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Every Friday of each game week, the BeaversEdge.com staff will give its predictions for Oregon State's matchup!
With the Oregon State Beavers (2-0) set to host the No. 9 Oregon Ducks (2-0) on Saturday afternoon, BeaversEdge Publisher Brenden Slaughter, recruiting analyst Dylan Callaghan-Croley, and writers T.J. Mathewson and Ryan Harlan give their two cents on the matchup and who's going to come out on top!
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T.J. MATHEWSON'S PICK
Since the Beaver players won't say it publicly, I'll say it for them: This IS their biggest game of the season. There will be little chance of an at-large CFP birth without it. When push comes to shove on Saturday, despite the difference in recruiting rankings, I think it's going to be pretty balanced in the trenches.
The Beavers are going to land a few punches, and so are the Ducks. Oregon State will certainly be able to run the football as well, if not better than Boise State did to the Ducks a week prior. TOP will not be a problem.
It's rare to say this, but the game will most likely be won or lost on the outside. Oregon has a trio of very talented receivers who can break off a touchdown at any moment, Oregon State hasn't shown they have a player who can match that.
The Beavers' offensive staff has been harping all week at the need for more explosive plays, who is going to come from? Darrius Clemons if he is back? David Wells? Whoever it is, they'll need to show it Saturday to respond to an inevitable 50+ yd Oregon touchdown.
Who wins? The talent gap is still a little bit too wide for me to pick against Oregon. Do the Beavers have a chance? Certainly, and the odds are much better than they were at the start of the season. The Ducks will have one extra explosive play that provides the difference, in a game that is decided in the second half.
PREDICTION: Oregon 34, Oregon State 24
TJ's season record: 1-1
