Oregon State Beavers 7-3 Overall (5-2 Conference)

This Week’s Score: Oregon State 48  – Washington 21

Next Week’s Opponent: @Washington State

Beaver fans, you may have to temporarily put aside your hatred for the Ducks in order to embrace a potential Civil War for the ages. If Oregon beats Arizona, the stage will essentially be set (sorry Wazzu). In fact, an Oregon win in Tucson would give OSU a better chance to control its own destiny considering the fact that UA beat the Beavers earlier this season. If Oregon beats UA, and OSU beats UO, the Beavers will hold the tiebreaker over the Ducks and Stanford (assuming the Cardinal win out). So for one week, cheering for the enemy is acceptable.

As for Saturday’s win over Washington, that was exactly the kind of performance Oregon State needed at this point in the season. Mike Riley’s club is absolutely rolling, and I have a hard time believing many teams in America could beat OSU right now. I remember telling a friend of mine early in the season “How good would Oregon State be if they had more than just the Rodgers brothers on offense?” Well, I got my answer in these last few games. As good as Oregon and Stanford have been offensively, I don’t think OSU is far behind. ‘Quizz and James have been great, but I don’t need to talk about them.

Instead let’s talk about the absolute brilliance of QB Sean Canfield. The senior could very well be the best QB in the Pac-10, and he turned in an especially impressive performance against the Dawgs (21/29 185 yards 4 TDs 0 INTs). Canfield hit seven different receivers against UW, and I continue to be amazed at the chemistry that he has developed with TE Joe Halahuni (who made only two catches but both were TDs).

Defensively, the Beavers limited a good Washington offense to only 274 total yards. Statistically, QB Jake Locker had a solid day (14/23 153 yards 3 TDs 1 INT) but he was pressured all game and sacked four times. Mark Banker’s D has steadily improved throughout the year, and the unit deserves a lot of credit for never losing confidence.

Up next for OSU are those friendly Cougars. I recommend playing ‘Quizz, James, Canfield and the first team as little as possible because a serious injury is not worth risking. Assuming all goes well in Pullman, a dream Civil War could follow.