295 COMMENTS

  5. It’s all coach speak. He wants everyone engaged in the process, and each candidate to feel that they have as good a shot as anyone else.

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  8. It’s fun to try and read between the lines and all, but it’s kind of ridiculous to try and get a sense of how the season will go when the media doesn’t even have access to practice except for the last 20 minutes. It’s hard to imagine you can get enough insight in such a small window to make any assumptions.

    I think it’s safe to say that Andersen is pushing them a lot harder than they have likely been pushed in the past. They’re probably performing okay, but I doubt Andersen would tell them that. Or maybe I am wrong and we should take his comments at face value, in which case this is going to be a very shitty season to be a beaver football fan.

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  9. I’m very satisfied with the closed practices and lack of info at this stage. The complete change, complete mystery, is one of our best assets going into the Michigan game and rest of season. Keep em guessing for as long as possible.

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    • It would be nice to at least get a progress update on. Maybe a couple takeaways from the previous closed practices, on the days that are open to the media and public?!

      Go Beavs!

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  10. The reality of this season:

    Realistically, I think we could end up anywhere from 4-8 wins. Obviously there are some unknowns with; injuries, our QB, the defense, how good legitimately are the other PAC 12 teams, etc. . Honestly, if things pretty much go our way for many of those unforeseen things, I think we should be 7-5 and bowling!

    Some predictions: (not to bold but none the less)
    -Unfortunately I think it might be possible that we see both Qbs for the first few games.
    -There will be some absolute disasters and heartbreaking games!
    -There will be some amazing games that we pull out!
    -With exception to Weber St., we will not beat anyone by more than 14 points.
    -I don’t think we’ll lose any games by more than 17 points.
    -We will upset someone this season!
    -Paul Lucas will be an All PAC 12 Frosh

    Other thoughts:
    I think, as usual, between the first and second week we will see a huge improvement! The good thing is that we’ll be playing Weber St and can make a few mistakes and still pull out the game. I’m expecting to have some confusion during the hurry up. I mean, this couldn’t be any more opposite than Riley’s offense! But…. I think guys will see that this staff will replace them in those cases of mental errors, etc. (unlike Riley and his staff). The accountability piece will be huge (I think that may be why the Saturday “scrimmage” involved so many back-ups). GA keeps talking about wanting to see how this team responds to adversity, and I think he means everyone! Plus, he wants guys to be ready to come in at anytime (that’s great). I think we are a lot like that Michigan team (they do have some more talent but…) because they have a new coaching staff, new QB, young talent, the only main difference in that game will be the that the pressure will be on them to win in front of 100K plus fans, not us! I could really see a few unexpected guys standing up and making plays! RB J Bailey, WR Drew Kell and maybe even a defender like J Moore or J Irvine?! I say P Lucas has a great game against Weber St. (as a returner and/or a WR). The biggest thing I think we’ll see in this team, that we haven’t seen with Riley team’s is that they’ll compete! They’ll be in every game until the end and as I said before, I think we’ll win a few and lose a few of those. But all you need to do is keep the game close and then it’s about stops and making plays. And one of the truly underrated pieces of this team is the experience! Sure, there aren’t a lot of returning starters but there are a lot of returning contributors from last season. And as for the PAC 12, half of the teams have a new starting QB. One of those is UCLA. We have UCLA at Reser this year! That could be an upset. Or UCLA could just be on par with us and it could be a good win! I also think Washington is very overrated and another possible victory that the “experts” aren’t seeing.

    Go Beavs!

    Reply

  11. Thanks, guys, for the opinions and insight. Like is said, the closed nature of most of practice makes that a bit raw, but still fun to read. I like that he is closing practices, as this is a new system, very different from what Riley did, and the more in the dark our conference foes are, the better. Riley could pull a new play or two out of that complex playbook, but otherwise they knew his system. The new system’s unknowns are a weapon that will soon fade away — use it as much as you can.

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    • “very different from what Riley did” – not sure if this follows particularly, but I listened to the Vernon
      Adams part of the Canzano/other guy podcast – Canzano thinks Adams’s late start is a big disadvantage – however, they then talked about EWU’s victory over OSU and Canzano opined that EWU and VA just kept doing the same thing, wasn’t that VA was that great,but the Beavs never adjusted. Other guy: “no different from the other OSU games the past 2 years.”

