By Cliff Kirkpatrick
Corvallis Gazette-Times
Maybe the roles are reversed this year, or maybe one of the teams is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Time will tell. Either way, there are several aspects of Saturday’s Oregon State football game at No. 18 California in Memorial Stadium that make it interesting. The clash between the Pacific-10 Conference rivals will go a long way in shaping the second half of the season for both teams. OSU (3-2, 1-1) is coming off a bye week, allowing players to heal and regroup. They came out of the first five games in as good a position that could be expected for a young team. “This past week we just focused on ourselves a bit and tightened some things ups,” quarterback Matt Moore said. “Everyone felt good, and is ready for the second half of the season.” The Beavers have back-to-back road trips against ranked teams next, which include a game against No. 12 UCLA in the Rose Bowl at 4 p.m. on Oct. 22. Last year due to scheduling quirks and weather delays, Cal had three weeks to prepare for the Beavers. OSU, however, had just lost to Arizona State big to open conference play right before. The Golden Bears went on to pick apart the Beavers in Reser Stadium, 49-7. They gained 433 yards thanks to no quarterback pressure. There were two OSU interceptions, Mike Hass only caught two passes for 26 yards, there were special teams breakdowns and a halfback pass went for a touchdown. The Beavers hit the season low that game, before turning the season around. “We just didn’t come out last year and didn’t execute our assignments,” safety Sabby Piscitelli said. The Beavers head into this year’s game with a winning record, and some momentum. They are eager to prove that the defense figured out how to slow teams down enough to allow the offense to win games, even though they are 16-point underdogs this week.
After the come-from-behind win over Washington State two weekends ago, the Beavers believe they are on the way back to their usually stingy style of defensive. There was quarterback pressure and the cornerbacks defended the deep pass well in the second half. That all translated into five turnovers. “We’re confident,” linebacker Trent Bray said. “The way we played that second half showed us what we are capable of. The main part is to carry that over to a whole game against Cal. We’ll need to do that because they are a great team.” If the Beavers can maintain that momentum, it will be quickly noticeable against the Bears (5-1, 2-1). They are coming off a 47-40 loss to UCLA, and want to get back to winning.
They suffered several breakdowns in special teams coverage, which wiped out another stellar offensive performance. Marshawn Lynch and Justin Forsett both topped 100 yards and quarterback Joe Ayoob threw for 215 yards and two touchdowns. “They are a good team,” Piscitelli said. “It’s a good opportunity for us. They are ranked high, so we have to be ready to play.” Cal’s offense poses a different challenge for the Beavers, being a strong running team. It could also give them a break after a string of exceptional passing teams. “I’m looking forward to it,” Bray said. “Anytime you get a team that runs more than passes, you look forward to it. But they’ll do some stuff. They’ll keep it balanced. (Head coach Jeff) Tedford always does something like that.” The Cal defense leads the conference in scoring defense (16.7 points a game), total defense (206.3 yards) and ranks second in rush defense (105). That creates interesting matchups since OSU is the fifth-best passing team in the country with 347 yards a game, and the running game is improved but not great.
Hass returns as the most productive receiver in the country with 166.2 yards a game. He wants to show that last season’s game was an anomaly. “This offense is going to produce numbers,” Moore said. “The way we practice and coach (Mike) Riley prepares us, I’m not surprised how the offense is doing. I just wish we had two more wins on the board.” And if nothing else makes this matchup intriguing, the Beavers want to get back at the Bears for the embarrassing thumping they received last year. That was the game when OSU fans turned on the team and directed their boos and taunts at the players. Riley won’t use that as motivation, but it’s there for the Beavers to access if needed. “With the players, we definitely remember what happened last year,” Bray said.
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