CU Buffs opponent preview: Oregon State could be Pac-12 title contender

It wasn’t long ago that Oregon State was at the bottom of the Pac-12. In 2017, the Beavers went 1-11, with head coach Gary Andersen quitting halfway through the season. From 2015-18, the Beavers went 4-32 in the Pac-12. Those days seem long ago as head coach Jonathan Smith and OSU prepare for the 2023 season with Pac-12 title aspirations. This summer, BuffZone will preview each of Colorado’s opponents for the 2023 season and in this installment, we look at Oregon State, which will visit the Buffs on Nov. 4. Entering his sixth season as the head coach of his alma mater, Smith has the Beavers in position to contend for a conference title for the first time since 2000, when they shared first place. They are coming off a 10-3 campaign, which included a 6-3 mark in Pac-12 play. Two losses came by three points. “(The program) is at the apex for sure,” said Nick Daschel, who covers OSU for The Oregonian. “With Jonathan, it’s really been the whole thing. He’s got guys to buy into what they want to do. They don’t get the five-star guys, but they get guys that stick around. The coaching staff, for the most part, has been there since Jonathan took over from the get-go. “He gets guys to stick around and then they prosper with the juniors and seniors that are in the program. That’s what happened last year and kind of what I expect this year is that the juniors and seniors are going to lead the way again.” This year, however, it will be a newcomer who steps into one of those upperclassman leadership roles. Quarterback DJ Uiagalelei transferred to OSU from Clemson, where he put up good numbers, but not good enough for Clemson – a national power for the past several years. Uiagalelei completed 62.1% of his passes last year for 2,521 yards, 22 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He added 545 yard and seven touchdowns on the ground. “If DJ just duplicated the numbers he had at Clemson, that would be a step up for Oregon State,” Daschel said. Last year, OSU’s collection of quarterbacks combined for 2,594 yards, 16 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. It’s been a while since the Beavers had a game-changer at quarterback and Uiagalelei could be that for them. “It’s a bit of an unknown because we don’t know what DJ you’re gonna get,” Daschel said. “Is it going to be the guy that we saw when he was a freshman at Clemson? Is it going to be a totally different DJ because he’s in a system that fits him better? “He was kind of going through a feeling-out process this spring with learning the system and what-not, but I expect come August we’ll see really what he is. I think there’s some people thinking that Michael Penix (from Washington) was in the same situation when he came from Indiana (last year). He wasn’t really lighting the world in fire, and he came to Washington, got in the right situation and blossomed. If that happens with DJ, this team is on a track to get to the Pac-12 championship game.” Daschel was quick to point out, however, that OSU’s bread and butter remains the run game. The Beavers have one of the best offensive lines in the conference, led by All-Pac-12 caliber center Jake Levengood and tackles Taliese Fuaga and Joshua Gray. They’ve also got one of the best running back duos around in Damien Martinez and Deshaun Fenwick. Defensively, the Beavers led the Pac-12 in scoring defense (20.0 points per game), their best number since 2000. Several players from that unit have to be replaced, but the defensive line could be very good. “Jonathan thinks this is the best defensive line he’s ever had,” Daschel said. “If they’re good enough up there, I think the rest of the defense can make plays. If they’re even close to as good a defense as last year, it’s a 10-win team, at least, again this year.” It’s also a favorable schedule that doesn’t include USC and has road games against some of the teams projected at the bottom of the Pac-12, including Arizona, California and Colorado. “If the quarterback position improves, if the defense is close to as good as a year ago, their schedule is the other component that makes them dangerous,” Daschel said. Oregon State Beavers Head coach: Jonathan Smith, 6th season (26-31) 2022 season: 10-3, 6-3 Pac-12 Series with CU: Oregon State leads 7-6 The Game Who: Oregon State Beavers at Colorado Buffaloes When: Saturday, Nov. 4, TBA Where: Folsom Field in Boulder 5 Guys to Watch • OT Joshua Gray: One of the best left tackles in the conference, he earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors last year. • RB Damien Martinez: Pac-12 freshman offensive player of the year in 2022, he rushed for 982 yards and nine touchdowns, earning first-team all-conference honors. • S Kitan Oladapo: Earned All-Pac-12 honorable mention after finishing second on the team with 80 tackles, along with 4.0 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and six pass breakups. • OLB Oluwaseyi Omotosho: A transfer from Wyoming, he posted 46 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks last year as a redshirt freshman for the Cowboys. • QB DJ Uiagalelei: Clemson transfer is expected to take over the starting quarterback role. He threw for 5,681 yards, 36 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in his three seasons at Clemson – two as the full-time starter. Good to know • Oregon State has reached bowl games in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 2012-13 seasons. From 2014-20, OSU posted seven consecutive losing seasons. • The Beavers are 12-1 at home in the last two years. The only loss was a 17-14 defeat against then-No.7 USC in the 2022 Pac-12 opener. • After going through a $162 million renovation of Reser Stadium, the Beavers are looking forward to having full capacity again this season. Last year, capacity was only 26,407, while this year it will be roughly 36,000. • Offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren is going into his sixth season as the leader of the Beaver offense. Prior to joining OSU in 2018, Lindgren was the offensive coordinator at Colorado for five seasons (2013-17). • Defensive coordinator Trent Bray played linebacker for the Beavers from 2002-05. He joined the OSU staff in 2018 as a linebackers coach and was promoted to coordinator in 2022. • Last year, Oregon State averaged 32.2 points per game – the best scoring average for the program since 2013 (34.8). • Silas Bolden and Anthony Gould are the top two returning receivers, but they were also elite returners last year. Bolden led the Pac-12 in kickoff return yards (599) and average (26.0). Gould led the Pac-12 in total punt return yards (260), average (18.57) and touchdowns (two) last season. He had two of the three punt returns for touchdowns in the conference in 2022. Portal movement OSU doesn’t use the portal much, but when it does, it finds impactful players. The Beavers added six players, all of which could be starters or top backups. It starts with Uiagalelei, but guard Grant Starck (Nevada) and tight end Jermaine Terry II (California) are also projected as starters on offense. On defense, inside linebackers Mason Tufaga (Utah) and Calvin Hart Jr. (Illinois) fill a major void in the middle of the defense, while Oluwaseyi Omotosho (Wyoming) could start on the edge. The Beavers lost seven players to the transfer portal, with the most significant loss being linebacker Omar Speights (LSU), OSU’s leading tackler last year with 83. Former starting quarterback Chance Nolan (TCU) also moved on, as did receiver John Dunmore and a few other backups.