anywhere else. This is going to 1 for 15 after Oregon slaughters us and if Oregon State is dumb enough to keep Riley how much worse will it get before we say no more? Riley loses his first few Pac-12 games next year and we could easily be facing a 1 and 18 Riley in his last 19 Pac-12 contests. How can the AD and President even allow our current state and more yet where this dumpster fire is headed? INEXCUSEABLE!

    • I thought Banker’s comments about “taking the bullet this time, but not again” were interesting. If I understand the context, he’s kind of throwing the players under the bus and I don’t think that is necessarily a bad thing, but it’s an odd statement. Almost a survival mode type of statement. Two blowouts to end the season and it makes me think some change is going to happen. Banker may be the fall guy.

      • Banker has been a DC forever and can never get a HC job. If the guy were truly a great coach as the media wants us to believe, someone would hire him.

        • Angry’s right. No way Banker ever gets a HC position at the highest level. The guy’s got the best gig in FBS with a buddy protector in Barney Fife.

    • You’re wrong on the national laughing stock. The National media loves Riley, too. What they’ll do is nicely say that team x (insert any team playing OSU) will win and then never mention Riley’s name until a few years from now when the team improves.

      • The national media is just going to assume that the great coach Mike Riley will “get this thing turned around again” and will parrot that message for the time being. Wazzu and CU were laughing stocks for awhile, non competitive is almost every game for more than one season. Riley had three games that could have been won in the 4th quarter this season. Coherent coaching and the Beavs could be 7-3. Next year he may get the ‘young team” pass. I don’t know how he exits yet.

        • Easily could be 7-2 if not for shitty coaching job and one of the other games Riley made a horrible decision to cost OSU 7 points against USC before halftime. But it’s always somebody else’s fault, never Riley as the media likes to pretend

  17. Melvin Gordon of Wussconsin sets FBS rushing record today with 408 yards rushing. On 25 carries. In only 3 quarters. How’s that for a swiss cheese D?

  18. Got $600 on ASU on a moneyline bet to win $200. Riley is all but a guaranteed loser in this one. He gets worse every game. Not a big payday for me but a very simple and easy $200. Wife wants diamond earrings for our 4th anniversary and this will be care of dufus Riley. I’ll do the same moneyline bet for the Huskies next week and they will be all but paid for. Riley losses are a dime a dozen.

      • 7:45. No Dad’s Weekend was last week and only reason crowd wasn’t 35K or less to start. Tonight ignore the announced crowd numbers. Low 30s by halftime with more streaming out for rest of game. Riley has lost this team and you can’t blame the players. Coaching blunders from Riley and his staff bear the blame.

    • “…It’s forecasted to be in the low-40s Saturday night in Corvallis, Oregon, with wind chill dropping into the 30s…”

      Currently (6:30 PST) accu weather is showing the temperature to be 36 with a real feel of 33 and the overnight low to be 20.

      I would think a running game would be better than a passing game if the temperature is near freezing. Bwdik Will Riley still call passing plays 60+ % of the time?

      Will Mannion make it through the night without getting seriously injured?

      When does the basketball season start? Oh wait……..

  19. It’s finally here!!!

    No not the ASU game.

    The sequel “Dumb and Dumber To”!

    (I’ll refrain from any Riley/Banker comments since I’ve beat up on them enough and they’re about to get beat down)

  20. Wowsers. Stadium is half empty. Things can’t last for Riley like this. He’ll need wins and I don’t think he finds one the rest of the year. That will be 7 straight Pac-12 losses to end the season.

  21. Riley in great shape at 2nd and 4 and decides to go on a pass fest. 2 incompletions later and it is all too common Riley 3 and out. Punt time.

    • Shows why smart fans say we should run more than pass. Team usually averages almost 5 yards per run. Riley goes away from it far too easily when nervous.

  22. These conditions would make for a fun experience if Rile. E. dIdn’t suck add so much/hard.

    This is when you take advantage of a southern team.

    • That will be our last run called all night. Riley after the game, “yeah we had a good avg, I guess I should’ve called more run plays?”

