Pretty simple post here, so I won't waste your time with any more than this introduction from Iowa Safety Tyler Sash.

"Go West, young men! ...Which is the opposite of going East!"

First, a PSA: Yes, this is shamelessly copycatting the Connor Predicts series. But I thought this method of posting my picks would be better than slapping a Mark Mangino-sized monolouge right smack in the middle of his comment section. That would just be Penelope-ish. So with all apologies to said Connor (HIS IDEA, HIS IDEA, HIS IDEA), on to the picks!

1. California @ Nevada. 38-21. A third straight rout, signalling an even more colossal midseason breakdown.
2. USC @ Minnesota. 31-13. *Shock Prediction*: Lane Kiffin will do some pouting, and more posturing, but mostly he'll just demean anybody and everybody around him.
3. Washington vs Nebraska. 24-38. 'Locker 4 Heisman' signs will be seen all around Husky Stadium. ...Hastily crammed into the surrounding trash & recycle bins. Nebraska's new offense is going to open some eyes. Maybe even those behind purple-tinted glasses.
4. WSU @ SMU. 6-45. June Jones is at it again. So is Wazzu. The revenge will be sweet enough to make a Southern Methodist blush.
5. Arizona State @ Wisconsin. 17-20. The Devils' D surprises Wisconsin, but the inability of ASU's "offense" to move the football confounds everyone.
6. Oregon State vs Louisville. 38-17. In anticipation of 9.25.10, Riley sits his starters after 3 quarters, distorting the reality that L'Ville never had a chance.
7. Oregon vs Portland State. 52-10. Burton's rejuvenated Vikings set out to make a statement. They do, but "Thanks for the check!" wasn't exactly what they had in mind.
8. Arizona vs Iowa. 30-27. A great football game, contrasting not only Arizona's quick-hitting offense against Iowa's grind-it-out running game, but also the underrated Nick Foles against the overrated Ricky Stanzi. Regardless of the outcome, the Zona Zoo will surround the field at some point, and probably far too early.
9. UCLA vs Houston. 16-14. UCLA is embarrassed, fired up, and ready for redemption from last week's embarrassment vs Furd. Unfortunately, you can't line up Passion under center. Nonetheless, the Bruins bore the Cougars into a snooze-fest, and the UCLA secondary wins the day, despite the fact that they have to be on the same team as Kevin Prince.
10. Stanford vs Wake Forest. 45-13. Lou Holtz is practically salivating over the prospect of throwing out a "the Tree vs the Forest" pun for the second straight year in a row. ...Oh wait. He's always salivating. The Cardinal roll easily, and begin to look towards that October 2 visit to Eugene.

And lastly, I leave you with the Quote of the Week, courtesy of Iowa Safety Tyler Sash (pictured at the top of this article), on travelling to Tucson.

"Everybody's making this big deal out of going West. I feel like it's just the opposite of going East."

Well, Tyler, you may be surprised to know that many of us share this sentiment. Only we never express it.

Alright, first game at Gill in about 8 years; thoroughly enjoyed
myself. Was even pleasantly surprised by a win. And now, without
further sarcasm ado, four impressions my brother & I were discussing.

1. Gill at 64% elicited two (almost simultaneous) feelings:
    A. "Dang. This is depressing/embarrassing."
    B. "Dang. Start winning and this place could be insanely intimidating."

2. My intention here is neither to insult in any way the Jay-era players,
   and least of all Calvin "all-of-a-sudden-I'm-Roy" Haynes, nor am I attempting
   to darken one of the few bright spots we've had this season, but watching
   Jared play... Man won't it be great when we have more actual athletes like him
   on the floor? And I know the Tarvers, Roe, etc. are trying, really. I'm not
   dismissing their effort. Bottom line: can't wait to see what Coach Robinson
   can do with legitimate D-I basketball players.

