Analysis

By Cliff Kirkpatrick
Gazette-Times reporter

SAN FRANCISCO - It’s a fact that can not be forgotten when looking at the Oregon State football team.

How the quarterback operates is directly linked to how the Beavers perform.

That was evident during Friday night in the sixth annual Emerald Bowl before a crowd of 32,517 at AT&T Park.

What came out of the 21-14 victory over Maryland was that spring football will be interesting when looking for a starting quarterback next season.

“One thing that happened with the whole quarterback thing, the competition these guys went through early helped us get to where we are today,” coach Mike Riley said.

And he meant that as a positive.

Lyle Moevao started the game, and didn’t look good on the first two passes. He injured his throwing hand on the third pass and had problems gripping the ball.

Sean Canfield came into the game on the second possession and looked solid in his first appearance since injuring his throwing shoulder at Southern California on Nov. 3.

He threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to James Rodgers to tie the game, and appeared ready to reclaim his spot as the team’s starter.

“That boosted my confidence quite a bit,” Canfield said. “That was good for the team to get a touchdown like that, and answer.”

Canfield won the competition for the position with Moevao after spring practice, training camp and sharing the job the first three games of the season.

Moevao took over the last three games because of Canfield’s injury and led the Beavers to victory each time.

“It was painful to sit out for a while, but Lyle stepped in and got some big wins,” Canfield said. “But it was big for our team that I play. I was a little big rusty. The arm wasn’t bugging me at all. That wasn’t a factor. They are a good defense, but we got it done.”

Moevao felt better after sitting out the first drive, so Riley sent him back out. Moevao tried two more drives and was knocked out of the game with a left ankle injury when he was tackled from behind.

Nothing was going right for Moevao. He completed 5 of 9 passes for 40 yards before calling it a night.

Then the rust overcame the adrenaline for Canfield. He was a little shaky on his passes, and threw an interception in the end zone in the second quarter.

That squandered an opportunity given the team by a Bryan Payton interception. However, not all of that was on Canfield’s shoulders.

There was a stretch in second quarter when he fumbled, Rodgers fumbled, Alexis Serna missed a 45-yard field goal and he threw the pick.

Momentum returned before halftime when Canfield guided the Beavers to another tying touchdown drive.

The 46-yard drive mostly featured Yvenson Bernard. He scored on a 2-yard dive, but the success and a break for halftime settled down Canfield.

“I just kept grinding, like we have all year,” Canfield said. “Not everything is going to go right. I just kept my head up and had a short memory.”

Offense in the second half was more conservative, leaning on Bernard just like old times. He ran the ball 38 times for 177 yards and a score.

A fortunate bounce helped. Bernard was going in for an apparent TD at the end of the third quarter, but fumbled.

Rodgers was in the right place, picking up the ball and falling into the end zone for the game-winning score.

The rest of the game was a battle of field position. The defense kept Maryland back and the offense ate up enough time to get to the end with the lead.

It was an overall team effort to make up of the quarterback position, but the bottom line was the win.

After this year’s experience with Moevao and Canfield, whatever happens next season should be better.

“We had two guys our team had faith in to manage the game and make plays,” Riley said. “They will be nothing but better for it next year.”

Cliff Kirkpatrick covers the Oregon State football team for the Gazette-Times. he can be reached at cliff.kirkpatrick@lee.net.