Colorado State capitalized on 5 Oregon State turnovers, out-gained the Beavers 525-456 yds., and triumphantly outscored the Beavers 34-7 in the second half as they defeated the Beavers 58-27 in front of a sold out crowd in their brand new stadium. The Rams were led by their Senior Quarterback Nick Stevens who was impressive going 26-39 with 3 TDs and 1 Int. Senior WR Michael Gallup was also impressive with 11 catches for 134 yds..

First off, credit the Colorado State Rams for an phenomenal performance in their beautiful brand-new stadium. The Rams were the better team yesterday, and they are going to be a dominant force in the Mountain West this season. Credit the Rams Defense for taking away the Beaver running game in the 2nd half and pressuring Beaver QB Jake Luton into making key mistakes. Head Coach Mike Bobo has done a great job in Fort Collins. He coached an excellent game against the Beavers, and he has his squad prepared for great things in 2017. It will be interesting to see how his team will do against Colorado, on the road against top-ranked Alabama, and against Boise State.

On the other hand, it’s back to the drawing board for Oregon State. Sure, Colorado State looked impressive yesterday, but there is no excuse for Oregon State to get pushed around the way they did against Colorado State. Head Coach Gary Andersen said it best when he described the Beaver performance as, “embarrassing.” Yes, the high altitude was a factor, and the field conditions were hot (117 Degrees Fahrenheit on the field!), but it didn’t seem to bother Colorado State as much. The Beavers still have a ways to go to learn how to fight through adversity. Although, yesterday was mostly miserable for Beaver Nation there were some bright spots. The passing game for the most part looked much improved, and the Beavers were an impressive 10-16 on 3rd Down. Here are some things we learned from the Beavers’s loss in Fort Collins.

It seems the Passing Game has Improved

Jake Luton looks like he could eventually be the real deal at the Quarterback position for the Beavers. Despite his three interceptions, Luton was 27-47 with 3 TDs and threw for 307 yds. WR Jordan Villamin had a nice day with 7 catches for 77 yds. TE Noah Togiai had an impressive day with 7 catches for 67 yds. and 1 TD (Should have been 2, but Beavers were robbed on an obvious TD on instant replay). Although, the passing game looked much improved, there were plays that Jake Luton and the Beaver Coaching staff will look at on tape and wonder what could have been. The Beavers had open receivers, but missed them thanks to Colorado State’s pressure and not being able to connect on the deep balls. Although, it wasn’t the day the Beaver Offense wanted in the passing game, the potential is definitely there.

The Defense Needs Tons of Improvement:

On Colorado State’s first possession the Beaver Defense looked fast and aggressive. They did an impressive job holding the Rams to a field goal in the first half after Trevon Bradford’s fumble. Other than that, the rest of the game was a train-wreck. We don’t need to relive all the details but the Front 7 was consistently pushed around and could not get to QB Nick Stevens. In addition, tackling was also an issue. The major key was that the Beavers were not able to get Colorado State off the field, which caused the Beavers to wear down. The Rams were 8-14 on 3rd Down Conversions. In addition, the Beaver Defense looked lost, and they frequently missed assignments.

5 Turnovers, Ugh!

All 5 turnovers proved to be disastrous. Especially Luton’s pick 6 he threw when the Beavs only trailed by 7. Luton overthrew a wide open Isaiah Hodgins and the ball was tipped and returned for a Colorado State Touchdown. Also, another crucial turnover was Trevon Bradford’s fumble when the Beavers led 17-14. It happened at a crucial time where the Beavers may have had an opportunity to drive down and take a double digit lead. The Turnovers majorly shifted momentum into Colorado States favor and prevented lots of points on the Scoreboard for the Beavers. You’ve gotta bet Coach Andersen will address ball control this week as the Beavers prepare for the home opener vs. Portland State.

Final Thoughts

It was a nightmare day at the office for the Beavers, one they and the rest of Beaver Nation would like to quickly forget. Personally, I believe this Beaver team is better than they looked against Colorado State. The talent is there, it just comes down to the execution of the game plan and making plays. Credit Colorado State for getting the Beavers off their A-game. Gary Andersen is known as a fighter, and he will not let this team give up. It is a process to turn around a losing football program, which it was just two seasons ago (2015) that the Beavers went win-less in Pac-12 play. These players will run through a wall for Coach Andersen, and I would have to bet they will not quit on him. Getting to a bowl game is still the ultimate goal for this team. The Beavers need to regroup, get healthy, and refocus as they prepare for a Portland State team that put up a great fight at BYU.