  23. Defense came ready to play tonight. Hope the offense will give them enough rest tonight to keep them fresh and not give ASU too many short fields to work with.

  24. WHY THE HELL ARE YOU PUNTING FROM THE 35 YARD LINE RILEY????? Net 17 yards after lame ass punt. GO FOR IT OR TRY TO GET 3 POINTS. Field position is next to meaningless from there. Opportunity to score much greater!!!

  25. Flashes in the pan don’t mean much with Riley. Its the sum of the parts of a whole game and it is here where Riley always falls short. Chalk up a loss. Riley won’t claw back into this and certainly won’t win. 1 win in last 13 conference games. The freefall continues.

  26. Actually, the Beavs are playing better than expected.
    My question, and I wish a reporter would ask, is how is it Riley can motivate and coach his team for tonight but not every night?

  27. Have heard rumors that the administration is quietly looking at potential head coach options. They may not be at the super serious stage yet but have heard they like Brian Harsin from Boise St. He has some fire so I can’t say that would be a poor choice. I know some fans like Wells. Tough to know which is the better bet but I’d take either over all this losing from Riley. There is promise there but with Riley I see continued disappointment.

  28. The running plays were pretty successful in not only gaining yards, but also keeping ASU’s offense off the field. A score here and we’ll be wishing we had that field goal opportunity

    • How’s it suck? Aren’t we all in agreement that Riley won’t get fired and that he’ll only leave when he retires? Hoping for losses so that he gets fired doesn’t work for me.

      • Agree. If I thought a loss would in any way spur on his firing, I’d be cheering for it. But that’s not gonna happen irrespective of what happens on the field, so I’ll just cheer for the win. (Like my cheering has any bearing anyways…)

      • Because right now everyone sees the warts. Everyone. If he wins this i’ll be another step back for him stepping down (yes he won’t get fired, but he might retire, especially since he looks ill).

        That being said, I think it’s really important for schools to be > .500 historically so OSU needs wins.

  29. I cant stand it when our RBs stutter stop themselves at the line of scrimmage. Take your running start and a lesson in physics and hit it where you want the hole to be.

  30. Full disclosure: I just turned this game on.

    That said, considering this is a 6 point game against an opponent ranked #6 I’m amazed at how empty the stands look. Granted its almost 11pm and night games are hell (especially when it’s cold) but doesn’t this show the state of the program?

    P.S. now we are ahead.

    • It does seem that happens every year. I remember the last time his seat got very hot he pulled something out of his ass. We’re stuck with the loveable loser due to a win. Ironic!

  31. Yep and here comes the flood of positive press.

    Everyone will point out why people wanting Riley fired were wrong. That’s the downside of this, but overall a good weekend. Beavs actually played really well tonight so I was content win or lose with this one. Again, it’s all about playing the game properly and executing well.

    • Haven’t we concluded that the athletic department has been insular to the press? So who cares if there’s positive press vs. the negative press that may have resulted if the Beavs lost.

  32. There will be plenty of time for criticism of the rest of the season later, but tonight it’s a great victory for beaver nation and most of all the players :)

    (I still think the guy who thought we’d win is crazy though)

  33. I don’t know why you guys thought predicting a win was crazy. OSU always wins a game they shouldn’t, and ASU traveling to Corvallis in 30 degree weather with a late kickoff. I didn’t make any prediction on this game but calling a win wasn’t insane. Football is random and thinking ASU might not show up for a game like this wasn’t a bad thought.

  34. I hope no one lost their retirement or wive’s happiness tonight. Never bet on Beaver games, will get you on either side. Poor ASU, nobody told them the qb scramble was wide open all night.

    • I’m down 170 now over 2 weeks but plan on winning it back with better odds next week. I learned from the best..Steve Stevens. All that matters is going out a winner when u leave. Should be able to do something like betting $510 (170×3) to win $300. That will put me up $130 and we’ll lower the carat a little and go out to a nice dinner. Worst case I am down $680 but Petersen will want to snap back and don’t see Riley going on a mini winning streak. He’ll rest on the success of one win knowing he will be back and can get away with more losses next year.

  35. The game from the Beavs tonight seemed more balanced and more complete then ever. Steven Nelson was the star tonight on D and Villaman on O.

        • You tend to ask unnecessary questions. (On a separate note, I don’t have cable this year so I don’t watch the games.) Tonight, they evidently played solid, smart ball. That’s great! The majority of the time under Riley they tend not to play smart. Wouldn’t you agree?

          • My questions are about whether you’ll eat crow or not. Now you’re saying you don’t watch the games, so that’s all I need to know, i.e. you don’t know what you’re talking about.

          • I listen to the games and can hear Parker and Wilson moaning in pain about the team. That’s transparent enough for me. I’ve witnessed puhhlenty of poor execution in subsequent years to know exactly what is happening. I don’t need to view a false start or poor clock mgm’t to know what it is.

          • oh and about eating crow…you bet. I’m so committed to the Beavs turning around that this is why I’m so rough on Riley and Co. I want this thing righted! You must not have seen my post about being happy for the players.

  36. I can’t get too worked over for a 5-5 team. If Riley figures out a way to beat UW on the road and becomes bowl eligible AND then is competitive against the Ducks, I will tip my hat and say he figured something out with this group. Otherwise, 5-7 is still a lost season with awful losses to Cal and Wazzu.

  37. To me, a result like this one is MORE reaon Riley needs to go. Like I have said before, it isnt that he is a bad coach, but that he (most of the time, clearly) no longer applies himself. Just cruising thru his ironclad contract.

    With a performance like this one, he shows this could be a winning program…..if he werent just cruising most of the time. When some pressure comes on, he chooses to apply himself to regain status, then goes back on cruise control. Thanks for nothing, Riley.

    We need a coach who wants to win, all the time.

      • Or, if you’d watched the games, you would’ve seen the previous losses where the different position groups were not playing as a unit, and now tonight, they did. What was Riley’s role in that not happening and then happening? Who knows.

        • It makes a difference when you send your backers instead of dropping them into coverage against teams who constantly run on you. It makes a difference when your corners are pressing instead of playing 10 yards off the receivers. It sure looks more like assignment football when the gaps are covered at the line instead of our D running inside out to the gap and waiting for the ball carrier to come through the hole and make a move. The D did not play their usual, maddening methods. That was nice.

          And while the offense wasn’t exactly lights out and we still had 9 penalties overall, there was actually some more balanced play-calling going on. It should be about 50:50 leaning toward one or the other depending on match-ups. Games just like this are what always prove the method in our system. It’s not like we OSU fans watched Riley’s teams for the first five years of his second tenure and develop this idea of what makes his system successful out of thin air. This is what works for Riley. It has never worked any other way for him. He loses and looks lost when he schemes outside his comfort zone.

          If we had been running the ball all year, this would have been a much different season. And I don’t want to hear excuses like after Stanford when we would run it once and give up and get asked, “Well, how much would you like them to run since they’ve only run it for five yards?” You simply don’t succeed at things you don’t do. And Riley doesn’t succeed when his teams don’t do this one thing consistently.

          Anyone else notice we didn’t try a fly sweep? In fact, it was really nice not seeing us try to pick at ASU’s edges like we have done to other speed teams in the past. We punched them in the gut and kept swinging for once. So that’s different.

          What made it apparent that we are still weak is the 3rd down average. 1 for 12 isn’t going to cut it most games. And it really doesn’t help when our head coach has lost faith in his ST… only to opt for another part of ST to screw it all up.

          • I’d give props to the O line, too. I was concerned after seeing the sacks and ints the ASU D had on Notre Dame last week. They did a nice job picking up guys crashing.

          • The Oline gains a lot of confidence and moxy by being able to run the ball. The oline needs a break from being on their heels trying to stop aggressors and be able to be the aggressors, running the ball helps the OLine play, even Riley knows that making those losses so frustratingly poor.

