Oregon State Football

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Oregon State University's 2010 football program will crack the top 25 at the beginning of the season, most likely somewhere in the upper teens or lower 20s.

However, the PAC-10 PRESEASON MEDIA POLL-anchored by votes coming from writers, broadcasters, conference officials, and all major media outlets—predicts the Beavs to finish third in the conference. The University of Oregon Ducks and USC Trojans are predicted first and second, respectively.

According to the school's website, the poll has accurately picked the conference champion in nine of the last 10 seasons, so Oregon State will have some fate to contest. 

There are plenty of signs that lead to the Beavers having the ability to buck the trend and taste the sweet stalks of the rose bush. For example, they have a Heisman Trophy candidate looking to add to his growing legacy. 

Jacquizz Rodgers is expected to make the race for college football's most coveted award, a surprising one. At just 5'7", he is, of course, an underdog, which fuels his fire. 

Secondly, Oregon State has re-signed head coach Mike Riley to an extension, cementing the program's foundation of success and leadership. 

Perhaps the most glaring support for Oregon State's run at the Rose Bowl is the spread of first-place votes among seven of the 10 teams in the conference. Evidence suggests the experts believe there is a chance anyone could take the conference, and the Beavers received three first-place votes.

One of their main competitors, the USC Trojans, are currently under a Two-year postseason ban, so there's an automatic boost for everyone in the conference, and the Beavs stand a good chance of being one of the teams taking advantage.

The main concern for Oregon State is young quarterback Ryan Katz's lack of experience. He has some big shoes to fill (literally) in the vacancy of Sean Canfield.

However, Riley's system and practice regimen is quarterback-friendly, and Katz has the opportunity to progress smoothly, just as Canfield did from an unpolished newcomer to an experienced, efficient winner.

It may be too early to make a prediction, but then again, well, it isn't. I am predicting the Beavers to win the Pac-10, contradicting my earlier article predicting uncertainty (The article is located here: 2010 Oregon State Beavers Schedule and Predictions | Bleacher Report). 

One thing is for sure: Nothing is for sure. With no clear juggernaut in the conference, 2010 appears to be poised for a shocking, down-to-the-wire conclusion.

Everybody has their own opinion. I could spend another day writing down my thoughts and predictions for the upcoming college football season. As educated and informed as I perceive to be, I will never be completely right. It's time for the fans, bandwagon jumpers, and so-called experts to speak up.  

Washington's Jake Locker went on record in saying that Oregon State is the team to beat in the Pac-10.

The majority of columnist and beat writers like the odds of Oregon repeating and returning to the Rose Bowl. While USC won't be attending a bowl game in the near future, they still can claim a Pac-10 title in 2010. Those who believe in the underdog will be pulling for California, Washington, Arizona and Stanford to finish the year a top the conference standings.  

Here is a breakdown of each teams schedule, returning starters, coaches, and record from a year ago. Try to leave your bias at the door, and let us know who you think will win the Pac-10 conference in 2010. 

Arizona Wildcats (6-3, 8-5)

Coach: Mike Stoops (Seventh year)

Returning Starters: Seven on Offense, Four on Defense

2009 Bowl Game: Lost 33-0 to Nebraska in Holiday Bowl

Key Players: Nick Foles (QB), Keola Antolin (RB), Nic Grigsby (RB), Juron Criner (WR), Brooks Reed (DE), Ricky Elmore (DE), Adam Hall (S)

Arizona State Sun Devlis (2-7, 4-8)

Coach: Dennis Erickson (Fourth year)

Returning Starters: Four on Offense, Four on Defense

Key Players: Brock Osweiler (QB), Steven Threet (QB), Brandon Smith (WR), John Hargis (LG), Garth Gerhart (C),  LB Vontaze Burfict (LB), Lawerence Guy (DT), Omar Bolden (CB), Thomas Weber (PK)

California Golden Bears (5-4, 8-5)

Coach: Jeff Tedford (Ninth year)

Returning Starters: Eight on Offense, Six on Defense

2009 Bowl Game: Lost 37-27 to Utah in the Poinsetta Bowl

Key Players: Kevin Riley (QB), Shane Vereen (RB), Marvin Jones (WR), Matt Summers-Gavin (OT), Mitchell Schwartz (OG), Cameron Jordan (DE), Mychal Kendricks (LB), Darian Hagan (CB)

As July comes to a close, it's time to start focusing on the college football scene. The Beavers' first practice is less than three weeks away, and the program is already looking strong this summer.

