Oregon State Football: CBS Sports Predicts Beavers To Finish 5-7 In 2020

CBS Sports recently did their predictions of how the football season will play out for Pac-12 teams in 2020, with the Oregon State Beavers projected to have a 5-7 overall mark and a 3-6 record in league play. That finish would place Oregon State in 5th in the Pac-12 North Division and tie their overall wins total from last season, which was the second campaign under head coach Jonathan Smith.

The Beavers are projected to win games in the non-conference against Colorado State and Portland State and grab home match-ups against Washington State, UCLA and Arizona. The seven losses for Oregon State would come on the road at Oklahoma State, Washington, Stanford and Utah and in Corvallis against Arizona State, California and Oregon.

CBS Sports’ David Cobb’s analysis of Oregon State’s 2020 prognosis is as follows.

With three offensive starters selected in the NFL Draft, the Beavers have a lot to replace from last year’s squad that improved its win total from two to five in coach Jonathan Smith’s second season. That offensive exodus will make taking another leap a considerable challenge. The defense returns most of its heft, including linebacker Hamilcar Rashed Jr., who set a school record with 14 sacks last season. Aside from Rashed, the unit wasn’t great in 2019. But it’s safe to assume the Beavers’ defense will pick up enough slack to help Oregon State reach the cusp of bowl eligibility as the offense regroups. A Friday night game at Stanford on Oct. 30 looms large for both teams. But Stanford gets the preliminary nod in that one, thanks to home field advantage.

While you’ll see in some of the below projections that some teams have quite interesting forecasts, including California going 11-1 and apparently claiming a Pac-12 North title, overall, it’s a sound group of listings that do put a lot of parity within the conference on clear display. Separating #3-#6 on both sides of the division are pure guesstimates, as one game could easily swing the balance of the whole league on it’s head.

CBS Sports’ 2020 Pac-12 Football Projections

Pac-12 North

1. California (11-1, 8-1)

2. Oregon (10-2, 8-1)

3. Washington (8-4, 6-3)

4. Stanford (6-6, 4-5)

5. Oregon State (5-7, 3-6)

6. Washington State (3-9, 1-8)

Pac-12 South

1. USC (10-2, 8-1)

2. Arizona State (7-5, 5-4)

3. Utah (8-4, 5-4)

4. UCLA (6-6, 3-6)

5. Arizona (4-8, 2-7)

6. Colorado (3-9, 1-8)

Oregon State will open their football season on Thursday, September 3rd in a road match-up against Oklahoma State. They’ll kick-off their home slate the following week on Saturday, September 12th back versus Colorado State.