With a bowl birth on the line and a chance to knock rival Oregon Ducks out of the National Championship game, the Beavers couldn't hang with the top ranked Ducks, falling 37-20 in front of a record crowd. The Beavers got on the board first with a Jacquizz Rodgers touchdown reception, but couldn't take advantage of a couple crucial Oregon turnovers. After getting within ten points late in the third quarter, 23-13, the Ducks put up two more scoring drives to seal the Beaver's fate.
- This year's Civil War was a microcosm of both teams' seasons. All year long, the Ducks kept their opponents within in reach for half of the game before squashing any hopes of a comeback late in the game. The Beavers played well for the most part, but missed some crucial third down conversions and failed to stop Oregon when they needed to. Coupled with batted balls at the line of scrimmage and giving up too many yards on the ground, it was an uphill battle all game long for the Beavers, much like most of the season.
- The Beavers needed to go for it on fourth down each time they were in the red zone. Down 20-7, and after a nice march down the field, OSU settled for three. Again, down 23-10, the Beavs went for the easy points to try to cut it within ten. I understand the philosophy of getting points when you can, but not against a team that gets a good chunk of their scores in the fourth quarter. Not converting on fourth would not have made much of a difference, but if they were able to get in the end zone at least once, they would have had less of a sense of urgency after the Ducks got back on the board.
- Defensively, OSU was in good position most of the game. However, having two running backs go over 100 yards on the day is nothing to ignore. Too many times the defense crashed in on quarterback Darron Thomas, who barely carried the ball that day. With the inability to contain outside running all year long, the defense needed to dare Thomas to carry the load and take some hits. Instead, LaMichael James and Kenjon Barner were able to convert key third downs as well as break off enough long runs to keep the Ducks ahead.
- A good sign for the Beavers on Senior Day was that James Rodgers was not among any of the seniors honored that afternoon, further solidifying his likely return for 2011. In his absence, Markus Wheaton kept progressing as the season went along, capped off with a tremendous Civil War performance, gaining nearly 150 yards in the air. Not to mention the stellar grabs by Jordan Bishop and the excellent efforts by Joe Halahuni. The Beavers will definitely have their share of weapons next season, it's just a matter of getting the ball in their hands...
- ...Which means Ryan Katz needs to shake off his woes from the season and focus on the positives and learn from his mistakes. After his multi-interception performance in the Husky game earlier in the season, Katz never seemed to regain the swagger he had. Often times he held on to the ball too long looking for an open receiver, leading to unnecessary sacks and hurting overall field position. His protection by the offensive line was good for the most part, it's just a matter of knowing where everyone is on the field, something most young quarterbacks tend to struggle with. Especially in Mike Riley's system. Still, he had one of the better seasons for an OSU quarterback and easily the best debut season of any of Riley's qb's over the past few years.
- Looking ahead to next season, it hurts that the Beavers won't get the extra practice time that a bowl game allows. Although there will not be any post season play, one can imagine the bitter taste left in the underclassmen's mouths. Apart from the freshmen of the 2007 class that red-shirted that season (and James Rodgers), none of the Beavers have beaten the Ducks. You can bet that will be a motivating factor during the off-season to improve and continue to fight to get back into conference title contention. Next year marks the first season of the Pac-12, and with the way the divisions are split up, the North division runs through Eugene. Expect a much improved Beaver squad in 2011. After OSU's last losing season in 2005, the 2006 team went on to win 10 games, with wins over USC and Oregon to mark one of the most successful campaigns in school history (Also, the beginning of that year brought in the infamous "Can Riley" brigade). With the presumed return of the Rodgers brothers, a seasoned quarterback and young play makers emerging on both side of the ball, optimism, motivation and hunger for redemption will be ringing in Corvallis all throughout the off-season.
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