I just finished watching a bit of film from a few Oregon State games this year, and a few things stood out to me that I think will be key for Utah to win this game. It seems apparent to me that Utah is the more talented team overall, but the Beavers have some dudes that will make you pay if you don't watch out for them.
The biggest key for winning, in my opinion, will be assignment-sound defensive line play, particularly from the ends. Against USC, Oregon State was able to kill the Trojans with some big gains on the ground that resulted from a defensive end misreading a play. OSU runs the read option really well, but there were so many times that USC had a defensive end crash down and completely miss who had the ball.
Along with point number 1, I think it would be smart to have either Devin Lloyd or Brandon McKinney spy the QB a good amount of the time. OSU's QB can make some throws, but he isn't an elite passer. However, he's explosive and seems good at picking his moments to scramble and break off big gains.
The other threat I see on offense is Tyjon Lindsey, WR #1. He's a bit on the smaller side, but has great speed and can create separation on deep routes. There were several moments against USC where the Beavers were able to get big gains through the air thanks to good play design and poor coverage by the Trojans, but #1 was simply able to beat his man in one-on-one matchups to make some big plays as well. I suspect that Clark Phillips will be tasked with covering Lindsey for most of the day.
On defense, I don't see too much from the Beavers that really scares me. Their pass rush is just so-so, as is their run defense. I think that Utah will be able to move the ball consistently on the ground and will have plenty of opportunities to make plays through the air as well by exploiting some matchup mismatches with the tight ends and bigger receivers like Vele and Enis. One thing I noticed is that, though the OSU defense doesn't have many, if any, elite athletes on it, they are opportunistic and tenacious, and will fight to make big plays.
I think Oregon State's best chance to win this is in a shootout, and if Utah plays smart, assignment sound ball on defense against the run, I don't see that happening.
The biggest key for winning, in my opinion, will be assignment-sound defensive line play, particularly from the ends. Against USC, Oregon State was able to kill the Trojans with some big gains on the ground that resulted from a defensive end misreading a play. OSU runs the read option really well, but there were so many times that USC had a defensive end crash down and completely miss who had the ball.
Along with point number 1, I think it would be smart to have either Devin Lloyd or Brandon McKinney spy the QB a good amount of the time. OSU's QB can make some throws, but he isn't an elite passer. However, he's explosive and seems good at picking his moments to scramble and break off big gains.
The other threat I see on offense is Tyjon Lindsey, WR #1. He's a bit on the smaller side, but has great speed and can create separation on deep routes. There were several moments against USC where the Beavers were able to get big gains through the air thanks to good play design and poor coverage by the Trojans, but #1 was simply able to beat his man in one-on-one matchups to make some big plays as well. I suspect that Clark Phillips will be tasked with covering Lindsey for most of the day.
On defense, I don't see too much from the Beavers that really scares me. Their pass rush is just so-so, as is their run defense. I think that Utah will be able to move the ball consistently on the ground and will have plenty of opportunities to make plays through the air as well by exploiting some matchup mismatches with the tight ends and bigger receivers like Vele and Enis. One thing I noticed is that, though the OSU defense doesn't have many, if any, elite athletes on it, they are opportunistic and tenacious, and will fight to make big plays.
I think Oregon State's best chance to win this is in a shootout, and if Utah plays smart, assignment sound ball on defense against the run, I don't see that happening.
