Signees not discouraged by 3-9 season

Joel Skotte says he knew where he'd sign the minute Oregon State offered him a scholarship late last spring.

But that didn't prevent the Mountain View High School senior from having second thoughts as he watched the 2011 college football season unfold.

Oregon State limped to a 3-9 finish and missed a bowl game for the second consecutive year.

Skotte also had an offer on the table from Boise State, a program that's won 50 games in four years.

"That was the biggest problem in my mind," Skotte said. "Boise State was whooping people and Oregon State was struggling."

But Skotte, along with 20 other high school seniors, signed his letter of intent to play for the Beavers yesterday.

The way Oregon State has built its program, Skotte said, "overpowered the fact that they had a down year."

That was the general theme across the board, as Oregon State raked in one of its stronger classes in recent years.

"Coach [Mike] Riley really knows what he's doing if he can go to four bowl games in a row in a place like Corvallis," said Rivals four star tight end Caleb Smith.

Safety Cyril Noland said he wasn't discouraged as he watched OSU's forgettable season unfold from his hometown of Ruston, La.

"Sure, it wasn't as pleasing as you'd like, but recruits realize the caliber of the coaches and the direction the program is headed," Noland said.

Skotte said his main concern was whether or not the current coaching staff would keep their jobs.

Well, with the exception of secondary coach Keith Heyward's departure to Washington, the coaching staff is back.

"The coaching staff was the main thing," Skotte said. "They treat you right."

Riley said the coaches didn't have to try any harder to "sell" the program after a losing season, because recruits realize the potential the young core of Beavers displayed last year.

"I didn't have to sell it, these kids know," Riley said. "I think recruits are smarter than some of the adults trying to recruit them. They have an awareness about them that can be pretty special. They can look at this roster and look at who's there and then fit themselves in and see that vision."

Noland agreed with that line of thinking.

"Recruits realize the caliber of the coaches and direction the program is heading," he said. "The fact that they had a quarterback [Sean Mannion] that was a freshman All-American after not even starting at the beginning of the year is a really good sign."

"It's good to have guys you know you're going to be playing with for a long time," Smith said.

If this year's class pans out, the Beavers could be set to challenge the Pac-12 in a few years.

"Winning games comes down to the guys in the program wanting to win, and the guys in this class really want to win, and I think we'll pull it together and make good things happen," Smith said.

"Everyone's pumped to know we can be the start of something big," Skotte said.

Grady Garrett, sports editor

Twitter: @gradygarrett

sports@dailybarometer.com