Beavers Experience Hell in Cincy
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by The Beast
After an opening win over the Utah Utes, the Oregon State Beavers entered a Thursday night game against Cincinnati as three point favorites. While they had hoped to continue their winning ways, the game did not go as Mike Riley's Beavers had planned as they were dominated by the Bearcats and lost 34-3.
While one loss can not ruin the season, Thursday night showed that the Beavers have a long way to go before they can be as good as I originally thought.
The quarterback situation appears to be the most pressing issue right now as it has been lingering since the end of spring practice. It seems obvious that Mike Riley wants to give Canfield the job, as he kept him in the game for quite a long time. However, neither Canfield nor Moevao have been convincing enough to seize total control of the the job. If the contrevsersy continues than Mike Riley will have a big mess on his hands, as these controversies have been known to divide locker rooms in the past.
The rushing game appears to be another problem as the Cincinnati defense took away the Beavers' biggest strength. In the week leading up to the game, Bearcats coach Brian Kelly had emphasized the run in practice and it showed as the Beavers were only able to muster up 36 rushing yards. During the Utah game a week earlier, the run had allowed the Beavers to ease in their "rookie" quarterbacks Sean Canfield and Lyle Moevoa into the game. Last night it constantly put Canfield and Moevao in 2nd or 3rd and long situations, where they had a lot of trouble.
While the running game surely struggled, the seven turnovers were what eventually killed the Beavers. No team that expects to compete for a big-time bowl bid can committ that many turnovers, especially on the road. Canfield and Moevoa threw for a combined six interceptions in addition to a fumbled punt that was recovered on their own two yard line. The Beavers also had a blocked punt that was recovered in the end zone for another TD. If they want to improve their forutnes next week, than the turnovers must dramatically decrease.
With the the Pac-10 schedule on the horizon, the Beavers better get these problems straightened out out fast if they want to even come close to last year's ten win season.