      One does wonder what the new staff has to say, behind closed doors, about previous performance.

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      • They would say that OSU is a team of firsts.

        … first D1 win for Sac State… first win over a Pac team for EWU… first conference win for Utah (where even the opposing coaches wondered out loud why we didn’t put another man in the box to stop the run)… first first first….

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          • Yeah… I left off Boise’s first Pac win. 20/20 hindsight says that doesn’t sting quite as much as it did at the time. The personnel they used during Petersen’s time there may be another issue in terms of how our own staff evaluated local talent. But they proved over a long period that they could play with anyone.

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      • The other thing people aren’t mentioning with the Vernon Adams situation is that he played one FBS team a year at EWU. No pressure on his team, and they beat us and played some others close…ok.

        Well if he’s deemed the starter for the Ducks, his schedule will flip. He will play 1 FCS team and at least 11 FBS teams. That’s gonna take it’s toll on anyone, let alone a guy doing it for the first time! The PAC 12 teams (even Colorado) are obviously a hell of a lot better than; Sac St, Cal Poly, N. Colorado, Montana St., etc.. And if he’s the starter, it will be a lot more pressure on him at Oregon! We’ll see.

        Go Beavs!

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        • He would also have better players on his team. The idea is that he is a PAC 12 calibar QB for the Duck’s system. It’s possible that he will have some struggles, but the guy was lights out against us. It seemed impossible how perfectly he was hitting his receivers in stride against us.

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          • I think that was the point being made in the podcast; with Riley & co. making adjustments, it wouldn’t have been so effortless. That is that and just looking to what football, autumn 2015 brings.

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          • Can’t argue that but if he plays much (which I’m sure he will) he will be running the show at QB. The speed and physicality of the game will be much better game in and game out. And the fact that he has one season to make the adjustment, I think he will struggle. He also (IMO) will not has as much success scrambling. Somebody had mentioned that the reason we lost to them, was that Banker never adjusted. I agree(this was the case with our D versus scrambling QBs). And then last season, they took Washington down to the wire but so did Hawaii (who may have been the worst team in the FBS) and Georgia St was very competitive for most of the game with Washington. There will be growing pains. Anyone who believes he’s gonna step in and take over where M Mariota left off, is absolutely delusional!

            Go Beavs!

            Reply

        • Yeah he is a classic tweener. He looked awful at D1 hoops, and he looked awful as a TE in the footage I saw. I can’t speak to his QB or WR ability since I didn’t see it, but I feel I saw enough of the others to make safe assumptions that I’m comfortable with. He should go to PSU where he can get playing time and be around other tweeners. That’s not a jab. It’s just reality

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          • I’ve been to all the open practices to the public (small sample size) and actually spent a good amount of time watching the backup tight ends on one of the days. He was beating everyone in 1-on-1 drills. Good route runner, good coordination and hands.

            This doesn’t mean that I think he was going to be a difference maker this year, but by his junior year once he gets comfortable with the position and fills out a little more I thought he could be pretty good if not really good tight end.

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          • When he was winning 1 on 1 drilled, who was he competing against? In the video footage I saw, he was competing with the 3s, and couldn’t beat that little LB David “Inspector Clouseau” Henry!

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          • It was when they were in split groups that he was going 1-on-1, so he was going against the players (mostly linebackers) with his age/experience, lot’s of redshirt freshman and he was beating them majority of the time. I remember thinking while watching that he could be good down the road, not this year.

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          • The thing that T Sanders (had) and B VanDerveen will have an uphill battle with, is the physicality of the position. When you are crashing into and trying to continuously pass or run block against; mostly, bigger, faster and stronger defenders (DE’s, OLBs), it’s going to take a toll. I liked Sanders and thought he could fit in somewhere but TE was a stretch to me. That sucks and I wish him well.

            Go Beavs!

