Staff Predictions: Oregon State vs Washington
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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 Beavers (0-1) looking to rebound against the Washington Huskies (0-0) this Saturday, Managing Editor Brenden Slaughter and Recruiting Analyst Jared Halus give their two cents on the matchup and who's going to come out on top.
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BRENDEN SLAUGHTER'S PICK
While I expect Jonathan Smith's group to play much better against Washington, it might not make a difference in the long run as the Huskies are a far superior team and program than Washington State.
It was a perfect storm of sloppy play for the Beavs against the Cougars, so I expect them to clean up a lot of the issues and actually play quite well against the Huskies.
If the Beavers aren't able to clean up some of the glaring issues across the board that reared their ugly heads against the Cougars, it could be a rough evening at Husky Stadium if the Beavers don't bring their A-game.
For the Beavers to have a chance in this one, they'll need to have better play on both lines, keep Tristan Gebbia upright, establish a strong ground game with Jermar Jefferson, tackle much better, and limit big plays from the UW offense. If they're able to do all that, we just might have a game that's closer than many think.
UW is currently a 13.5 point favorite, and I expect OSU to cover the spread and play better than expected. However, I like the Huskies by a touchdown.
Prediction: Washington 24, Oregon State 17
JARED HALUS' PICK
Unless Oregon State can come out and get some confidence instilled in Tristan Gebbia early on, I do not see this game going the way of the Beavers. Jermar Jefferson runs the ball like a man, but the offense will need to click on some more big plays in the passing game to make this win happen.
While we know little to nothing about Washington due to a week one cancellation, I think it is fair to say that the Huskies have enough talent to compete. They return very few starters on offense, so Oregon State's defense will need to use their experience to tame the Washington attack.
If those things can happen, I could see Oregon State winning - but I don't think it happens this week.
Prediction: Washington 35, Oregon State 20
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