Oregon State Football

Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion is ready to return from a knee injury that kept him out the past two weeks, and the No. 7 Beavers will continue their surprising ascent up the rankings because of it. 

The Oregonian's John Hunt reported that Mannion was taking all the first-team reps at a recent practice, and that coach Mike Riley announced he would again be the starting quarterback, effective the Beavers' next game on Saturday against Washington. 

While backup Cody Vaz did an amazing job keeping the Oregon State Beavers undefeated while Mannion was on the shelf with a knee injury, Mannion adds a dimension to the offense that Vaz does not. 

This cannot be found in the stats. 

Vaz did a fantastic job while going against two defenses that are in the top 30 in the nation in BYU and Utah. He completed 36-of-58 passes for 506 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions for a passer efficiency rating of 152.4.

Vaz even earned Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week honors after his fine performance in his first start which came against BYU. 

That rating is actually better than the 139.7 that Mannion posted this season while going 107-for-169 for 1,358 yards and seven touchdowns, along with four interceptions.

However, what is not apparent in the stats is Mannion's ability to create big plays and the fact that his arm talent allows the Beavers to open up the playbook. 

Mannion's 339.5 passing yards per game ranks fourth in the nation, and there is not a throw that he can't make. Vaz is clearly no slouch, but he is a quarterback that is more a manager of the offense. 

Simply put, this offense is more dangerous and tougher to defend with Mannion at the helm, and if the Beavers are going to continue their undefeated run, they are going to need a QB that can go above and beyond. 

The Beavers have a few tough games coming up, first playing at Washington then hosting Arizona State, leading them to a huge showdown as they travel to Stanford. 

Mannion's presence will be especially important against a tough Stanford defense that needs to be stretched out to be beat. 

Two weeks after the Stanford game, Oregon State will host Oregon, and the Beavers will need all the firepower they can muster to hang with the Ducks. 

Mannion's return will help the Beavers roll into that contest undefeated and in a prime spot to earn a spot in the Pac-12 Championship Game (and maybe even the BCS Championship Game) if they can pull off win in that in-state battle.

The Oregon State Beavers are in for a rude awakening this fall after a 6-0 start to the season has them dreaming of BCS National Championship glory.

Eight weeks into the college football season, Oregon State sits at No. 7 in the BCS standings and has successfully traversed the first half of its challenging conference schedule. The Beavers are 4-0 in Pac-12 play, but have yet to play the conferences' powerhouses.

Mike Riley's Beavers have two road games left at Washington and at Stanford. The Huskies have dropped just one home game all season long, while the Cardinal are perfect at home and even beat USC in Palo Alto earlier this year.

Even if Oregon State can survive those two upset bids, it will have to take down bitter rival Oregon at home in the Civil War. The Ducks have been National Championship favorites since the season began and are also the defending Pac-12 champs. A win over Oregon could be the icing on the cake of a brilliant season, but will instead be the defining moment for a late-season collapse in Corvallis.

The Beavers just aren't explosive or dominant enough on either side of the ball to go undefeated or even earn a trip to a BCS bowl this winter. 

Oregon State's average win is coming by less than 10 points this season (26.2-16.5), and its 14th-ranked passing offense (310.7 yards per game) is arguably its biggest weapon. The Beavers aren't blowing teams out, and that doesn't bode well for their chances the rest of the way. 

Just look at all the perennial college football powers like Alabama, LSU and even Oregon. They all win big and blow out weaker opponents nearly every time.

The schedule is set to stiffen up tremendously for Riley's club as the calendar flips to November, and you can bet that the pressure of being ranked so high in the BCS standings will get to his football team at some point down the road. 

To expect Oregon State to continue to shock the world would be unrealistic and foolish. It has come from well off the radar this fall and deserves plenty of credit for a 6-0 start. But that doesn't change the fact that there are major obstacles ahead. 

It's been a dream start to 2012 for Oregon State, but it's about to take a frightening turn with multiple matchups against the best the Pac-12 has to offer. 

Follow Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Patrick Clarke on Twitter for more College Football conversation. 

Before the season, if you had told me that Oregon State would be in charge of its own destiny going into Week 8, I probably would have assumed you meant from a "bowl eligibility" standpoint. Maybe, because the Beavers have Stanford and Oregon late, you could have been technically referring to them winning the Pac-12 North. 

No way would I have assumed you meant for hosting the Pac-12 Championship game and possibly getting to the BCS Championship.

