Can Ryan McCants, Jeremy Francis, and Jacquizz Rodgers do what Yvenson Bernard did in 2007 in 2008?

That's the question. All three running backs possess different styles. McCants is a strong, physical back that reminds a lot of people of Steven Jackson.  He practiced with the first string throughout spring, and looks to have the job heading into fall camp. Jeremy Francis may have the most resemblance to Yvenson Bernard. The 5-11 junior is a tough, side-to-side type runner who is also a good pass receiver. And then there is the 5-7 Jacquizz Rodgers, who many are calling a "scatback". Jacquizz rushed for 8,245 career yards in high school, the sixth highest ever in the state of Texas. The man can run, but the question will be if he can out-run Pac-10 defenses. His brother did it last year, so we can only hope Jacquizz duplicates.

You may remember that when Yvenson Bernard was tossed into the system in 2004 as a freshman, hardly had any carries. But with the departure of Steven Jackson, Yve became "the man" in 2005 and rushed for a career-best 1321 yards his sophomore year. Check out Bernard's stats:

It's also interesting to note that Yvenson averaged 4.4 yards per carry in 2005, 2006, and 2007. Consistency.

If I was a coach and I had a back who would gain four and a half yards every time I gave him the ball, I'd be thrilled.

Who is going to give us those yards this season?

GO BEAVERS!

--JB-- 

As fall camp approaches, let's try and answer some burning questions about this year's team:

Heading into last year, Oregon State looked to have one of the top special teams units in the country. With Alexis Serna back for his senior year, punter Kyle Loomis back (he averaged 41.3 yards per kick in 2006), and Sammie Stroughter and Coye Francies to return kicks, the Beavers appeared to be set. Then, everything turned for the worse.

Francies was dismissed, Strougher played in only three games and wasn't himself, and Kyle Loomis left unexpectedly in August. That left us with Alexis Serna to do the kicking and punting, Taylor Kavanaugh to return punts, and Gerard Lawson and James Rodgers to return kicks.

Heading into 2008, the Beavers lose Serna, lose long snapper Joel Cohen, and still do not have a proven punter on the roster. 

We redshirted Kyle Harper last year, well, I thought we did, until I looked at this year's media guide and didn't even see HIM on the roster. According to our "two-deep" depth chart, Sean Sehnem is the punter. But there's another guy, Johnny Hekker, who's also listed as a punter. So we'll see how that goes.

Marcus Perry will be the long snapper. He's a freshman. 

Justin Kahut will be the kicker. He's a sophomore from Clackamas High School. He did impress us all in the spring game, however, when he made four field goals look easy from distances of 42, 50, 55, and 31-- all in the first half. So he's got that going for him.

Perhaps the best thing this unit has going for them is that junior holder Taylor Kavanaugh is back. He's a junior out of Portland's Lincoln High School.

And Sammie Strougher is also back. He and Taylor Kavanaugh will likely share the punt returning duties, with James Rodgers and Patrick Henderson returning kicks.

Is someone going to step up to do the punting in fall camp?

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

A day short of five months ago, we learned that starting strong safety Al Afalava destroyed a city bus shelter with his car and was charged with DUI Hit and Run charges. He'll miss the nationally televised season opener against Stanford.

Now, we learn that free safety Bryan Payton has elected to leave the team.

This is a tough one to figure out, as a NCAA Divison I athlete who has a chance to play a large role in a team's success isn't just going to walk off the practice field. He's gone now, and it's not football related, so that leaves a lot up in the air.

With new linebackers and an overall fast front seven, the Beavers really need leaders in the secondary. The speed of the front seven will bring opportunities for interceptions, and we need quality players back there.

If you remember, Brian Payton was the one who took an interception back 50+ yards from the end zone against John David Booty and USC. He has 73 tackles and 3 interceptions in his 2 year Oregon State career.

We've never really gotten a chance to see Afalava and Payton together, since they both played at strong safety last year. He has six starts in 27 games at Oregon State.

Payton was a player who found himself in hot water both with coaches and academically. He was on Judge Judy. He was flown home from the 2004 Insight Bowl. But he was also the Boys and Girls Club of Corvallis Volunteer of the year in 2006. 

“I’ve always liked kids,” Payton once said. “For a class I had to do some hours there my freshman year. Then you build bonds with the kids, and you feel like you have to keep going. You start to hang out with them, and you are a good influence on them.”

He was talking about the Boys and Girls Club, the place where he earned Volunteer of the Year.

So obviously, there's a lot going on inside his helmet. I wish him the best in the future.

Greg Laybourn, the pressure's now on you. Step up.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

Let's take a look back at one of the great wins of 2007:

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

Baseball season officially ended yesterday, so now, we move on to football. This could quite possibly the longest post I've ever written, so make sure you continue after the break to read the whole thing. I'm interested in your thoughts, so feel free to leave a comment after you read.

John Canzano brought up a good discussion topic on his radio show "The Bald Faced Truth" the other day: Do you want to see your team pick up wins by rolling over teams like Idaho State, or do you want them to schedule top-tier programs like Ohio Sate, Michigan, and LSU?

While I think the answer this question is a happy medium between the two extremes, it's worth debating. 

First off, let's back up. The Pac-10 scheduling system allows every team to play each other each year. It didn't used to be that way, as every year 2005 and before each team would play eight of the nine Pac-10 schools. In 2003 and 2004, that was UCLA for the Beavers. In 2005, the Beavers had a bye from playing USC.

Now that every Pac-10 school plays every other Pac-10 school each year, the competition improves. Every school has to play the California, Arizona State, and USC every year. But the one area where each school can veer off the track is the three or four non-conference games played every year.

The Beavers are traveling to Penn State this year to take on an always talented, Joe Paterno led team. According to Canzano, it's a step in the right direction for the Beavers. We also have Hawaii and Utah. The Beavers get Hawaii at home after traveling to the islands two years ago, but travel to Salt Lake City to take on Utah in return for last year's game played at Reser Stadium. Hawaii doesn't look like they'll be the same team without Colt Brennan, but Utah could be tough, especially on the road.

Vote in the poll, then continue after the break to read much more on the topic.

Continue reading this post »

You can't deny it-- how the coaching staff looks on Saturday afternoon is one of the most important parts of college football.

Okay, maybe not, but lets take a look at what the coaches might be wearing in 2008:

First of all, let's review. Here's some generic sideline garb from 2007:

More after the break.

Continue reading this post »

Our countdown to the return of Oregon State Football continues with another reason to love the fall in Corvallis:

Let's make it three in a row.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

[View the entire countdown] 

Our countdown to the return of Oregon State Football continues with another reason to love the fall in Corvallis:

The whole family is definitely excited about the upcoming football season.

Via "Dela7"'s Flickr Photostream.

Only 90 days until the Beavers take the field in Palo Alto.

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

[View the entire countdown] 

Our countdown to the return of Oregon State Football continues with another reason to love the fall in Corvallis:

Your 2008-2009 Cheerleaders.

What would a football team be without people to cheer?

GO BEAVERS!

--JB--

[View the entire countdown]