Posted: Friday, September 12, 2008 10:00 pm
Victory over Hawaii helps salvage the season for now
By Cliff Kirkpatrick
Corvallis Gazette-Times
CORVALLIS - It seems odd saying the season was saved in the third week of season.
However, that's the case for the Oregon State football team - at least for now.
The Beavers rebounded from starting the season with two losses with a 45-7 nonconference victory over Hawaii on Saturday afternoon before a crowd of 45,059 in Reser Stadium.
If the Beavers had lost this one, it could have been a while before the first win would have occurred. Morale and momentum would have been lost with Pacific-10 Conference rival Southern California next, followed by a daunting road game at Utah.
"It was a great confidence booster, and a great win to get us back on track," quarterback Lyle Moevao said. "And it reminds us how we felt last year. That's always tough, being able to reflect on how you felt a year ago since it's so long ago."
The Beavers used the game to re-establish the defense. It was an overall good game, and took a significant step forward in development for them.
The Beavers forced three turnovers, the run was contained and Hawaii's dynamic pass offense never got on track.
It all started when a pass rush emerged. There were only two quarterback sacks, but steady pressure created Hawaii mistakes.
"You are never satisfied with how you play the game," defensive end Slade Norris said. "We'll get back to the film room and get better."
Linebacker Bryant Cornell shared his cautious happiness. The defense still has a long way to go before it can declare the season has truly turned around.
"We held up really well on defense," Cornell said. "This wasn't a prototypical offense, so there are some questions about our defense, still. We stopped a spread team from running, but we know we can stop a pro-type offense, but we haven't yet."
The offense showed what it could do when it eliminated turnovers. There were 485 total yards with an average of 5.6 yards a play.
Everything worked from passing early to running later and controlling the game.
Moevao played his best game to date with 268 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions by going 20-for-34 passing. He made wise choices, avoided pressure and took the hit when needed.
"I think it's great," coach Mike Riley said of the offense's day. "We have a vision of how we want to be, which is balanced. If we have that kind of balance every game that would be good. We had a better picture of who we want to be offensively."
Tailback Jacquizz Rodgers had another stellar day, rushing for 110 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries. He pounded out the tough yards and broke off some longer runs.
"Quizz had an awesome day," Moevao said. "You had the feeling it was going to happen, especially when he got 99 (yards) on Penn State. This shows what he's capable of as a true freshman. That's always tough, to come in as a true freshman and play. I guess that's how you know he's related to James. His brother did it last year."
The special teams made progress. Both the punt and kickoff return games helped the offense with field position. Johnny Hekker averaged 41 yards on two punts with a long of 46.
The only setback was Justin Kahut missing three field goals. He hurt his hip on the first miss when he kicked the ground.
"We did an awesome job," safety Al Afalava said. "The Penn State game (last week) was a wake-up call, and we can't let that happen anymore."
The Beavers go into a bye week to get ready for USC. It's a good time to heal up minor wounds, and collect themselves.
Winning this game motivates them for the next one, and most importantly takes away the fear of the season spinning out of control.
"Both sides of the ball, we were executing," Afalava said. "We got a bye week to rest up and get ready for USC. It's a good win for us, and we'll have good confidence going into USC."
Cliff Kirkpatrick covers the Oregon State football team for the Corvallis Gazette-Times. He can be reached at cliff.kirkpatrick@lee.net.