If you have not started up your "Mike Riley for Coach of the Year" campaign yet, you most certainly need to. The man has pushed this football team to heights most folks did not expect, including being ranked ahead of cross-state rival Oregon by the BCS Computers.

Will Muschamp, Pat Fitzgerald, Jim Mora, Bill Snyder, Todd Graham, Kyle Flood, Charlie Strong, Butch Jones, David Cutcliffe, Chip Kelly, Frank Solich and Nick Saban all should be in the running for the award. They are all, given their different situations, stepping up and putting on coaching clinics in managing situations and maximizing production.

Still, none of them have come from nearly as far off the radar as Mike Riley. The longtime, and two-time, Beavers head coach is making things work in Corvallis in a year where most people thought he would finally find himself on the hot seat.

After all, the Beavers had gotten progressively worse in the last few seasons. Two nine-win seasons in 2007 and 2008, including beating second-ranked California in 2007 and first-ranked USC in 2008, gave way to 7-6 in 2009, 5-7 in 2010 and 3-9 a season ago.

First, it was the win over Wisconsin—a victory that was discounted as the Badgers struggled through the early parts of the season. Then, in beating UCLA, the discounting came at the expense of a much-improved Bruins team. No one cared much about a win over Arizona, and Washington State is everyone's doormat with Mike Leach this year.

However, the Beavers handled a tough BYU defense last weekend. Riley changed the game plan against BYU in order to catch the defense off-guard and get his backup quarterback more comfortable early in the game.

Riley's efforts need to be applauded. His team has responded to him in a way that most folks did not expect. The defense is playing better, going from 84th in total defense giving up 411 yards per game, to 46th giving up 361 per contest. The unit is not elite, but it is getting the job done.

On offense, the improvement is truly staggering. Following the Rodgers brothers era in Corvallis, yardage was extremely hard to come by. Now, the Beavers are moving the ball, and they've improved from 73rd to 32nd in total offense. They are not a great running team, but they do enough on the ground to keep teams honest before taking advantage of play-action passing to work their matchups.

There is still plenty of the season left for stars to rise and fall. However, with dates to visit Stanford and host Oregon, there are still plenty of chances for Riley to solidify his stance as one of the nation's premier candidates for Coach of the Year. 

The Oregon State Beavers are undefeated and have an excellent chance at making a BCS Bowl Game this season, but the team still has a few difficult games remaining before the regular season ends.

At 5-0, the Beavers received the No. 8 ranking in the first set of BCS standings this year. This is an incredible accomplishment after being completely ignored in all the preseason polls.   

But OSU’s fantastic run will ultimately be forgotten if they do not get more victories in crucial games. 

Here is what the Beavers must do to earn a victory in each of their toughest games left on the schedule.

Saturday, October 27, at Washington

Washington has already proved that traveling to Seattle will not be easy for any Pac-12 opponent.

The Huskies stunned Stanford when they were ranked No. 8 in the AP Top 25. But the high-flying Oregon State offense is completely different than the Cardinal’s rushing based attack.

Washington’s success against Stanford came largely by stopping the run and stacking the line of scrimmage. The Beavers currently rank eighth in the country in passing yards, and this strategy will not work against OSU.

Although quarterback Sean Mannion may not be available in this matchup due to a knee injury, backup Cody Vaz proved that he is capable with three touchdown passes against BYU. The Oregon State passing attack has the talent to overwhelm Washington in this game.

Saturday, November 10, at Stanford 

Palo Alto is another extremely difficult place for a Pac-12 team to play, as USC knows all to well. The Trojans' latest loss to Stanford came earlier this season when they were ranked No. 2 in the country.

Matt Barkley, Robert Woods and Marqis Lee were contained by the stout Cardinal defense, and the Beavers' potent passing game will have to find a way to make plays in this contest. 

Ultimately, it will be difficult to score in this game, but OSU has proven that it can get a victory in a low-scoring battle when it upset Wisconsin 10-7.

Sean Mannion will likely be back from his injury before this game, and the sophomore’s confidence has grown continually this season. The Beavers will need him to play flawlessly in this contest, as points will be at a premium.

Saturday, November 24, at Oregon 

This rivalry game should be an entertaining battle that features a stunning amount of points and offensive yardage.

Oregon’s rushing attack is frighteningly fast, and Chip Kelly’s up-tempo system will allow the team to score early and often. For the Beavers to have a chance at an upset, they will have to match the Ducks’ offensive output.

