Photo by: Beth Buglione/Oregon State Athletics
Beavers, Bruins set for Afternoon Tilt
November 04, 2015 | Football
UNIFIED FOR UCC: For the rest of the season, the Beavers will wear a black UCC ribbon on their helmets to honor the fallen from the tragic events of Oct. 1 at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore. (115 miles south of Corvallis).
THE SERIES/GAME FACTS
ON THE JOB TRAINING: Oregon State has one of the least experienced rosters in the nation. Twenty-two have gotten the first start of their careers in 2015, the third most first-time starters in the nation (Kansas & UCF have started 32) including: RB Chris Brown, DB Devin Chappell, OG Drew Clarkson, QB Seth Collins, CB Treston Decoud, DE Titus Failauga, WR Datrin Guyton, LB Kyle Haley, CB, Kendall Hill, OT Will Hopkins, DL Sumner Houston, LB Manase Hungalu, QB Nick Mitchell, RB Ryan Nall, NT Kyle Peko, DE Baker Pritchard, TE Noah Togiai, LB Bright Ugwoegbu, DT Kalani Vakameilalo, TE Brent VanderVeen, CB Dwayne Williams and LB Jonathan Willis. In total, the Beavers have had 32 players get their first taste of Division I college football, tying for the 11th-most first-timers in the country.
YOUTH IS SERVED: OSU is one 25 teams in the country to have played 20 or more freshmen in 2015. The Beavers have had exactly 20 rookies see game action in 2015 including four true freshmen: QB Seth Collins, WR Paul Lucas, RB Deltron Sands and TE Noah Togiai. Among the 16 redshirt freshmen to play thus far are: OL Drew Clarkson, OL Kammy Delp, WR Datrin Guyton, DL Sumner Houston, WR Drew Kell, QB Marcus McMaryion, QB Nick Mitchell, OL Trent Moore, RB/TE Ryan Nall, S Gabe Ovgard, S Adam Soesman, LB Bright Ugwoegbu, DT Kalani Vakameilalo, CB Dwayne Williams, DE LaMone Williams and LB Jonathan Willis.
SENIOR CLASS: The Beavers are one of the most inexperienced teams in the country. OSU possesses 13 seniors on the active roster, which ranks as the youngest team in the Pac-12 and is tied as the ninth-youngest team in the nation. Included in those 13 seniors is OL Gavin Andrews and TE Caleb Smith, both of whom will miss the season.
LINEUPS IN FLUX: The starting lineups on both offense and defense have been something of a moving target in 2015. The Beavers' offense has seen 20 different players on the field for the first snap while 21 different defenders have started. On the offensive side, four different tight ends and three running backs have earned starts. On defense, eight players have started along the defensive line, seven linebackers and four different cornerbacks have received starts.
THE DRIVE: The Oregon State and Utah football programs will be featured in the Pac-12 Networks' The Drive: Pac-12 Football this fall. Episodes are scheduled for initial air dates as Nov. 4, Nov. 11, Nov. 18, Nov. 25 and Dec. 2.
BEST COACH: According to a recent ESPN.com survey, 99 college football players were asked who (other than their own coach) is the best coach in the country? Gary Andersen tied for third behind the likes of Nick Saban and Urban Meyer.
3-4: During the spring practice session, head coach Gary Andersen, assistant head coach/defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake and staff made the decision to shift to a primary defensive alignment with three down linemen and four linebackers. It marks the first time the Beavers have lined up in a primary 3-4 since the Jerry Pettibone era when Bronco Mendenhall, current BYU head coach, directed the defense in 1996.
NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND: Oregon State's defense has shown noticeable signs of improving over the last three games. The Beavers have allowed 821 yards in total offense and four touchdowns over the last 10 quarters. The previous 10 quarters OSU's defense allowed 1,531 yards and 17 touchdowns.
NO FREE PASSES: Opponents have had to earn their own first downs this season, for the most part the Beavers have allowed just 13 first downs via the penalty through eight games. Last year, OSU was among the worst in the conference for that dubious stat providing opponents with 31 free passes.