            Reply

          • Idk if Sanders really wants to play the position. It would pigeon hole him because of the changes he would have to make to his body in order to handle the physicality you speak of. Riley brought him in with no hard promises. But he did get a brief look at QB before he was shuffled off to WR. I took his getting the same chance with GA as meaning he still wants to play QB. But he no longer had a position in the receiving group because the new system requires the ability to house it when he gets the ball in his hands. His skill set says he’s a possession type receiver, which works in the slot in Riley’s system. But that trait is a TE thing now. So now he’s that much further removed from what he (IMO) really wants to do.

            I don’t blame him for wanting to have fun, if not having it now is his reason for leaving. He deserves that chance and may find it on another level.

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    • So does this mean they add another 2015 guy? Or do they move a walkon to scholarship? Or does that scholarship go to the 2016 class, which was going to be pretty small this year? (i prefer this option)

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  18. At Crescent Valley HS in Corvallis, Tanner was a 3-sport star, with baseball being his best sport (Tanner was Oregon 5A player of the year in baseball as a senior).

    In college, Tanner has run into ‘tweener’ problems. For Pac-12 football, Tanner lacks high-end WR speed while being undersized for TE. For Pac-12 basketball, Tanner lacks the size to play forward, but also lacks the speed and ball-handling skills to play guard.

    I would not be surprised if Tanner next tries out for the OSU baseball team — and makes it. At CV, I saw Tanner hit a couple of home runs that traveled nearly 400 feet. He’s a lot stronger now than he was a couple of years ago. Pat Casey knows Tanner, and has invited him to try out for the team before. We’ll see what happens….

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    • Kevin Hampton ?@HamptonKevin 4m4 minutes ago
      Tanner Sanders just told Jesse Sowa that he plans to give baseball a shot at Oregon State #gtsports #gobeavs
      0 retweets 1 favorite

      Reply

    • To some extent, Tanner is the victim of his own choices.

      At Crescent Valley,Tanner played QB (along with WR and safety). His dream was to play QB for the Beavers (where his dad played linebacker, as well as baseball, many years ago). At 6’4″ and 205 lbs, Tanner had the size, and also the athleticism, to play QB for OSU. So Tanner pursued his dream, and Riley promised him an opportunity.

      But Tanner was always more of a dual-threat QB, rather than a pure pocket passer, and Riley’s staff pretty quickly decided that Tanner could help the team more at another position. So, Riley’s staff moved Tanner to WR (where Tanner had the potential to be a slightly bigger, faster version of Richard Mullaney). For what it is worth, I always thought this was the right place for Tanner in Riley’s system, and I think Tanner could have replicated or even exceeded what Mullaney did, if given the opportunity.

      Tanner accepted this change, and did well on the scout team last season as a WR. But with Riley’s departure, and GA’s new offense, there appeared to be less of a role for a possession WR such as Tanner (or Mullaney, for that matter….which is probably why Mullaney split for Alabama in the off-season). Meanwhile, Tanner also chose to play basketball for OSU last season, which necessarily limited the time and effort he could devote to football in the off-season.

      The new staff appeared to understand and appreciate Tanner’s athleticism, and gave Tanner another shot at QB during Spring practices. But there were 7 QB’s vying for 3 spots, Tanner wasn’t given many reps, and didn’t make the cut. (My sources tell me that Tanner didn’t feel he got a fair shake in the QB competition — but from what I saw he was a little behind the top group and it was just a numbers game at that point).

      So, the staff moved Tanner to TE, and asked him to gain 35-40 lbs. Tanner was also asked to be a holder for extra points and field goals (showing that the new staff appreciated that Tanner has a good pair of hands — which he does). Tanner gave it a shot, and added 20 lbs over the summer. But Tanner could see that he wouldn’t play much this season at TE. I also don’t think Tanner was happy at the prospect of adding another 15 to 20 lbs to his frame. Watching Tanner’s body language and performance at last Saturday’s scrimmage, I thought he seemed a bit listless. My guess is that Tanner had already pretty much decided at that point to cut his losses and to try something else, while he still has time and health and eligibility to do so.

      My guess is that Tanner will next take a shot at playing baseball for OSU. Tanner’s dad played baseball (and football) for OSU, and Tanner’s life has been closely linked with OSU sports since he was a small boy (including a stint as a batboy for the OSU baseball team). But it’s also possible that Tanner will transfer to a smaller school where he has a better shot at playing QB or WR (and perhaps also basketball and/or baseball).

