Oregon State Beavers Football Season Preview

Now in his 11th year, Mike Riley is looking to reach that nine-win plateau like he did in ’06, ’07 and ’08. He certainly missed quarterback Derek Anderson, who was a flat out gamer from ’02-'04. In Anderson’s final collegiate game, he thrashed the Irish of Notre Dame in the 2004 Insight Bowl. His Beavers won the game 38-21, but Anderson was the MVP, throwing for 358 yards and four TDs.

Oregon State’s last and only BCS appearance was in the 2001 Fiesta Bowl in which they took down the Irish once again. A few guys by the names of Chad “Ocho Cinco” Johnson and TJ “Who’s your momma” Houshmanzadeh torched the kids out west.  Matt Moore was next in line at quarterback under Riley and while he never had the success that Anderson saw production-wise, the Beavers got even better as a team. 

As of late, OSU has struggled to live up to high expectations. I have nailed the success of the Beavers the past several years, though, I did not see them going 5-7. In fact, I pegged them to reach their first ever Rose Bowl.

They fell flat on their faces with the loss of James Rodgers in the fifth game (pure bull, got tackled well after a TD tore his ACL). A tough, close nine-point loss in the opener to TCU and then a 13-point loss to Boise State on the road made things a lot worse than anticipated.

The reason for the complete meltdown in the Pac-10 play a season ago (included a loss to WSU, who came in with 16 consecutive losses) was of how horrid the defense played. The rushing defense was 89th, allowing 179 YPG, and the pass defense was 79th, allowing 228 yards per game. The total defense ranked 86th (408 YPG), which was the worst ranking ever in the Riley era!

Only four starters return on defense, and the front four is going to take quite the hit losing defensive tackle Brennan Olander, defensive end Gabe Miller and defensive tackle Stephen Paea.

The linebacker core also lost two starters, though, they have moved former safety Cameron Collins to outside linebacker for his senior season.

Reuben Robinson returns at middle linebacker but only started seven games last year because he filled in for Keith Pankey and Dwight Robertson, who have both now graduated. The third starter will be highly-touted outside linebacker Michael Doctor, who grayshirted in ’09.

The talent level is down a bit, and Riley will need his defense to come back with vengeance or else he will suffer his first back-to-back losing season ever! Riley still has two years left on his contract and should be safe, but getting this program back into the postseason will surely help matters.

The secondary was not much better (79th, allowing 228 YPG), and losing Collins to outside linebacker will not be as big of an issue as some may think. Lance Mitchell is a solid free safety. At 6’2", 207 lbs, he can launch kids in the secondary with his long length and wingspan.

Brandon Hardin is a premier corner in the Pac-12 and if his teammates can play half as good, they will be among the best in the conference. The linebackers may have the most upside of the bunch, but it is the secondary that is the most consistent with their two senior leaders.     

The offense returns eight starters and despite the loss of one Rodgers brother, they return another. James is looking to be close to 100 percent by early September, and against Sacramento State they may not even need him. It is the second game against Wisconsin and the following game against UCLA two weeks later where they will need him healthy.

Having a quarterback who has great touch and pocket presence is imperative. Katz struggled in the opener against TCU, completing only nine of 25 passes, though, it was for 159 yards and two TDs. Katz went on to throw 18 TDs and 11 INTs while totaling for 2,401 yards.

With the departure of Jacquizz “The Quiz” Rodgers, the backfield will lack that speed demon that has carried the offense the past three seasons.

Ryan McCants  was supposed to be the heir apparent to Yvenson Benard, but when Rodgers came that all went flying out the door. In fact, the 5'11", 183-pound Jovan Stevenson is expected to be the starter. In 2009, he ran for 137 yards on 28 carries, and in 2010 he redshirted after shoulder surgery.     

The receiving core will consist of Markus Wheaton, James Rodgers, Jordan Bishop, Joe Halahuni and Darrell Catchings. Rodgers, Wheaton and tight end Halahuni are Pac-12 caliber talents that are expected to be the main cogs of this Beaver offense. Katz will throw to these three early and often, especially since they will be in a barn-burner for the majority of their conference games.

Rodgers will be used on sweeps like he was eight times last season, as he has been used 154 times the previous three seasons combined. Wheaton has 39 carries as a receiver through two seasons, so despite the Beavers not possessing a stud running back, they can put a few of their wideouts in the backfield.

The line is normally stout but only Arizona and Washington State have a less talented line. Right tackle Michael Remmers may grab a hold on a first or second Pac-12 team this season, but nobody else on the line will have a chance at that.

Right tackle Michael Philipp, right guard Burke Ellis and center Grant Johnson are the three other returning starters. Philipp was once a Freshmen All-American but has failed to regain the production or even the quickness off the edge to gain any recognition or credit.

The offense should improve upon the 94th total offense, averaging only 326 yards per game, despite losing the only three-time Pac-10 performer in Oregon State history, Jacquizz Rodgers.

Quarterback Ryan Katz has plenty of options in the passing game to thread the needle with those weapons at his disposal. They were beyond bad for Beaver standards, ranking 71st, averaging just 206 per game. 

The schedule is nearly identical to Colorado’s except the non-conference is not quite as impossible. They do travel to Camp Randall Stadium in Madison against the reigning Big Ten champions. They only have four home games and instead have five road games (ASU, WAZZU, Utah, Cal and Ore). The home games are not easy, as they get Stanford, Washington, AZ and a decent UCLA squad. 

Predicted Finish: 5-7, 3-6

Predicted Bowl: None 

Predicted order of finish in Pac-12: Fifth in North, Ninth in Pac-12