WIN THE TURNOVER BATTLE, WIN THE GAME: Over the last 145 games, Oregon State is 51-14 when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent, 11-38 when committing more and 16-15 when even.
1433: The number of yards Oregon State has rushed for this season. That's 16 more yards than of all of last season (1,417) and 206 yards more than the 2013 team (1,227).
THAT'S ODD: OSU has accumulated more first downs rushing than passing, which to some extent is to be expected with the new offensive scheme. The Beavers have 71 first downs via the rush compared to 63 via the pass. Last year for the season OSU had 78 rushing first downs compared to 138 via the air. The last time Oregon State finished a season with more first downs on the ground than through the air was in 2000 when the Beavers rushed for 119 first downs and passed for 116.
BROTHERS MITCHELL: Two weeks ago against Colorado, redshirt freshman Nick Mitchell made his collegiate debut at quarterback for the Beavers. The occasion marked a rarity in football, having a set of brothers as the offense's battery. Senior Josh Mitchell is the Beavers' center while younger brother, Nick, has taken over as the Beavers' starting quarterback.
QB ON THE MOVE: It didn't take freshman Seth Collins long to show his mobility and a very different skill set than Beaver fans are used to seeing at the position. Collins dodged, dipped, ducked, dived and dodged his way to 152 rushing yards against Weber State. It is the most yards an OSU quarterback has ran for since Tim Alexander set the school-record of 205 rushing yards against Northern Illinois in 1996 ... Through seven games, Collins is averaging 76.6 rushing yards per game. At his current pace, Collins would finish the regular season with 843 rushing yards. Collins, who has rushed for 536 yards thus far in 2015, is 96 yards short of the Oregon State single season record for rushing yards by a quarterback which is held by Don Shanklin with 630 in 1994 (the Pac-12 single season record of 986 was set in 1997 by UW's Jake Locker ... Collins' start is especially impressive as he is the fourth leading rusher in the nation among quarterbacks ... Collins is also the third leading rusher in the nation among true freshmen (Saquon Barkley, Penn State and Myles Gaskin, Washington).
FRESHMEN QUARTERBACKS: Per a survey prior to the season, Oregon State entered the season as the only team in the nation that has no quarterbacks with playing experience and has only eligible freshmen signal callers. Prior to Seth Collins starting the season-opener against Weber State, the last Beaver true freshman quarterback to start for the Beavers was David Moran in 1996. Moran started three games in what was then a wishbone system, switched to cornerback prior to 1997 and before that season transferred to Northern Arizona .. all three of OSU's eligible quarterbacks, Collins and redshirt freshmen Marcus McMaryion and Nick Mitchell have played for the Beavers this season.
2x1: Recently senior tailback Storm Barrs-Woods became the second player in Oregon State history to achieve 2,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving during his career. Barrs-Woods has rushed for 2,556 career yards, moving into fifth in OSU history, and 1,079 receiving yards. He joins Jacquizz Rodgers (2008-10) as the only other 2,000 x 1,000 player in OSU history. Further, Barrs-Woods became just the fourth player with 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards joining Pat Chaffey (1986, 88-89) and James Rodgers (2007-11) ... Barrs-Woods is one of only four active players that began their careers as running backs that have 2,000 career rushing yards and 1,000 career receiving yards (D.J. Foster, Arizona State; Elijah McGuire, Louisiana; Josh Ferguson, Illinois).
NEW LOOK LINEBACKERS: Entering the season Oregon State needed to replace all three starting linebackers from 2014 - a group that had combined to start 91 games and make 628 tackles. The Beavers returned two players with starting experience, Rommel Mageo and Caleb Saulo, who combined to start 10 games in 2013. According to a recent survey, those 10 returning starts ranks as the sixth-fewest in the nation. Those two juniors plus sophomore Manase Hungalu have formed a new triumverate combining for 139 tackles, 4.0 tackles-for-loss, 2.0 sacks, four interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
APPLYING FOR MEDICAL HARDSHIPS: OSU head coach Gary Andersen announced two weeks ago that senior tight end Caleb Smith and true freshman running back Deltron Sands will miss the rest of the 2015 season. Because both players have played this year, OSU will apply for medical hardships from the Pac-12 Conference after the season.
