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Offensive Coordinator Names

301

I’m sure we’re all hearing the same names here.

Kevin McGiven (Utah State), Dave Baldwin (Colo State), and Doug Meacham (TCU).

Meacham is probably a long shot. He has spent most of his playing and coaching career in the Big 12. Baldwin has a poor record as a head coach, but he did well as OC with Andersen at Utah State and also did well at CSU. McGiven has only two years experience, but seems like an up and coming OC. Here is some good footage of him. My money would be on Baldwin. Or maybe Andersen goes in a completely new direction. Though like Riley, his MO has been to work with guys he knows and trusts.

301 COMMENTS

  1. The newest scout article mentions Andersen is going to leave the defense 100% to Sitake and Andersen will only be involved in special teams and a little on the offensive side. Also said he woild likely announce our OC by Saturday this week, so the next 24 hours should answer all of our questions.

    • Luckily they happen to be some of the best coaches in the nation. If Riley were hiring great coaches who he happened to know that would be a much different story and sentiment.

      • How long of a honeymoon period do they get? Will Anderson make a change when things aren’t working out? Banker(before spread offenses) had some great defenses.

        • Can’t say I’m unconcerned… Though Sitake is probably looking to become HC somewhere before too long, so I don’t think that one will end up being an issue.

        • Honeymoon is probably 2 years. Next year everyone will give them a pass, though I personally think GA can work some magic with this roster. It’s not bare, and he talks like a guy who knows exactly how to use what he has to the max. Under Riley I saw 3 wins next year. Under GA I think 6 or even 7 is possible.

          • Riley left after a 5-6 season in 1998. Erickson went 7-5 in 1999. So thats where the post-Riley bar sits imo. I could see 9-4 counting the bowl win next year.

          • Need to change this blog’s title to PollyannaBeavs.com. Can’t be critical of any coach now. The blind optimism is rampant. Is this the new pure orange?

          • I can’t speak for angry, but I don’t see how you’re not allowed to be critical of the new coaches. That view is just unpopular right now.

          • I’m holding off on any criticism until I actually see them in action and have some point of reference within the P-12. Most head coaches don’t make random hires to their staffs, it’s just not the way it’s done. There are usually common threads and connections. I was actually kind of impressed that GA “passed” on Arvada because he might not have the experience against fast paced offenses that Andersen was looking for.

          • Bill, we had all been fired up that last years team couldve been a lot better if not for the muck ups of biley and co. It’s easy for us to be excited that the new staff will finally use the teams talents towards optimization. But keep up your condisending view point. And if you can back that up will examples like we had done with Biley, then you would be really adding something to the conversation. For now the positives are winning the day

          • It’s difficult to be critical of a guy who hasn’t coached 1 game at OSU. If I have any criticism of GA it’s that I feel he might bail after a few good years, especially if Utah job opens up, and don’t trust entirely what he’s saying.

            The point isn’t to be critical for the sake of it.

            Riley was the main problem. He’s gone. We have a better coach. You can criticize that yourself in your comments, but I’m not going to unless GA fails. Right now the media deserves criticism. The marketing department deserves criticism. GA doesn’t. I did point out here likes hiring Utah guys, but it’s hard to be critical of even that since they’re all considered top coaches in the country. If he were hiring guys he knew and they were all terrible that’s another story.

          • With Riley I saw 4 +/- 1, but if my life depended on it I figured wins against Weber, San Jose St, and Colorado (at home). With disciplined play and renewed enthusiasm under Andersen I see those three and “raise” to six, with the other three coming out of this set: Michigan, Stanford, WSU, Cal, UW

    • Not even.

      Why would you even pretend that? There is a good old boys thing going on. But Riley was inbred… and he didn’t hire unless someone was already pregnant.

  2. I think Baldwin would be pretty good. These are his offenses the past 4 seasons. You can see they’ve been highly ranked and pretty varied. Other than the first year at CSU, he’s had years where they dominated with the run, dominated with the pass, and been able to dominate with a balanced attack as well.
    CSU 2014: 10th ranked offense total yards. 33rd in PPG. 5th in passing yards. 59th in rushing yards.
    CSU 2013: 13th ranked offense total yards. 23rd in PPG. 21st in passing yards. 21st in rushing yards.
    CSU 2012: 106th ranked offense total yards. 102nd in PPG. 94th in passing yards. 102nd in rushing yards.
    USU 2011: 20th ranked offense total yards. 23rd in PPG. 94th in passing yards. 6th in rushing yards.
    Utah State has been 23rd, 37th, 47th in total offense since Baldwin left. I don’t know if McGiven is really that attractive of a candidate since he has little OC experience and hasn’t been stellar.

