Opponent Breakdown: Boise State
At a Glance Boise State at Oregon State
When: TBA Saturday, Sept. 24
Where: Reser Stadium, Corvallis.
TV/Radio: TBD/Beaver Sports Radio Network
Series history: Oregon State leads 5-3
Last meeting: 2013. The Beavers topped BSU, 38-23, in the Hawaii Bowl. Storm Barrs-Wood averaged 6.7 yards per carry en route to 107-yard, 1 TD performance to pace OSU offensively, while Rashaad Reynolds returned two fumbles for TD's to help hold off the Broncos.
2015 in Review
Record: 9-4 overall, 5-3 Mountain West (4-2 home, 4-2 away, 1-0 neutral)
Bowl game: Won SDCCU Poinsettia Bowl, 55-7, against Northern Illinois.
Quick numbers: Points per game — 39.1., Opponents’ points per game — 20.2; Rushing yards per game — 191.4, Opponents’ — 108.2; Passing yards per game — 310.2, Opponents’ — 210.2; Time of possession — 31:49, Opponents’ — 28:11; Red-zone scoring percentage — 84 percent, Opponents’ — 74 percent.
Top performers: Passing: Brett Rypien — 3,353 yards, 20 TDs, 8 INT, 63.3 percent completion rate; Rushing: Jeremy McNichols — 1,337 yards, 20 TDs, 5.6 YPC; Receiving: Thomas Sperbeck — 88 catches, 1,412 yards, 8 TDs; Tackles — Ben Weaver — 68 tackles, four for loss, 3 INTs
Notable games: Defeated Washington, 16-13, in season opener; routed Virginia on the road, 56-14, in their fourth game. Lost two of last three regular season games (31-24 to New Mexico and 37-30 to Air Force, both of which were at home.), preventing them from winning the Mountain West.
Sept. 24 Outlook
Key returners: Rypien (Soph.); McNichols (JR); Sperbeck (SR); Weaver (SR); Tanner Vallejo (SR)— 57 tackles, eight for loss, two forced fumbles; Chanceller James (SR) — 55 tackles, 3 sacks.
Key losses: Kelsey Young — 511 yards rushing, 8 TDs, and 5.1 YPC; Darian Thompson — 65 tackles, 5 INTs, 9 passes defended; Kamalei Correa — 39 tackles, 11 for loss, and seven sacks.
Key strength: Boise State returns the QB, RB, and WR that spearheaded an offense that averaged more than 500 yards per game last season. Rypien is one of the nation’s top young QBs, and McNichols and Sperbeck are among the elite at their positions. This offense should be one of the most potent in the country this year.
Key question: The Broncos will have four new starters upfront, so how quick that group meshes and gets up to speed will be crucial. But don’t feel too bad for Boise State, they return enough established starters who should be able to help the defense withstand any bumps in the road.
Raju’s Take
You’ve seen the numbers . . . Stopping Boise State’s high-powered offense could be the OSU defense’s stiffest challenge all season long. It’s almost a “choose your poison” scenario. Do they load the box to stop McNichols and let Rypien take shots against a secondary that will be young and inexperienced? On the flip side, the front 7 also has a lot of questions, so will it get enough pressure on Rypien and slow down the passing game. Either way, it’s a doozy, and I am not sure the Beavers have enough to render the BSU offense punch-less.
On offense, the Beavers need to establish the run early by attacking BSU’s inexperienced front four. If Nall and Co. can move the chains and force the Broncos LB's and DB's to come up and help against the run — that could open up some big play opportunities. One thing is for certain, against a team like BSU, the Beavers can’t leave any points off the board. In fact, they may need to take some chances, especially if they fall behind early.
Boise State is usually is well coached, disciplined and physical. Couple that with the offensive talent they have this year, and well, I think this could be an ugly game for the Beavers. It’s a very tough test early on in the season. But if the Beavers can limit turnovers and seize on any big play opportunities, I don’t see why this game can’t be competitive, in at least spurts. That said, an OSU win would be a pretty big upset in my opinion, and provide Gary Andersen with a much-needed signature win.