With the 2019 season on the horizon, BeaversEdge.com is introducing all 12 of Oregon State's 2019 opponents in July.
Today, we dive into Oregon State's first November game of the season, a road matchup with Khalil Tate and the Arizona Wildcats.
The Game
Date: Saturday, November 2nd
Time: TBA
Location: Tuscon, Arizona
TV: TBA
Betting Line: N/A
Oddshark Prediction: N/A
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Oregon State 2018 record: 2-10 (1-8 Pac-12)
Arizona 2018 record: 5-7 (4-5 Pac-12)
Arizona 2018 Recap
The 2018 season was the first for Arizona under the leadership of former Texas A&M head man Kevin Sumlin, and by all accounts, it should have been better as the Wildcats finished with a 5-7 record, including a 4-5 mark in Pac-12 play.
Given that the Wildcats boasted a preseason Heisman candidate in quarterback Khalil Tate heading into the season, going 5-7 is not quite what the Wildcat faithful had in mind. The Sumlin-Tate relationship hasn't been quite right from the beginning, as Sumlin and offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone wanted Tate to embrace being a quarterback more than a runner.
Things perhaps reached a boiling point after the conclusion of the 2018 season as it was reported that Tate was looking to transfer due to a deteriorating relationship with Mazzone, however Tate reversed course and chose to stay at Arizona.
On the field, the Wildcats were just that, wild.
They flashed potential, showing just how good they can be in wins against Oregon and Cal, but also showed glaring flaws in puzzling losses to Washington State, Arizona State, and Houston.
Arizona was truly a Jekyll and Hyde team in the first year of the Sumlin regime, and some of that is to be expected with a new staff taking over, but there were also a fair amount of rough patches that need to be worked out to keep things happy in Tuscon.
Look for the Wildcats to be a hot and cold team again in 2019.
Best win: October 27th - vs Oregon - 44-15
Worst loss: November 17th - @ Washington State - 69-28
2019 Outlook
Given that the Wildcats boast the likes of Tate and dynamic running back JJ Taylor on offense, they'll be threat to score bunches of points on any given night. The biggest key for the Wildcats' success this season will be Tate staying healthy, productive, and and on the field.
In terms of dynamic coaching staff additions, Sumlin turned to former Dallas Cowboys running back and TV personality Demarco Murray to lead the running backs and hired former Oregon State offensive lineman Kyle Devan for the offensive line. While I believe that Murray will be more effective as a recruiter than a coach, Sumlin is getting a rising gem in DeVan. Look for both of those coaches to have a positive impact on making the Wildcats more consistent on offense in 2019.
Defensively, the Wildcats' strength lies in linebackers Colin Schooler and Tony Fields (combined 208 tackles in 2018) as the two will yet again be the anchors of the defense. There's some question marks up front, but the secondary should be solid with a group that has a fair amount of experience between them.
While Arizona should be a decent team this season, there's a broad spectrum for where the Wildcats could end up. Could we see them take a leap in the second year of Sumlin? Will they be on and off on a regular basis similar to 2018? Will they regress?
At this point I think it's closer to No. 2 as the Wildcats will likely have good and bad weeks en-route to a middle of the road season that has them bowl eligible.
Arizona Season Prediction: 6-6
Early Prediction
With Oregon State coming off a bye week, and Arizona coming off what figures to be one of their more physical matchups of the season against Stanford and eyeing their own bye week a week later, this game has opportunity written all over it for Smith and Co.
Oregon State hasn't beaten the Wildcats since 2016, but I think there's going to be a lot of fireworks in the desert this season. The Beavers will be coming off their last bye week of the season and will be looking to finish the back half of Pac-12 play on a high-note.
While Arizona will likely be favored in this contest, this is a game that the Beavers might be able to steal on the road depending on where Arizona is at. The game against Oregon State marks the end of six straight weeks of opponents, including matchups with Washington, USC, and Stanford for the Wildcats and they'll likely be a little fatigued heading into the contest.
Look for the Beavers to spring a trap in Tuscon.
Oregon State 38, Arizona 35