RETURNING O-LINEMEN: Oregon State returns all five starters on the offensive line for the first time since 2003 when Matt Brock, Brian Kilkenny, David Lose, Doug Nienhuis and Kanan Sanchez manned the trenches. This season, the Beavers have a group of linemen that started the final four games of 2014 together – Sean Harlow (LT), Fred Lauina (LG), Josh Mitchell (C), Gavin Andrews (RG) and Dustin Stanton (RT). In addition, Isaac Seumalo, who entered the season with 25 starts for the Beavers, returns from injury after missing the entire 2014 season and will fill in at right guard while Andrews will redshirt this season due to injury bringing about the possibility that the 2016 team could return five current or former starters on the line for the second consecutive season ... Harlow, who was injured against Colorado, will miss the remainder of the season.
TRUE STUDENT-ATHLETES: Twelve of the Beavers' 13 seniors are on track to graduate this academic year: Gavin Andrews (June/economics), Lavonte Barnett (March/sociology), Storm Barrs-Woods (December/human development & family sciences), Kellen Clute (March/digital communications), Jalen Grimble (December/economics), Jaswha James (December/sociology), Josh Mitchell (December/sociology), Naji Patrick (December/human development family studies/public health), Ali'i Robins (December/sociology), Larry Scott (December/human development & family studies), Caleb Smith (March/liberal studies), Shane Wallen (March/exercise & sport science).
BEAVS AT 113: Oregon owns the most victories in the Pac-12 Conference this century with 151, followed by USC (147/123 with vacated wins), OSU (111), Arizona State (108), UCLA (108), Stanford (107), Cal (96), Arizona (92), Washington (91), WSU (80). Non-traditional Pac-12 teams Utah has 130 victories this century and Colorado has 76. The Beavers hit the 100-win plateau this century in the Sept, 21, 2013 win at San Diego State. The previous 100-win stretch started during the 1966 season, ending with 1999 – nearly 34 seasons (365 games). This century's 100 victories were achieved in just over 13 seasons (168 games).
PLUS .500 NON-CONFERENCE SEASONS: Oregon State achieved its fourth straight non-conference slate with a winning record. The Beavers won all three non-conference (non-bowl) games in 2012 and again in 2014 while they posted a 2-1 record in 2013 and this season.
TENTH ANNIVERSARY: The 2015 season marks the 10th anniversary of Mike Hass and Alexis Serna winning national awards. Hass earned the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver after making a then school record 90 receptions for a then Pac-12 record 1,532 receiving yards. Hass also earned First Team All-America honors by several organizations, including the Associated Press and Walter Camp Foundation. Serna captured the Lou Groza Award as the nation's top kicker following a season where he made 23 of 28 field goal attempts and was perfect on 32 point-after-touchdown efforts. Both began their OSU careers as walkons.
15TH ANNIVERSARY OF FIESTA BOWL: 2015 season also marks the 15th anniversary of the 2000 Beavers' football squad that won the Fiesta Bowl. After thrashing Notre Dame 41-9, Oregon State finished the season ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press poll. The 2000 team will be inducted into the State of Oregon Sports Hall of Fame this fall.
THE SERIES/GAME FACTS
- Saturday marks the 62nd game in the series that dates back to 1930.
- UCLA leads the series 41-16-4.
- The last four games have been decided by eight points or less.
- Games in the series have not only been played in Los Angeles and Corvallis, but also in Portland and Tokyo – the former Mirage Bowl in 1980 was played before 86,000 spectators.
- The two schools have not met in football since 2012 and haven't played in Corvallis since 2011.
