1. Quarterbacks had a so-so day
Where else to start but the quarterback play... Well, I'm sure this is the opinion of just about everybody that watching Oregon State's spring game, er... spring showcase? Not exactly sure what to call it anymore. But back to the topic -- the quarterbacks had an underwhelming performance as a whole, in my opinion, but they were better throughout spring practices than what they showed today. Jake Luton was not very sharp and tossed an interception. It looked like he didn't even see Jalen Moore, who easily intercepted the pass. Jack Colletto was decent in his first showing in front of fans in front of Reser; his 20+ yard scramble was the highlight of his afternoon. Conor Blount easily had the best day as he made a few sweet throws down the sideline and had a pair of touchdown passes. Blount looked the most comfortable and threw the best ball, and it wasn't even close. Aidan Willard also had a drive in the scrimmage portion, but the competition is a three-horse race between Luton, Colletto,and Blount. This was just one practice, so I'd caution OSU fans reading this from overreacting. Luton is still my guy and I'm sticking with him, although Blount looked very good today.
2. So many injured players today
Just some of the guys that didn't scrimmage today: Isaiah Hodgins, Trevon Bradford, Tuli Wily-Matagi, Noah Togiai, Xavier Crawford, Shawn Wilson, Dwayne Williams, David Morris, and Omar Hicks Onu. That's just off the top of my head too. It's really hard to get any idea of what the starting groups look like after today, especially in the defensive backfield. As Jonathan Smith has mentioned on a few occasions though, having these injuries gives younger guys a chance to get more first and second team reps, which pays off in the long run.
3. Defense looked strong
Based on what I saw today, the defense looked much more prepared and fired up compared to their offensive counterparts, which you expect at this point of the year. I mentioned how injured the secondary was this spring, but that group still looked strong. Jeffrey Manning Jr. and Trajon Cotton looked pretty good at their safety spots, as did Kaleb Hayes and Justin Gardner, who are long cornerbacks -- all four of these guys are just redshirt freshmen. At the linebacker, Kee Whetzel looks like a big, physical wide receiver but plays the part well at OLB. He can be a difference maker for this team, as can Hamilcar Rashed, who is finally getting a chance to make an impact. At inside linebacker, Doug Taumoelau and Shemar Smith were the first team ILB's to start the day, which I found interesting as Jonathan Willis was healthy. It's still just a spring game so it doesn't mean a whole lot in terms of the starting group. For the defensive line, they had some good moments. I thought Jeromy Reichner looked good as he and Kalani Vakameilalo had their hands in the dirt in OSU's 2-4-5 nickel set.
4. Average day for the offense
A lot of this was on the quarterbacks, but again, this is a brand new system with brand new terminology, so cut the kids some slack. Hodgins and Bradford didn't suit up today, giving Kolby Taylor, Andre Bodden, and Champ Flemings a starting spot along with Timmy Hernandez, who was the best receiver today and caught a pair of touchdowns. The best position group, IMO, was the offensive line; Jim Michalczik really hard every OL group out there ready. There were some bad snaps, but it's not the end of the world. Brandel and Lavaka looked really good on that left side of the offensive line. At running back, we didn't learn too much that we already didn't know, but Christian Wallace looked like a strong downhill runner and could contribute in short yardage situations especially.
5. It was a very vanilla scrimmage
And that's not a bad thing. More colleges across the country are making the spring game more into a spring "showcase," making it a glorified scrimmage. No one was injured today, which was the No. 1 goal and there was plenty of film to get out of today. All in all, a successful day, and the Beavers will get better as they get more healthy and learn more of the playbook.
Where else to start but the quarterback play... Well, I'm sure this is the opinion of just about everybody that watching Oregon State's spring game, er... spring showcase? Not exactly sure what to call it anymore. But back to the topic -- the quarterbacks had an underwhelming performance as a whole, in my opinion, but they were better throughout spring practices than what they showed today. Jake Luton was not very sharp and tossed an interception. It looked like he didn't even see Jalen Moore, who easily intercepted the pass. Jack Colletto was decent in his first showing in front of fans in front of Reser; his 20+ yard scramble was the highlight of his afternoon. Conor Blount easily had the best day as he made a few sweet throws down the sideline and had a pair of touchdown passes. Blount looked the most comfortable and threw the best ball, and it wasn't even close. Aidan Willard also had a drive in the scrimmage portion, but the competition is a three-horse race between Luton, Colletto,and Blount. This was just one practice, so I'd caution OSU fans reading this from overreacting. Luton is still my guy and I'm sticking with him, although Blount looked very good today.
2. So many injured players today
Just some of the guys that didn't scrimmage today: Isaiah Hodgins, Trevon Bradford, Tuli Wily-Matagi, Noah Togiai, Xavier Crawford, Shawn Wilson, Dwayne Williams, David Morris, and Omar Hicks Onu. That's just off the top of my head too. It's really hard to get any idea of what the starting groups look like after today, especially in the defensive backfield. As Jonathan Smith has mentioned on a few occasions though, having these injuries gives younger guys a chance to get more first and second team reps, which pays off in the long run.
3. Defense looked strong
Based on what I saw today, the defense looked much more prepared and fired up compared to their offensive counterparts, which you expect at this point of the year. I mentioned how injured the secondary was this spring, but that group still looked strong. Jeffrey Manning Jr. and Trajon Cotton looked pretty good at their safety spots, as did Kaleb Hayes and Justin Gardner, who are long cornerbacks -- all four of these guys are just redshirt freshmen. At the linebacker, Kee Whetzel looks like a big, physical wide receiver but plays the part well at OLB. He can be a difference maker for this team, as can Hamilcar Rashed, who is finally getting a chance to make an impact. At inside linebacker, Doug Taumoelau and Shemar Smith were the first team ILB's to start the day, which I found interesting as Jonathan Willis was healthy. It's still just a spring game so it doesn't mean a whole lot in terms of the starting group. For the defensive line, they had some good moments. I thought Jeromy Reichner looked good as he and Kalani Vakameilalo had their hands in the dirt in OSU's 2-4-5 nickel set.
4. Average day for the offense
A lot of this was on the quarterbacks, but again, this is a brand new system with brand new terminology, so cut the kids some slack. Hodgins and Bradford didn't suit up today, giving Kolby Taylor, Andre Bodden, and Champ Flemings a starting spot along with Timmy Hernandez, who was the best receiver today and caught a pair of touchdowns. The best position group, IMO, was the offensive line; Jim Michalczik really hard every OL group out there ready. There were some bad snaps, but it's not the end of the world. Brandel and Lavaka looked really good on that left side of the offensive line. At running back, we didn't learn too much that we already didn't know, but Christian Wallace looked like a strong downhill runner and could contribute in short yardage situations especially.
5. It was a very vanilla scrimmage
And that's not a bad thing. More colleges across the country are making the spring game more into a spring "showcase," making it a glorified scrimmage. No one was injured today, which was the No. 1 goal and there was plenty of film to get out of today. All in all, a successful day, and the Beavers will get better as they get more healthy and learn more of the playbook.
