No disrespect to Minnesota or Baylor, Oregon State is college football’s biggest success story

Against all odds, the Oregon State Beavers have found some life in 2019. The Beavers might just be the biggest success story in college football this season.

While plenty of people are paying attention to the remarkable turnarounds Minnesota and Baylor are experiencing, but there’s a college football program out west who might be a bigger success story this season. The Oregon State Beavers are one of the most impressive examples of a rebuild in college football.

When Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith was hired to lead the Beavers, he inherited an absolute disaster. Smith, a first-time head coach, was taking over a program that went from meddling mediocrity at the end of the Mike Riley era into a full-blown mess under Gary Anderson‘s direction.

Oregon State moved on from Anderson halfway through his third season, electing to finish out the year with an interim coach and a 1-11 record by the time it was all said and done. Oregon State won seven games from 2015-2017, haven’t been to a bowl since 2013 and the last double-digit win season was in 2006.

In Smith’s second season in Corvallis, the Beavers are two wins from bowl eligibility with three games remaining (Arizona State, at Washington State, at Oregon) and making it to a bowl game seems incredibly feasible for this building program.

With an offensive-minded coach, the Beavers are scoring plenty of points

Smith arrived in Corvallis with a solid pedigree, having played quarterback for the Beavers in the late 1990s and previously leading Washington’s offense under Chris Petersen. And so, by bringing Smith in as its head coach, Oregon State is clearly hoping to win by offensive innovation and efficiencies.

So far, for the most part, it’s working.

Jake Luton has thrown for 2,018 yards, 19 touchdowns and two interceptions. He’s also completing a respectable 61.5 percent of his passes. Combining that with the running back duo of Art Pierce and Jermar Jefferson, who together have run for 1,168 yards and 10 touchdowns, and you’ve got yourself a pretty respectable offense.

Given Oregon State’s defense is still very much so a work in progress, all the offense this team can get is important.

Can the Beavers make it to a bowl game in 2019?

Getting to a bowl in 2019 will be a stretch for Oregon State. The Beavers will have to win two of their remaining three games, and that includes two road trips. Oregon State’s final home game of the season is Saturday as the Beavers host Arizona State.

From there, Smith must lead his team into Pullman, Washington and then to Eugene, Oregon. While Washington State isn’t a great team this season, beating the Cougars in their own home is a difficult task. Beating Oregon, a college football playoff contender in a tense rivalry in Eugene is an even tougher task.

So, there’s not exactly a great chance for Smith to take his team bowling this season.

It’s worth noting Oregon State came within six combined points of beating Hawaii and Stanford. Had the Beavers claimed both of those games, this season is talked about very differently for Oregon State.

Still, all things considered, if Oregon State doesn’t make it to a bowl game this year, 2019 should be considered a success for this program. The strides the Beavers have made under Smith’s guidance have been incredible. It’d be fair to say they’ve overachieved. It’d also be fair to say that Oregon State is the biggest success story in college football in 2019.

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