KEYS TO THE GAME: Hawaii

GETTING THE PIGSKIN into the hands of Sammie Stroughter and the Rodgers' brothers should help the offense put up big numbers while the defense needs to tackle better; especially on third down.

1. Get Sammie and James involved
   Sammie Stroughter and James Rodgers combined for 10 catches, 100 yards and zero touchdowns last week after combining for 16 grabs, 196 yards and two touchdowns at Stanford.
   
   If the Beavers hope to put up big numbers on offense they must find a way to get Stroughter and Rodgers more touches.
   
   
    
2. Get Quizz 30 carries
   True freshman Jacquizz Rodgers averages 4.2 yards every time he rushes with the ball and his ability to weave through the chaos at the line of scrimmage for positive yardage has Beaver Nation very excited.
   
   If he gets 30 carries he most likely goes over 100-yards which means the Beavers probably get their first win of the season.
   
    
3. Wrap up the ball carrier
   Poor tackling has plagued the Oregon State defense through the first two games resulting in back breaking conversions on third down time and time again. 
   
   Last Saturday, Penn State converted 5 of 6 third downs in the first half, including third-and-10, third-and-nine and third-and-eight twice averaging 17.6 yards per conversion. 
   
   The team is playing good defense on first and second down, but must get back to the basics and pull down the ball carrier the first time.

Reviewing last week's keys:

1. Gain 100 yards on the ground - One of the few bright spots last week was Jacquizz Rodgers running the football.  He just missed the century mark as he carried the ball 22 times for 99 yards and two touchdowns.
   
    
2. Take care of the football - The offense did a nice job of holding onto the football as they did not fumble once, but QB Lyle Moevao threw two picks.  Although it didn't show up in the boxscore as a turnover P Johnny Hekker's decision to not kick the ball away in the first half proved costly as it gave PSU great field position.
   
    
3. Force Daryll Clark to throw - The defense did not force Clark to throw as the Penn State rushing game trampled the Beaver defense for 239 yards and four touchdowns.  OSU rarely touched Clark as they failed to record a sack against him.