Would you rather have the better quarterback or better coach?

I think the answer is clearly the better QB. Just look around the NFL. Heck, look at the Colts. Sean Mannion is becoming a strength. Not against great teams just yet, but he's a difference maker in these games of equal talent.

A few weeks ago, before the BYU game, I wrote that the Beavers would lose that game because they had a "one step forward, two back" feel to them. Well, now it feels like they're catching on and gelling, and this is where they take two steps forward and one back (i.e. next week vs Stanford).

Kyle Wittingham is a great coach…better than Riley. He'll have Utah ready to go, he'll know how and where to outflank the Beavs, but Mannion's savvy and talent overcome that.

My biggest concern this game is Mike Remmers. He is just brutal. The game should be close, so his boneheaded play could negate some big run/pass plays and marginalize the Beavers' vastly superior offense. Still, at the end of the day, I can't be betting against the left tackle being the difference maker. That is too random. The better QB wins this game.

Beavers 27-24

Sorry, guys. I've been extremely busy with personal stuff, and not much time to blog or follow the Beavs right now.

Anyway, the last comment area had 400 posts, so it's time for a new post. Use this for anything you'd like. Hopefully in the next couple days I'll have more time to write down some concrete thoughts and reason through them.

Off the top of my head:

• Utah gives the Beavs a great opportunity to take two steps forward. Want to at least go into the Stanford game feeling good.
• The Beavs can still, technically, win the North (ha ha) and make a bowl game (ha ha).
• Stanford and Oregon are most likely the fans bowl games this year.
• The defensive ends contained Tuel…that was nice to see. They played with passion.
• Anthony Watkins needs to be called out. The guy is a terrible safety.  I'd like to see more Murphy. Reynolds has also been poor, but he has potential and made a nice INT.
• I'm tired of the PI rules…watching the NCAA and NFL this past weekend, a DB can't breath on a WR. On that same note but slightly off topic, what is with the NFL kickoffs? That rule has destroyed the most exciting play in the game and turned pro ball into the Arena League.
• Sean Mannion has "it"…I think "it" is poise, or courage under pressure. He'd make a great Ernest Hemingway character ala Robert Jordan. The literary folks out there might get the reference.
• I haven't read any post game notes or listened to Riley's interviews, so I can't praise or criticize. I do know that the play calling was fantastic, and since I criticize when it is horrible, it would be unfair not to acknowledge that. Did the media ever ask if Riley was involved in play calling? That did not have the hallmarks of a Langsdork game…I think he received an assist.

Have at it. I'll try to scout Utah and get something written up, but like I noted above, life has gotten in the way of football for now.

This is the comment area for the Washington State game.

I know I picked against the Beavs in this game, and I am sticking with that, but I should have added one note: if the Beaver's defensive ends can collapse the pocket and sack Tuel before he scrambles, I think the Beavs could win the game. To me the Beav's DEs are the key to this game. This is exponentially true since Robinson is getting the LB start. Watch the DEs. You'll know by the first quarter if they're getting Tuel or not, and hence if they'll win or not. Mannion should put up nice numbers on this secondary.

This game is huge. Need to keep the current recruits and stay out of the cellar. A win tonight could parlay into some success in the Utah/Cal games. We'll see.

Expect to watch three hours of agonizing football tonight, folks.

Go Beavs.

On Saturday night, buried within the obscure, lo-fi Fox derivative channels, the Oregon State/Washington State game will air. People flipping through might mistake it for a high school game. This is small time football, folks. Nobody seems too upset. Everyone has an excuse. Okay, whatever, the game must be played, unfortunately.

When scouting Washington State last week, I noticed a couple things:

• Their QB, Jeff Tuel, is mobile. Not Nelson Riley or Darron Thomas mobile, but more like Jake Plummer. A savvy guy who moves around and breaks the pocket when necessary. Obviously this is bad news for the Beavers, as once again they will be at an 11 vs 12 disadvantage. Tuel isn't a bad passer, either.
• Washington State runs some read option. Uh oh. Mark Banker will be exposed (again).
• The Cougars play with passion. The crowd didn't seem especially large, but they were into last week's game, and the Cougars played Stanford with fire and passion for all four quarters (even when they fell behind by 17).
• Their WR, Marquees Wilson, is a beast. I'm not confident Poyer can cover him.
• They play with confidence. Amazing to write this given their track record the past few years, but it's a fact, this team has confidence, and they've come together nicely. Credit to Wulff for changing the culture.

On paper this game is an even match–both teams recruit the same type of player and both teams are young. However, Washington State plays with attitude and confidence. Taking from my last post about chess, Mike Riley and Paul Wulff are just about equal as "candidate masters", but Wulff has engrained a Sisyphean mentality in his players. They lose, they get up, they do it again. No skin off their back. In fact, they get better and tougher with each loss. It's something I'd love to say about the Beavers, but I don't print lies.

This is a very close game, and one I am reluctant to pick. Gun to my head, I feel Washington State is a more "put together" team right now who play like they have a unified goal. That psychology does wonders when going up against a physically equal opponent who is in a mentally lesser place. It wouldn't surprise me to see this game go into overtime, but I respect the Cougs enough to give them the standard 3 point home field advantage and then some.

29-24, Cougars