            Also helping the beavs for a change was the youth of ASUs D. 9 freshmen? The complex system was forcing their young(less experienced) D to make reads for a change, in an offensive style they see little of, and making reads slows you down. Mannion continues to look even worse by receivers dropping balls that hit their hands., could have looked much better if those plays are made, but thats the players we have. Drops have really impacted his stat lines this year (as well as not giving the oline enough run plays).

          • It’s kind of insane that this is not a run first team. Woods has averaged 6.7 yards and Ward 5.2 and there has been a big enough sample size to say those are not fluke numbers. Should have been a 55/45 mix all year. That’s on Riley.

          • I think Fred L. has made a difference in the OL’s ability to get some space available for the RB’s possibly. There again. You have to go withe the best talent.

        • Who knows!?!? You have to be kidding. Riley is the damned HEAD COACH. The team plays the way he coaches them,….or doesnt coach them. You are one of those who blame the losses on the kids, not the coaches. Suck it up.

          • I’m talking about Riley’s role in the team playing more as a unit this game, not whether he should or shouldn’t take responsibility. My guess is, as far as coaching goes, this had more to do with Garrett and Cav than Riley. Riley’s influence was probably more in the area of the guys wanting to play hard for him. I’m saying the people that would know are the ones at practice everyday. It’s not so cut and dry that teams play the way they are coached. In fact, by saying that, you’re removing the entire individuality of each team member as well as the dynamic of the group.

          • if the coaching is good, the team plays the way the coach wants. If the coaching is bad, they dont.

            If Riley’s influence is in the area of the guys wanting to play hard for him, he is failing, because most games they dont.

            What I suspect is that the players themselves occasionally do the coach’s job and fire themselves up. But lackluster play is on the coaches. Its pretty clear that Riley doesnt inspire hard play anymore, most of the time.

          • Hmm… removing individuality from a team game. That’s… um… bad… because that wouldn’t allow the group to… um… find its identity.

          • Incorrect.

            Each individual does not build a team’s identity. Each individual on a team sublimates their own individuality in order for the team’s identity to be whole. In order to do it correctly, each individual needs different direction, shaping them to be the correctly sized cog in the machine or properly shaped piece in the puzzle. But the identity is the goal, not the process.

        • Mr. or Ms. Bend Beaver,

          Your missing a bit of information here. So here it is.

          1) I don’t have cable television this year.

          2) I owned season tickets and attended OSU football games (all) between 1998 and 2010 after receiving free tickets from then AD Mitch Barnhart for volunteering my time to hand paint “OREGON STATE BEAVERS” on the old West grandstands.

          3) I had cable TV throughout all those years up until those years UNTIL this year so I watched and re-watched a lot of football, good and bad, including being very supportive of Mike Riley, even Jerry Pettibone, and of course Dennis Erickson. (I never went to a single football game when I attended OSU as basketball was king and I spent much time in Gill)

          4) I’m no expert in football strateegery…BUT…
          …BUT…
          anyone with any minimal to fair amount of knowledge knows when a team is consistently unprepared and stagnant the way a Mike Riley team HAS BEEN for several years. I do NOT need a TV to prove that.

          Go Beavs!

  38. That’s what I’m talking about, mother F! Run the damn ball!!!!! Finally, something for the seniors to feel good about. They’ve all been through enough shit.

    Where has this team been???

    Anyone else think there’s a coincidence with the weed law passing and all the sudden Banker pulls his head out of his ass? Maybe he finally smoked enough to forget all of those horrible formations and play calling.

    Bring on more stoned Banker!!!!

  39. It was fun for three reasons:
    1. Good for our kids.
    2. ASU certainly wasn’t shy about giving us bulletin board material. We were peeing on someone’s leg, and it wasn’t our own.
    3. Todd Graham is just so funny to watch when his teams lose. He turns a beet red and looks like he’s going to blow his lid. And wow can that little man cuss. You don’t have to know how to read lips to know what he was saying half the time the camera was on him.

  40. Ran the damn ball! Finally!!! Gotta do something about the penalties and sacks, but we all know it will be the same next week…too bad…team could be relatively decent if Riley knew how to coach them to their strengths.