- OSU won the last meeting 27-20 at the Rose Bowl Sept. 22, 2012 – the Bruins were ranked No. 19.
- In the last meeting Beaver QB Sean Mannion (St. Louis Rams) passed for a then personal record 379 yards, 150 of those to Markus Wheaton (Pittsburgh Steelers) and 175 to Brandin Cooks (New Orleans Saints).
- OSU wide receiver coach Brent Brennan played that position at UCLA 1991-94.
- UCLA associate head coach Adrian Klemm began his coaching career at SMU on a staff that included OSU secondary coach Derrick Odum.
- UCLA offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone was OSU's running backs coach in 2002.
- Bruins wide receivers coach Eric Yarber held the same position at OSU 2000-2002, after serving as the Beavers RB coach in 1999.
ON THE JOB TRAINING: Oregon State has one of the least experienced rosters in the nation. Twenty-two have gotten the first start of their careers in 2015, the third most first-time starters in the nation (Kansas & UCF have started 32) including: RB Chris Brown, DB Devin Chappell, OG Drew Clarkson, QB Seth Collins, CB Treston Decoud, DE Titus Failauga, WR Datrin Guyton, LB Kyle Haley, CB, Kendall Hill, OT Will Hopkins, DL Sumner Houston, LB Manase Hungalu, QB Nick Mitchell, RB Ryan Nall, NT Kyle Peko, DE Baker Pritchard, TE Noah Togiai, LB Bright Ugwoegbu, DT Kalani Vakameilalo, TE Brent VanderVeen, CB Dwayne Williams and LB Jonathan Willis. In total, the Beavers have had 32 players get their first taste of Division I college football, tying for the 11th-most first-timers in the country.
YOUTH IS SERVED: OSU is one 25 teams in the country to have played 20 or more freshmen in 2015. The Beavers have had exactly 20 rookies see game action in 2015 including four true freshmen: QB Seth Collins, WR Paul Lucas, RB Deltron Sands and TE Noah Togiai. Among the 16 redshirt freshmen to play thus far are: OL Drew Clarkson, OL Kammy Delp, WR Datrin Guyton, DL Sumner Houston, WR Drew Kell, QB Marcus McMaryion, QB Nick Mitchell, OL Trent Moore, RB/TE Ryan Nall, S Gabe Ovgard, S Adam Soesman, LB Bright Ugwoegbu, DT Kalani Vakameilalo, CB Dwayne Williams, DE LaMone Williams and LB Jonathan Willis.
SENIOR CLASS: The Beavers are one of the most inexperienced teams in the country. OSU possesses 13 seniors on the active roster, which ranks as the youngest team in the Pac-12 and is tied as the ninth-youngest team in the nation. Included in those 13 seniors is OL Gavin Andrews and TE Caleb Smith, both of whom will miss the season.
LINEUPS IN FLUX: The starting lineups on both offense and defense have been something of a moving target in 2015. The Beavers' offense has seen 20 different players on the field for the first snap while 21 different defenders have started. On the offensive side, four different tight ends and three running backs have earned starts. On defense, eight players have started along the defensive line, seven linebackers and four different cornerbacks have received starts.
THE DRIVE: The Oregon State and Utah football programs will be featured in the Pac-12 Networks' The Drive: Pac-12 Football this fall. Episodes are scheduled for initial air dates as Nov. 4, Nov. 11, Nov. 18, Nov. 25 and Dec. 2.
BEST COACH: According to a recent ESPN.com survey, 99 college football players were asked who (other than their own coach) is the best coach in the country? Gary Andersen tied for third behind the likes of Nick Saban and Urban Meyer.
3-4: During the spring practice session, head coach Gary Andersen, assistant head coach/defensive coordinator Kalani Sitake and staff made the decision to shift to a primary defensive alignment with three down linemen and four linebackers. It marks the first time the Beavers have lined up in a primary 3-4 since the Jerry Pettibone era when Bronco Mendenhall, current BYU head coach, directed the defense in 1996.