The 2010 OSU Football squad features a handful of potential award winners. Heisman Trophy candidate Jacquizz Rodgers looks to be the premier running back in the PAC-10 Conference, and the offense will also feature Biletnikoff Award candidate wide receiver James Rodgers and Rimington Trophy candidate center Alex Linnenkohl. 

On the other side of the ball, the Beavers will feature defensive tackle Stephen Paea. He is considered a candidate for the Outland, Lott, Lombardi, and Bronko Nagurski Awards. With that type of pass rush and run-stopping ability, the Beavers may have a solution to defense that will match their fast-paced offense.

When practices begin, the Beavers will start with just helmets and gym shorts. Over the next five consecutive days to follow, the squad will work up to full pads, and on August 15, the practices will be in full swing.

Head Coach Mike Riley is back for his tenth season, and thus far his tenure has yielded four straight bowl appearances. Riley has the chance to become the winningest coach in Oregon State's football program history. 

As always, the practices are open to the public and viewers can catch the action at the Tommy Prothro Practice Complex located near the Truax Indoor Center. 

The Beavers open their 2010 campaign at preseason ranked No. 4 TCU, September 4 on ESPN, gametime is set for 7:45 EST.

UPDATE (1:56 PM) The Beavers have sured up 16 recruits according to Scout.com, their names are below:

OG Roman Sopalu

QB Sean Mannion

MLB Michael Bibbee

TE Tyler Perry

DT Thomas Molesi

RB Malcolm Marable

DE Happy Iona* (Academically ineligible)

K Trevor Romaine

MLB Donnell Welch

OLB Will Storey

S Ryan Murphy

DT Fred Thompson

DE Dominic Glover

DE Scott Crichton

TE Connor Hamlett

DT Mana Tuivalala

If we know anything about Oregon State and Coach Mike Riley,  they have seemingly done more with less than any team in the country.  Yes, Corvallis may not be the easiest place to recruit players to, but Riley has done it well for numerous years now.

Riley put many Beaver fans at ease when he turned down the USC coaching job after Pete Carroll left.  That also ensured his recruits that he would be in Corvallis for a long time to come.

Fourteen players are currently verbally committed to Oregon State, according to Scout.com.  Of those fourteen, nine are three-star rated, and five are two-star rated.

Now, as teams like UCLA and Notre Dame have proven, highly-rated players don’t always equate to wins.  Winning at the college level is more about getting players that fit your scheme and the Beavers, through coaching continuity, know what types of players they need at all positions.

The Players

On the defensive side of the ball, the Beavers have pulled in five bodies for the defensive line, three for the linebacking core, and one for the secondary.  The Beavers' defensive line is always a strong point, having put players like Victor Butler in the NFL.

The addition of defensive ends Dominic Glover (junior college) and Happy Iona will be key to the development of a defensive line that struggled throughout the season in 2009.  The key addition to this group has to be defensive tackle Fred Thompson.  The 6’4”, 280-pounder will be sure to clog up the middle and will only gain strength and size throughout his four or five years in Corvallis. 

The Beavers are also still in the running for five-star defensive end Owamagbe Odighizuwa out of Portland, Oregon.  Owa, as he is known, has skyrocketed up the rankings and even appears as a top-ten recruit in some circles.

Offensively, the Beavers have picked up a commitment from a quick running back out of the state of California named Malcolm Marable.  He should give the Beavers a Desean Jackson-type player and if he can gain some mass and strength, maybe even more of a Reggie Bush.

Sean Mannion, a 6’5”, 200-pound quarterback out of Pleasanton, CA, seems like a diamond in the rough for the Beavers system.  If the Beavers can continue to put talented skill position players around their quarterbacks, they can be and will be dangerous offensively.

With all that being said, something should still cause concern for Beaver fans.

