The Pac-12 announced its 2017 football schedule Wednesday morning, completing Oregon State's upcoming slate.
Here's a quick look at the full schedule, along with some early observations:
Sept. 2 vs. Portland State
Sept. 9 vs. Minnesota
Sept. 16 at Washington State
Sept. 23 at Colorado State
Sept. 30 vs. Washington
Oct. 7 at USC
Oct. 14 vs. Colorado
Oct. 21 Bye
Oct. 26 vs. Stanford (Thursday)
Nov. 4 at California
Nov. 11 at Arizona
Nov. 18 vs. Arizona State
Nov. 24 at Oregon
Five early observations (and a bonus) from Oregon State's 2017 football schedule
1. Early start to Pac-12 play
The Beavers begin their conference slate with a Sept. 16 road trip to Washington State, marking just the third time OSU and the Cougars have met in September. The following week, the Beavers will wrap up their nonconference schedule with a road trip to Colorado State. That also means a later bye week for the Beavers (Oct. 21), after an open date during Week 2 in 2016.
2. Moving in: USC and Arizona State; Moving out: Utah and UCLA
Following a two-year break, the Trojans and Sun Devils are back on the schedule. USC looks like a College Football Playoff contender after its nine-game winning streak and thrilling Rose Bowl Victory to close out 2016, while ASU will aim to rebound following a disappointing 5-7 season. Missing Utah also means skipping a season of storylines surrounding Beavers coach Gary Andersen and his connection to the Utes and coach Kyle Whittingham.
3. Tough middle
In three consecutive weeks, OSU hosts reigning Pac-12 champion Washington, then visits USC, then hosts South champ Colorado. The Beavers might need that bye week after such a challenging stretch. That's also in the midst of seven consecutive games against 2016 bowl teams.
4. Thursday Night Football
OSU will get at least one #Pac12AfterDark game when it hosts Stanford on Thursday, Oct. 26. The Cardinal has won seven consecutive games against the Beavers, the longest current winning streak for any Pac-12 team against OSU.
5. November Road
Three of OSU's final four games are away from Reser Stadium -- at Cal on Nov. 4, at Arizona on Nov. 11 and at Oregon on Nov. 24. The good news? Those are the Pac-12 teams the Beavers beat in 2016. A Nov. 18 home date with Arizona State breaks up the road games.
6. The Fleck Effect
One of the biggest national storylines in 2016 was P.J. Fleck, who transformed Western Michigan into a Cotton Bowl participant and then was hired by Minnesota earlier this month after Tracy Claeys was fired following a short-term player boycott due to the suspension of 10 players who were connected to sexual assault allegations. The trip to Corvallis will be Fleck's first contest against a Power 5 opponent as the Golden Gophers' coach and is sure to draw some intrigue around the country. That also marks an early opportunity for the Beavers to make a statement against a team that went 9-4 and beat Washington State in the Holiday Bowl in 2016.
-- Gina Mizell | @ginamizell