Beavers Return to Reser to Host Bears

Photo by: Scobel Wiggins/Oregon State Athletics

October 04, 2016 | Football

By: Oregon State Athletic Communications

WEAR ORANGE: Fans are encouraged to wear their orange Beaver gear when Oregon State hosts California this Saturday evening. The Beaver Store (across 26th Street from Reser Stadium) will have many options available for the "wear orange" game.

THE SERIES/GAME FACTS
• Saturday is the 69th meeting in the series that dates back to 1905.
• This will be the 27th game played in the series in Corvallis, the Beavers have won 14 of those.
• Cal has a slim 36-32 lead in the series and is on its first three-game win streak against OSU since a six-game run from 1991-98.
• The winning team has scored at least 45 points in each of the last four games.
• The Beavers scored 62 points (62-14) in 2012 in Corvallis; the most points scored by OSU ever against Cal and the second-most by OSU in a Pac-8/10/12 game (66 vs. WSU/2008).
• This is the fifth meeting (2010-12) that Beaver head coach Gary Andersen has faced off vs. Cal head coach Sonny Dykes. Andersen was 1-2 at Utah State vs. Dykes while he was the head coach at Louisiana Tech, and 0-1 in the current series.
• The first overtime game in the history of the OSU program was played Sept. 28, 1996 at California, a triple-overtime (the longest game ever for OSU) loss 48-42.
• Notable current records by Beavers set against Cal; longest field goal, tied (Alexis Serna, 58 yards, Sept. 30, 2006); most yards rushing at Reser (Steven Jackson, 239, Oct. 26, 2002); longest run against OSU (Bill Powell, Cal, 90 yards, Oct. 27, 1951); most receptions against OSU (Dameane Douglas, Cal, 15, Oct. 31, 1998).

SCHEDULE QUIRK: The Beavers begin a two-game stretch at Reser Stadium Saturday and will again play two straight at home to end the season. The last time OSU played a pair of league two-game home stands in one season was 1991.

TURNING 125: The Spirit and Sound of OSU (Oregon State's marching band) is celebrating its 125th anniversary this weekend with former band members returning to Corvallis from all over the world.

DREAMS COME TRUE: Oregon State Athletics and Unitus Community Credit Union have teamed up to grant wishes each game. Through Unitus' Dreams Come True program, the Beavers will welcome a child facing serious illness to Reser Stadium for the ultimate fan experience every home game during the 2016 season. Recipients will be recognized on the video board during the game, receive tickets, pre-game sideline passes, a chance to interact with the players on game day, a football signed by the OSU football team and a personalized game jersey. To learn more about the Dreams Come True program visit osubeavers.com/dreamcometrue

BIG PLAY BOLDEN: Senior Victor Bolden Jr. has been all over the field for the Beavers through four games - as a wide receiver, running jet sweeps and reverses, and returning punts and kickoffs. In the early going, Bolden Jr. has punished teams for failing to account for him resulting in big plays for the Beavers. Bolden Jr. is the only player in the NCAA with two plays of 90+ yards - 92-yard jet sweep (second-longest rushing play in OSU history) against Idaho State and a 99-yard kickoff return against Boise State.

DANGEROUS RETURNS: OSU leads the Pac-12 and ranks fifth in the country for yards per kickoff return at 32.7. Senior Victor Bolden Jr. leads the conference and ranks fourth in the nation with an average of 35.8 yards per return.

AIMING FOR THE CYCLE: Senior do-everything player Victor Bolden Jr. is one of six players in the nation to have scored touchdowns rushing, receiving and as a kick returner in 2016. Bolden joined the club two weeks ago with his 99-yard kickoff return against Boise State. Others that have accomplished the feat are Quadree Henderson (Pittsburgh), T.J. Logan (North Carolina), Tim McVey (Air Force), Rashaad Penny (San Diego State) and John Ross (Washington).

TWO OF THE BEST: Starting wide receivers Victor Bolden Jr. and Jordan Villamin will spend the season climbing Oregon State's career receiving yards records list. Currently Bolden Jr. ranks 15th all-time at OSU with 1,465 receiving yards while Villamin is tied for 21st with 1,282 yards.

VIC IS ON A STREAK: Victor Bolden Jr. is tied for 18th in the nation for receptions in consecutive games played. Bolden has caught at least one pass in 28 games in a row in which he's played. Corey Davis (Western Michigan), Robert Davis (Georgia State) and Zach Pascal (Old Dominion) lead the nation with receptions in 41 straight game.s

OWENS TIED FOR EIGHTH: Beaver kicker Garrett Owens has quietly moved up the record charts for field goals at OSU. He enters Saturday with 28 made field goals. Owens next target on the chart is Kieron Walford (1976-79) who made 32. He's made 28 of 36 field goals for a .778 percentage – second all-time at OSU.

SHUFFLING THE DECK: Last week, senior offensive lineman Sean Harlow returned to the lineup against Colorado. Harlow, who suffered a season-ending injury last season against the Buffs in game 7, made his team-leading 29th start of his career at left tackle. His return created a ripple effect along the line with Blake Brandel moving from left tackle to right tackle, Dustin Stanton sliding from right tackle to right guard and Gavin Andrews moving inside from right guard to center. Brandel, Stanton and Andrews had never previously played their new positions in a game for the Beavers. Fred Lauina was the lone regular to remain in his usual position at left guard.