Riley has put together years of success in Corvallis and he still cannot gain the interest of major recruits outside of the state of Oregon.  Conventional wisdom would say you can only go so far on guys who fit your system if they don’t have the size or speed needed to compete at the highest level.  If the Beavers don’t pull some surprises on signing day, they might be in trouble.

With more commits sure to come before signing day, keep it here for all your breaking Beaver news this Wednesday, Feb. 3 .

Information Courtesy Scouts.com  

It was a bittersweet end to the decade for OSU. We lost badly in the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas (horrible bowl game name btw), and we lost two straight Civil War games with Rose Bowl implications, the second of which sent the Ducks to Pasadena (at least they lost right?). The end of the decade was a disappointment, however let's not forget where we came from.

In the 1970s the Beavers went 27-83 with only one winning season (1970) as Dee Andros' career in Corvallis came to a close and we saw the ill-fated regime of Craig Fertig carry us through the rest of the decade.

The '80s proved even more futile as the newly appointed HC Joe Avezzano began his regime and the decade with an 0-11 season. Avezzano wouldn't last long and would eventually be replaced by Dave Kragthorpe who would get us through the end of the decade. All in all the Beavs went 22-85-4 with no winning seasons.

The beginning of '90s transitioned seamlessly from the '80s as the losses just kept on coming, though the end of the decade would see a beacon of hope with the program beginning to rise under Mike Riley, and continuing their ascension under Dennis Erickson. The decade record was 29-81-1 with one winning season (our first since 1970) in 1999.

Collectively it was an abysmal three decades with a cumulative record of 78-249-5, and a bowl record of 0-2.

Now to the good stuff, the decade where we were actually successful. The 2000s started off with a bang. Dennis Erickson led the Beavers to an 11-1 record, a Pac-10 Co-Championship, and a Fiesta Bowl trouncing of Notre Dame.

While the next year was a colossal disappointment with a 5-6 record in 2001, we recovered in Erickson's final year as our HC with an 8-5 record and a loss in the Insight Bowl. 2003 saw Mike Riley continued with the winning ways with an 8-5 record and a victory in the Las Vegas Bowl (now the MAACO Bowl Las Vegas). Then 2004 was another winning year, although it was another year in the middle of the Pac-10. The Beavers went 7-5 with a victory in the Insight Bowl against Notre Dame.

The year 2005 would prove to be the low point in Mike Riley's second time around as the HC in Corvallis. The team went 5-6 and many fans (including your humble narrator) called for him to be fired. His tenure continued and 2006 would prove to be his most successful year despite a 2-3 start and continued calls for his job. The Beavs finished third in the Pac-10 with a 10-4 record (Riley's only 10 win season to date). OSU would conclude the year with thrilling victory over Missouri 39-38.

Then 2007 would prove to be another strong year despite another slow 2-3 start as OSU went 9-4 and finished third in the Pac-10 but had to settle for an appearance in the Emerald Bowl against Maryland, a game they would win 21-14.

The year 2008 looked like a disaster as OSU started 0-2 after losses to Stanford and Penn St. After a home win against Hawaii, OSU faced off against No. 1 USC. On this Thursday night clash on ESPN, the rest of the country would meet a small freshman running back named Jacquizz Rodgers. The Beavers won but again found themselves at 2-3 five games into the season. They would win all of their games leading up to the Civil War. With the Rose Bowl on the line for OSU, the Beavs came out and... well... I'm guessing we all know how that one ended. The Beavers would head to the Sun Bowl and win a 3-0 game against Pitt in which both teams were depleted by injuries. Oregon State would finish 9-4 and tied for second in the Pac-10

2009 got of to a good start with a 2-0 record, but after losing to the eventual Big East champs in Cincinnati and to Arizona at home the Beavs fell to a 2-2 record. They managed to avoid a 2-3 start for a forth consecutive year, and came into the Civil War game with winner takes the Pac-10 stakes. I already went over the end of this season at the outset of this article, but the Beavs would finish 8-5, tied for second in the Pac-10.

