USC football 2022 game preview: Oregon State on the rise

The Trojans will travel to Corvallis to face the Beavers on Sept. 24

Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY Sports

USC is 63-12-4 all-time against Oregon State, with last year’s disappointing home loss marking the first Beaver victory over the Trojans in Los Angeles since 1960.

Oregon State’s Jonathan Smith is entering his fifth season as the Beavers’ head coach. They’ve managed just a 16-28 record under his leadership, but the program has been trending upwards with last year’s 7-5 regular season.

Smith quarterbacked for Oregon State during his playing career and led the Beavers to an 11-1 record and a Fiesta Bowl victory over Notre Dame in 2000.

Junior Chance Nolan is expected to start at quarterback again for the Beavers in 2022. Nolan completed 64% of his passes and threw for 19 touchdowns, picking up three more scores on the ground in 13 games last season. He will have to manage the turnovers, however, as he did toss 10 interceptions as well.

Oregon State could have a fairly successful season and a shot at making its first bowl game in eight years, given the relative weakness of the Pac-12 and the uncertainty of the major players in the conference like Oregon and USC.

However, a chance at the Pac-12 championship game is likely out of reach, considering the new title game selection format no longer guarantees the best team in the North division a spot in the championship, and two of Oregon, USC and Utah are very likely to meet at the end of the year.

All three of those teams should be expected to handle the Beavers this year, although the Week 4 matchup will be the first real test for the new-look Trojans this upcoming season. While not as talented as USC, Oregon State is a well-rounded team, with strength in the trenches on both sides of the ball and decent depth in the offensive backfield.

Ultimately, though, USC’s talent, particularly on the offensive side of the ball, will be too much for the Beavers to compete with. Expect Oregon State to put up a respectable fight at home and the Trojans to pull away in the second half for a comfortable victory and a 4-0 start to the 2022 season.