      Perhaps things could have worked out differently for Tanner if he had made different choices (e.g., focusing from the start on WR, and sticking with that full time). But perhaps, given GA’s new system, there really is not a good spot for a ‘tweener like Tanner Sanders, and he would have ended up in the same place, regardless of the choices he made.

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      • Just saw the note saying that Tanner will try out for the OSU baseball team. Glad to see it. I think that’s a good choice on Tanner’s part.

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      • Good post, SS. One thing I disagree with “slightly bigger, faster version of Richard Mullaney”. I feel you missed a key talent of Mullaney, and it was his fluidity and loose hips. TS has the opposite — he’s pretty stiff. I don’t think he’d make the cut at WR because of that. You can get away with stiff hips in baseball, so it’s probably a good choice. If a student enrolls part time at two schools, can he play for each? Say he doesn’t outright transfer but instead takes some courses at PSU — can he play football for PSU and baseball for OSU? Not sure what the rules are for that.

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          • I wonder if he could enroll at both full time given that both run a quarter system — isn’t 3 classes full time on the quarter system? So that would be 6 total. Rough, but doable if they are very easy courses.

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          • And I believe schools don’t allow dual study plans like that unless they are a part of their own curriculum and partner with the other school for some certain programs. They need to serve the student first (in terms of counseling, discipline, finances and other student services), and that can’t happen if the student has academic obligations to a second institution.

            Besides, let alone the massive effort required of such a schedule. It would take more than extreme luck to logistically make a schedule like this work.

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          • Jack: I listed Tanner’s senior year baseball stats in a post further down the thread. But what first comes to mind when I think of Tanner’s power are a couple of tape measure shots that he hit off one of my kids in a Corvallis Little League game many years ago. Two at-bats, two line drive home runs far over the center field fence, 7 RBIs for Tanner. Not my son’s finest performance, but to be honest it was a complete mismatch from the start.

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      • Interesting about TS feeling he didn’t get a fair shot at QB. That whole thing felt rushed and kind of half assed when it was happening.

        I realize he doesn’t have track speed, but watching the coaches complain about passing makes we wonder if Vanderveen should have had a chance. He obviously has a good arm and enough speed and physicality to pull it off at TE. Looking back at the “clear cut leaders” that aren’t even in the competition anymore makes me wonder…

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    • LB was a bad idea. FS would have been a better idea. He could have been a special teams player and free safety — the lack of fluidity wouldn’t be as big a deal.

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      • Agreed that LB was a poor fit for Tanner. Agreed also about fluidity (not Tanner’s strong suit). Seems like a good decision on Tanner’s part, at this point, to focus fully on baseball, and give that his best shot.

        In response to Jack’s question, here are Tanner’s senior year baseball stats at CV:

        Batting Average: .500
        RBIs: 44
        HRs: 6
        Doubles: 12

        Tanner also had a 9-0 record as a pitcher, with a 1.42 ERA. Opponents batted .184 against him.

        My guess is that Tanner will play first base and/or a corner outfield position if he makes the OSU baseball team. His stats were pretty good as a HS pitcher, but I don’t think he can succeed as a pitcher at the next level. He needs to focus on improving as a hitter, which is where his biggest upside lies, in my opinion.

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    • I’m not sure those guys are “star players” (Alston hasn’t even played a college game), but yes, point taken. NE is in for a lot of injuries (and penalties, aw shucks, etc)

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    • They are now saying they will be okay on punt/kick returns because they have a dedicated ST coach. haha.

      I actually thought the beavs were good on kick coverage and not as down as some on Reed, but was he worth 250k?

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      • What’s the ST in Nebby’s dedicated ST coach stand for?

        Stupendously Terrible?
        Salary Taking?
        Shitty Tackling?
        Spectator Tormenting?

        No way it’s Special Teams lol, that’d be a good one

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    • Page one out of the Riley Rulebook: Keep expectations low.

      I’m imagining Banker hand jiving his way into players’ homes in the dead of night and twisting ankles while they sleep…. Can’t expect a bunch of wins if everyone’s injured, right?

