Oregon State Opponent Preview: Hawaii
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With the 2021 season on the horizon, BeaversEdge.com is introducing all 12 of Oregon State's opponents over the course of summer.
Today, we dive into the first home game of the season, an evening contest against Hawaii...
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The Game
Date: Saturday, September 11th
Time: 8 PM PT
Location: Reser Stadium; Corvallis, Ore.
TV: FS1
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Oregon State 2020 Record: 2-5 (2-5 Pac-12)
Hawaii 2020 Record: 5-4 (4-4 Mountain West)
2020 Recap
After losing Nick Rolovich to the Washington State Cougars following the 2019 campaign, the Hawaii Warriors hired former Arizona State head coach Todd Graham to lead the program into the future.
In Graham's first season, which turned out to be delayed and abbreviated in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Warriors had just about as good of a season as you could have asked for given the circumstances.
Graham helped extend Hawaii's postseason appearance streak to three seasons and the team capped off a 2020 campaign with a 28-14 upset win over Houston in the New Mexico Bowl.
Given that Graham was given the keys to a program fresh off the success of Rolovich, 'm very curious to see how the Warriors fare in the second season of the regime. Hawaii ended up having a very good 2019 (10-5) and it's quite possible some of that success carried over into this past season.
Overall, the Warriors made a really solid hire in Graham and his first season at the controls definetly reflects that. While he never was able to quite get the Sun Devils over the top of the Pac-12, they always yielded a very competitive squad and that's what I expect Graham to continue to bring in years to come in Honolulu.
Best Win: 2020 New Mexico Bowl vs Houston (28-14 victory on Dec. 24)
Worst Loss: @ Wyoming on Oct. 30th (31-7 loss)
2021 Outlook
Heading into the 2021 season, it's going to be very interesting to see how the Warriors continue the transition from the Rolovich era to the Graham era.
The 2020 season was really hard to get a read on for a variety of reasons, so like many teams, the Warriors enter the upcoming season with some question marks.
Offensively, the Warriors will be led by quarterback Chevan Cordeiro and running back/receiver Calvin Turner as they're the focal points on Graham's offense.
Cordeiro, who hails from the famous Saint Louis HS in Hawaii, is coming off a season where he threw for 2,083 yards and 14 touchdowns on the season. He averaged 231.4 passing yards per game while completing 62.3% of his passes against six interceptions.
On defense, linebacker Darius Muasau is the engine as he's coming off a season where he finished with 104 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, and seven quarterback hurries. Additionally, he led the Mountain West and ranked fourth-nationally in solo tackles per game (7.6).
Key Returnees: QB Chevan Cordeiro, WR/RB Calvin Turner, LB Darius Muasau
Hawaii Season Projection: 7-6
Early Prediction
I'd be mighty shocked if Oregon State doesn't win this game...
While almost two years will have passed since the Beavers' debacle in Honolulu, I guarantee the players who were on the squad in 2019 will have a little extra motivation for the Warriors.
In hindsight, the '19 week two loss to Hawaii, a game in which the Beavers led, was the difference between going to the postseason and staying home as the team ended up with a 5-7 overall record.
While it's not fair to put that one loss as to why the team didn't make the postseason back in Jonathan Smith's second year, it still stung mightily as it was a game the Beavers had within their grasp.
Flash forward two years, and the Warriors are coming to Reser Stadium for their third contest of the season, while it'll be the Beavers' home opener and second contest of the season.
Given that Hawaii will have two games under their belt compared to OSU's one, they might be a little more comfortable right off the bat, but I expect the Beavers to put the pedal to the floor and let it rip against the Warriors.
Oregon State 35, Hawaii 17
Previously
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