State of the Beavs: Big Questions For Oregon State Football & Basketball in 2026

It's late March and once again, neither of Oregon State's basketball programs are still part of the madness. To state the obvious, women's basketball head coach Scott Rueck and newly hired men's basketball head coach Justin Joyner are hoping to change that in the new year...it would make Scott Barnes' life a whole lot easier too.

For Joyner in particular, he'll need to set up his recruiting pipeline, build a staff, and make a lot of high-impact decisions to set himself up for success. What should his highest priorities be this spring and summer?

The Beaver football program will continue spring practices this month, and at the majority of positions, it's not particularly clear at this point who will be the main pieces for OSU. This week on state of the Beavs, we take a critical look at a few key position groups.

MORE: Beavers Fall to Wiscon 62-58 in First Round of Women's Basketball Invitational

Also, the Beaver baseball program is playing like they want to be a bigger part of the national conversation. Oregon State's latest road trip to Southern California yielded a few strong performances against UC Irvine. The Beavers also managed to find success even in an off day for Friday starter Dax Whitney.

Your host Matt Bagley covers all that and more this week on a new episode of State of the Beavs. Go Beavs.

MORE: Three Takeaways from Justin Joyner's First Oregon State Press Conference

This Week's Topics

-Three position battles that could have a significant impact on Oregon State football's 2026 season.
-What's the plan for building Oregon State football's offensive line in 2025?
-Now that the Beavers have officially hired Justin Joyner, what's the plan to get things started on the right foot for men's basketball?
-How different will Oregon State women's basketball look after this spring's transfer portal window?
-Oregon State baseball's productive weekend in Irvine, California.