  41. For sale: I have 2 Club level tickets from theOSU/ASU game available. I’m taking offers. Buy them now while you have a chance. You can tell your friends and family you were there, when an unranked OSU knocked off the #6 Sun Devils making the Beavs the winningist unranked team at home vs ranked opponents since 2003 (or something like that I saw in the paper today. I guess that counts as a stat?). Anyway, these wont last long.

  42. I guess all I can do is root for Riley to coach like that EVERY game. But the evidence from recent years says he wont.

    Huge props to the players, rising to the occasion!! Now, if they could just do the same in the Civil War…. oh, baby….that would be so sweet….

  43. Riley is like the Buffalo Bills, can’t win the big game. But when there is adversity nobody circles the wagon any better. The problem lies there has to be some sort of adversity to create that opportunity.

    • I would take 4 straight losses in the Rose Bowl any day and so would every other Beaver fan.
      Not a great analogy. What the Bills accomplished is amazing and may never be duplicated. Riley’s team just pulled one upset, big whup.
      Sorry, Marv Levy is a borderline personal hero to me and didn’t want anyone even mentioning Riley as being in the same class.

  44. DVR’d the game and watched this AM. Surprise! Happy for the kids. Inside power running works. Who would have thunk it? Helps when our CB’s are not giving ten yard cushions. The play of our two TE’s has to be the biggest disappointment for this team. They were supposed to be the focal point of the offense this year. Hamlett goes down a hint of contact and Smith is a bonehead of epic proportions. BTW, who else thought we lost the game when Wark’s penalty cost us the first down on Ward’s run late in the game? Props to Woods on his two big runs.

  45. Some thoughts on the replays:

    1) Larry Scott slowed up on that ASU TD pass to the #83 Zimmerman? It as odd, like he was just going to watch his teammates finish the play.

    2) Mannion is still under-throwing and not hitting receivers in stride. On the long TD to Villamin, Villamin had to slow down and adjust. Nitpicking, but that needs improvement.

    3) Doctor’s INT reminded me of that OSU safety’s INT and return against #1 USC/Sanchez several years, but he was stopped just short of the end zone. I think it was the same end of the field and same area.

    4) Nice to see some Beaver RBs outrunning people. On Woods’ first big run, that ASU player was paralleling him for some reason – almost looked like Storm’s wing man – instead of going directly to him. They are nearly stride-for-stride on the same hashes he just never changed his angle.

    Fun game to have watched. Only ended up in front of a tv because I decided to get off the icy roads.

    Even if the Beavers could sustain this level of play and win one or two more games I’d want Riley demoted. In fact, if he could pull a CW upset and get one of his mediocre bowl victories after, it’d be the perfect time to take a different role at OSU.

  46. Did anybody else catch one of the ESPN announcers say that Riley mentioned to them that “communication has been a challenge” with this team? I thought that was interesting, of course the commentators then started babbling about the great leadership from Mannion, etc. ect. Rod Gilmore also went on a tangent during the tough 2nd quarter talking about how a young defense like OSU without depth gets tired, he might be right about depth, but apparenlty clueless on the senior heavy line up.

    • I honestly don’t think Gilmore watches film of teams during the week, talks to coaches/players from either team, or even look at a roster. He has to be simply the worst analyst in all of football.

    • From a related, morning-after article:

      “The narrative now will be that Pelini’s days are numbered, that the hot seat is on fire. You know now that the athletic director won’t be commenting on that, and in fact, he’ll now be harder to find.

      There’s one giant hurdle there. It’s hard to know how the Huskers will respond to this one, but if they beat Minnesota and Iowa they would post a 10-2 regular-season record.

      The thought of dismissing a coach who goes 10-2 is crazy, even in today’s instagram world.”

      http://www.cornnation.com/2014/11/16/7228245/nebraska-huskers-football-morning-after-wisconsin-badgers-links-tweets

      I think that last sentence is spot on.

