Oregon State will host a Stanford team that is improving under first-year head coach Troy Taylor
Oregon State’s win over Stanford last season was highlighted by one of the most memorable endings in the history of Beavers football.
Oregon State won the game 28-27 thanks to a 56-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Tre’Shaun Harrison with just seconds left on the clock. That victory helped propel the Beavers to a 10-win season. For the Cardinal, that heartbreaking loss was part of a 3-9 record in the final season under longtime head coach David Shaw.
Stanford (3-6, 2-5 Pac-12 Conference) is rebuilding under Troy Taylor, who took over the program after serving as the head coach at Sacramento State. As expected, the Cardinal got off to a slow start, but a comeback win at Colorado showed Stanford wasn’t looking to just play out the schedule.
Stanford then put up a fight in a 42-33 home loss to Washington and won a Pac-12 road game at Washington State 10-7. That was Stanford’s first win in Pullman since 2015.
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Oregon State quarterback DJ Uiagalelei attempted 24 passes last week during the Beavers’ win at Colorado. The Beavers might look to throw the ball more this week against a Stanford defense which is ranked last in the Pac-12 Conference against the pass.
David Zalubowski, Associated Press
Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith was impressed with Stanford’s defensive effort in the win over the Cougars.
“I thought how they played defense last week, they continue to battle,” Smith said. “I look at their competitiveness, their scoring. Previous week against U-dub, that thing’s down to the wire.”
Stanford receiver Elic Ayamanor had one of the best games of the season in the win over Colorado with 13 receptions for 294 yards and three touchdowns. For the season, he has 49 catches for 790 yards (16.12 yards per catch) and five touchdowns.
Smith said the Cardinal passing game is improving under Taylor.
“Troy Taylor, I’ve known for a long time, respect his program,” he said. “I respect the fact that these guys are battling and scrapping and you can see ‘em getting better week in and week out. It’s a sign of a good culture, these guys are continuing to improve,” Smith said.
Stanford entered the season with a quarterback battle between sophomores Ashton Daniels and Justin Lamson. Daniels is the better thrower and has completed just under 60% of his passes for 1,707 yards with nine touchdowns and four interceptions. Lamson has played in every game and has completed 32 of 66 passes for 443 yards.
In the win over Washington State, Lamson played extensively and led the team with 54 yards rushing on 20 carries. He scored Stanford’s only touchdown on a 1-yard run late in the third quarter.
If Stanford continues with a dual-quarterback approach that will put pressure on the Oregon State defense to adapt.
Defensively, Stanford has been much better this season at stopping the run than at slowing the conference’s lineup of top quarterbacks. Stanford is ranked sixth in rushing defense and 12th in passing defense.
Oregon State tight ends coach Brian Wozniak said the Cardinal are physical up front. He noted that Taylor brought in Bobby April to serve as the defensive coordinator. April previously coached at Wisconsin and also has experience in the NFL.
“They’re a big, stout, physical group. Coach April comes over from Wisconsin. What Wisconsin did on defense the last, you know, five, six years, you can see him instilling into the defense. And even prior to that, Stanford’s always been a physical outfit on defense,” Wozniak said. “I think they’re doing a great job. Their outside backers are long, physical, want to get involved in the run game. They’ve got three interior D-lineman that are bigger guys.”
No. 12 Oregon State (7-2, 4-2) focused its game plan on the running game in last week’s win at Colorado. The Beavers ran the ball 46 times while attempting 26 passes. This week’s game plan might be more balanced, giving quarterbacks DJ Uiagalelei and Aidan Chiles an opportunity to throw the ball against a Stanford defense that is giving up over 313 passing yards per game.
