No bowl for Oregon State could be beneficial as the Beavers can fully focus on getting back on track

BOISE – Oregon State football is preparing for a busy December.

It begins Monday when Beaver coaches hold exit meetings with players. The discussions cover the 2024 season, which ended Friday with a 34-18 loss to Boise State. They’ll talk about what’s next for the player, whether it’s a future at OSU or elsewhere, and an offseason plan of attack.

A few days later is early signing day, when about 16 to 20 high school seniors agree to become Beavers. That will be followed by the transfer portal window (Dec. 9-28) and weeks evaluating the state of the OSU program, which went 5-7 to a losing season for the first time since 2020.

After appearing in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and the Sun Bowl in consecutive years, Oregon State will call it home for the holidays. In one sense, that could be seen as a good thing, as the Beavers need a month to prepare for an important offseason, reflect, re-energize and fully focus.

OSU coach Trent Bray smiled briefly when asked if the lack of a bowl could be the medicine the program needs. “I think it’s always good to get into the postseason and have more opportunity to practice more. But yeah, I’m not sure which path to take as a coach,” Bray said.

After a 5-7 campaign, there’s a lot to love and a lot to fix.

The offense produced two historic individual seasons from receiver Trent Walker (82 receptions) and running back Anthony Hankerson (1,082 yards). But it fired blanks too often, especially on the street. The quarterback play was inconsistent, and other than Walker, it wasn’t until Friday, when Darrius Clemons had eight catches for 123 yards, that a second receiver really emerged.

Hankerson pointed to Friday’s first two drives, where Oregon State found itself in hopeless offensive situations because of penalties and poor first and second down plays.

“It’s been that way all season,” Hankerson said. “We didn’t all agree. These are the little things we can repair, the self-inflicted wounds. We’ll take care of it and fix it, and we’ve got a hell of a team.”

Oregon State’s defense recorded its first roadblock in four decades at San Diego State, but overall didn’t live up to its recent standard. Some of this can be attributed to injuries, but inexperience played a larger role. The Beavers have launched some run-of-the-mill offenses this season and have consistently failed to stop the run. OSU was among the worst defenses in the country against the run and passer rush. That was evident Friday when Ashton Jeanty ran 37 times for 226 yards and the Beavers were unable to effectively pressure quarterback Maddux Madsen.

Junior safety Skyler Thomas, who forced a fumble that led to Oregon State’s first touchdown, didn’t provide specifics about what held back the 2024 defense.

“It was just about doing our job,” Thomas said. “I feel like whoever is on the field can do the same thing as our starters, as someone who was injured. It’s really about getting the work done.”

When asked if he was positive about the future, Thomas said “absolutely.”

When Oregon State’s leading tackler in 2024 was asked if he would return next season, Thomas said “absolutely.”

Furthermore, in the era of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), speculating about who will want to stay at Oregon State next year is a fool’s errand. Transfer rumors began circulating on social media just minutes after the game ended on Friday. Aside from Thomas, Hankerson said he will be back in Corvallis next season.

Friday’s game was similar to the season. A good fight, but too much empty play in crucial moments of the game.

The Beavers trailed by as many as 17 points in the second half, but were still nine points behind and had plenty of time left before the Broncos tied the game. Boise State built a big lead because Oregon State’s offense remained in neutral for most of the first half.

“Boise made the plays in those crucial moments. That’s why they are where they are and exactly where we are,” Bray said.

The Broncos are one win away from securing a spot in the College Football Playoff. The Beavers will watch games in December.

In his brief assessment of the 2024 season after the game, Bray said: “It’s really about the lessons learned.” A lot learned. There were a lot of close games that we had to learn from, both as coaches and as players, and that will change in the future. If they do that, it will look and feel the way we want it to.”

–Nick Daschel can be reached at 360-607-4824, [email protected] or @nickdaschel.

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