2026 Week Ten Preview - Fresno State (4-4) @ Oregon State (6-2)
Ricky McKinley // Dam Daily • Published: November 6th, 2026
The Oregon State Beavers welcome the Fresno State Bulldogs to Reser Stadium this weekend, putting their perfect conference record on the line as they look to notch their 7th win this season, which would equal the Beavers' total from the previous two seasons combined.
Fresno State is currently 4th in the Pac-12, despite holding the tie-breaker over the 3rd-place Colorado State Rams, and if they want any shot at reaching the Pac-12 championship game in their first season, it starts with a win in Corvallis this weekend. On the other hand, the Bulldogs have yet to win consecutive games this season, and after downing the Wazzou Cougars 41-7 last week, the odds are ever in the favor of the Beavers in this contest.
Let's digest how these two teams rank in their first conference clash before we get Coach Mando's thoughts in "Leon's Lowdown."
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Oregon State Beavers (6-2) | Description | Fresno State Bulldogs (4-4) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 77 Overall // 76 Offense // 79 Defense | Team Rating | 70 Overall // 71 Offense // 69 Defense Jonathan Smith (50-52) | Head Coach | Matthew Entz (13-8) Pro Style | Offensive Scheme | Spread 3-3-5 | Defensive Scheme | 4-2-5 30.1 (54th) | Offensive Points Per Game | 29.0 (64th) 23.4 (41st) | Defensive Points Per Game | 24.9 (51st) 347.4 (109th) | Offensive Yards Per Game | 366.5 (87th) 349.3 (28th) | Defensive Yards Per Game | 352.0 (33rd)
Oregon State Beavers | Description | Fresno State Bulldogs --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 25-32 | Combined Record | 51-49 @ Houston (3-5) W 41-39 | Week One | @ USC (7-1) L 41-16 Texas Tech (8-1) L 47-13 | Week Two | FCS W 56-16 @ San Diego State (1-7) W 21-7 | Week Three | @ Old Dominion (6-2) L 27-24 @ Stanford (2-6) W 23-20 | Week Four | BYE Montana W 59-14 | Week Five | Rice (4-6) W 34-15 BYE | Week Six | Bowling Green (4-5) L 42-14 Oregon (7-1) L 23-7 | Week Seven | Colorado State (4-4) W 19-16 @ Texas State (4-5) W 32-27 | Week Eight | @ Boise State (5-3) L 35-28 Utah State (1-7) W 45-10 | Week Nine | Washington State (2-6) W 41-7
Oregon State Beavers Fresno State Bulldogs --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- N/A | Injuries | N/A
Oregon State Beavers Fresno State Bulldogs --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SO(RS) Kallen Gutridge (72) 122/210 (58%), 1,577 Yds, 15 TD, 6 INT | QB | JR(RS) Aidan Armenta (80) 190/339 (56%), 2,376 Yds, 22 TD, 3 INT JR Salahadin Allah (84) 182 Att, 957 Yds, 5 TD | HB | FR(RS) Quaid Carr (79) 108 Att, 396 Yds, 4 TD JR(RS) David Wells (80) Jr 22 Rec, 359 Yds, TD | WR | SO(RS) Jordan Malau'ulu (79) 57 Rec, 736 Yds, 7 TD SO(RS) Malachi Durant (73) 27 Rec, 343 Yds, 6 TD | WR | SO Harold Duvall (80) 37 Rec, 544 Yds, 5 TD SO(RS) Exodus Ayers (78) 44 Tkl, 4 TFL, INT | DEF | JR(RS) LB K'Vion Thunderbird (84) 54 Tkl, 4 TFL, Sack SR(RS) DE Ka'eo Akana (78) 23 Tkl, 12 TFL, 6.5 Sacks | DEF | SO(RS) DE Damarrion White (74) 34 Tkl, 7 TFL, 4 Sacks SR(RS) MLB Jalen Woods (79) 27 Tkl, 14 TFL, 3 Sacks | DEF | JR(RS) DT Deijon Laffitte (78) 17 Tkl, 4 TFL, 3 Sacks SR SS Kyle Chen (78) 67 Tkl, 6 TFL, Sack | DEF | SR(RS) CB Simeon Harris (84) 43 Tkl, TFL, INT
Pac-12 Week Ten Schedule
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Leon's Lowdown
RM: "Before we get to the game preview, Coach Mando, let me congratulate you on another influx of commitments after the dominant performance against the Aggies. How many recruits do you anticipate signing this cycle?"
AL: "As many as we can, Ricky. laughs But honestly, it's a fluid situation. We've got twenty graduating seniors, so that's the baseline number we're trying to hit. We all know in today's day and age that the transfer portal is always looming. We may lose some guys to the portal too, despite a strong year so far, so you always want to leave some wiggle room. On the same token, we aren't going to just hand out scholarships. We're building a standard here and that means we need athletes who buy into the program, not guys just looking for a platform for their next move."
RM: "What do you say to pundits who claim with the new transfer portal structure, programs in the Group of Six category are always going to essentially be farm systems for the bigger, destination schools?"
AL: "I think that's a two-part equation. Can lower-level schools give fringe prospects an opportunity to prove themselves, before transferring to a higher-profile program? Absolutely. I also think there is value in those "lower" programs to take some fallen stars, so to speak, guys who were recruited highly, but for whatever circumstance didn't shine at the blue bloods. We offer a unique situation where they can rebuild their value.
"I want to add a third option there. Why is it considered outside the realm of possibility that other schools could elevate their profile to eventually be considered one of those schools? Indiana is the most recent example. But since joining the ACC in 1953, the Clemson Tigers were 2-4 in bowl games and only won 9 or more games twice before their National Championship in 1981. After that? Consecutive 10-win seasons from '87-'90, then nothing until Dabo's 3rd season. You look at their recent success since 2011 and you think of them as one of the premier programs in the country. But it wasn't that way for a long time. So I definitely think there is room for a program that is committed to winning and does it the right way, to turn from one of those "farm system" programs into a destination program with sustained success."
RM: "Great point, Coach. I think a lot of college football fans look at it from the outside in, thinking 'why not us?" But sometimes you've got to make your own luck and forge a new path. Let's talk Fresno State, real quick, they've got some talent offensively with Aidan Armenta and his trio of speed receivers. Is it going to be business as usual this weekend, or are you going to switch up the scheme to combat their explosiveness?"
AL: "We've stuck to our guns all season, with pretty solid results in my opinion. Obviously, there are situations in the game that you adjust for, but outside of real-time changes, I don't foresee a seismic shift in our plan."
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Hearing Coach Mando talk about programs changing their circumstance and forging a new path, I'm not going to lie, has got me fired up. Why can't Oregon State be the next Indiana or Ole Miss, leveraging the transfer portal to keep adding top-tier talent looking for a change of scenery, until their perception among high schoolers changes to start hauling in some big-time prospects.
It sounds like delusions of grandeur, but every journey starts with a step. Consider this season as the first step to a bigger goal.
But before we get to the future, we have to handle the present. Fresno State.
They've got speed, they've got a capable quarterback, and they've hung with just about every team they've faced.
Fresno State 21, Oregon State 24. McCreery saves the day again as Coach Mando's defense bends enough to make it closer than we like, but ultimately doesn't break under pressure.
