BFS Current Story

BEAVERS HOST WASHINGTON FOR DAD'S WEEKEND MUST WIN GAME

11-12-2009 - This weekend, Nov. 13-15, 2009 will be a very special weekend for this Beaver Fan. Since 1965, when my older brother first entered Oregon State I have been attending games and events at Oregon State. I have attended games as a young man, a student and as an alumni. I have been to Dad's weekends as the little brother and I have been to Dad's weekends as a student. But this weekend, for the first time, I will be attending Dad's weekend as a DAD!

My brother and I talked many times over the last 20 years or so about how it would be great if our kids could attend Oregon State as we did. How much fun it would be to be the DAD of an Oregon State student. Now I get that chance. My oldest daughter had the opportunity to go to other schools and play softball. I encouraged her to take those offers and follow her dream to play college softball . But when it came time to make that choice she choose Oregon State over those other schools and this weekend I couldn't be prouder to be an OSU DAD.

This Saturday starts a three game stretch that the Beavers must win all three games if their hopes of another PAC-10 conference title are to remain alive. The first game of that stretch is the Washington Huskies who come to Corvallis for a 1pm game at Reser Stadium.

The last line I heard was the Beavers were 12 point favorites but point spreads mean very little in this conference as almost any team can win on any given weekend. The Huskies 3-6(2-4) are in eighth place in the conference but their record is not a fair reflection of how this team has played this season. The Huskies have beaten USC in Seattle 16-13 and Arizona in Seattle 36-33. Those two teams are currently first and second in the conference standings. In addition the Huskies lost in overtime at Notre Dame and lost in the final seconds at Arizona State and nearly pulled off a season opening upset of LSU. So this Huskies team is far better then their 3-6 record shows.

The Beavers enter this game coming off their most complete game of the season in beating CAL in Berkeley 31-14. The win in Berkeley gives the Beavers 6 wins and makes them bowl eligible for the fourth year in a row which is a school record. The Beavers three losses this season are all to current top 20 teams with a combined record of 22-4 and with the exception of Oregon, the Beavers have completed the toughest part of the 2009 schedule. Which bowl they will play in is still up in the air and only time will tell where they will end up.

This weekends game will be the 93rd time the two schools have played each other dating back to 1897 with the Huskies holding the advantage in wins. However, since 2003 the Beavers have the advantage, winning 5 in a row. In 1985 the Beavers pulled off one of the biggest upsets in college football history when they went into Seattle 38 point underdogs and beat the Huskies 21-20.

But home field has not been the advantage for the Beavers that is has in past years. This season the Beavers have lost 2 of their 3 losses at home and have played with less consistency at Reser. This might change this Saturday as the Beavers will be closing out their home schedule and it will be senior day for 12 seniors including Sean Canfield, Lyle Moevao, Damola Adeniji, Taylor Kavanaugh, Keaton Kristick, Tim Clark, Howard Croom, Patrick Henderson, Latu Moala, Sioeli Nau and Gregg Peat. I would like to thank these seniors for the great plays and enjoyable time I have spent watching the Beavers. Once a Beaver, always a Beaver.

BY THE NUMBERS

KEYS	STATISTIC	OSU	UW	Advantage
.	Records	6-3(4-2)	3-6(2-4)	OSU
.	Scoring Offense	29.6	24.4	OSU
.	Scoring Defense	23.7	29.1	OSU
.	Total Offense	411.7	367.6	OSU
.	Total Defense	364.4	427.0	OSU
.	Rushing Offense	131.8	122.8	OSU
.	Rushing Defense	100.3	164.4	OSU
.	Passing Offense	279.9	244.8	OSU
.	Passing Defense	264.1	262.6	UW
.	Pass Efficiency	144.6	122.8	OSU
.	Pass Defense Efficiency	130.1	148.8	OSU
.	Kickoff Returns	23.3	18.8	OSU
.	Punt Return Average	8.8	9.9	UW
.	Interceptions	6	7	UW
.	Punting	42.7	40.6	OSU
.	Kickoff Coverage	43.2	39.2	OSU
.	Field Goals	16/21=.762	15/18=.833	UW
.	PAT Kicking	28/29=.966	23/23=1.0	UW
.	Sacks by	10	15	UW
.	Sacks Against	23	21	UW
.	First Downs	193	184	OSU
.	Opponent First Downs	183	190	OSU
.	3rd Down Conversions	46.1	49.6	UW
.	3rd Down Defense	36.5	41.5	OSU
.	4th Down Conversions	75.0	50.0	OSU
.	4th Down Defense	60.0	42.9	UW
.	Penalties	54.4	62.0	OSU
.	Time of Possession	31.49	30.03	OSU
.	Turnover Margin	+3	+3	TIE
.	Red Zone Offense	94.7	84.4	OSU
.	Red Zone Defense	89.7	81.0	UW
.	Home Field Advantage	OSU	-	OSU
32	Totals	21	10	OSU

This game brings together to of the nations top third down teams. The Huskies are ranked 6th in the nation by converting 49.6% of third downs and the Beavers come in ranked 20th in the nation at 46.1%. Oregon State is also one of the top teams in the nation in red zone offense at 94.7%.

For the first time since the Portland State game this season the Beavers enter this game with a statistical advantage over their opponent. The Beavers won 21 of the 32 categories looked at with one tie in turnover margin. However the differences between the two teams stats is not all that revealing as both teams are very similar in what they do. The biggest difference i see is in rushing defense where the Huskies are giving up over 60 yards more per game on the ground then the Beavers.

THE BOTTOM LINE

The Beavers need this win and I am sure they want to leave their home fans with something to remember for the 2009 home season. The Beavers are going to face a healthy Jake Locker for the first time. Locker can pose a real problem for defenses with his ability to throw and run. Locker skills have been favorably compared to Tim Tebow of Florida. He is a big strong quarterback that can hurt a defense in many ways. The Beavers will have to contain Locker and a Huskies offense that is very balanced. Stopping the running game while containing the passing game will be key for the Beavers if they want to win this Saturday.

Canfield and the Rodgers brothers need to continue to do what they have been doing so well over the past few weeks. Control the ball, make smart decisions. The emergence of Adeniji and Halahuni have helped spread the offense out over more targets which makes things more difficult on opposing defenses. Look for the Beavers to use the passing game to open up the running game as the Huskies will most likely stack the line to stop Quizz and James from running the ball. Canfield will need to continue to make smart accurate throws down field to stretch the defense and open up the running game.

FINAL SCORE

BEAVERS 41
WASHINGTON 21

GO BEAVERS!

BFS