Beaver Football: OSU hoping to break through in 2010
CORVALLIS, Ore -- For the first time since the summer of 2003 the Beavers entered the off-season stinging from a loss, after BYU snapped Oregon State's five-game bowl winning streak 44-20 in the Las Vegas Bowl.
"You definitely have a nasty feeling in your stomach and your pit," said OSU junior safety Cameron Collins.
"And you know that you never want to let that happen again, and you have to wait however many months to get back out on the field. So you can call it a little extra something that gets you to work harder. You know? Something extra that makes you get up in the morning and get ready to keep going."
Katz won't have the luxury of a tuneup game for his first major action. Oregon State opens the season in Dallas against TCU at Cowboys Stadium, giving OSU a chance to showcase its program on a national stage.
It's an opportunity that Collins can hardly wait for.
"I know most of us here, everybody here, came to Oregon State because we wanted to play against the best teams, and we wanted to have the best shot at being champions and being great. And I think we have an opportunity to do that."
The Beavs enter 2010 hungry and stacked with talent on both sides of the ball.
James and Jacquizz Rodgers will once again carry the load on offense, but there is some uncertainty in Corvallis as Ryan Katz steps in for his first start at quarterback.
"We definitely have a great experienced group out there," said Joe Halahuni, the junior tight end who should be a reliable target for Katz.
"I think it's definitely going to help Ryan. He's going to have more confidence throwing the ball, handing the ball off to Quizz, I mean he's a great running back. So he has a lot of weapons to work with."
Katz, meanwhile, simply brushes off the pressure.
"All this stuff, I mean, it's all muscle memory," he said.
"We're out here doing it over and over. We're out here doing two minute drill with the line and a couple receivers. So if we just keep working at it we're going to get better."