It was a hell of a time to be a Beaver fan as the Beavs went 80-45 on the decade with four consecutive top 3 finishes in the Pac-10 to end the decade. We also got to see fantastic athletes grace the field at Reser Stadium during that time. Players and such as: Chad Ochocinco, TJ Houshmandzadeh, Johnathon Smith, Ken Simonton, Steven Jackson, DeLawrence Grant, Richard Siegler, Mitch Meeuwsen, Dennis Weathersby, Mike Hass, Matt Moore, Yvenson Bernard, Derrick Doggett, Alexis Serna, Jeremy Perry, Sammie Stroughter,  Roy Scheuning, Andy Levitre, Sean Canfield, Lyle Moevao, Stephen Paea, Victor Butler, Slade Norris, Sabby Piscitelli, Al Afalava, Jacquizz and James Rodgers, Keaton Kristick, and others.

The end of the decade left a bad taste in our mouth, but collectively the bad moments were few when compared to the great memories I have of the past 10 years of rooting for Oregon State football.

PS How many people can find my "A Clockwork Orange" reference?

By Ryan of The Sportmeisters

The NCAA post-season kicks off December 19th, with 33 games being played in a three-week span. Seniors will get their last hurrah, and teams will attempt to end their season on the winning side in the hopes of improving recruiting that follows afterwards. The Sportmeisters will preview each of the 33 games that lie ahead, and provide our predictions as well. Let’s get to it!

Las Vegas Bowl, December 22nd, 8:00 PM, Las Vegas, Nevada

No. 14 Brigham Young University (10-2) vs. No. 18 Oregon State (8-4)

About Brigham Young : A promising opening-season win against then No. 3 Oklahoma spelled BCS Spoiler for the Provo, Utah University. However, those wheels were derailed in a home upset against Florida State, and then the Mountain West Conference hopes were demolished with a loss to TCU. Nevertheless, they ended their season on a four game winning streak, including an overtime rivalry win against Utah.

The Cougars have an offense based off of an aggressive passing game, starting with senior quarterback Max Hall (3368 passing yards, 30 touchdowns). His 288.92 yards per game is 12th in the NCAA FBS and first in the MWC. The passing game helps them score at a tremendous rate (34.75 points per game, 12th in FBS).

However, this team is more than just passing. Junior RB Harvey Unga keeps the defense honest with his churning rushing attack (1016 yards, 10 touchdowns, 5.52 yards per carry average). As long as these two are on top of their game, BYU is an unstoppable force through air or ground.

About Oregon State : After starting 2-2, things looked bleak for the Beavers. However, they reeled off six wins in seven games to force a winner-take-all Pac-10 match-up against their rival Oregon in the Civil War. Unfortunately for Oregon State fans, Oregon prevailed, and instead of a January trip to California, Beaver fans will join up here in Las Vegas.

Sophomore RB Jacquizz Rodgers will garner Heisman hype next season, thanks to his 1900 all-purpose yards and 22 touchdowns (20 rushing, one throwing, one receiving). Senior QB Sean Canfield is the arm behind the 21st ranked passing offense with 3103 yards, 21 touchdowns, and a mere six interceptions. His primary target is the other Rodgers, Junior WR James Rodgers, who leads the squad with 1004 yards and nine touchdowns on 87 catches.

Much like their opponent, Oregon State will combine both the rushing and passing game to move the ball down the field and score.

The Matchup : BYU is 9-17-1 and one in bowl games and is currently on a five-game bowl appearance streak. Coincidentally, all the games in their streak are the Las Vegas Bowl, where they are 2-2, all against Pac-10 teams.

Oregon State is 8-4 in their bowl appearance history, riding a five game bowl winning streak and a four year appearance streak. They last played in the Las Vegas Bowl in 2003, where they won over New Mexico 55-14. In the past nine years of MWC versus Pac-10 match-ups, the MWC holds a 5-4 advantage.

BYU holds advantages in points and total offense rankings, but they are minimal at best. The real difference will come from which team can improve on their glaring weaknesses. BYU has turned the ball over 22 times on the year (including 14 interceptions from Hall), while forcing only 21. Oregon State only averages 1.25 sacks per game, a glaring 106th in NCAA FBS. Improving on deficiencies such as these, could be the “X” factor in deciding the winner.

The Prediction : BYU owns Las Vegas, ironically, and wins their fifth straight bowl game their 33-30.

The bowl season is upon us in college football. Starting Dec. 19, 2009, all the way to January 7, 2010, the bowls will be played.