3. Speaking of Robinson... WoW. Guy's every bit as entertaining as the action
   on the court. Oh wait. He IS on the court. All the time. And I love every
   facet of that reality. The man dominates the scene. Tip-off to buzzer, he's
   in the refs' heads, (and on occasion, in their shirt), in the other coach's
   head, (O'neill was terribly outcoached), and most importantly, in the other
   players' heads. His baiting of SC's Dwight Lewis (#21) into a technical was
   a thing of beauty. Lewis had 5 points when he was T-d up, late in the 1st half.
   ...He finished with that same amount. Think Craig's strategy worked? Lewis, who
   leads the Trojans with 13.6 ppg, scored all of twice. 2-12 from the field, 1-8
   from beyond the arc. Oh and that trey he buried which led to the technical? Calvin
   hit 1 of the free-throws, and we scored on that possession. Lewis gave those
   three points right back. Crafty, Coach Rob. Craaaaafty.

4. If you happen to see a poster at Gill in the near future reading "I (Heart) the 1-3-1"...
   You'll know who's waving it. Good lord was it fun to watch the incredible
   frustrations exhibited by Gerrity & Co. I would've cheered the countless
   SC turnovers throughout the 2nd half, really I would have. ...If I could've
   stopped laughing.

In conclusion, great win, great time, go Beavers.

P.s. Josh Tarver's dunk. Can't leave without mentioning that. Play of the Year.

You know what struck me? (No, it wasn't Blount's fist. ...Sorry.) In the areas where we really lost the game, it was our young guys.

First, though not as important as my second point, the offensive line. They did do some things well; some things extremely well, for one, pass protection for most of the game. BUT... zero push on running plays, and giving up too much pressure in the late 3rd, and the entire 4th. Phillip, a FR, gave up sacks, Johnson, a FR was, (with all due respect, cuz he's a D1 athlete - I'm not), at best, a pushover, andLinnenkohl, a SO, looked confused. The O-line is the reason we settled for 4 fg's. Not play-calling, not Quizz, not Sean, the O-line. Know why? They're young. That's not an excuse; that's a reason.

The other main area we got beat: tackling. Major props to one Mark Banker. He had his guys in position almost every time. His guys just didn't wrap up. Know why? They're young. That's not an excuse; that's a reason. The defining moment of the game was the 4th & 3, when Masoli bounced off of Mitchell. Banker had Mitchell in position, and to his credit, Mitchell was there, lined up perfectly. He had done a lot of things right in the game; for one, a beautiful breakup on a deep ball to Maehl. But on this play, he's in position, he's set, and... Goes for the hit. Instead of the wrap-up tackle. But you know what? I can't blame him for that. He's a freshman. He's going to make mistakes. And that's Masoli, the best open-field QB in the nation, making a play. Yes Mitchell needs to make the tackle. Of course he does. But he's young. I can't hold him to a standard of perfection. He made a couple great plays, he made a costly mistake.

But we all make mistakes. That's what happens when you're young.

So yes we lost. Yes we made several key mistakes. But we just lost to a team that is in my opinion, right there
with Texas & Florida. (NO WAY! WHAT?! THOSE ARE UNDEFEATED! Mmhmm. But the strength of schedule is not even close to comparable.) And we lost at their place, which is one of the hardest atmospheres to win in, and that is not just in my opinion. And we lost by 4. And we were oh-so-close. "Close only counts in..." I know. But still. We weren't supposed to win this game. All credit to the Ducks. This was their year. They won it.

But for us, this was supposed to be a rebuilding year, remember? Yes it's a dark day. But in my opinion, the future has never been brighter. Mike Riley, Danny Langsdorf, and Mark Banker took this young group to the cusp of the Rose Bowl. Remember the hallmark of our program: our guys always improve. I remember watching Yvenson Bernard for the first time, against Boise State. He sucked. Check that, he SUCKED. But by the time he was a senior, you couldn't believe the difference. These guys will be seniors one day. Looking at what they did as freshman, how can you NOT be excited? Our young guys made mistakes, and lost us the game. But they'll learn and improve, and win us some games. 

They made mistakes, but they'll learn and improve. That's what happens when you're young.

Simple question: can the Beavers overcome these obvious obstacles and beat Pitt?

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