NOT SO FAST MY FRIEND: Oregon State's defense has shown noticeable signs of improving over the last three games. The Beavers have allowed 821 yards in total offense and four touchdowns over the last 10 quarters. The previous 10 quarters OSU's defense allowed 1,531 yards and 17 touchdowns.
NO FREE PASSES: Opponents have had to earn their own first downs this season, for the most part the Beavers have allowed just 13 first downs via the penalty through eight games. Last year, OSU was among the worst in the conference for that dubious stat providing opponents with 31 free passes.
WIN THE TURNOVER BATTLE, WIN THE GAME: Over the last 145 games, Oregon State is 51-14 when committing fewer turnovers than its opponent, 11-38 when committing more and 16-15 when even.
1433: The number of yards Oregon State has rushed for this season. That's 16 more yards than of all of last season (1,417) and 206 yards more than the 2013 team (1,227).
THAT'S ODD: OSU has accumulated more first downs rushing than passing, which to some extent is to be expected with the new offensive scheme. The Beavers have 71 first downs via the rush compared to 63 via the pass. Last year for the season OSU had 78 rushing first downs compared to 138 via the air. The last time Oregon State finished a season with more first downs on the ground than through the air was in 2000 when the Beavers rushed for 119 first downs and passed for 116.
BROTHERS MITCHELL: Two weeks ago against Colorado, redshirt freshman Nick Mitchell made his collegiate debut at quarterback for the Beavers. The occasion marked a rarity in football, having a set of brothers as the offense's battery. Senior Josh Mitchell is the Beavers' center while younger brother, Nick, has taken over as the Beavers' starting quarterback.
QB ON THE MOVE: It didn't take freshman Seth Collins long to show his mobility and a very different skill set than Beaver fans are used to seeing at the position. Collins dodged, dipped, ducked, dived and dodged his way to 152 rushing yards against Weber State. It is the most yards an OSU quarterback has ran for since Tim Alexander set the school-record of 205 rushing yards against Northern Illinois in 1996 ... Through seven games, Collins is averaging 76.6 rushing yards per game. At his current pace, Collins would finish the regular season with 843 rushing yards. Collins, who has rushed for 536 yards thus far in 2015, is 96 yards short of the Oregon State single season record for rushing yards by a quarterback which is held by Don Shanklin with 630 in 1994 (the Pac-12 single season record of 986 was set in 1997 by UW's Jake Locker ... Collins' start is especially impressive as he is the fourth leading rusher in the nation among quarterbacks ... Collins is also the third leading rusher in the nation among true freshmen (Saquon Barkley, Penn State and Myles Gaskin, Washington).
FRESHMEN QUARTERBACKS: Per a survey prior to the season, Oregon State entered the season as the only team in the nation that has no quarterbacks with playing experience and has only eligible freshmen signal callers. Prior to Seth Collins starting the season-opener against Weber State, the last Beaver true freshman quarterback to start for the Beavers was David Moran in 1996. Moran started three games in what was then a wishbone system, switched to cornerback prior to 1997 and before that season transferred to Northern Arizona .. all three of OSU's eligible quarterbacks, Collins and redshirt freshmen Marcus McMaryion and Nick Mitchell have played for the Beavers this season.
2x1: Recently senior tailback Storm Barrs-Woods became the second player in Oregon State history to achieve 2,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving during his career. Barrs-Woods has rushed for 2,556 career yards, moving into fifth in OSU history, and 1,079 receiving yards. He joins Jacquizz Rodgers (2008-10) as the only other 2,000 x 1,000 player in OSU history. Further, Barrs-Woods became just the fourth player with 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards joining Pat Chaffey (1986, 88-89) and James Rodgers (2007-11) ... Barrs-Woods is one of only four active players that began their careers as running backs that have 2,000 career rushing yards and 1,000 career receiving yards (D.J. Foster, Arizona State; Elijah McGuire, Louisiana; Josh Ferguson, Illinois).