That is 34 games over 20 days and the last chance to see college football until next September. So now it is time to preview the bowls and make some predictions.

With so many games over such a long time, this will be broken up into four parts. The first part will be bowl games from Dec. 19 to Christmas Eve.

Next will be part two will break down bowls from the day after Christmas to December, 30. Part three will be from New Year's Eve to New Year's Day. The final part will be bowls from the second day of the New Year to the BCS championship game.

So the following is the first six bowl games before Christmas. I will have a preview of the game and then my pick to win the game.

Saturday, Dec. 19

New Mexico Bowl: Albuquerque, N.M.

Wyoming Cowboys (6-6) vs. Fresno State Bulldogs (8-4)

This is the first time the Mountain West Conference and the Western Athletic Conference will match up this bowl season.

The Cowboys needed to win their final game of the year against Colorado State just to get into this game. This team has played good teams tough in the first half and faded in the second half.

First year coach Dave Christensen will be happy he got his team into a bowl game but will have to find away to shore up his rushing defense. That defense allowed 170 yards per game this season.

Wyoming is going bowling for the first time since 2004. The Cowboys will be led by Mountain West Freshman of the Year Austyn Carta-Samuels.

The Bulldogs have been tested plenty this season. Fresno State has lost to two undefeated teams and their other two losses were against teams going to a bowl game.

This team played Wisconsin to overtime and Cincinnati escaped with an eight-point win. The Bulldogs also feature one of the best players most in the country have not heard of, Ryan Mathews.

Mathews was on pace for 2,000 yards until he suffered an injury against Nevada and missed the Louisiana Tech game. For the season, Mathews averaged 151 yards per game and should get fed the ball all day long against the Broncos.

Pick: Fresno State

Mathews should run wild on for the Bulldogs on a poor Wyoming rush defense.

St. Petersburg Bowl: St. Petersburg, Fla.

Central Florida Knights (8-4) vs. Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-4)

After Wyoming and Fresno State, the Big East and Conference-USA will mix it up in a post season game in Florida. Rutgers is going bowling for the fifth straight year and UCF is going bowling for the third time in five years.

The Scarlet Knights will lean on running back Joe Martinek to carry the load. Rutgers freshman quarterback Tom Savage might be the key to winning this game if he can get on track.

Savage has struggled at times this season, only completing 52.3 percent of his passes with 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. If Martinek cannot run on the stiff UCF rush defense, it will fall on Savage to move the ball.

Rutgers coach Greg Schiano will try to use this trip into the Sunshine State to showcase his program. The Scarlet Knights have been putting up billboards for years and now get a chance to play a bowl game in Florida.

This could be considered a home game for Central Florida and coach George O’Leary. The Knights only have to travel 90 miles for their bowl game after missing out on last year.

UCF will use their good rush defense led by Bruce Miller, the C-USA defensive player of the year and fifth in the county in sacks with 12. Offensively, the Knights will want to run the ball with Brynn Harvey who rushed over 1,000 yards this season.

Rutgers will try to stop the ground game of UCF and force senior quarterback Brett Hodges to win the game. Hodges has had a tough season, throwing for 15 touchdowns and 11 interceptions but has completed 61.1 percent of his passes.

Pick: Central Florida

The home crowd should help lead the Knights to a bowl victory over the team from New Jersey.

Sunday, Dec. 20

R + L Carriers New Orleans Bowl: New Orleans, La.

Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (9-3) vs. Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (7-5)

C-USA takes the field for the second time this bowl season but against the Sun Belt Conference. Southern Mississippi is going bowling for the 12th time in 13 seasons and Middle Tennessee is making their second bowl trip since joining the FBS.

The Blue Raiders are enjoying their best season since moving to Division I in 1999 and are on a six-game winning streak. Things turned around for Middle Tennessee when coach Rick Stockstill hired offensive guru Tony Franklin.

The spread offense has been run perfectly by quarterback Dwight Dasher this season. Dasher has averaged nearly 300 yards passing per game and has thrown 21 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

The Blue Raiders will have to win this game with good defense. They might have the edge with Sun Belt Conference Defensive Player of the year Chris McCoy.

