Washington State Football: 3 Bold Predictions for Cougs vs Utah

1. Alex Grinch is Hired by Oregon State

I don’t think the Oregon State Beavers are a top landing spot for head coaches in 2017. Rumors of Les Miles to Corvallis are far-fetched and I can’t see the Beavs rehashing Mike Riley once again. Riley’s shine has faded away and OSU has taken on recycled coaches like Dennis Erickson and whatever was going on with Gary Andersen and his strange relationship with reporters and his coaching staff.

Andersen was negative about Wisconsin and the “road blocks to success” that seem to have Paul Chryst completely unfazed. The Cornhuskers slipped from 48th in the S&P+ to 76th now in 2017 and while Riley may or may not be let go he’s not a viable option to rebuild the Beavs.

Oregon State is currently 119th in the S&P+ and they are lacking in talent and energy surrounding the campus. Corvallis isn’t exactly a football powerhouse location for top recruits, on top of that you’re always the second best team compared to the Phil Knight backed Oregon Ducks.

When OSU has been successful it was through JUCO players in Erickson’s high-octane offense or RIley’s pro style attack that took years to cultivate. Oregon State doesn’t have years in a ‘win now’ culture of the late 2010’s. The Beavs need to go with someone in the Pac 12 who can win football games and improving the nation’s 120th ranked defense (per S&P+) would be a start.

Insert Alex Grinch. Grinch is the young, uber talented defensive coordinator who has managed to create a defense in Pullman, Washington. Seeing a top 20 S&P+ ranked defense in Pullman is like seeing  a warm sunny day in November.

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Grinch is a winner by nature. He won three national titles at the DIII level at Mount Union (Ohio) along side 54-1 career record while playing there. Grinch’s branch of the coaching world was under Larry Kehres at Mount Union, he’s the nephew of Gary Pinkel, worked under Chip Kelly, and was hired by Leach because, “He’s just a really clear teacher,” from an article in the Seattle Times. Grinch is the best fit to take over the Oregon State program and bring youth, enthusiasm, recruiting, and a winning pedigree to Corvallis, Oregon.