Oregon St Beavers 2017 NCAA Football Preview

College Football Predictions – Oregon St Beavers 2017 NCAA Football Preview

2016 Recap

2016 Record – 4-8

2016 ATS – 8-4

Baby steps.

The Beavers doubled their win total from two to four in year TWO of the Gary Andersen era. They had their moments losing a close one to Utah (a 4285738 STAR MEGALOCKS COURTESY LINE WINNER) and gave Washington St and Minnesota all they could handle. They finished up with wins over Arizona and arch-rival Oregon. Like we said, baby steps.

2017 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating

PAC 12 – TBD

North Division – TBD

OFFENSE

The Beavers have depth but no clear-cut #1 QB as we go to press. Last season was a combination injury-fiasco and QB carousel, but in 2017, the smart money is on JUCO transfer Jake Luton or Marcus McMaryion who had a 10-5 TD to INT ratio in limited action last year. We have a sneaky feeling that the Beavers get decent QB play one way or another. (Note – MM left the program after we went to press – Luton is the man to start the season)

The key to the offense is the running game, and in particular, a MEGALOCKS favorite Ryan Nall who rushed for 951 yards and 13 TDs at 6.5 yards a pop last year. The dude is an absolute LOAD and runs like CARL LEWIS when in the clear. If he can stay healthy the Beavers will be in good shape. The depth behind Nall appears to be acceptable. We worry about an offensive line that only returns a pair of starters but they do have excellent size. In addition, the Beavers enter the 2017 campaign without a single body that had over 500 yards receiving last season, and they will need a player or two to develop to give their QB(s) a fighting chance.

DEFENSE

Things are looking up on the defensive side of the ball. Eight starters return to a defense that improved by almost a TD per game last year. The biggest concern has to be getting more PENETRATION as they were tied for last in the PAC 12 in sacks in 2016 and were 2nd last in TFL. If they cannot get those stats up to an average level it is going to be almost impossible, in our opinion, to make a bowl game. The front seven returns almost entirely intact and has some nice pieces at LB. The secondary may take a step back, but overall, we think the Beavers have the MINERALS to allow less than 30 points per game for the first time since 2012. The schedule does looks pretty tough, however, and they face a lot of really good offenses. Time will tell.

SPECIAL TEAMS

This unit is a bit of a question mark as they reload everywhere except at P. PK Garrett Owens made a KGB-STYLE DEFECTION to Iowa St.

Potential ATS Trouble Spot

Hard to spot one. The Beavers have the benefit of two bye weeks and an “automatic win” (?) scheduled with Portland St in week 2. They do not play back-to-back road games until November 4/11 and those games are against California (who will likely be rioting or protesting something) and Arizona (who will likely stink).

MEGAmazing Tidbits

Amaze your HOT-TEMPERED ROOMMATE with this gem. Oregon St is one of only two schools (Hawaii) that can claim a PAIR of Pineapple Bowl victories (1940, 1949).

MEGALOCKS ATS Value Rating (10) 6.0

MEGALOCKS says:

Overall, we give the BEAVERS a 6.0 ATS Value Rating (Above Average) this season.

One can easily make the argument that the Beavers are in for rough ride (insert joke here). The QB situation is unsettled and we are not keen on the look of the offensive line. However, the defense looks to be improved, and we have a sneaky suspicion that HC Andersen is going to have these guys exceeding expectations vs Vegas. They were 8-4 against the number last year and we see another winning ATS campaign well within their reach.

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