“Shout” is a column by Matthew Andrade about college football.
We knew the party had to end at some point.
For most of the Pac-12 footprint, the party ended at around midnight on Saturday when the lights at the Rose Bowl turned off, putting the final Pac-12 regular season in the rearview mirror once and for all.
Oregon State fans would dispute that timeline. For them, the party ended before the Beavers took the field against Oregon — hours before, in fact.
Before kickoff, it was reported that Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith was set to take the head coaching job at Michigan State. Oregon showed some of Michigan State’s game against Penn State on the video board during the Ducks-Beavers matchup to poke fun.
When the hire was made official Saturday morning, Oregon State fans were in the dumps. Potential for a nine-win season doesn’t negate reality. Oregon State’s situation is dire: No conference, no coach, no future.
You can’t blame Beaver fans for feeling that way. To be in a Power Five conference one second and then left behind the next is unfathomable. It’s something college football is supposed to protect. The small college towns of America built this sport. But the sport has opted for a professional model. Don’t like your current situation? Well, you can’t relocate the university, so switch to a midwestern conference where, supposedly, the grass is so much greener. Why care what happens to anyone in your wake?
Oregon State and Washington State are the schools currently drowning in that wake. Those two are trying to find a way to keep the conference alive. What’s most likely is that they’ll play for a couple seasons as just two conference teams under the brand of the Pac-12 in order to keep the conference’s assets and rebuild the league. That may work to a certain extent, but the new Pac-12 won’t feel the same. Everyone knows that.
It’s possible Oregon State will never be as strong as they’ve been these past couple of seasons either. It hurts losing the head coach who turned around a program from 1-11 to three straight winning seasons. What’s his connection to Michigan State anyway? He’s from the West Coast. He played in a Fiesta Bowl with the Beavers. The closest he’s coached to the state of Michigan was as the offensive coordinator for Montana.
Yet, you can’t blame him for leaving. It’s inevitable that Oregon State will be dropping down to the Group of Five (now Group of Six) level. The Beavers could dominate down there, sure, but everyone wants to compete at the top. Oregon State’s situation isn’t Smith’s fault. He’s done everything in his power to build that brand, as a coach and as a player.
That’s the most frustrating part of all of this.
Oregon State isn’t lying idle while the rest of college football passes it by. Oregon State put $162 million into renovating Reser Stadium. The Beavers’ athletic director presented a contract extension to Smith mere weeks ago. Top transfers like former Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei made themselves at home in Corvallis. Oh, should I mention that Oregon State is 18-7 in its last two seasons?
The Beavers have invested in football, but none of it matters. They’ll be left behind all the same while a program that’s 34-34 in its six seasons with its head coach will get to march off into the sunset to cash yearly checks of nearly $100 million. What that money is for, if not the one thing that could drastically improve the football program — hiring a new head coach — I do not know.
The hit to Oregon State over the weekend is the first of many to come as this destructive wave of realignment settles. The next blows will be felt next season when we remember how we had it made when these 12 programs were together.
Then again, passionate fan bases aren’t what move the needle. The average fan — who can’t contain their excitement when they see USC-Ohio State and Oregon-Michigan as upcoming conference matchups — is who the sport is trying to cater to anyway. TV ratings will be up as a result. Everything will be right with the world if viewership and money are what you care about.
But some of us don’t care about that.
We would watch UCLA-Arizona State if there were two other people in the entire world who had interest. We appreciate what makes this sport different from the NFL: upsets, rivalries and passion.
So, as we approach the final Pac-12 championship, celebrate the moment. Cherish this conference. There will never be anything quite like it.
“Shout” runs every Tuesday.