McCoy had 22 tackles for a loss and seven sacks and he gets help in the secondary from Marcus Udell who had seven interceptions. They will need all of the defense they can muster against a team with the offensive firepower Southern Miss has.

The Golden Eagles have not had problems scoring points, even after Austin Davis was lost for the season and replaced by Martevious Young. As the starter, Young has thrown 12 touchdowns and just one interception.

Still the Golden Eagles have plenty of weapons for a team that averaged 33 points a game this season. One of those weapons, DeAndre Brown, broke his leg in this game last year.

Southern Miss will also have running back Damion Fletcher one final time as he tries to become the ninth player to rush for 1,000 yards in four all four seasons. Fletcher only needs 63 yards to reach the milestone.

Pick: Southern Mississippi

The Golden Eagles will win in what could be the highest scoring bowl game this season.

Tuesday, Dec. 22

Maaco Las Vegas Bowl: Las Vegas, Nev.

Brigham Young Cougars (10-2) vs. Oregon State Beavers (8-4)

The Mountain West makes its second bowl appearance while the Pac-10 makes its first showing. This is Brigham Young’s fifth straight trip to the Las Vegas Bowl and Oregon State has won five straight bowls.

BYU and Oregon State are connected in several ways heading into this game. First, Cougars head coach Bronco Mendenhall played for the Beavers in college.

Next, BYU leading rusher Harvey Unga is the cousin of two Oregon State freshmen players. The Cougars will be led for the final time by senior quarterback Max Hall.

Hall will be joined for the final time by his brother-in-law and star tight end Dennis Pitta. The key to this game could be the Cougars' 23rd nationally ranked defense.

Oregon State has its own family affair with the Rodgers brothers leading the way for the Beavers. James Rodgers the top receiver on the team and Jacquizz Rodgers moving the ball on the ground.

The key to the Beavers offense could be how well Sean Canfield plays in this game. Both Canfield and Jacquizz were named first-team All-Pac-10 at their positions.

Oregon State head coach Mike Riley will have to get his team over the disappointment of not winning the conference title after a loss to Oregon. The Beavers and the Cougars are the first two ranked teams to play in this bowl game.

Pick: Oregon State

The Beavers offense will be too much for the Cougars to handle, and Canfield and the Rodgers brothers will have a huge day.

Wednesday, Dec. 23

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: San Diego, CA

Utah Utes (9-3) vs. California Golden Bears (8-4)

This is the second bowl matchup between the Mountain West and Pac-10 conference. It is also a game between two teams that were both beaten by the Oregon Ducks.

Last season Utah was the darling of college football after beating Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. This season, saw their 16-game winning streak was snapped by the Ducks in the third game of the season.

The Utes have won eight straight bowl games and four of those wins have come under Kyle Whittingham who replaced Urban Meyer. Utah can play either freshman Jordan Wynn, if he is healthy or junior Terrance Cain at quarterback.

On the ground Utah will depend on the conference’s leading rusher Eddie Wide to carry the load. Wide should get plenty of chances got gain yards against a Cal defense that gives up 118 yards a game.

The Bears started this season with dreams of their first Pac-10 title since 1958 but blowout losses to Oregon and USC ended their hopes. Under Jeff Tedford, Cal has reached a bowl game for the seven straight years and has won the last four.

California will have to win this game without their Heisman candidate Jahvid Best who is still recovering from a concussion suffered against Oregon State. Leading the ground game in Best’s absence will be Shane Vereen.

The key for the Bears will be the play of quarterback Kevin Riley, who has been intercepted four times in his last four games. Utah led the Mountain West with 15 interceptions this season so Riley must make good decisions.

Pick: Utah

The Utes defense and rushing game runs their bowl winning streak to nine straight games.

Thursday, Dec. 24

Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl: Honolulu, Hawai'i

Southern Methodist Mustangs (7-5) vs. Nevada Wolf Pack (8-4)

C-USA takes on the WAC in paradise on Christmas Eve. This is the first bowl game for SMU since 1984 and the “Death Penalty” the NCAA gave them in 1985.

The game will also be a homecoming of sorts for June Jones, who left Hawaii to take over the Mustangs two years ago. Jones wanted to reach this bowl game as a tribute to friend and special teams coach Frank Gansz.