FRESH FACES: So far in 2016 Oregon State coaches have called on 15 young players to make their OSU debuts. Six true freshmen have played in the first third of the season including: QB Conor Blount, WR Trevon Bradford, OL Gus Lavaka, RB Artavis Pierce, K Adley Rutschman and LB Shemar Smith. In addition, redshirt freshmen DT Elu Aydon, WR Andre Bodden, OT Blake Brandel, CB Xavier Crawford, S Omar Hicks-Onu, CB Jay Irvine, S Jalen Moore, CB Shawn Wilson and TE Tuli Wily-Matagi have seen playing time for the first time in their careers.

12 MORE FIRST TIMERS: Nine transfers have also been called upon to contribute including: RB Tim Cook, QB Darell Garretson, WR Timmy Hernandez, OL Brayden Kearsley, DE Phillip Napoleon, S Landry Payne, LB Wesley Payne, DT Paisa Savea and CB Kyle White. Juniors OL Sam Curtius and RB Marcus Greaves as well as sophomore OL Yanni Demogerontas have also taken their first snaps this season bringing the grand total of 2016 first-timers to 27 players making their collegiate debut for the Beavers.

NEW STARTERS: Five Oregon State players have registered the first starts of their careers. Sophomore Yanni Demogerontas started the first two games of the season at center earning the first snaps of his career. In addition, redshirt freshmen DT Elu Aydon, LT Blake Brandel, CB Xavier Crawford and CB Jay Irvine have also drawn the starting nod for the first time. On the offensive side, senior RB Tim Cook and juniors WR Timmy Hernandez and DE Phillip Napoleon have made their first starts for the Beavers. In addition, juniors QB Darell Garretson and OL Brayden Kearsley have made their first OSU starts. Garretson has started all three games this season, while Kearsley made his first start against Boise State. Both players had started at their previous schools, Garretson arrived at OSU with 11 starts under his belt at Utah State and Kearsley had four starts at BYU.

NEW COORDINATORS: The Oregon State football program is one of five in the nation (Bowling Green, Hawai'i, UCF and Utah State) that has had a different offensive AND defensive coordinator in each of the last three seasons. On the offensive side, the Beavers have been led by John Garrett (2014), Dave Baldwin (2015) and Kevin McGiven and T.J. Woods will co-coordinate in 2016, while on the defensive side it has been Mark Banker (2014), Kalani Sitake (2015) and now Kevin Clune (2016). Bowling Green is the only team to have had four different coordinators on both sides of the ball in the last four years. In point of fact, Danny Langsdorf was the offensive coordinator for the previous 10 seasons before Garrett's stint under then-head coach Mike Riley.

SENIOR CLASS: The Beavers are once again one of the most inexperienced teams in the country. OSU enters the season with 15 seniors on the active roster, which ranks as tied with Washington State as the second-youngest team in the Pac-12 behind USC with 14. It is tied as the 13th-fewest seniors in the nation.

TRUE STUDENT-ATHLETES: Eleven Beavers either have or are on track to graduate by January. Juniors Kendall Hill, who was recently granted a sixth year of eligibility, graduated following summer term with a degree in human development and family sciences, and Garrett Owens, received his degree in sociology in the spring. In addition, Gavin Andrews (economics), Devin Chappell (economics), Rahmel Dockery (sociology), Sean Harlow (human development and family sciences), Ricky Ortiz (agricultural sciences), Caleb Saulo (sociology), Dustin Stanton (business administration), Noke Tago (human development and family sciences) and Sosaia Tauaho (liberal studies) are scheduled to graduate in December.

LET'S DO IT AGAIN: Oregon State safety Kendall Hill has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. Hill missed his true freshman season (2012) due to a knee injury suffered during the spring of his senior year of high school. He then suffered a season-ending knee injury during the spring practice session in 2013 and missed a second straight year.

TEAM CAPTAINS: The 2016 team is captained by seniors Victor Bolden Jr., Devin Chappell, Sean Harlow, Caleb Saulo, Dustin Stanton and junior Darell Garretson.

WIN THE TURNOVER BATTLE, WIN THE GAME: Over the last 153 games, Oregon State is 52-16 when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent, 11-42 when committing more and 16-16 when even.

300TH GAME IN RESER: The Beavers' will play their 300th game in Reser (formerly Parker) Stadium late this year against Arizona, Nov. 19.

75TH ANNIVERSARY: The 2016 season marks the 75th anniversary of the 1941 Rose Bowl season. The anniversary will be recognized Oct. 29 when the Beavers host Washington State for "The Men of Roses" game ... The game produced two important firsts. It was Oregon State College's first-ever trip to the famous New Year's Day classic, and it remains the only Rose Bowl played outside Pasadena. The reason the game was moved to Durham, N.C. due to the blackout of the West Coast that had followed the attack on Pearl Harbor. The host stadium was Duke University's home field in Durham, N.C., with the undefeated Blue Devils picked as 3-1 favorites. Oregon State's victory came as a big surprise to Eastern and Southern sportswriters, with Sid Feder of the Associated Press writing, "Probably never in the quarter century history of the Tournament of Roses had such a completely overlooked betting underdog jumped up to beat the big fellows. Oregon State came East to the wonderment of most of Dixie as to why the Westerners were going to show up at all." ... Oregon State won the game 20-16 and Jack Gunether of UPI wrote, "The Beavers skipped and slammed and flicked passes with an ease and finesse which completely baffled the record crowd." ... Beaver boss, Lon Stiner, at 38 and the youngest head coach in Rose Bowl history, led the Beavers and Dan Durdan passed and ran OSC to victory earning Player of the Game honors. The winning score came in the third quarter when Gene Gray scored on a 68-yard pass from Bob Dethman.