BOONE, N.C. – Even at 0-6, beating Oregon State still carries some weight.
A few thousand Appalachian State students rushed the field Saturday night following the Mountaineers’ 27-23 win over OSU. Students came sprinting off a grass berm at Kidd Brewer Stadium, many dodging and occasionally careening off Oregon State players and coaches as they joyously ran to midfield.
The Beavers hardly noticed. They were too stunned to walk off the field from a game they could, perhaps should have won, for a second consecutive week.
In a recurring theme, special teams contributed to the loss by fumbling a kickoff and missing a short field goal attempt. The defense played well in spurts but gave up too many big passing plays during the first half. Quarterback Maalik Murphy was brilliant during the middle of the game, throwing for 358 yards in total. But he threw two ugly passes that no quarterback with his experience should make, one resulting in a backbreaking interception in the end zone early in the fourth quarter. The running game sputtered for most of the game, and really fell flat when the Beavers needed a yard on multiple occasions down the stretch.
Few are going to remember the warrior performance of Trent Walker, who set career highs for receptions (13) and yards (179). Or Aiden Sullivan lighting up App State running back Rashod Dubinon near the goal, causing a fumble that led to a safety and giving OSU a last-minute chance to win the game. Or David Wells’ two touchdowns, including one on a 30-yard reverse.
Instead, it’s going to be about questions, as this is Oregon State’s worst start since 1991. Such as, should coach Trent Bray finish out the year as head coach? The same for special teams coach Jamie Christian, and others? Can the locker room withstand another gut-wrenching loss? Will players start looking ahead to 2026, and perhaps playing in another uniform?
Bray pinned the loss on himself, saying Saturday’s mistakes and inability to take advantage of opportunities “falls on me. I’m the fault for this one.”
Bray refused to be drawn into a question as to what he would say to fans who have thrown up their hands in disgust over the 0-6 record.
“Nothing. I talk to the team. My responsibility is to the players,” he said.
Asked if he doesn’t care what the fans think, Bray said “that’s not what I’m saying. Let’s not twist my words. My responsibility is to the team first, and that’s who I answer to.”
With each passing week, the losses cut the players a little deeper. For a season that had so much promise in August, the Beavers are down to simply wanting to win a game. At 0-6, OSU’s margin for error to reach a bowl game and finish with a winning record is zero.
“The overall attitude of this team is really optimistic. It’s going to hurt for a couple days, but once we get going back to practice, we’ll be OK,” outside linebacker Nikko Taylor said.
Keeping the locker room intact and continuing to give maximum effort each week is an issue with the mounting losses. Taylor said in tough times, they lean on Bray and the team leaders.
“The leaders are going to have a contagious effort to uplift the guys,” Taylor said.
The Beavers could draw some inspiration from Wells. He fumbled a kickoff return early in the game that led to an ASU touchdown and a 10-0 lead. But minutes later, Wells bounced back by scoring a touchdown on a 30-yard reverse, then a 3-yard touchdown reception.
“Just knowing the team needed me, I couldn’t drag my head about it,” Wells said.
Next game: Wake Forest (3-2) at Oregon State (0-6)
- When: Saturday, Oct. 11
- Time: 12:30 p.m. PT
- Where: Reser Stadium, Corvallis
- TV Channel: CW Network
As for Murphy, he remains an enigma. There were times Saturday when he was on fire. Murphy was in sync with his receivers, and particularly Walker, and it led to two touchdown drives during the second quarter. Then midway through the fourth quarter, with OSU down 27-21 and six yards from the end zone, Murphy was under pressure and inexplicably heaved the ball into a crowd. It was intercepted to end the threat.
But OSU had more chances, including a first-and-goal at the ASU 3 where the Beavers failed to crack the end zone on four consecutive running plays. Murphy played out of the shotgun on all four plays. When asked why Murphy didn’t attempt a quarterback sneak despite Oregon State being at the 1-yard line for the final three plays, Bray said it wouldn’t have mattered.
“We’re not moving the line of scrimmage on short yardage plays,” he said.
Oregon State returns home for its next two games knowing it’s not far from winning a game, and maybe getting on a winning streak. The Beavers had a 14-point lead midway through the fourth against Houston a week ago only to lose. Saturday’s loss could have been a win with different outcomes on less than a handful of plays. Then there’s the September 6 game against Fresno State, which OSU outplayed but kicked away a win because of special teams.
But what’s to stop Oregon State continuing down its current path and ending up with its worst season in decades?
“Obviously something’s got to change within the players and how we operate,” Taylor said. “We’ll figure out what it is.”
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