Off and back again: Oregon State hosts Nicholls State tomorrow

Oregon State was supposed to open the 2012 season by hosting Nicholls State on Sept. 1. Then Hurricane Isaac hit, trapping the Colonels in Louisiana. A rain-check was scheduled for Dec. 1, but when the Beavers got off to a 5-1 start in the Pac-12 and played themselves into contention for the Pac-12 Championship, this game appeared to be in doubt. Alas, Oregon State lost to Stanford and Oregon, and now the Beavers and Colonels will face off tomorrow. 

(On a side note, we're having trouble remembering the last time a team had 15 days between regular season games. Can anyone offer another example?)

Nicholls State last played on Nov. 16, meaning Charlie Stubbs and his staff have seen Oregon State play two full games since they last played. With 15 days between games and nothing to lose, it will be intriguing to see what tricks the Colonels can throw at Oregon State.

“They’ve had some time,” Oregon State head coach Mike Riley told The Oregonian. “It’s a little interesting. They’re approaching it like it’s a bowl game."

The game itself should be a total mismatch. Oregon State is 8-3 and ranked No. 15 in the BCS. Nicholls State is 1-9 and went 0-7 in the Southland Conference.

Riley's challenge this week has been to motivate a team that came within a whiff of the Rose Bowl, and is fresh off a Civil War loss to Oregon, to get up for a 1-9 FCS foe.