The final score likely made you cringe, and the defense may have caused some frustration. The scoreless second half probably led to some channel-surfing.
However, as offensive coordinator Ryan Gunderson and the Oregon State Beavers coaching staff reviewed the film from Saturday’s significant loss to the rival Ducks, their reactions were quite different.
“There was, as always, some good, some bad,” Gunderson noted. “But it’s not about a lack of effort or talent. I reassured them that in the first half, against a top-10 team, we belonged. We were competitive and likely could have scored three touchdowns. So we’re fine. We just need to improve.”
Half-full perspective? Perhaps.
As the Oregon State offense prepares for this weekend’s game against the Purdue Boilermakers, it finds comfort in its first-half performance and feels confident that many issues are correctable.
Matchup Details
- Oregon State (2-1) vs. Purdue (1-1)
- When: Saturday, Sept. 21
- Time: 5:30 p.m. PT
- Where: Reser Stadium, Corvallis
- TV Channel: The CW (Channel 32 in Portland)
- Stream: Fubo (free trial) or DirecTV Stream (free trial). Locally available in Oregon and Washington; availability may vary outside the Pacific Northwest.
Oregon State football 2024 season schedule, scores.
The Beavers had four first-half drives, during which they scored a pair of touchdowns and, if not for a false start and missed field goal, would have scored more. They owned a decisive edge in time of possession (21:03 to 8:57) and actually gained more yards (218-217) than the Ducks. They showed a nice run-pass balance (quarterback Gevani McCoy threw for 102 yards, OSU rushed for 116). And they had a momentum-building series at the end of the half, when they were desperate for points, unleashing a clutch, 14-play, 81-yard drive to trim the UO lead to 22-14 at intermission.
The wheels fell off in the third quarter, of course, as Oregon State endured back-to-back three-and-outs and produced just 28 yards on their first 11 plays of the second half.
But the recipe for success, they say, was there.
“I think you saw in the first half … if we can play clean operationally and do what we want to do, like, we belonged on the field with that football team,” Gunderson said. “We ran for 100 and threw for a 100 in the first half and scored 14 and probably should have scored, in my opinion, 21. So there’s a formula.”
As for what was missing from the formula in the second half, well, most who watched it might say there was a discrepancy in talent between the nation’s ninth-ranked team and the unranked Beavers.
Gunderson, however, said he thought it was a combination of little things — a variety of “operational mistakes” — that derailed Oregon State after halftime.
False starts. Shaky snaps. A poor decision here, a bad read there. Even, a time or two, McCoy’s cadence at the line of scrimmage.
The devil, as they say, is in the details. And it was the details that made the difference against the Ducks, final score be damned.
“I told the players this week, ‘If you don’t have time to do it right, then when are you going to have time to do it over?’” Gunderson said. “And they need to do it right the first time. Don’t take those little things for granted. And that’s just life, that’s maturing and growing up. But I think they’re buying in and doing a good job.”
The focus on the details starts with the most visible position on offense. McCoy, who completed 22 of 34 passes for 172 yards, rushed for 52 yards, and had another turnover-free performance, was not the problem. He showed poise in the pocket and flashed his dual-threat ability for the first time this season, ripping off the Beavers’ biggest play of the game — a 37-yard run — on a scramble.
But McCoy left more than one play on the field and also left wanting more. Regarding those aforementioned details, Gunderson’s message was received loud and clear by OSU’s quarterback.
“That’s something that our coaches preach — details,” McCoy said. “So just being keyed into the details all week during practice. Like my footwork. There was a time or two, where I was late to my first read because I didn’t have the correct footwork. And then I would say just being more vocal and trying to be more loud. There was a time or two in the game where there was a false start or something like that. And I’ll point the finger at myself first, which I’m supposed to do. I’ve just got to be louder.”
And, as McCoy and the Beavers learned Saturday, they’ll have to be better if they want to hold their own against good teams.
The jury is still out on whether Purdue, which endured a 66-7 drubbing against Notre Dame last weekend, is anything close to good. But the Big Ten opponent boasts a physical defensive front, a preseason All-America safety (Dillon Thieneman) and a man-to-man scheme that challenges offenses to win one-on-one battles. So the Boilermakers have the Beavers’ attention.
Beyond cleaning up the details, Oregon State is still trying to balance how to mix big-play opportunities into its run-heavy offensive identity. After pledging to open things up more against the Ducks, OSU had just one of 67 plays gain more than 18 yards. Gunderson hopped on the grenade for that failure — “that’s on me,” he said, “I’ve got to figure out ways to do that” — but there might only be so much a ball-control, defensive-minded team can muster.
“You just kind of let it happen naturally,” Gunderson said. “I think we’ll grow it and get comfortable with him. He’ll get comfortable. As we progress through things, there’s going to be stuff that you put in for a game plan that you’re going to run that week. And there’s going to be stuff that you put in and you keep it in the pressure cooker for a little while, keep it in the warmer and pull it out when you’re ready to pull it out. So I think it’ll naturally open up a little bit. But I also think that you kind of have to lean into who you are and what you’re good at.”
The good news is that help is coming on that front this week in the form of 6-foot-3, 211-pound wide receiver Darrius Clemons. The Michigan transfer, who missed the first three games with an injury, is expected to make his OSU debut Saturday. Adding his size, speed and big-play potential alongside budding star Trent Walker should only open things up that much more for McCoy and the offense.
“I’m excited to have DC out there … to see what he can do and how he can help us out, which I think he will tremendously,” McCoy said. “I just think that gives the defense something else to key in and worry about, too. Their game plan can possibly change or they can have one guy follow him or things like that. It can also just help get the other the other receivers open, too.”
It’s just another detail the Beavers will have to iron out this week.
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