    I think he has shown that he can be successful with a lot of different styles of offense. I could see that being an attractive quality for an OC to have on team that’s going to need to be adaptable until the coaches can get their recruits.

  3. A poster on BeaverBlitz named “teamviper” has been posting fairly angry sounding messages lately. No one knows who he is, but I do. It’s a relative of Luke Hollingsworth. The guy is bordering on being a forum troll.

  4. Good footage of a Gary Andersen/Dave Baldwin coached Utah State team almost pulling off the upset of Auburn the year after they beat the Ducks in the BCS.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIb_O4cDEXI

    Personally I like what I see here, good mix of spread option, old school route running, running in up the gut, and play action. Oh yeah, and that Chuckie Keeton was a stud true freshman….

    Go Beavs!

    • Also several years ago. Riley seemed pretty good through 2009 then it became clear later he peaked back then. Baldwin isn’t bad but his age does concern me. He is several years older than Andersen. Having watched McGiven and Wells led offenses at USU in about 5 games this year I know that in general I liked the offense and its overall style. It definitely utilzes a dual threat QB. Baldwin slings it more and I don’t see his QBs utilizing running opportunities as much. In general I just would like to go younger than a guy in his mid to upper 50s now and only getting older. McGiven will be able to do just as much IMO, probably recruit better, and be a better image for the program by year two, if not already, and then moving forward. What he did with 4th abd 5th string QBs who both could run for 50 yard gains in one half of a bowl game was impressive. Marcus McMaryion or Davey Jones under him will be able to use their legs more and those type of skills used at opportune times will help win many hotly contested Pac-12 games.

      • Point taken, but if you watch the video you will see that USU put up 221 yards passing and 227 yards on the ground in the Auburn game. I know it’s only one game but I think it shows Baldwin’s versatility as an OC and Andersen’s commitment to a balanced attack.

        When was the last time you saw OSU run a trick play? Love the fact that CSU (with Baldwin as interim HC and OC) began their bowl game with a 40 yard trick play to score a TD. Agreed that the play calling was pass heavy in the Las Vegas Bowl but CSU was down most of the game. Wells would be great, McGiven would be good, but I still think Baldwin is a solid hire, especially based on what Andersen has set repeatedly about wanting a QB that can and will run. Keep in mind that even though OCs call the play it’s the head coach that says yes or no.

        • The point is that he does prefer balance. He gets his guys to compete and think that they can beat anyone. After the Auburn loss, they were mad at themselves because they thought that they were the better team. He will not permit anyone to have the “poor little Corvallis” attitude.

          • This always a good point. And I am more than happy that we have changed the narrative… with a little help from Bobby D… and Ed Ray… and some donors/boosters… after long last.

            I will have a harder time beating on Pollyannas who think they “believe” in something good or great. Hell, I’ll have a hard time not being one myself if the monumental shift in our AD and fanbase sticks. If OSU athletics was put on a political spectrum, it would be seen as moving from the whacky right to just left of center… in a matter of a couple weeks.

            I don’t know about you all. But that announcement that everyone seems to forget about (except for Andersen apparently) where Ed Ray got up there and told me to go fuck myself… that little talk got me fired up.

            Find that talk in the past from anyone associated with OSU sports. Tell me I should have been excited before now. We’ve been living as zombies, and we didn’t even know it… all of us… divided and conquered.

          • Jack, I think what you’re trying to say is many of us on this site now have hope and a positive outlook for the future. That doesn’t make us Pollyannas who will cover for this staff if they do fail. It just makes us realists. Can’t criticize a guy for the sake of it. That’s more like whining and looking for problems then legit criticism. And what is there to complain about right now? Nothing. That’s a good problem to have. As these seasons heat up later next year there will be more things to nitpick. Right now the big problems I see are with the local media and the marketing department, who are both still selling OSU short and doing more harm than good.

            It’s actually pretty awesome to have a united fanbase. A lot of energy was spent on my part trying to convince those people how/why they were wrong about Riley and the narrative that nobody better would come to OSU. Now we are all on the same page. It’s a blank slate and we can now get on the same page and see what happens. If things start to suck we’ll be all over it, but we’re not going to force a narrative that we’re upset just because the site is called AB.

          • Wait… you’re gonna get uptight about Bill being a discordant poster?

            I do not understand this train of thought. I welcome his view whether or not I agree with it. And if I agrre or disagree I will say so.

            There’s not much more to say about it.

        • I don’t even know what “Baldwin” means anymore.

          I do know it doesn’t mean a hairless victory. Other than that… I just don’t have a clue.

  5. I haven’t seen a QB at OSU run for more than 25 yards since Alexander. If McGiven is OC it will happen this year with McMaryion and a few times next year and after that with Davey Moore. Different styles with McGiven and Baldwin but too much passing is the fallacy of thinking you are accomplishing something on incompletions that were close. I got Beau Baldwin just a tiny smidge ahead of McGiven but I doubt he is the hire. I think he would do a good job at OC and would transition fine. Then McGiven who is practically my top choice because he is a more likely hire. Baldwin isn’t bad but he has a head coaching record that is like Riley’s over the last 5 years or even a tad below.

    The NFL analysts were talking on Christmas and all agreed if you want to win the Super Bowl you have to play defense and run the ball. In USU’s current system you are rarely sure what is coming next. Part of that us what allows those occassional QB runs to hit big. The QB is the creator in this system and more of a slinger in Baldwin’s. If you think Sonny Dykes football is the bees knees you will like Baldwin. Recruiting is also a major consideration and being younger often helps with today’s recruits. McGiven is a very good recruiter. Having talented black athletes that can slot into your 4th and 5th string QB spots because you have even better talent above that speaks to being able to sell his vision and these athletes wanting to play a true dual threat style. Getting more talented athletes and depth of position on campus is a nice luxury and can be critical in the Pac-12.

    • Baldwin was OC of USU when they were 6th in rushing and 94th in passing. Baldwin works with what he’s got. I don’t think saying he’s an air raid guy is even close to true. McGiven has two mediocre years as USU OC. USU fans aren’t even happy with him…

      I think the Matt Wells love affair has spilled over to McGiven…

  6. We get it even though they showed u stats that show Baldwin’s offense varys year to year and isn’t necessarily pass heavy u want mcgiven. Even though his offense has never been anymore effective than Baldwin’s. A running qb is great but the reason mcgiven had success with 4th string qbs running is because of the huge difference in speed among lower conference players. Quit beating the horse to death.

    • Each guy has their strengths but I am trying to look at the next 5 years. Ludwig has gotten worse press here than he deserves. I am fine with his style. He is in the Wisconsin record books for productive offenses. I think it is awesome Melvin Gordon ran for 422 yards in a game. I think Davy Moore will be a big part of OSU in 2016-2018. So just trying to weigh all considerations and best system to utilize fast dual threat QBs which will be a pleasure to have and see do their thing at Oregon State.

        • That’s a topic i’ve wondered about with respect to Mariota. How has he had such minor problems with injuries?
          No question, he is a rare athelete but is there more to his story? Seems to me there has to be more to it than the skill (and some illegality) of the blocking of the OL and RB’s.

        • Perhaps but it would ne nice having a stockpile of these athletes. Some years the #1 may make it through the season and in others he will undoubtedly miss games and the backups will need to be ready. But starting each year off with talent that can reinforce eachother and the defense in practices is a real benefit. Most of them will be available to practice in both spring and fall camps and throughout the majority of the season. That should aid Sitake in prepping for Arizona, UW, UCLA, ASU and Oregon. The competition should also raise the quality of play.

  7. Does anyone else check in here and think “Damn. OSU has a competent, bright, aggressive, coach. He will shape the team’s identity. We’re going to see real strategy with thoughtful approaches to conference foes and maximizing OSU’s competitive advantages. Offensive plays will not be so predictable. We’ll see improved defense. We’ll see talent developed and maximized; Justin Strong or Ryan Nall anyone?”

    I don’t know enough about the OC candidates to recommend one over another; yet I trust Andersen’s judgement. This will not be an underwhelming Riley-esque hire; it will be somebody Andersen “knows,” but not someone he is picking “because they’re a friend.” Whoever he chooses, I expect Andersen will find an effective way to integrate, inform, and compliment their approach into his vision for the team.

    Sometimes I am still struck by the strangeness of it all.

  8. Its important that the OC can play to the QBs strengths and protect him. Not to take anything away from mariotta but that offense makes him look good. He never had to make very many hard throws. Generally his guys were wide open and protection was good. On the other hand mobile QBs not handled and coached the right way can rely too much on athleticism and turnover the ball or run instead of staying in the pocket when it’s appropriate

    • Mariota is one of the best college football players of all time. However, the NFL will be another beast. His receivers won’t be THAT open and he will need to make those precision throws. I think Mariota takes a little while longer to get accustomed to NFL style than someone like Mannion who comes from that type of system.

      • I don’t know about Mariota being one of the best ever. He’s really really good at who he is now and here. But have we seen anything special from him? Andrew Luck was a much better college football player than he is… MUCH BETTER. Jameis in all his splendor or otherwise has been better. He is better than Manziel. I don’t know how anyone thought his poor man’s version of Tarkenton was worth a Heisman.

        • I’ve followed Marcus since HS. His best receiver has a father who is a friend, and I watched the kid play. I even posted his play here. He was pretty much the Mike Hass of Hawai’i.

          Marcus can drop it in the bucket… and he can run. But someone took the bucket away from him in the last year. His HS tape was nothing but Joe Montana bucket shots. Now he hits easy-peasy crap shots.

          That’s all you need to know about him.

  9. Does anyone think GA is hiring someone from any of the bowl games going on today? Pretty random he said he wanted to wait till today… Maybe someone from USC/ASU?

    • I’m sure I’m reading too much into it. But would be interesting to see him come with someone other than the expected McGiven, D.Baldwin, B.Baldwin, etc.

  10. I’m pretty amibivalent about the next OC. As long as they don’t pass 55 times a game, don’t punt from the opponents 34 yard line on 4th and 1 and have some type of hurry up offense when the game dictates it…..I’m good. Oh, and as a bonus…any help they can give GA with time out usage would be nice.

    • Really?

      He’s got a resume worth looking at. But it does not match what Andersen says would be a “home run” hire. Still… interesting.

  11. Just spitballing here, but what would you all think of Dave Schramm, current OC for Fresno St? In the interview I linked above, Andersen mentioned wanting the “get the old band back together, and I will continue to do that” and that was in conjunction to he and Wittingham talking over the phone about taking Sitake from Utah. Sounds like he and Wittingham dont have bad blood. Anyway, Schramm was OC for Utah when Andersen was there, so those guys know each other. Also, OC at Oregon State is a nice career move up from OC at Fresno st. Hewas recently up for the Art Bryles award for best assistant coach. He’s also set several offrnsive records at Fresno St. Just seems like the pieces all fit, except I dont know how he is with mobile qb’s in his system.

  12. I think that Ludwig was the OC when Andersen was DC at Utah. Schramm took over as OC in 2009, but Andersen was at Utah State by then. Schramm as the RB coach at Utah when Andersen was the DC.

  13. Looking forward to seeing the completed staff. The obvious candidates seem almost too obvious. I’d be good with any of those coaches that have mentioned. They’ve all run a spread at some point, and had good numbers while doing it.

    I started looking up info on Brian Johnson the other night. Played QB at Utah when Andersen was DC, coached at Utah for 4 years and was hired by Mullen at Mississippi State this year. Only 27 or 28, but rising fast through the ranks.

    • He did mention, in the interview I linked on xmas eve, that he believes in having an offensive staff that is youthful and was really hoping that he could put a staff together that could fit that description as well as be cutting edge. Also mentioned wanting to keep opposing defenses off balance with unusual formations from time to time as well as having a team that is quick to put formations together on the field. Really sounds like he has a clear image of what he wants. He also said ue wouldnt call his offesnse so much a “spread” as he would a “wide open offense”

      So Johnson fits the youthful part for sure, as well as having a prior working relationship.

  14. As crazy as it’s been so far I wouldn’t be totally surprised if we hear that Whittingham is out and is being replaced by Kalani Sitake who is taking some of the new OSU staff with him.

    That would mean that Sitake would be willing to work for Hill and I don’t believe that will happen.

    GA said something to the effect that he might be making an announcement today so here’s hoping there’s been no slip up (like the nightmare I’ve mentioned above).

    • If Sitake goes back to Utah… then Whit can take his place… you know… so that Oregon can help Utah with their unemployment numbers.

      We really can’t help them with their being stupid. But we can help with… ooh! Something slightly interesting appeared before me and made me forget about Utah.

      Can I stop talking about Utah and/or Nebraska now? I get bored thinking about the possibility of creating a post for either location. Although, the Wasatch would be beautiful if not for the peeps.

      • Yes. I really mean this. I thought I was a jerk and a bigot because I lived in SLC, and everyone there was a jerk and a bigot to me and my family. But I went to a birthday party for a “friend” of my child, and her parents could only talk about the locations of fellow cultists within the neighborhood.

        Never mind that none of them respected her daughter enough to show up to her party… like we did. In fact, we were the only non-family party-goers. Didn’t see that one coming.

        I’m more anti-cult than my wife is since I was actually raised in the Catholic cult… and all the Dominei bullshit… fuck it… I was an altar boy, and it burns me that I was never probed. I must be ugly.

        Anyway, I did not need to say one word to my wife about these peeps. There was never a discussion, and we haven’t seen those jerks since that day.

      • Has he actually signed? Someone posted something a week or two back saying that the actual signing of contracts sometimes takes a couple of weeks after the announcement.

    • So Sitake and company leave Utah for OSU because they were disrepected by the AD, and they come to OSU where GA was given permission to throw some money at them. Why would GA want to go back to Utah where the purse strings are tight? Also, the buyout for GA would make it pretty much impossible for Utah at this point

  15. @BruceFeldmanCFB
    Hearing situation between Whittingham & #Utah AD is awful. Staffers wouldn’t be surprised if KW gets forced out & are hoping prez steps in.

  16. My criticism really wasn’t at GA. I don’t have any real issues with any of his hires. But I do have an issue with the quick acceptance of each hire. They aren’t being looked at as closely as previous hires. Why not be skeptical? Giving these guys a good hard look would save some grief down the road. The issues that led to a lot of Riley’s criticism were because of how loyal he was to his coaches. It could lead to the same problems down the road. Guys at Utah are leaving because the AD said the assistant coaches contracts could only be one year except for coordinators who get 2 years. Kerry Eggers reported that doing away with multiyear contracts for assistants was something that BDC wanted to insitute with Riley. So now BDC is for multiyear contracts for assistants?

    BTW – Sitake’s defense this year was ranked 63rd in the nation. The year before, 60th. He’s a good coach but not great.

    • Again, who are/were your candidates? What are your alternatives? Riley didn’t make that many previous hires and there were a ton of comments about Perry and Garrett when those hires happened. Banker has been with Riley for eons.

      I will give you one thing I’m a little skeptical about….on paper GA looks like a job hopper…he’ll need to prove otherwise to me. I wouldn’t call that a pollyanna viewpoint.

    • Your criticisms aren’t unwarranted. They’re fine from what I see. But they are vastly different from the culture of duh we have had to deal with for more than a decade.

      So I’m with you about the wait and see. I was that way for the Garrett hire… even though I probably should not have been. I was hesitant on the Perry hire because of recruiting… and I was correct about that… and nepotism was a factor in his job.

      So… I’m willing to go with you here. I’m not negative. I just want my new coach to prove something more than words.

      But you gotta admit… his hires are a lot better than Riley ever would have done… even if they are old boy network stuff. If Riley would have made the same hires, we would probably be talking about him on these forums with the same glowing optimism.

      Alas… goofy boy hires his cronies and that’s that.

    • My first impression of Andersen is he wouldn’t stiff OSU and make a move like that. Not that kind of guy.

      However…. He is in Utah for his Xmas vacation.

      Wonder if the Utah boosters will demand that Hill be fired and if that happens hopefully OSU won’t be blindsided with the loss of some of their coaching staff.

      My wife tells me I worry too much. I think she’s right.

  17. I caught a glimpse of Riley at the SC/Husker game…..nicely layered in the press box for that artic weather San Diego is famous for. NU seems pass happy in the first half, Riley has already gotten to them!

  18. So the contract hasnt been signed yet, and the buyout to Wisconsin hasnt been paid either? This could get really ugly for OSU if the voice that told GA to go to OSU decides it was wrong.

    People are speculating whittingham to byu and bronco to osu. Just twitter twatter right now though. Someone from the OSU or GA camp needs to squash this BS fast

      • I call duh.

        That… and the ilove guy is just a fart. Come up with something half-intelligent dude. You’re on a Beaver site, and your handle is “ilovepussy”. For all we know, you’re a Nebraska fan. But I’m pretty sure they’ve heard of beaver there too.

        By the way, Thank you Nebraska, and thank you Shawn Eichorst. And I really think I need to extend a thank you to Bo Pelini for being one of the biggest dicks out there. Thank you Bo Pelini.

  19. And where the heck are people getting that the contract hasn’t been signed yet? Random people on Twitter?

    Don’t believe everything you read on the internet, kids.

  20. Wonder if the Utah job is causing drama with GA’s potential OC hire…

    Wittingham leaves Utah, Matt Wells gets the Utah job, causing Utah State to consider guys like Baldwin and McGiven as their HC, meaning that they’re dragging their feet giving GA an answer for his open OC position.

    Plausible?

  21. And besides, even if Andersen wants the Utah job, I doubt he’s willing to work under an AD that has publicly clashed with one of his best friends.

    I know the Beavers have been down for a while, but of all the conspiracy theories out there, this is the most ludicrous of them all.

  22. Hill (Utah AD) is pretty hardcore when he wants something done. During Ron McBride’s last season (2002) the Utes only scheduled 11 games for some reason. Weber St. offered to play the Utes with an open date at the end of the season so they could get some money and Utah could get to 6-6 and be bowl eligible, McBride was campaigning for this to happen quickly, but HIll shut him down and said no and then fired him at the end of the season with a 5-6 record.

    I’m not sure GA wants to work with Chris HIll again.

    • Yeah.

      It doesn’t make too much sense that GA would come to OSU largely because of the money and longer term deals we promised to put up for assistants and then go to Utah since the whole cause of their issues is not paying assistants or giving them long term deals.

  23. SALT LAKE CITY — Despite mounting speculation that a departure may be forthcoming, a source close to the University of Utah athletics department said there’s no validity to reports that head football coach Kyle Whittingham is being forced out of his position.

    The source also said that a Friday morning meeting between Whittingham and Utah Athletic Director Chris Hill was “standard operating procedure” — a discussion between the two that takes place at the end of each season — and not a response to the recent departures of three assistant football coaches.

    http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865618 560/Source-Kyle-Whittingham-not-being-forc ed-out-as-Utes-football-coach.html

  24. Got a chance to check out Eubanks at the LSI. He had a pretty good ball game, although I wish his teammates had gotten him the ball more because he had a couple lob opportunities they missed. They just ran out of time against Jesuit. He’s raw offensively but his motor is crazy high, the 9 rebounds didn’t do him justice, and he missed a couple layups inexplicably. Had a nice dunk in the 3rd quarter. Also talked to the younger Tinkle for a bit too, good kid. We’re getting a couple good ones in my opinion.

    • In fact, this would be the coup of the century. Andersen is good enough to steal Sitake AND Whit from Utah?

      That’s the stuff of legends.

      Just think about this for a second. Ute fans thought we were a downgrade or at best a lateral move for Sitake. I never thought for a second that was true. But they thought so. That is typical of Utah in general… with their pretend ocean and all (yeah… I went there). But it seems all is not right in the world of Utah… redundancy aside. Not only are they talking about ridding themselves of Whit. They are also imagining a world where Mendenhall gets canned so Whit can stay in that lousy place.

      WTF man?

      • Imagine that. Whit gets canned, we hire him as OC and Utah is paying the bill through 2016. If his ego would allw him to take a role tyat’s lesser than HC, this could actally happen. Then Erickson could come in as RB coach. That’s just too much coaching accumen for one locker room though. Who would be the alpha?

  25. Nick Saban out in Bama. Kiffin takes over. Kevin Sumlin is out at A & M. We hire Saban for D and Sumlin for O. Everyone would be surprised as we go undefeated for the rest of time.

    • I like it. Draws more attention to Michigan, of which the Beavs benefit. Both teams will be “coached up” (hate that phrase) beyond their current play.

      Will be interesting viewing from my perspective.

  26. I’ve been interested in the dynamics of Utah Utes football on occassion as I followed them closely for about 14 years. Now that Beav and Ute “blood” is becoming mixed I do want to know more about what is going on up on The Hill, but I seriously doubt any of what happens at Utah directly impacts OSU football going forward.

    Kevin Graham was a buffoon on Salt Lake sports radio, so I wouldn’t put too much creedence in his tweets from Boston now. I’m thinking full speed ahead from the Gary Andersen era (at least for the next two years until he finds his next job!). Gary Andersen, the “Larry Brown” of college football? Let’s hope not.

        • I caught some of it on the SEC Network, those announcers were so “SEC homer” I felt like I was watching a promo video for the league. Not tolerable.

          I’d like to see the Lady Beavs get them at home in the future or on a neutral court (tourney this year?).

          • Callan on the radio felt some fouls were unfair, Rueck said the game was called “tight” as opposed to when Vols played Stanford. 28 fouls on Beavs vs 14 for Vols. Angry thought game was well officiated.
            How ’bout that crowd, over 11K!

            Rueck said Vols are most athletic Beavs will face this year.
            IMHO, Rueck will see that this experience pays off in the long run.

          • I kept changing channels because the announcers were so annoying, but the fouls called on OSU the last 5 minutes or so seemed pretty obvious and fairly easy calls. Hamblin’s 5th was not a good screen on her part and right out on top, so the ref could see it.

          • He also apologized for the Vol fans and the way they treated our team. I didn’t see or hear any of this during the game. There was a weird moment when Weisner fouled out, but I didn’t pay much attention.

          • The announcers were homers, but I didn’t think the refs were bad at all. Did you? Beavs were outclassed athletically and that resulted in a lot of fouls, which is pretty common when one team has better athletes than the other. Hamlin missing a lot of easy shots was the difference, imo. Beavs lack of depth came into play, too. Can’t blame the refs for every loss, and I didn’t see any major missed calls that lost them the game. TN is much better than NC. I don’t like being into WBB, btw. I’ll stop following now until the tourny lol

          • No, the refs were fine. The Vols were also getting into the passing lanes very easily from what I saw, even contesting wing passes. They looked like the better team today, but I would give the Beavs a shot against them if the travel and home court were reversed.

          • I agree with all that. Hamlin just had a terrible game today. Missed like 6 easy layups. Then played tentative due to foul trouble. They played a decent game all around and sometimes things just happen. Beavs can play better, and on those days I think they could beat TN. I didn’t realize there were 2 or 3 players on the TN roster from Oregon. Bummer Rueck couldn’t get them.

          • They looked fine to me for the most part. I would chalk it up to the refs siding with the more aggressive team. We didn’t really look slower or less athletic. We looked like we were playing a cross-country 10am game.

            It was outside shooting in the second half that killed us. I don’t think we made a single trey.

  27. So how long do we have to wait for an OC announcement? Maybe GA was planning on going McGiven and now McG wants to let Utah dust settle for a few more days? I think Whitt will be back at Utah. They had a solid 9 win season and appear to be on track besides their AD being the opposite of BDC and too conservative with contract lengths whereas BDC had serious issues with too much length in the past. Any other coach at Utah would be riskier and probably win less than Whitt. Hill should be signing him to a 1-2 year extension if anything since Whitt is only signed thru 2016. Me thinks Whitt is just playing hardball to make sure his coaches get reasonable enough deals moving forward to be in healthier situations with more trust. 2 big egos with Whitt and Hill.

    Oregon State’s current situation and management is going well. The Athletic Department is on a nice upswing here with Massari helping to make sure we are a modern player that will compete at a high level and making the proper investments for success.

    Really would like to hear our new OC tomorrow so all in Beaver Nation can get back to our regularly scheduled programming and back on the recruiting trail. Looking forward to signing Davy Moore and want to know who his OC will be.

  28. Finally Jim Wilson weighs in via twitter, “OSU FB New Year’s Resolution: Upbeat tempo, improved clock management, more sideline emotion, better perimeter defense, athleticism at QB”

    As said before, he is less constrained and more knowledgeable than Parker; always good to have his input.
    OS?……DS!!

      • Agreed. No doubt he could have been more vocal. However, he often called out time management and pace of play, was never shy about his frustration but didn’t take the next step.

        • Don’t know about tweets, but I recall several in-game criticisms of the play calling, pace, and use of time outs. As ukhunter said above, the criticism was evident in post game discussions as well.

          Unlike writers who aren’t actually paid by OSU, I think Wilson had some limits he had to stay within if he wanted to keep the gig. Parker wasn’t nearly as outspoken, seldom acknowledged the validity of Wilson’s remarks.

    • Cool, well it will be good to have that position solidified. Hope he clicks well with the new offensive staff he’ll be working with.

      • FWIW- I’m not too worried about Baldwin’s reputation of being in love with the bubble screen. Once he realizes that OSU’s WR’s can’t block for shit, I don’t think we’ll see the bubble too much. I’m expecting a ton of throws down the seams, zone run blocking, and TE’s running routes in space. TE routes of 5-yards with a LB draped over the back will be only seen under Riley’s Offensive Museum archives.

        The other thing I like about Baldwin is that he’s a strong NorCal recruiter.

          • Yes. His last two years, USU had the 23rd and 27th best scoring offenses in FBS. Colorado State was 22nd and 33rd in his 2 years there.

          • They’ve been using the hold technique ever since Kelly got to UO. It’s effective when it’s not called, which seems to be the majority of the time. I really don’t see how DB’s have such a hard time getting away from it. DB just needs to come down hard with fists on top of WR’s forearms… they’ll stop doing it after that. Some teams teach the WR’s that, some don’t. Riley probably didn’t because he wouldn’t see it as “fair and sporting.”

        • Or maybe they’ll be taught to block? They’re going to have to get better at downfield blocking…James Rodgers was pretty good at that.

          • Rodgers/Wheaton and Wheaton/Cooks made a habit of blocking for the other guy; their ethic or the way they were taught? If teaching it seems to have been lacking lately.

    • Good question. My thought is that at Wisconsin, a more pro-set style may have been desired by Andersen to placate Alavarez. I’d have to check, but I think it’s been a very long time since Baldwin hasn’t used a version of the spread. Baldwin’s offense’s use a majority of zone blocking, Wisconsin has always been a man blocking scheme. I’m not saying 100% of the time for either offense, just the majority of snaps.

    • Baldwin left for CSU the year before Andersen left.

      Most think he wanted to with with his best friend mcElwain at CSU.

      Could also be that Wisconsin wanted Ludwig for his experience in pro style offenses while Baldwin is a pure spread guy.

  29. Todd (Fraud) Graham to be named as the new head coach in waiting at Ohio State. Urban Meyer has health issues, again.

    Here’s the link:

  30. We shouldn’t have to overpay for Baldwin and hope we don’t. Unlike Sitake he wasn’t in high demand. Ideally I hope this deal isn’t for more than 3 years. Some say Sitake may have gotten a 6 year deal from OSU which is double what Utah offered. For Sitake that is tolerable. For Baldwin at this stage when enough other OCs would be doable, it would be almost as illogical as the Riley lifetime deal we just escaped. Baldwin’s deal should be more like 550-600K for 3 years max. If he does great we can always tack on a year but good to be able to pursue a hot name in 3 years if we so desire or if we want to adapt our offensive philosophy. Don’t overdo this one BDC and Massari. Keep it reasonable and this hire is fine.

  31. Kevin Graham
    ?@KevinGrahamWEEI
    Strength: Dave Baldwin has ability to adjust offenses to best adapt to personnel putting play makers in best positions to get ball

    Kevin Graham
    ?@KevinGrahamWEEI
    Weakness: Dave Baldwin’s playcalling at times can be erratic & calls way too many damn bubble screens (At least at Utah State!)

    Kevin Graham
    ?@KevinGrahamWEEI
    On recruiting front, Dave Baldwin is considered strong, well connected in the Northern California area. Region OSU’s Andersen feels crucial

  32. WSU has been without a DC for a month now. An indication that Leach doesn’t have a lot of “friends” (i.e. DC’s who’ve worked with him in the past and want to work with him again)?

    WSU still doesn’t have a DC, but it could be worse
    http://www.cougcenter.com/2014/12/26/7450333/wsu-defensive-coordinator-search-mike-leach

    “…Shortly after Mike Breske was fired as defensive coordinator on Nov. 30, athletic director Bill Moos said he expected a short and quick search for WSU’s new defensive coordinator. Now, nearly a month later, the search continues. Maybe the Cougars are still waiting on their guy to coach in a bowl game, or maybe they are having trouble filling the spot. Regardless, one thing is for sure; it could be worse….”

      • I think Andersen will mix it up more and not just mimic UO.

        I think emulating them too closely would just make it easier for others to prepare for OSU, including UO.

        Sounds like we can expect very diverse formations and some power running mixed in.

        Can’t wait to see what these guys do with Nall, Haskins having the potential to punish people, Woods efficiently sliding and evading as he’s shown he can do, then mixing in Brown’s speed.

        I trust they won’t find it so difficult to use a third back…

  33. I read somewhere recently that Chuckie Keeton isn’t even scheduled to graduate until December of NEXT YEAR, so the one and done stuff was more rumor. He will be the QB at Utah St. next year if he gets a medical hardship.

        • Ungerer would be absolutely bizarre. I always thought he was a pretty good coach, but that would just be strange.

          Thomas Brown would be great, get into recruiting Georgia a little bit and he can obviously point to coaching at least one great back, but I’m not sure how long Andersen and Brown’s relationship was?

          • I believe there relationship was one year. But Andersen hired him to Wisconsin, so there’s something he liked about him. I don’t think Brown has been in the biz that long and know that he never been “out west.” Supposed to be a great recruiter though, so maybe Chryst tries to hang onto Brown. Although Chryst at Pitt had a good RB coach in Jon Settle.

            Reason I have hope for Brown is the he was responsible for Georgia recruiting under Andersen, and in one of Andersen’s interviews I heard him say that Georgia was a state that he wanted to continue to recruit for OSU.

            Just for the record, I don’t think Ungerer is in the mix.

    • That is awesome if true. Great up and comer and likely future Oregon State OC who will get on the job training under Andersen in one of nation’s top 2 power conferences. We will also end up having a blend of McGiven and Baldwin offensive style to a certain extent which should be even better and pretty darn good. If I was Davy Moore I would love this combo. McGiven knows how to teach his QBs to be effective dual threats and Baldwin knows how to utilize the spread for production. With this news, today becomes another home run for Andersen which I wasn’t sure he could do but will with Baldwin AND McGiven.

  34. You guys will like this. My older brother, Mr Nebraska, is convinced that Riley has worked out a deal to have Scott Frost become the OC at Nebraska and mentor him for a few years before handing over the HC position. All this due to the delay in hiring because the coach is still coaching. Tried to tell him that he is just waiting for Danny L to get fired. As he was screaming at the TV as his Huskers got several dumb ass penalties against SC, I just said, “you better get used to those.”

  35. Coaches and recruiters to cover a broad and divers and productive geography it sounds like.

    Andersen putting a fantastic sounding staff together and other PAC teams have to be looking at these developments and anticipating a formidable OSU program that requires much more respect. The Pac just got tougher.

    OSU’s players have to be excited and motivated for a great off season.

    Nearly time for a new thread with a summary and assessment of this coaching staff? : )

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