OSU has big bounce back
After a stunning Week 1 loss to FCS opponent Eastern Washington, the OSU Beavers needed a win.
And a defense.
Luckily they got both in a bounce back win against Hawaii. Despite a shaky second quarter, the Beavs dominated both sides of the ball in this one. OSU’s offense continued to roll with over 500 yards, while the D limited the Rainbow Warriors to just 239 yards.
With the first win of the season on the board, let’s look at the key players who made the big difference.
Here are this week’s game balls…
Sean Mannion – 31-43, 372 yards, 4 TDs
For the second week in a row Mannion had a huge game. And if he hadn’t been relieved late in the game there’s a good chance he would have posted another 400 yard performance.
While it was a solid all-around performance, there’s two important things to take away from this game for Mannion.
1) He showed poise in the pocket. After an unforgivable pick-six on a screen pass in the second quarter, Mannion really settled down. Despite Hawaii bringing a lot of pressure, the third-year QB did a great job making smart decision—rolling out of the pocket, and throwing the ball away.
2) He spread the ball around, a lot.
While he still leaned on Brandin Cooks, Mannion was still effective in using different receivers. By days end the Beavers had 10 receivers involved in this game. That kind of spread will be huge for this offense as the season goes on.
OSU’s D looked much better on Saturday vs. Hawaii (Photo: Doug Beghtel / The Oregonian)
Brandin Cooks – 7 catches, 92 yards, 2 TDs
For the second week in a row Cooks had a monster game. Just get used to that.
There’s no doubt the junior is 100-percent ready to be this team’s primary receiver. After two TDs last week he had another two this week, and when Mannion needed a target he was there.
While he still needs work on the reversal plays—which could be more of a product of bad o-line play—Cooks is quickly developing into a star.
Tyrequek Zimmerman – 4 tackles, 1 PD, 1 sack
The Beavs needed a big time defensive performance in this game, and after an ugly Week 1 the boys delivered.
The biggest difference against Hawaii was play in the secondary, primarily the safeties. The biggest standout there was Zimmerman.
The junior safety was aggressive, but smart. Not only did he put up an early sack, he was also the first one attacking the QB on OSU’s game-clinching safety in the fourth.
And let’s not forget that the Rainbow Warriors only put up 170 yards passing in this one.
Keith Kostol – 6 punts, 38.8 average yards, 4 within the 20
Kostol enjoyed a real breakout season last year, and so far in 2013 he looks even better.
Kostol had his best punts in the first half, when this game was much closer than the final score. All-in-all the junior did a great job doing everything he could to quell Hawaii’s momentum in the second quarter.
The value of special teams is often overlooked—especially in a dominating win—but Kostol was a huge part of this game.