      Okay, but you seriously have to wonder if part of Riley (the lazy excuse part) is secretly glad. He already has two excuses locked and loaded – New system and injuries

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  22. Sowa with the GT write-up:
    http://www.gazettetimes.com/sports/beavers-sports/football/osu-football-sanders-steps-away-from-program/article_8d9a922e-56f1-5de7-bd7e-c440b95f7a0e.html

    I didn’t even think of what’s mentioned at the end of the article. He’s always referred to as a three sport athlete out of HS, and we know he has good athleticism. But it never clicked in my mind that means he didn’t go the route all the other kids who specialized in one sport did with camps, combines, summer leagues, travel teams, fall workouts, winter training and on and on and on.

    He will get to devote his time to baseball year round for once in his life. And with that full year cycle, he could turn out to be really good.

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  23. GA’s quotes yesterday were alarming. If we’re to take his word, it sounds like things are a complete mess with only 2 weeks to go.

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    • I feel like I’m still getting to know his personality and style of “coach speak”. Does anyone have any insights into how his taking a dump on the offense yesterday fit into his style as hc in the past?

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    • I think Michigan is going to crush us. First home game of the Harbaugh era, playing in front of 100,000 fans, and broadcast on ABC… a recipe for disaster for a freshman starting his second game.

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      • Probably.
        But Michigan has had QB issues and might still stink, too. Don’t know enough about them, but Harbaugh is always scary.

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        • Michigan D will be good. Overall talent is pretty good. Hoke just stunk it up the last two years.
          Starting QB is a transfer who was the main starter at Iowa the last two years and has good physical tools. Kid looks like an NFL QB and has the arm to match. Did not have the it factor and it will be interesting if Jimmy can bring that out. Hopefully not, as the play here on primetime Halloween night.
          Rodents 2–Weasels 0

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        • Hope we score more than 9 points but until I see marked improvement in red zone efficiency, I’m going with single digits. 9 is probably how much Riley would put up so maybe GA can get these guys to score closer to 20.

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      • Totally disagree that Michigan crushes us. The Wolverines are also coming off a 5-7 season. They have some more talented players but they’re also missing experience from some of their key positions, namely QB (like us). They’ll also have a shit ton of pressure to win that game (Harbaugh’s home opener) in front of 100K fans (or whatever their capacity is). Another advantage for the Beavs is that their not playing a quality opponent like Michigan (@Utah). So the Beavs still wont show a lot on film (offensively or defensively). I imagine Oregon State will keep it pretty vanilla in that first game on both sides, assuming things go well! The big thing though is, no pressure on the Beavs here! I say the Beavs keep it close and very possibly pull out the win.

        Go Beavs!

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    • “We’re right there. We’re a block away. We’re a communication away. We’re a nice throw away. We’re a dropped ball away from being able to function as an offense. But the bottom line is, right now, we can’t function cleanly as an offense, and we have got to be able to have some people step up that can handle it in crunch time, that can handle the pressure situations in practice.” -GA

      I think health is going to be a big part of whether we’re ready in time or not. Remember, all the time spent on the sidelines for Storm, Andrews, etc. is time not spent getting practice reps in the new system.

      We’re going to need the Weber State game, for sure.

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      • Time on the sidelines not only means less practice reps, it means less conditioning.
        Also, am I the only one who thinks Isaac will not be 100% for at least half the season? Didn’t bother me nearly as much before Andrews went down…now I’m not sure the two together will be able to turn in a season like we all expected from Isaac alone.

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      • Don’t forget, we (the public) aren’t seeing what’s going on behind the closed practice doors! And I believe many of those are two a day practices, so there are a lot of reps and reports were not hearing about. Ideally (hopefully), the players that we are seeing not getting work(on the sidelines the whole time) in the “opened” practices, are possibly getting some work in the ‘closed’ ones for all we know?!

        Go Beavs!

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    • Or…. maybe he peeked at that Encourage Low Expectations chapter in the Riley Rulebook! Dammit Riley, clean out your office better next time!

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  24. maybe it’s the optimist in me but here’s my season prediction.

