3 keys to a Washington State upset over Oregon State

Very few folks, in and outside of Pullman, give the Washington State Cougars much of a chance to go to Pacific-12 Conference co-leader Oregon State University on Saturday and pull out a victory.

Most expect the Cougars to quietly drop to 1-6 this season under first-year WSU coach Kirby Moore.

Which is why Saturday could be a turning-back-in-the-right-direction moment for the Cougars if they could somehow disrupt the Beavers’ current smooth-sailing ride and end their four-game winning streak.

Here are three matchups WSU must win at to have a chance in beat Oregon State in Corvallis:

1. Keep Oregon State's Jesse Legree in check

By now, everyone knows how much of an igniter true freshman Jesse Legree is in Oregon State’s passing attack.

Legree leads the nation in receiving with 38 receptions for 932 yards and 12 touchdowns on 53 targets from quarterback Braden Atkinson, according to The Football Database.

This offense feeds off of Legree’s show-stopping plays (and now incoming “Heisman” poses after touchdowns) - at all three levels.

What is the best way to defend Legree? Here was Moore’s answer with reporters Monday.

“It’s about playing team defense,” Moore said. “Obviously, communication is going to be really important on where he’s at, whether it’s in the slot, whether he’s outside left or right. The pass rush has to help out the coverage, and the coverage has got to help out the pass rush.”

Legree has six consecutive 100-yard receiving games. If he adds to that total on Saturday, it means it will likely be a long day for the WSU secondary.

2. Help Owen Eshelman succeed on early downs

One of the connecting aspects Moore mentioned in the string of recent Oregon State blowout victories was third-down dominance by the Beavers’ defense.

During Oregon State’s recent four-game winning streak, opponents have converted just 15 of 50 third downs, or at a 30-percent clip, which would rank in the top 20 nationally.

One of the real struggles with WSU’s offense during prolonged dry spells was Caden Pinnick’s inability to connect with wide receivers in intermediate areas. Oftentimes, his passes were just off the mark.

Enter redshirt freshman Owen Eshelman, who has been praised for his passing accuracy during practice.

Moore will need to mix it up on first downs and allow Eshelman to connect with receivers Darrius Clemons, Daniel Blood, Tank Hawkins Jr. and tight ends Trey Leckner and Jack Pedersen to set up more manageable down-and-distance situations to extend drives - and keep the dynamic Oregon State offense on the sideline.

3. Attack Oregon State's defense on the edges

Last week against Utah State, the recommendation was for the Cougars to test the middle of the Aggies’ defensive front since they had difficulty stopping the interior run in recent weeks.

This week? Do the opposite.

The interior of WSU’s offensive line cannot go toe to toe with Beavers’ defensive tackle Tevita Pome’e and nose tackle Daniel Matagi. So, the Cougars will need to rely heavily on outside-zone run plays and get the Oregon State defensive line moving laterally.

The “stretch” play has become a go-to call for first-year WSU coach Kirby Moore, who ran it with much success at Missouri as the play-caller. Last week, Leo Pulalasi popped off a 54-yard run against the Aggies on that design for the team’s lone touchdown.

As Oregon State coaches were asked Monday in their weekly press conference about what WSU was doing well, its appetite for outside-zone runs was mentioned right off the bat.

Moore is intent on finding effective ways to unleash running backs Kirby Vorhees, Maxwell Woods and Pulalasi - all of whom had an outside-zone running background prior to coming to Pullman - in that manner.

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