10 takeaways from Oregon State’s loss at Fresno State
Here are 10 takeaways as the Beavers prepare to host Texas State.
1. Reality check
Two things can be true. Oregon State can still be ahead of schedule and on its way to a legitimately surprising season amid a massive rebuild, complete with a potent offense. Much of its success thus far came by pounding less talented teams and several of the worst defenses in the country. And where OSU was vulnerable was there to be exploited by teams like Fresno State, which has talent and good coaching.
The Beavers are not a College Football Playoff team. That dose of reality doesn’t diminish what’s being accomplished this season. They’re simply not one of the two most talented teams in the Pac-12 right now.
2. Oregon State was outcoached
JaMarcus Shephard and his staff were outcoached for definitely the first time in conference play and arguably for the first time this season.
Matt Entz laid out in detail what Fresno State picked up from studying Braden Atkinson from his time at Mercer and Oregon State’s tendencies. Bye weeks also include self-scouting. Fresno State was more prepared for what OSU showed and particularly offensively the Beavers did not have an effective counter.
3. Self-inflicted errors can’t happen in games like this
Winning on the road against a team with at least comparable (if not better) talent and coaching is a difficult task to begin with. It becomes a whole lot harder with six presnap penalties and allowing five sacks with two leading to fumbles. OSU absolutely could have led by multiple scores early if not for a false start negating Jake Reichle’s would-be touchdown, if Aeryn Hampton’s foot was in bounds and if multiple other penalties didn’t occur.
That doesn’t even get into defensive miscues from missed tackles or over-pursuits.
4. The offensive line may have had its worst game
Houston was more physically dominating than Fresno State, but that’s to be expected. Oregon State’s offensive line had a brutal showing nearly across the board, with sacks allowed by multiple players in one-on-one matchups. OSU’s rushing stats are skewed by the sacks and not nearly as poor as the final box score, but the bottom line is Fresno State won the line of scrimmage and it’s not a particularly stout group.
5. Josiah Freeman was the best receiver on the field
Fresno State’s 6-foot-4 receiver had a big night with two touchdowns. Freeman had a massive advantage against Isaiah Houi and performed accordingly. If there’s one piece OSU’s receiving corps is missing it is a target with the size and length of Freeman, which the Beavers are leaning on via their tight ends. But an outside target like him is hard to beat and he showed why.
6. Tackling, leverage issues persist
OSU showed a vulnerability early, but against Houston and Texas Tech it was understandable in terms of talent and timing on the schedule.
Tackling improved over the prior five games, but opponents’ speed also dropped. Against legitimate athletic threats, the Beavers showed their tackling fundamentals, speed, strength and angles are still areas of weakness.
7. The areas for Braden Atkinson to develop are clear
Entz detailed Atkinson’s reliance on his first read and susceptibility to being impacted by pass rush when it’s not there. Of course, a defense has to have the talent and ability to do something about it. Atkinson’s ceiling is high provided he develops in his reading of progressions, grows more comfortable checking into run plays and finds effective counters to the better defenses OSU faces.
8. Caleb Ojeda came up big
Ojeda’s three field goals should not get lost to the box score, particularly with a 54-yarder.
At 14-9, if OSU manages to make a stop and gain momentum, the game could have changed and the importance of Ojeda’s kicks becomes paramount to the game.
9. Kickoff coverage remains a problem
As the sample size for OSU’s kickoffs grows, so too does the success opponents continue to have. To allow a 44-yard kickoff return following a 14-play drive that spanned more than five minutes is inexcusable. OSU would literally have been better off kicking out of bounds, which has been enough of an issue as well.
The Beavers rank 114th in average kickoff return yards allowed and 126th on a per game basis.
10. The weakness at corner is glaring
Without belaboring a point that’s been stated on nearly a weekly basis, the matchup disadvantage at No. 2 corner remains the Achilles’ heel for the defense.
Against bigger receivers like Freeman it’s simply a matter of when, not if, they will haul in big catches.
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