In addition to having elite speed on offense, the Oregon defense covers ground like few other teams in the country. This will undoubtedly be the Beavers toughest test of the season.

But pushing the game into a wild shootout will give OSU a chance, and this matchup is sure to provide a thrilling late-season contest. 

The last time the Oregon State Beavers started a season 5-0, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the President of the United States and a gallon of gasoline cost $0.19.

Behind a phenomenal game from backup QB Cody Vaz, the Beavers took down the BYU Cougars 42-24 in Week 6, gaining 118 yards on the ground against a Cougars defense that ranked first in the country against the run.

Whether Vaz or injured starter Sean Mannion is under center, the Beavers figure to win their next few games against Arizona State and Utah in Corvallis and on the road against Washington.

Conceivably, they could beat Stanford on the road as well.

But they'll be stymied in the Civil War that takes place on November 24 in Corvallis.

Oregon has beaten Oregon State in each of their past four meetings, including the last two in Corvallis by a combined score of 102-58.

Yes, that was a different Oregon State team, but it was also a different Oregon Ducks squad.

The Ducks are one of two teams in the country averaging more than 50 points per game on offense and their defense isn't shabby either, allowing only 20 points per game, 31st overall.

The Beavers defense is staunch, ranking 25th and allowing just over 18 points a contest, but their offense ranks 69th in the country, putting up just over 27 points per contest.

With both teams playing in the Pac-12 North, the winner of that game figures to be the one to advance to the Pac-12 championship game—and the Ducks' offense is simply too much for the Beavers to handle.

If only the Ducks were in the Pac-12 South.

The Oregon State Beavers suffered a huge shock on Monday when Coach Mike Riley announced starting quarterback Sean Mannion was slated to have surgery on a torn meniscus this week. Back-up junior QB Cody Vaz, who has not played a game since 2010, will jump in for Mannion.

Or try to, at least.

While everyone expected the Beavers' September 2012 schedule to be brutal, no one said anything about their October. Now, however, consider it their crucible.

Dramatics aside, what is really at stake for Oregon State and its fans?

Last year, Oregon State suffered through one of its worst seasons of the last decade, when it finished 3-9. Then-freshman QB Sean Mannion stood at 4-0 with big wins over previously-ranked Wisconsin Badgers, UCLA Bruins and Arizona Wildcats.

Mike Riley and his players have already far surpassed 2012 expectations and confirmed that the Beavers are indeed legitimate threats again.

While they could say, "Hey, we've done well" and rest on their laurels, the Beavers will not go softly into the night. Nor should they. They have something special in their grasp and will not be persuaded to just give it up.

What's that something special? Multiple things:

A validation of their efforts in the off-season.

A thrilling Top 10 AP ranking recently awarded to them, the highest of Coach Riley's career at Oregon State (he tied it once before).

A Top 25-ranked defense in points (as well as first nationally in third down defense and fourth nationally in run defense) with big play standouts like CB Jordan Poyer and DE Scott Crichton.

A revitalized offense that, while not as intimidating as the defense, still features a revamped running game and two of the Top 10 receivers in the country (Markus Wheaton and Brandin Cooks).

And a shot not only at a bowl game that they missed the year before but the Rose Bowl or (dare we say it?) a championship berth.

This "something special" also included QB Sean Mannion, who regrouped from his freshman trials to average 339 passing yards a game (second in the Pac-12) and led a scoring drive in the waning minutes against Arizona in Week 5 to rescue the season.

Mannion had his knee surgery Thursday, and according to ESPN it went well. He is expected to return to uniform in two to four weeks, though rumors are he tried to practice before surgery and will want to jump in sooner than he should.

That leaves an October during which the Beavers must fight without their trusted quarterback.

No one likes to settle for merely putting on a good show. And the Beavers will not give up on their 2012 season. They must rally around QB Vaz and give him everything they can to face down a daunting challenge: on the road this Saturday against the nation's third-ranked defense of the Brigham Young Cougars. After that, they face the Utah Utes' stout defense at home before battling the Washington Huskies in a stadium known for upsets.

Note that the Beavers only need to win two of these games to still maintain a possible top Pac-12 North finish.

If they can survive their crucible, Mannion might return for the Arizona State game on November 3. A big "if" and "might."

However, crucibles are also opportunities in disguise. Survive it and validate the team's cohesion and poise, and those BCS berths are much more tangible.