    Penciled in as a Loss

    at Arizona
    at Utah
    at Oregon
    at Cal

    Penciled in as a Win

    Weber St
    SJSU
    Colorado
    Washington

    swing games (could go either way)

    Stanford
    at WSU
    at Meechicken
    UCLA

    Already stated that the Wolverines start the season off with a tough roadie in Salt Lake City. And they are going to lose. Michigan will have had the same number of games under Harbaugh as the Beavs will have under GA. One. I am not willing to pencil this in as a loss. UW lost a ton and Cyler Miles will not be back as QB. I am not sold on FUCLA as either as they have to replace Brett Hundley. How the fuck they are ranked No. 10 before a game has even been played is beyond me. The guess here is the Beavs split those 4 swing games and wind up 6-6 and lower tier bowl game. Feel free to call me a village idiot or chime in with your own prognostications and reasons why. I will say this much. Despite the fact there will be some growing pains, I expect the Beavs defense to be VERY physical much like Utah has been in the past.

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    • also really tough to predict the conference division winners. In the south it should come down to USC, Zona and ASU. Then Utah, FUCLA and Colorado The north I’ll be surprised if the ducks don’t win it. The only team I can see challenging them is Cal. But the Bears are going to have to improve a ton on defense. ducks, Cal and Stanford should be the top 3 in the north. The south is the tougher division this year by far.

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      • I think Arizona and Stanford are really being overlooked! Arizona has Anu back at QB and WR Cayleb Jones could be one of the elite in the PAC 12! Pair that with a good running game and an all American like Scooby Wright on D and they’re going to be very good. Wright’s the kind of guy that takes over games on defense, just ask Oregon (pretty impressive from the LB position). Stanford has one of the most intriguing young players on offense in C McCaffrey! Very versatile, he can line up at RB, in the slot (has great hands like his dad did), he’s bulked up apparently. You add all of those things to his speed and quickness and Stanford’s offense can be scary good. Veteran QB Kevin Hogan is back as well. I think they might open things up on offense having a three way log jam at RB (Sanders Jr and Redmound Wright-I think that’s his name, as well as McCaffrey). They are young on defense however if you look at their recruiting classes, they’re absolutely sick!

        The thing about Stanford is they are a team we have not matched up to well with. Their physicality has always (in the last decade or so) eventually overwhelmed the Beavs!

        Go Beavs!

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        • Stanford’s recruiting is pretty damn impressive. They are regularly beating out Alabama, Ohio state, etc. for there recruits. I guess when you have their academics, mixed with the kids that can actually get in there, you almost sell yourself. And honestly who can fault any kid for choosing Stanford.

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          • I have a friend who lives in Atherton and has been bouncing back and forth between there, Portland and Seattle for years on constant travel for work. You can probably guess what industry he works in. He says the weather down there is becoming less and less “perfect” as the years pass. He’s actually thinking of moving to Portland because it (in his mind) is more like what he loved about the southern peninsula many years ago when he settled there.

            I don’t know about down there, but just dealing with the past couple years here and what type of plants are surviving or dying in the yard, I’ve thought a couple times that laurel and eucalyptus might be better choices to replace some of the dying conifers. And I’m talking Eugene here. Neighbors will call the police if you start culling timber… with a permit. One of those neighbors who did just that five years ago was cutting down her large cedars and a couple dougs earlier this spring. They just are not making it in the new climate anymore.

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          • Wait… that post deserves a + or -?

            That has to be one fucked up world to think there was something embedded in the post other than reality.

            Not even the tree-hugging (literally) neighbor would disagree with me.

            Stupid is as stupid does.

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          • Another “secret” weapon for Stanford: Oculus Rift.

            Here’s hoping Dr. Ray and the OSU athletic department pony up the money and buy one for the Beavs.

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          • Don’t know about view-masters.

            Begin quote
            When STRIVR was still taking shape, Belch found out that former NFL QB and his ex- Stanford teammate, Trent Edwards, was in town and he asked him to try out STRIVR’s virtual reality training. According to Fox Sports, within two minutes, Edwards told him, “I think this is awesome. I want to work for you.” Edwards became the company’s VP of Product & Business Development.

            Super Bowl-winning quarterback Trent Dilfer also was taken aback by the technology. He told Fox Sports: “I was blown away. I thought, ‘This is gonna change how QBs prepare.’ I’ve seen just about everything that’s out there and there’s nothing like this. I think if Drew Brees or Tom Brady sees this, they’re gonna demand it.”