      But these kind of performances make me think about the current nature of the college football offenses and defenses. UW fumbled three times. Gordon responsible for two of them. In most cases, three fumbles is considered as unacceptable as giving up 400+ rushing yards to one back. Think about it; in that game, if Riley is Gordon’s coach, he likely sits after the first fumble. Almost definitely after the second, and the rest of the day never happens for Gordon (ok, maybe that’s extreme, maybe even Gordon’s ability is so great Riley lets him play. Sean never gets the hook after a couple of TOs).

      But in general, college football offenses are putting up ridiculous scores these days. TCU swtiches offensive schemes in the off-season and goes off for 80+ points in a game this year.

      While I think about Banker’s inability to scheme against the Ducks, it is not lost on me that few others have either. Think about the Chip Kelly era. Which PAC teams slowed him down? CAL did once in a loss, holding the Ducks to about 15 points I think, but still losing. Stanford has controlled them a few times. USC beat them by outscoring them. Arizona I think beat them by outscoring them(?). This is with Masoli, Thomas, Mariotta. But what galls me is nobody should be more motivated to scheme against the Ducks than Banker. Could he not have ONE Stanford-like performance against the Ducks?

      Spread and read-option offenses have changed scoring significantly. Apparently, at Oklahoma, Switizer once thought it was a big deal to “hang half a hundred” on another team. Now that happens with regularity, with teams like UO sometimes averaging nearly 50 a game.

      Are the option, and spread offense that create space that difficult to defend, and support a lower threshold of qb accuracy that difficult to defend, are people playing defense poorly, or both? It seems like anymore that almost any team can have a day where the other team – or a player like Gordon – just goes off.

      Last year, I watched the Beaver-Husky debacle, curious just how bad it could get. It got worse than I thought, and I consider myself to have some imagination. And that was a home game. Riley, or Banker’s, jobs were never in question after.

      I’m not making excuses for Riley or Banker. I want both out of their current capacities. I do think the expectation for defenses probably has to include higher average scores, and a game or three per year where the other team just puts up ridiculous statistics. And in those games your offense has to be capable of keeping pace.

      Is OSU’s best bet to counter with big, smart, defensive lineman who don’t overplay into the QBs hands (these are the types they struggle to successfully recruit) , and quick, sure-tackling Doggett-like LBs. On the offensive side, a scheme players can learn and execute earlier in their collegiate careers, with the ability to play fast when needed and vary pace strategically. It should be easier to play slow when needed (“keep the other offense off the field’), then to play slow and struggle to play fast. Or not play fast at all.

      I’m not sold on the idea that one scheme is the silver bullet, but I love how Patterson simplifies the game for his defense, and complicates for the offense. It allows them to get young players on the field too, a necessity in college football. Riley and Banker do just the opposite. I couldn’t find the best write-up on Patterson’s D, but these are just ok:

      http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2014/6/30/5818160/tcu-football-defense-strategy-formations-xs-os-gary-patterson

      http://www.tcu360.com/football/2013/10/18795.winning-scheme

      All of this is probably stating the obvious. I’m home sick in bed and the caffeine is kicking in.

      • It’s a two-part thing with OSU. Banker’s problem isn’t the read option or the spread. It’s mobile QBs. While everyone has varying problems with this, some teams do not. And it’s likely the teams with mobile QBs themselves are the ones who don’t. Our major problem is allowing plays to extend due to poor leverage and missed tackles even when we get two or three fistfuls of jersey.

        But what a lot of teams tend not to do is tackle everyone who pretends to be a runner in the read option. Did anyone notice that we would crash on the fake and then gang tackle the RBs when they didn’t have the ball? We just beat on the RBs because we finally figured out there are only two options on that play, and we knew which one was going to beat us if he got away. We even made it to the mesh point a couple times. I almost didn’t recognize the D.

        When it’s the QB who is going to kill us on that option, will we have the cojones to do the same to him? And we still need to learn to drive the TE instead of releasing him in certain formations. That TD was so easy to call for a good three seconds before the snap.

