Sam Noyer - Breakdown & Expectations

On Monday it was announced that Sam Noyer will start against Purdue in week one. Noyer beat out Chance Nolan & Sam Vidlak to win the job. Tristan Gebbia is said to still be on the mend with hamstring soreness and Ben Gulbranson is out longterm after shoulder surgery. Generally fans thought Noyer would win the job, but it doesn’t seem like the door is shut by any means for Gebbia to take it back when he’s healthy. Either way it’s pretty cool for the in-state athlete (Beaverton High School) to return home and start for Oregon State.

We all know Sam Noyer had a solid season for Colorado in 2020, earning 2nd team All Pac-12 honors after leading Colorado to a 4-2 record. But because of the covid-shortened season and the Buffs previously trying Noyer out at safety, he doesn’t have quite as much experience as you would expect a six year senior to have.

I went ahead and asked the Colorado experts at Ralphie Report to give us the inside scoop on Noyer. Sam Metivier of Ralphie Report told us:

“He’s a great athlete — he was always a practice superstar when he was Steven Montez’s backup, had the athleticism to convert to safety, then CU used him as a short-yardage runner a lot last year. We’re honestly not sure about his arm. He looked accurate in practices and was playing great against UCLA in the 2020 opener, but he suffered a shoulder injury in the 2nd quarter of that game. It clearly affected his strength and accuracy in the following weeks and he required surgery at the end of the season. He is tough as hell and is a proven leader, which turned him into a folk hero of sorts. He’s a great guy to have around, but it appears he fell to third in CU’s QB battle this offseason (behind Brendon Lewis and JT Shrout) while he was recovering from that surgery.”

Reading up on Sam Noyer and watching every possible youtube highlight I’m really excited for this upcoming year. Noyer made some great throws last season and is an asset when he keeps it on the ground. But there’s also some disappointing throws mixed in there. Last seasons stats: 55% completion percentage and a 6-to-7 touchdown to interception ratio is... underwhelming.

Noyer himself told Adam Munsterteiger of 247 Sports that his shoulder wasn’t 100% last season:

“I am not one for making excuses but I do think that some throws that I could normally make when healthy, they were a lot tougher. I (was) thinking I can make those throws and my arm wouldn’t allow that. That was a difficult part.”

When I watch Sam Noyer it sort of reminds me of watching Jack Colletto at quarterback (but with a better arm). Coaches picked Noyer as the starter and listed two specific reasons: his experience and accuracy on deep balls. Oregon State has a ton of talented wide receivers, but they are lacking a big target at WR. Accuracy on deep balls will be crucial to take advantage of the speed on the outside and to keep opposing defenses honest. Also with Noyer being a running threat will Beaver fans still see the Colletto short-yardage Wildcat package?

Season Expectations

Sam Noyer will start against Purdue and unless something crazy happens he’ll start against Hawaii & Idaho in subsequent weeks. The Idaho game could be interesting because it’s likely that multiple quarterbacks will get some time to show their stuff. Everything I’ve read and heard about Noyer is that he’s a great leader and a forceful competitor. In a couple weeks when Tristan Gebbia is fully healthy; practices will get interesting again. But Sam Noyer has already played through an injury to his throwing shoulder that required offseason surgery. I think the only way Noyer loses the Beavers QB1 job is if an injury forces him to miss time.

Projected Stats

2300 passing yards, 19 TDs, 8 INTs, 59% completion percentage, 450 rushing yards & 7 TDs

And if you can’t wait for Saturday check out some Sam Noyer highlights below: