WATCH: Jonathan Smith Talks Spring Ball Day 5
https://oregonstate.rivals.com/news/watch-jonathan-smith-talks-spring-ball-day-5
- The biggest and most unfortunate news of the day came about midway through practice as cornerback Jaydon Grant was injured attempting to break up a pass play during 11-on-11 work.
- Quarterback Jake Luton was looking for a receiver in the corner of the endzone and Grant came across the endzone at full-speed looking to break up the pass. While knocking the pass away, Grant’s forward momentum led him into the fence surrounding the practice fields. Grant was on his back the sideline for about 30 minutes before a paramedic crew came and put him on a gurney before taking him to the ambulance.
- From what I was able to tell, Grant was able to move his arms and legs while being attended to by the OSU trainers and medical staff. Jonathan Smith, Tim Tibesar, and Blue Adams were all by Grant’s side for a period of time.
- Smith offered his brief thoughts on Grant’s injury… “We’re taking every precaution. I don’t have exact details, but we’re taking all the precautions.”
-After Grant’s injury, the air and intensity was sucked out of Oregon State’s practice as it seemed like there was less zip. During post-practice media availability, Luton noted that as a whole, the Beavers didn’t come out with the top-line energy needed today. That’s not to say that practice was going through the motions by any stretch, but it seemed a little less intense with the Beavs stepping outside today.
- Isaiah Dunn continues to impress headed into his junior season… The 6-foot, 183 pounder has struggled with injuries during his first two seasons, but appears to be playing the best football of his career as he showcased very physical and stifling one-on-one defense with receivers like Isaiah Hodgins and Trevon Bradford.
- Backup defensive lineman and Springfield, Ore. native Cody Anderson had himself a solid practice today, highlighted by an impressive stint in 11-on-11 work. Anderson made several really nice negative plays from his line spot, including a big hit on Jermar Jefferson that knocked him backwards and allowed Anderson to wrestle him to the ground in the backfield. It says a lot about the improvements made by the Beaver defense made in the past few months that a backup lineman is able to get the better of Jefferson… hopefully it’s a sign of things to come on defense.
- Here’s what the first team defense looked like…
DT: Elu Aydon
DE: Isaac Hodgins
OLB: Andrzej Hughes-Murray
ILB: Shemar Smith
ILB: Isaiah Tufaga
OLB: Matthew Tago
CB: Isaiah Dunn
CB: Jeffrey Manning Jr.
S: Jalen Moore
S: Omar Hicks-Onu
CB: Kaleb Hayes
- With the Beavers mostly focusing on individual, position group specific drills for the first half of practice and moving most of the 11-on-11 work to the opposite field out of view to media because of the Grant injury, there wasn’t a lot of team work to be able to draw from.
- BJ Baylor stood out to me offensively today as he was able to rip off a couple nice runs with the second unit (led by Gebbia). Whether it was in between the tackles or bouncing it outside, Baylor looked effective with the ball in his hands. Given that the Beavers already boast Jefferson, and Artavis Pierce, the “third” RB spot is up for grabs between Baylor, Calvin Tyler Jr., Taron Madison, and Michael Alfieri.
- There isn’t too much of an update on the quarterback battle between Luton and Gebbia as they’ve both settled into their respective rhythms. Luton has been consistently the first quarterback, while Gebbia has been the second, but it’s still way too early in spring to put much stock in the QB rotation.
- I will say this however… In more ways than one, Luton is seizing this moment. Whether it’s sharing a laugh with the media, coaching his teammates on the field, throwing the ball confidently and accurately, or showcasing improved footwork and skills, it’s apparent that Luton is wanting to make the most of his senior season. When Luton met with the media post-practice, he added that he’s added good weight and lost bad weight in the past several months and feels as good as he’s ever had.
- For what it's worth, I think it’s a matter of time before Gebbia closes the gap. Luton is a little more advanced in terms of experience and familiarity with the playbook as opposed to Gebbia and I wouldn’t doubt that by the time August comes around, they’ll be neck and neck. But for now, Luton is taking his sixth and final season in stride and making the most of it on the field.
On the offensive side of the ball, here’s what the first-teamers looked like as the OSU offense is beginning to round out its tiers of rotations…
QB: Jake Luton
RB: Artavis Pierce
WR: Isaiah Hodgins
WR: Champ Flemings
WR: Trevon Bradford
TE: Teagan Quitoriano
LT: Blake Brandel
LG: Gus Lavaka
C: Nous Keobounnam
RG: Clay Cordasco
RT: Brandon Kipper
Injuries
Offense: Calvin Tyler Jr. (Limited); Brock Wellsfry (Limited); Tyjon Lindsey (Limited); Noah Togiai (Limited)
Defense: The defensive-unit was on the far Prothro Practice field for most of the day, so we weren’t able to see who was limited or out on the defensive side.
https://oregonstate.rivals.com/news/watch-jonathan-smith-talks-spring-ball-day-5
Day 5 Practice Nuggets
By Brenden Slaughter
- Day 5 brought the first outside practice of the season as the Beavers took full advantage of the sunny skies by having it’s entire two-plus hour session outside. While the environment wasn’t quite as intense as it had been when it was inside, it was a nice change of pace for the Beavers to get outside and have more space to conduct drills. Whether it was designed special team work, returning punts from a jug-machine, or having position groups spread across the two fields, the Beavers made the most of the beautiful day and the added space it brought with it. By Brenden Slaughter
- The biggest and most unfortunate news of the day came about midway through practice as cornerback Jaydon Grant was injured attempting to break up a pass play during 11-on-11 work.
- Quarterback Jake Luton was looking for a receiver in the corner of the endzone and Grant came across the endzone at full-speed looking to break up the pass. While knocking the pass away, Grant’s forward momentum led him into the fence surrounding the practice fields. Grant was on his back the sideline for about 30 minutes before a paramedic crew came and put him on a gurney before taking him to the ambulance.
- From what I was able to tell, Grant was able to move his arms and legs while being attended to by the OSU trainers and medical staff. Jonathan Smith, Tim Tibesar, and Blue Adams were all by Grant’s side for a period of time.
- Smith offered his brief thoughts on Grant’s injury… “We’re taking every precaution. I don’t have exact details, but we’re taking all the precautions.”
-After Grant’s injury, the air and intensity was sucked out of Oregon State’s practice as it seemed like there was less zip. During post-practice media availability, Luton noted that as a whole, the Beavers didn’t come out with the top-line energy needed today. That’s not to say that practice was going through the motions by any stretch, but it seemed a little less intense with the Beavs stepping outside today.
- Isaiah Dunn continues to impress headed into his junior season… The 6-foot, 183 pounder has struggled with injuries during his first two seasons, but appears to be playing the best football of his career as he showcased very physical and stifling one-on-one defense with receivers like Isaiah Hodgins and Trevon Bradford.
- Backup defensive lineman and Springfield, Ore. native Cody Anderson had himself a solid practice today, highlighted by an impressive stint in 11-on-11 work. Anderson made several really nice negative plays from his line spot, including a big hit on Jermar Jefferson that knocked him backwards and allowed Anderson to wrestle him to the ground in the backfield. It says a lot about the improvements made by the Beaver defense made in the past few months that a backup lineman is able to get the better of Jefferson… hopefully it’s a sign of things to come on defense.
- Here’s what the first team defense looked like…
DT: Elu Aydon
DE: Isaac Hodgins
OLB: Andrzej Hughes-Murray
ILB: Shemar Smith
ILB: Isaiah Tufaga
OLB: Matthew Tago
CB: Isaiah Dunn
CB: Jeffrey Manning Jr.
S: Jalen Moore
S: Omar Hicks-Onu
CB: Kaleb Hayes
- With the Beavers mostly focusing on individual, position group specific drills for the first half of practice and moving most of the 11-on-11 work to the opposite field out of view to media because of the Grant injury, there wasn’t a lot of team work to be able to draw from.
- BJ Baylor stood out to me offensively today as he was able to rip off a couple nice runs with the second unit (led by Gebbia). Whether it was in between the tackles or bouncing it outside, Baylor looked effective with the ball in his hands. Given that the Beavers already boast Jefferson, and Artavis Pierce, the “third” RB spot is up for grabs between Baylor, Calvin Tyler Jr., Taron Madison, and Michael Alfieri.
- There isn’t too much of an update on the quarterback battle between Luton and Gebbia as they’ve both settled into their respective rhythms. Luton has been consistently the first quarterback, while Gebbia has been the second, but it’s still way too early in spring to put much stock in the QB rotation.
- I will say this however… In more ways than one, Luton is seizing this moment. Whether it’s sharing a laugh with the media, coaching his teammates on the field, throwing the ball confidently and accurately, or showcasing improved footwork and skills, it’s apparent that Luton is wanting to make the most of his senior season. When Luton met with the media post-practice, he added that he’s added good weight and lost bad weight in the past several months and feels as good as he’s ever had.
- For what it's worth, I think it’s a matter of time before Gebbia closes the gap. Luton is a little more advanced in terms of experience and familiarity with the playbook as opposed to Gebbia and I wouldn’t doubt that by the time August comes around, they’ll be neck and neck. But for now, Luton is taking his sixth and final season in stride and making the most of it on the field.
On the offensive side of the ball, here’s what the first-teamers looked like as the OSU offense is beginning to round out its tiers of rotations…
QB: Jake Luton
RB: Artavis Pierce
WR: Isaiah Hodgins
WR: Champ Flemings
WR: Trevon Bradford
TE: Teagan Quitoriano
LT: Blake Brandel
LG: Gus Lavaka
C: Nous Keobounnam
RG: Clay Cordasco
RT: Brandon Kipper
Injuries
Offense: Calvin Tyler Jr. (Limited); Brock Wellsfry (Limited); Tyjon Lindsey (Limited); Noah Togiai (Limited)
Defense: The defensive-unit was on the far Prothro Practice field for most of the day, so we weren’t able to see who was limited or out on the defensive side.
Last edited:
