The Beavers defeated the Arizona State Sun Devils 28-17 on a sunny, hot day in Tempe. Here are my thoughts on the game.
Quarterback
Sean Canfield came back from two tough games in a row to lead the Beavers to a victory. Sean went 18 for 30 with two touchdowns, and one interception. He also did a great job of scrambling in the pocket and throwing the ball away.
Sean proved me wrong, and has bought himself a couple more games until we think about making the switch to Moevao.
Running Back
Jacquizz Rodgers didn't have a great game, rushing for 81 yards on 17 carries. He still played pretty well though averaging 4.8 yards a run and two touchdowns. Ever since the UNLV game he hasn't looked as explosive as last season. Maybe it's because of his ankle injury.
He still is a great back and I'm very thankful we have him, it just seems like we got spoiled last year with him.
Recievers
James Rodgers and Damola Adeniji lead the recieving corps, both having great games. James had 10 cathces for 114 yards including an amazing touchdown. Sean slightly overthrew James, but after three tips of the ball, Rodgers finally came down with it.
Damola continued to impress with 5 catches for 83 yards including the touchdown to insure a Beaver victory.
O-Line
I thought the O-Line played a lot better than in games past, but we still need some work. The holes for Quizz were inconcistent, they opened up some good ones but also had stretches where they didn't open up any. And although they did a better job blocking for Sean, it still could of been better.
Overall, not a bad game for the O-Line, but there is still some room for improvement.
Defense
The Beaver D is back. Well, at least for one game. I think it was a little early to bench Tim Clark, but Brandon Hardin played great. Brandon not only had the interception but covered ASU's wideouts very well. Tim still played had a good game though, still contributing five tackles. They also defended really well against the run. ASU only had 68 yards on the ground.
The pass rush was also very good this week. We didn't get very many sacks but you could tell that we flustered their Quarterback. You can tell Mark Banker and Mike Riley really worked these guys hard during the week. If our Defense can play this way the rest of the year. Watch out.
Special Teams
Even though Kahut missed his only field goal of the day the Special Teams Unit still had a good day. Justin knocked in four extra points and had five good kickoffs. James Rodgers had a couple of good returns on punts and kickoffs as well. He's turning in to a weapon on those.
Hekker had a fine day with punts too. Overall, another good day for Special Teams.
Arizona State
The Sun Devils looked totally different from when they played at Georgia. Danny Sullivan was not good at all, going 32 for 58 with one touchdown, one interception, and 338 yards. Chris McGaha killed the Beavers with 15 catches for 165 yards even though he didn't have any touchdowns.
The Sun Devils will be an interesting team this year. They seem to be a very inconcistent squad which may hurt them down the stretch.
Short Pac-10 Recap
Washington-UW gave Notre Dame all they could handle, losing 37-30 in overtime. They take on Arizona this week.
Washington State-The Cougars looked horrible this past weekend in Eugene, losing 52-6. They play ASU next.
Oregon-UO ignored the distractions to dismantle WSU. Now it's off to UCLA to keep their 4 game winning streak.
Oregon State-The Beavers knocked off ASU for the first time since 1969 down in Tempe. They play Stanford next.
California-The Golden Bears have failed to score a touchdown in their past two games. They have a bye this week.
Stanford-The Cardinal lead the Pac-10 after thier win against UCLA. They come to Corvallis this week.
USC-The Trojans knocked off California 30-3 in Berkely last week. They have a bye this week before going to ND.
UCLA-The Bruins fell to Stanford 24-16 on Saturday. They have a huge match against the Ducks next.
Arizona State-The Sun Devils didn't look very good against the Beavers on Saturday. They travel to Pullman next.
Pac-10 Power Rankings
1. Oregon
2. Stanford
3. USC
4. Oregon State
5. Washington
6. UCLA
7. California
8. Arizona
9. Arizona State
10. Washington State
Final Thoughts
The Beavers came into Tempe on a low note, but took advantage of oppurtunities and got a big win in the desert. I think this game will be a stepping stone for the rest of the season.
Stanford will be tough, as will the rest of the games this season, but if we play like we did last Saturday, we should win each and every one of them.
Today's Poll
What is the bigger game this week? Oregon @ UCLA, or Stanford @ Oregon State?