NEW LOOK LINEBACKERS: Entering the season Oregon State needed to replace all three starting linebackers from 2014 - a group that had combined to start 91 games and make 628 tackles. The Beavers returned two players with starting experience, Rommel Mageo and Caleb Saulo, who combined to start 10 games in 2013. According to a recent survey, those 10 returning starts ranks as the sixth-fewest in the nation. Those two juniors plus sophomore Manase Hungalu have formed a new triumverate combining for 139 tackles, 4.0 tackles-for-loss, 2.0 sacks, four interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.
APPLYING FOR MEDICAL HARDSHIPS: OSU head coach Gary Andersen announced two weeks ago that senior tight end Caleb Smith and true freshman running back Deltron Sands will miss the rest of the 2015 season. Because both players have played this year, OSU will apply for medical hardships from the Pac-12 Conference after the season.
RETURNING O-LINEMEN: Oregon State returns all five starters on the offensive line for the first time since 2003 when Matt Brock, Brian Kilkenny, David Lose, Doug Nienhuis and Kanan Sanchez manned the trenches. This season, the Beavers have a group of linemen that started the final four games of 2014 together – Sean Harlow (LT), Fred Lauina (LG), Josh Mitchell (C), Gavin Andrews (RG) and Dustin Stanton (RT). In addition, Isaac Seumalo, who entered the season with 25 starts for the Beavers, returns from injury after missing the entire 2014 season and will fill in at right guard while Andrews will redshirt this season due to injury bringing about the possibility that the 2016 team could return five current or former starters on the line for the second consecutive season ... Harlow, who was injured against Colorado, will miss the remainder of the season.
TRUE STUDENT-ATHLETES: Twelve of the Beavers' 13 seniors are on track to graduate this academic year: Gavin Andrews (June/economics), Lavonte Barnett (March/sociology), Storm Barrs-Woods (December/human development & family sciences), Kellen Clute (March/digital communications), Jalen Grimble (December/economics), Jaswha James (December/sociology), Josh Mitchell (December/sociology), Naji Patrick (December/human development family studies/public health), Ali'i Robins (December/sociology), Larry Scott (December/human development & family studies), Caleb Smith (March/liberal studies), Shane Wallen (March/exercise & sport science).
BEAVS AT 113: Oregon owns the most victories in the Pac-12 Conference this century with 151, followed by USC (147/123 with vacated wins), OSU (111), Arizona State (108), UCLA (108), Stanford (107), Cal (96), Arizona (92), Washington (91), WSU (80). Non-traditional Pac-12 teams Utah has 130 victories this century and Colorado has 76. The Beavers hit the 100-win plateau this century in the Sept, 21, 2013 win at San Diego State. The previous 100-win stretch started during the 1966 season, ending with 1999 – nearly 34 seasons (365 games). This century's 100 victories were achieved in just over 13 seasons (168 games).
PLUS .500 NON-CONFERENCE SEASONS: Oregon State achieved its fourth straight non-conference slate with a winning record. The Beavers won all three non-conference (non-bowl) games in 2012 and again in 2014 while they posted a 2-1 record in 2013 and this season.
TENTH ANNIVERSARY: The 2015 season marks the 10th anniversary of Mike Hass and Alexis Serna winning national awards. Hass earned the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver after making a then school record 90 receptions for a then Pac-12 record 1,532 receiving yards. Hass also earned First Team All-America honors by several organizations, including the Associated Press and Walter Camp Foundation. Serna captured the Lou Groza Award as the nation's top kicker following a season where he made 23 of 28 field goal attempts and was perfect on 32 point-after-touchdown efforts. Both began their OSU careers as walkons.
15TH ANNIVERSARY OF FIESTA BOWL: 2015 season also marks the 15th anniversary of the 2000 Beavers' football squad that won the Fiesta Bowl. After thrashing Notre Dame 41-9, Oregon State finished the season ranked No. 4 in the Associated Press poll. The 2000 team will be inducted into the State of Oregon Sports Hall of Fame this fall.
Players Mentioned
DT
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