            Tech Times’ phone calls to the Dallas Cowboys weren’t returned, but the team’s coach Jason Garrett (pictured above) did tell ESPN the following earlier this month:

            “It’s interesting because it gives you the chance from behind to see all 11 guys on offense and all 11 guys on defense but from a closer angle. Oftentimes you have to kind of pull yourself away to get the all-22 shot. This allows you to get a little closer so you can coach better. You can see hand placement. You see where they have their feet, where they have their eyes. I think that’s important. You can look at that and coach them better being that much closer to the action.”

            Belch and STRIVR couldn’t be more pleased by the early reception.

            “The feedback across the board has been so phenomenal,” Belch says. “It looks real, it sounds real, it feels real…and it might actually be real for some of these guys.”
            end quote

            http://www.techtimes.com/articles/64366/20150629/draft-need-know-virtual-reality-training-college-football-nfl.htm

            The OSU QB situation seems perfect for this kind of technology.

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          • From another article:

            Begin quote:

            Game changer

            In his two decades as an FBS-level football coach, Arkansas’ Bret Bielema can recall only two instances when he’s tried something new and realized immediately that it would change the game forever.

            The first came almost 20 years ago, when Bielema saw the first functional video and statistics analysis software and recognized that it would transform the way football coaches prepped for games and broke down opponents.

            The second watershed moment occurred this spring, when he put on STRIVR Labs’ Oculus Rift goggles and was immediately transported onto a football practice field.

            “It was one of the few times in your coaching career when you’re watching something and you think, ‘This is a game-changer. This is gonna change the way we teach young men,” said Bielema, whose Razorbacks are one of the five FBS programs who’ve signed with Belch’s startup this spring.

            Welcome to the future of football coaching, where players will no longer just watch film on their iPads as passive observers. With STRIVR’s technology, you step into the film clip and participate in the play as it unfolds.

            Bailenson and Belch have devised a football trainer that uses immersive virtual reality technology to allow players to take reps, make reads and learn plays by doing — even when they’re off the field.

            In immersive virtual reality, viewers are transported into lifelike experiences with a complete 360-degree view.

            “We come up with these compelling visual and auditory landscapes, and it’s a combination of taking photographs and building 3D models,” Bailenson said.

            But don’t mistake virtual reality for the now commonplace 3D technology you experience at your local 3D movie theater with the goofy plastic glasses provided.

            “What makes virtual reality specific is not 3D vision, it’s embodied cognition,” Bailenson said. “In virtual reality, the way you navigate the scene is that you move your body the same way you move your body in nature.”

            Therein lies its value in athletic training.
            End quote

            http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/2015/may/21/virtual-reality-quarterback-trainer-derek-belch/

            Reply

          • Wow that is pretty amazing technology. Would be sweet if the Beavs got in on that. I’m sure it would help recruit, even if just an athlete or 2. And even if it didn’t, I don’t see how that couldn’t at least slightly help the players

            Reply

          • Dude! View-Master!
            https://ixquick-proxy.com/do/spg/show_picture.pl?l=english&rais=https%3A%2F%2Fs16-us2.ixquick.com%2Fcgi-bin%2Fserveimage%3Furl%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fs3.amazonaws.com%2Fpbblogassets%2Fuploads%2F2013%2F03%2Fviewmaster.jpg%26sp%3D06d93b27ce697b538ce65d6c6de4fdc3

            I must be getting old. That’s what I envisioned when I made posted. But apparently it’s not as far off the mark as I thought.
            http://www.cnet.com/news/google-mattel-announce-a-virtual-reality-view-master/

            It’s not like VR headsets are something new.

            Reply

          • Oh THAT view master. LOL Holy crap that brings back memories which I’d obviously forgotten about.

            I’ll get impressed about their and others technology when I learn that coaches raving about it.

            Reply

          • Well, in the past this kid toy has been used for military training… effectively. It’s all a matter of how it’s sold. It appears they’re just selling apps and constricting access that way. I’m sure they or others have tech similar to the OR. I think it just has to do with whether or not they want to make the up-front cost high and sell easy customization or keep it low and and price the apps for catching profit.

            I prefer the former in all models. The latter will always be hacked and degraded when any value is found in the product.