SMU will use the run-and-shoot offense Jones used to get the Warriors to a BCS bowl game. The offence has found balance this season with Shawnbrey McNeal, a transfer from Miami, leading the ground game.

The Mustangs have played well after starting quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell was injured against Houston. Stepping in for Mitchell has been freshman quarterback Kyle Padron.

Defense besides Padron will be the key in this game for SMU because Nevada is the best rushing team in the NCAA. The Wolf Pack set a NCAA record with three 1,000 rushers this season.

Nevada was lead by Vai Taua with a team high 1,345 yards but the key to this offense is junior quarterback Colin Kaepernick who had 1,160 rushing yards and passed for 1,875 yards.

The pistol offense installed by hall of fame coach Chris Ault needs Kaepernick to make the good decisions to make it go. The Wolf Pack can also turn to Luke Lippincott, who rushed for 1,034 yards, as well.

This game could rival the New Orleans bowl in points scored. One thing is for sure the team that plays the best defense will win this game. SMU with Jones as coach should be the home crowd favorite.

Pick: Nevada

The Wolf Pack should be able to control the game with their rushing attack and wear down the SMU defense in the process.

This concludes the first part of our 2009-2010 bowl preview and predictions. Be sure to check back as we cover the bowls that will be played before the start of the New Year.

I hope everyone enjoys the games and that every game is close and down to the final play. I also hope that everyone who reads this has a Merry Christmas and their family and friends to share the holidays with.

For the first time in the history of the bowl, the Vegas Bowl will pit two ranked teams against each other.

Max Hall and Harvey Unga lead a prolific BYU offense against Jacquizz Rodgers and a dominating Oregon State offensive attack.

That should be enough to qualm the potential dissapointment of BYU and their fans that they are in the Vegas Bowl for a fifth straight season, and failed to live up to BCS and national contender expectations after upsetting (then) No. 3 ranked Oklahoma at the beginning of the season.

Oregon State is a very worthy opponent and favored to beat BYU by three by the Vegas experts.

After a great regular season ended with BYU taking back the Beehive boot on the last play of their rivalry game against Utah, BYU has momentum, having won 8 of their last 9, only losing to TCU.

Oregon State came four points away from playing Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

They finished 6-3 in the Pac-10; arguably the deepest conference in college football.

Their four losses all came to top 25 opponents, and only once by more than a TD (Cincinnati).

Both teams have a prolific and balanced offenses and an inconsistent defenses that have shown moments of greatness, and serious signs of weakness.

Fans could very well be in for a shootout. But both defenses have been relatively solid for most of the season, so I don't think we will see basketball type scoring, just some great offense.

BYU and Oregon State did have one common opponent this year, UNLV.

Oregon State pulled off a narrow win clear back on September 12th against the Rebels, needing a questional pass interference call and a late FG to secure a 23-21 win over the Rebels.

BYU faced UNLV on October 10th, and also gave up 21, but put up 59, en route to a 59-21 blowout.

Both games were played at Sam Boyd Stadium, which is also the site for this year's Vegas bowl.

But you can't put too much weight in Team A—Team B—Team C scenarios.

BYU is 2-2 in the Vegas Bowl under Bronco Mendenhall.

• Cal 35-BYU 28
• BYU 38-Oregon 8
• BYU 17-UCLA 16
• Arizona 31-BYU 21

Each of the last four years, BYU's rivalry game against Utah has successfully predicted the winner of the bowl—if BYU wins that game, they have handled their business in their bowl game. If they lose, then they don't.

But, Oregon State is by far the biggest bowl opponent BYU has faced this decade, coming in with an 8-4 record and ranked 16th in the AP poll.

Max Hall has already secured his legacy in a long line of BYU QB's, with a conference title, a bowl victory, BYU's all time wins record, and most importantly a 2-1 record against the Utes.

But if he wins here, it would be icing on the cake.

And if BYU wins here, they will finish 11-2, with a decent shot at their first top ten finish in a long time.

I think somehow, someway, BYU finds a way to win, pulling off a 31-30 victory; capping off an 11-2 season, with a good chance at finishing in the top 10 in the polls.