CORVALLIS — With little left to play for beyond pride — which was heavily damaged by Saturday’s confounding loss to previously winless Sam Houston State — Oregon State football is attempting a reset ahead of a road trip to Tulsa.

“That’s the biggest thing of all is exactly that: getting getting our minds back,” interim coach Robb Akey said at his weekly press conference Monday. “To understand you’ve got an opportunity. And so, that opportunity is here, what are you going to do with it? And we’ve got to make sure that we overcome the feelings and that from this past weekend, and regardless of your situation as a team, you play a game and you’ve got the opportunity.”

The Beavers’ 2025 season is careening to the finish line. After the trip to face the Golden Hurricane (2-7), OSU has a bye week before finishing off its schedule on the road at Washington State on Nov. 29 — round two in the final year of the “Pac-2.”

How can OSU avoid finishing with double-digit losses for the first time since 2018? By “winning the situation” in key moments, Akey said.

“I think the big thing is making plays that we have the opportunity to,” Akey said. “I thought we had some opportunities to have made some plays that … we’ve got to make sure we secure finishing things. And some of them get seen more than others, based on where that finish of that play necessarily takes place, if that makes sense what I’m saying. That’s got to be our focus and what we work to do, and if we can do it better this week, it’s going to help us play better. And that’s the nature of where we’re at.”

A bright spot of Saturday’s debacle was the continued strong play of senior running back Anthony Hankerson. After starting out the season slow behind a patchwork offensive line, Hankerson has 502 yards over his last three games.

On senior night, Hankerson set a season-high with 33 carries. He appears determined to achieve his second consecutive 1,000-yard season, and has just 41 yards to go.

“If you’ve got a hot hand, let it ride,” Akey said. “And I think Hank deserved the opportunity, being the last time he got to play here in front of our fans at Reser and things like that. So, there was a lot to contribute to that. But I thought, you know, that’s a guy … I’d go anywhere with him. Any dark alley you want, whatever it is. He’s a tough son of a buck, and it doesn’t mean that the other guys in the room aren’t or anything.”

As evidenced in the loss to the Bearkats, repeated mistakes and untimely failures in all three phases keep sinking the Beavers — especially on special teams. It’s been the same story all season, told in new ways with each passing week.

Finishing on offense in the red zone was another glaring issue for OSU, something it will need to do against a Tulsa team ranked in the bottom 25 in the country in scoring defense (30.78 points per game).

“When we have those opportunities, we’ve got to find ways to still connect and finish those plays,” Akey said. “And that’s what, as an offensive guy, that’s what I get the opportunity to do. As a defensive guy, I get the opportunity to make sure that I get the ball back for our offense, because that’s what the good Lord built the defense for, to get the ball back for the offense without giving up any points. So, that’s where we have to pay attention to those things.”

Oregon State (2-8) at Tulsa (2-7)

• When: Saturday, Nov. 15
• Time: 10:00 a.m. PT
• Where: H.A. Chapman Stadium — Tulsa, OK
• TV Channel: None
• Stream: ESPN+

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