Overrated/Underrated: Oregon State winning consistently and quietly

People like to talk about overrated teams, but what about underrated teams?

There are some programs that fly under the radar and consistently succeed. I was going to list a few of the more underrated programs in the country, but I thought I’d zero in one school in particular, whose achievements are all the more impressive because, well, they sucked pretty bad not too long ago.

Remember when Oregon State one of the also-rans in college sports?

Basketball is still lagging behind to say the least, but the baseball team just wont back-to-back national championships, and the football team is building a solid foundation as one of the top under-the-radar programs in the country.

The Oregon State football program was one of the worst in the country from the 1970s to the late 90s, as the Beavers had 28 straight losing seasons from 1971-98. However, Mike Riley’s arrival after the 1996 season saw the start of a turnaround, as he led the Beavers to a 5-6 finish in 1998, their best record since the 1971 team (the one that started the streak) went 5-6.

Riley left for an ill-fated stint with the San Diego Chargers, but ultimate journeyman Dennis Erickson came in and led the Beavers to 30 wins and three bowls in four seasons. In his debut season of 1999, the Beavers had their first winning season since 1970 when they went 7-5 and went to the Oahu Bowl. In his second season in 2000, the Beavers went 11-1 with a Fiesta Bowl rout of Notre Dame, with the future Ocho Cinco and T.J. Houshmandzadeh starring for OSU.

When Erickson’s next ‘can’t resist’ job offer came from the San Francisco 49ers following the 2002 season, Riley came back in 2003, and picked up where his successor had left off. Since Riley’s return, OSU has won 38 games, made four bowls in five seasons, and gone a perfect 4-0 in the postseason.

The last two seasons the Beavers have gone 10-4 and 9-4, with back-to-back 6-3 records in the Pac-10, with their combined 19-8 (12-6 Pac-10) marks the best overall and conference records in the Pac-10 behind USC.

Each of the last two seasons, OSU has finished in the top 25, and they’ve also done a solid job of producing NFL-caliber talent, as the aforementioned Bengals receiving duo, St. Louis Rams RB Steven Jackson, Green Bay star linebacker Nick Barnett, and Cleveland Browns QB Derek Anderson have all come through Corvallis in recent years.

Last season, the Beavers went 9-4, with a new QB and without star receiver Sammie Stroughter for most of the season. You can expect the Beavers to be up there again, with QB Sean Canfield a year older and better, Stroughter back, and a deep backfield that includes top prep prospect Jacquizz Rodgers, along with a defense that returns two of the PAC-10’s sack leaders.

The Beavers stand out to me, but who do you think are some of the other underrated programs in the country?