Oregon State Beavers

Head Coach

Mike Riley	8th year
07-08	9-4
PAC-10	5-3
FCR	20

Previous Season Wins

Oregon St Preview by Chris Farrelly

Head Coach - Entering his 8th season Mike Riley has built a solid program in the northwest as Oregon St has had a winning record four of the past five seasons including 19 victories in the last two years. The offense returns seven starters an they’ll be fine but the nations 8th ranked unit must replace eight starters but they do have some solid depth to draw from.

Quarterback - Juniors Lyle Moevao and Sean Canfield both return and enjoyed success at times last year but both also suffered injuries that cost them playing time as well. Moevao is the frontrunner at this point and although he lacks the physical skills of Canfield his leadership and toughness more than make up for it.

Running Backs - Redshirt freshman Ryan McCants is going to have some big shoes to fill from last year but the coaching staff believes that he has skills similar to former Oregon St back Steven Jackson. He’ll contribute in both the run game and the passing attack but other than this past spring he’s yet to have a carry at this level. True freshman Jacquizz is a big recruit for the Beavers and will compete for time this fall.

Receivers - Oregon State got a big break when senior Sammie Stroughter was granted another year of eligibility, he had 74 receptions for 1,293 yards and five scores in 06’ and he will give whomever starts at QB a go to receiver who excels after the catch. A couple of sophomores played well last season and James Rodgers and Darrell Catchings will look to improve their numbers, also in the mix will be seniors Chris Johnson and Shane Morales.

Offensive Line - Three senior starters return with Andy Levine at left tackle and at the guards Jeremy Perry will be next to Levine and Adam Speer will be on the right side. Look to join the unit will be Marcus Henderson at center and Ryan Pohl at the right tackle spot. .

Defensive Line - Oregon State is going to have a tough time duplicating what they did last year, as they had the nations leading rush defense. The entire front seven must be replaced but that’s really a bit of a misconception as the Beavers really believe in a rotation on defense so they return much in the way of depth. On the outside seniors Victor Butler and Slade Norris return, they combined for 19 ½ sacks despite not starting and will be asked to do even more this season. JUCO transfer Simi Kuli should make an instant impact and will be in the rotation on the outside. in rebuilding there defensive line. On the inside junior Stephen Pena has the most game experience and he’ll start next to sophomore Michael Hunt who earned the starting assignment with his play this spring.

Linebackers - Stepping into starting roles will be senior Bryant Cornell in the middle and on the strongside will be junior Keaton Kristick with sophomore Keith Pankey manning the weakside. Cornell and Kristick have both played substantial minutes so they should move seamlessly into starting roles.

Defensive Backs - The secondary will clearly be there strength of the defense, they’re lead by senior cornerbacks Keenan Lewis and Brandon Hughes, they’re both three starters and Lewis led the Beavers with three interceptions last season. Al Afalava is the leading returning tackler with 64 and he’ll be at strong safety while senior Bryan Payton will step in at free safety, there’s good depth in the secondary and expect the Beavers to keep players fresh with their belief in a rotation on the defensive side of the ball.

Special Teams - Oregon St willing be braking in two new kickers this fall, look for sophomore Justin Kahut to take over as the placekicker this season and freshman Kyle Harper and JUCO John Hekker will be battling it out for starting job at punter. With the return of Sammie Stroughter punt return should be solid, look for James Rodgers to be the primary man on kickoff returns.

Schedule - The non-conference schedule offers little in the way sure wins, at Penn St and Utah will be extremely tough but they should handle Hawaii at home. Wins at Stanford and Washington St are must if they hope to get above the .500 mark. The offense should be pretty good but the defense will take a step back, if it’s a small one the Beavers will be fine. It’ll be up and down in the always tough PAC-10, look for the Beavers to end the year at the .500 mark with 6 wins.