        • “But what a lot of teams tend not to do is tackle everyone who pretends to be a runner in the read option. ”

          I’ve never understood that. The QB is pretending he has the ball; and he might. Tackle him too. It cannot – or should not – be roughing the passer.

          • It’s not, and the NCAA has made an official ruling and put out a statement on it. If your QB wants to play a game of misdirection, your QB can get hit all day.

    • And I think Pellini has never won LESS than 9 games in a season, Riley should sing praises to the Gods of Fate every night that he landed at OSU (twice) with a dysfunctional AD.

  47. Had to giggle at this:

    “He believes in himself and in his program, and that is much more important than the noise that swirls around from the outside.”
    http://portlandtribune.com/pt/12-sports/240772-107641-balance-perseverance-behind-beavers-stunning-victory

    Hello? 90% of the noise that swirls around from outside is this:

    “Riley said he thought he had a plan that could work against the Sun Devils’ gambling, blitzing defense…. The answer was a run game that produced 247 yards and two long touchdowns to provide offensive balance….”

    9% is the noise about the propensity for our D to lay off the point of attack and then watch as they get gashed and have no contain. Although some of that is blamed on not running the ball sometimes since it puts our D on the field for far too long. The other 1% is one dolt spamming the same three posts over and over and over while trying to be personally insulting toward people and the school.

    • I hate that oversimplified argument that as long as you believe, its ok. Learning, growth, evolution of thought are unnecessary. Just believe.

      Perseverance? Or contract-security and stubbornness?

      Balance? My ass. The team vacillates between terrible play and mediocrity with the occasional upset that is supposed to mean everything is all right, and Rile E. Coyote’s beliefs are confirmed.

      And then there’s this:

      “The Beavers won despite going 1 for 12 on third-down conversions and committing nine penalties for 76 yards. ”

      Those numbers characterize the consistency of the team’s behavior than does the final score. Those have been problems all year long, and tend to end up costing a team.

      • Yes, but note that even when we went down by 10 and stayed for a while we still committed to the run. Penalties would kill drives, and falling back on the pass would further kill them (a seam fade on 4th and 1?). But we ate real estate and time between the 20s instead of taking 30 seconds to move 30 yards then another 10 seconds to go three and out from there.

        The only other game we have done the same this year?

        SDSU

        Interesting to look at those two teams and think they are the only two who blitz a lot. Will we keep it up against a stout front four in Seattle? Or will we watch Mannion attempt 50 passes while the 15 runs between two backs go for six yards a carry… and six sacks bring our run total down 50 yards… which then brings out questions about why should we run when we only get 40 yards on 21 carries?

        UGH!

        • And I’ll have to look at the numbers, but the dedication to the run wasn’t really productive in terms of yards after the first quarter. That further proves my point. ASU had to respect it beyond the first quarter for two reasons:

          1. We hit them in the first quarter.
          2. WE DIDN’T FRIGGIN’ GIVE UP ON THE RUN WHEN WE FELL BEHIND!

          It would have been so easy for us to go all pass happy and lose this game. But we didn’t. Our coaches actually gave our team a chance to win, and they did.

    • Nice, a OSU program stepped up and won when it mattered to get an invite. They need to watch out for “Hartwick” though….tough program.

    • “Oregon State grew enamored with the big-bodied post, in part, because of the loyalty and toughness he shows on the court.

      “If somebody fouls a teammate hard, I can promise you within three possessions he’s going to send a message back to that other player,” Tinkle said. “Not in a dirty, cheap way – just the physical, old-school, eye-for-an-eye kind of deal. I’m not sure that we have a ton of that, or have had much of that.”

      Can he please attend OSU football games, in case OSU’s RB gets hit 15 yards out of bounds or its star receiver is taken out?

      Wayne seems to have a team identity in mind…

      • It would appear that you have mild strain of Jack’s disease, otherwise know an verbosityosis.

        Symptoms include feelings of omnipotence, compulsive over posting and replying to yourself. The condition usually resolves itself within 24 hours. If however, it persists and you are unwilling to ever leave your house, seek medical immediate medical attention. JB

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