Vernon Adams ... Vernon Adams ... Vernon Adams? ... Yep, Vernon Adams.
Oregon State coach Mike Riley will probably say the name 100 times before he falls asleep tonight. He won't forget the name any time soon and neither will any player on the OSU defense.
Vernon Adams is the redshirt freshman quarterback for Eastern Washington who absolutely carved up Riley's defense on the opening Saturday of the college football season. Riley's 25th-ranked Beavers were upset 49-46 by a team from the Football Championship Subdivision in the season opener for the second time in three years.
Oregon State is one of five FBS teams to lose to FCS teams this weekend and it's a familiar feeling for the Beavers. Sacramento State beat the Beavers in Corvallis, Ore., to start the 2011 season.
Adams completed 23 of 30 passes for 411 yards and four touchdowns. He also rushed 16 times for 107 yards and two scores.
[Slideshow: Best action from Week 1]
Oregon State had seven starters back on defense this season and was supposed to have a solid secondary, but the Beavers surrendered 625 yards of total offense, nearly nine yards per play. Adams' four passing scores covered 24, 31, 48 and 19 yards.
Riley probably won't be the only Pac-12 Conference coach thinking about Adams after this performance. Adams grew up in UCLA territory in Pasadena, Calif., and starred at Alemany High School.
Riley will have to get his defense fixed in a hurry or it could be a long year in the explosive Pac-12 Conference. The Beavers host Hawaii next week.
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