OREGON
STATE 35 -- CALIFORNIA 24
PERFORMANCE AND AWARDS
GAME SUMMARY
Sherman, set the Wayback Machine to October 26th, 1968…
Demosthenes Andros was a larger than life figure on the
OSU sideline, the average three-bedroom house cost around $25,000, gasoline
cost $0.34 per gallon, and yours truly was just learning to walk. Hard
to imagine, but as the Beavers walked off the field that day in Pullman
following a 16-8 victory over the 'Cougs, it would be the last time OSU
started conference play at 2-0.
This is certainly not the same program that suffered through
dark days (ok, let's be honest… dark decades) during most of the
70's, 80's, and 90's, but even during recent times, OSU has quite simply
not been a very good road team. To see the team come out ready to play,
execute on both sides of the ball, and win with a dominance that wasn't
fully reflected on the scoreboard gives us all a cause for optimism as
we approach road games at Washington State, Oregon, and USC later in the
year.
It's still hard to say just how good this team can ultimately
be, but for the fourth consecutive game the Beavers showed marked improvement
from the previous week. Of course, the penalty issue is still rearing
it's ugly head in maddening proportions (man, I'm getting tired of typing
that each week), but otherwise, it's hard to believe this is the same
team that looked so dreadful during the final three quarters of play down
in Fresno.
Derek Anderson's renaissance continues, Steven Jackson
is putting up numbers that the national media can no longer ignore, and
the defense is rounding into a dominant group despite losing seven players
that had starts during the 2002 season.
Now, the trick becomes further duplicating the feats of
the 1968 team and starting conference play 3-0 when the Huskies come to
town in two weeks. With the week off to heal some of the inevitable nicks
players are feeling, and a little extra time to prepare for a UW team
that looked horrible last week, I like our chances to keep pace with the
Great Pumpkin's boys and their fast start.
GAME
STATISTICS
COMPLETE GAME STATISTICS
RIVALS
CONTEST
'EM FOOTBALL WEEK 6 RESULTS
TEAM REPORT CARD
-
OFFENSIVE SUMMARY
-- Hog Wild: Derek Anderson had ample time to throw almost all
day long and Steven Jackson put up another 200+ yard effort against the
Bears - both of which point to an outstanding effort by the offensive
line. Much of the game, the line simply bullied the opposition, a fact
that Bear defenders made mention of in post-game interviews. A very strong
outing by the entire unit!
-- The Road Warrior: Well, ok, I shouldn't get
carried away… but, Derek Anderson cast aside the demons that have
seemed to curse him on the road thus far in his collegiate career, and
the favorite son of Scappoose had an excellent afternoon. Despite an interception
that was returned 71 yards for a touchdown late in the first quarter,
DA shook it off, came back firing, and put together his best overall road
performance by completing 18 of 27 (66.7%) for 224 yards, two passing
TD's, and one rushing TD. After the five-interception debacle in Fresno
the last time the Beavers played outside the friendly confines of Reser
Stadium, DA's performance might well have been the most encouraging thing
to come out of Saturday's game.
-- As the kids might say, these guys are "tight":
Yeah, ok, so I'm way too old to try to keep up with what passes as
hip lingo with the youth of America, but I do know good tight end play
when I see it. Tim Euhus and Joe Newton were a huge part of the passing
game, and were as solid as could be when the ball went their direction.
Euhus's four grabs for 65 yards and a score were nicely complimented by
Newton's five catches for 40 yards, as Derek and his TE's did a great
job exploiting what the Cal defense gave them.
OSU OFFENSIVE MVP
Tailback Steven
Jackson
MVP STATS:
35 carries for 227 yards, 2 receptions
for 12 yards, 3 total TD's
It's becoming more and more difficult for the national media to ignore the
feats of the 20 year-old phenom from Las Vegas. I'm about out of superlatives
to describe him, so I'll let the numbers speak for themselves: #2 in the
nation in rushing yards per game (146.17), #1 in the nation in total rushing
yards (877), #3 in all-purpose yards per game (180.00), #8 in scoring per
game (10.0 pts/game), and a tie for #2 in touchdowns scored (10).
-
DEFENSIVE SUMMARY
-- Making a good QB look very bad: Cal QB Aaron Rodgers entered
the game having completed 61.5% of his passes, and sported an impressive
144.58 QB rating. The final stats for Rodgers showed 9 of 34 (26.5%) for
a meager 52 yards and one interception (and another that was nullified
by penalty). It's fair to say that Rodgers had a horrible day, but the
pressure the front seven was able to get, coupled with the coverage of
the secondary, had a lot to do with his miseries.
-- Winning the take away battle: Once again, the
D had a nose for the ball, as Bill Swancutt forced a fumble that fellow
book-end Dan Rothwell recovered, Mitch Meeuwsen recorded his 11th career
interception, and Brandon Browner lost what should have been his 4th interception
in two weeks due to an unfortunate (and not very smart) late hit by Jayson
Jean-Baptiste.
-- Must be something about the first weekend in October:
Adimchinobe Echemandu had the biggest day an opposing back has had against
the Beavers since UCLA's Tyler Ebell ran for 203 yards on October 5, 2002.
I may not be able to pronounce his name, but I'll certainly give Echemandu
credit where it's due, as he had a very strong outing against a team that
is normally very stingy against the run. Fortunately, he was about all
Cal had going for them all day long, and I imagine he's wondering (as
I am) why he only got 19 carries.
OSU DEFENSIVE MVP
Strong Safety Lawrence
Turner
MVP STATS:
5 solo tackles (2 for a loss), 1 assisted
tackle, 2 pass break-ups
Turner made his return to the familiar sites of the Bay Area having played
two seasons at City College of San Francisco, and had quite a homecoming.
His pass coverage has improved in recent weeks, and his defense against
the run was impressive, especially when he sniffed out the reverse Cal attempted
early in the third quarter, and corralled the ball carrier for a five-yard
loss.