            Reply

    • I’m thinking along similar lines as you as far as the overall record possibility. I said between 4 and 8 wins possibly! I think 7-5 is pretty realistic but of course we need to have some things sway in our favor and staying healthy is number one! There are going to be a lot of close games this season (IMO) and if we can make some plays down the stretch, we can surprise a couple of teams. I do think we will have a couple heart breakers as well though! Win the LOS, win the TO battle are two of the most obvious yet, most telling ways to win ball games!

      Go Beavs!

      Reply

  25. if anyone has bothered to look at the ducks schedule it is heavily backloaded. The only challenge they have between opening day and the end of October is the game in Lansing. But starting at the end of October they have a tough 4 game stretch before the civil war with ASU and Stanford on the road, Cal and USC at home. Expect them to be in the national championship conversation thru October. We will see what happens in those 4 games. My prediction, they’ll be good again this year, but they will lose 3 games. One in Lansing, one in Tempe and either Stanford or USC.

    Reply

      • Exactly. The Harbaugh effect. I think Simple Jack will have a couple of years of success at Nebraska coasting on the toughness and coaching left over from Pellini also, just like Shaw has.

        Reply

  29. Eggers up with a Q&A with Dr. Ray. Very telling answer to whether or not he was surprised that BDC did not choose to fulfill the final year of his contract.

    And this:

    “We are working on phase two of our effort to restore the (men’s) track and field program. That needs to happen.”

    Reply

    • I think they will need add one or two women’s teams if they add men’s track. I’d guess women’s lacrosse would be added. It’s a spring sport that could be played at the soccer stadium. And at least 5 Pac12 schools play as well.

      Reply

      • OSU actually has more males than females in the genpop. Title IX says they have to be represented (as I understand, in terms of opportunity only… pay, if that ever became an issue, would not be covered) equally. I honestly don’t know how many ships are given each year compared to how many are allowed per sport. Only football, hoops and volleyball are mandated to give full ships (correct me if I’m wrong… gymnastics might be too, but I don’t think so). I do know that wrestling is covered by an endowment. And I that’s what we want to do with T&F, so no future Lynn Snyder can come in and replace it with underwater jai-lai. All the partial ships given out to all the other sports are balanced accordingly, I’m sure. But I think there’s room to not only add mens’ and women’s teams equally. I think we can fill out the max allowed for other sports and still be compliant.

        Reply

    • I think the key section from Ray is when he talks about the camaraderie between coaches. I’ll say this: I’ve seen Tinkle at baseball games, and I’ve seen Casey at football games, but I NEVER saw Riley at anything other than on the football sideline moping.

      Reply

      • I know all the outsiders think we just have sour grapes that he left, but I’m so happy that he is gone. And we didn’t even have to fire him. It was basically the perfect situation.

        Luck O’ the Beavs is changing!

        Reply

      • Andersen has definitely been to multiple basketball games and Rueck goes to a lot of stuff. Are you sure you never saw Riley at anything? I thought he was at a few baseball games.

        Reply

      • Riley went to hoops games periodically. But I think it was more a show for PSA’s who were on OVs and at the games. I saw Banker quite a bit more than Riley.

        Reply

        • Sucked after Ruff Cuts… except for WNGTI. But that’s not my problem. And I’m sure he’s not complaining.

          What ruffles my tu-tu is that he changed his name then proceeded to destroy OSU athletics with weird decisions for years… that lasted for many years.

          Reply

  31. With GA saying that Isaac and scrimmaging “…is not going to happen for awhile” do we assume that he won’t be ready until the Conference season? Its two weeks to go before the opener and he hasn’t even scrimmaged yet.

    Reply

  32. With only defensive guys (and no Gary Andersen) available, there’s no real quarterback update other than there still doesn’t seem to be any separation between Seth Collins and McMaryion based on the rep distribution. I am told, however, that Wednesday’s practice was the best the offense has had all camp, which was a stark contrast to Tuesday’s struggles.

    http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/index.ssf/2015/08/oregon_state_beavers_fall_camp_25.html#incart_river

    Reply

    • I think GA’s Tuesday remarks were specific and redundant for the players. That’s why it seemed cryptic to us. I think he thought to himself that if they were going to read their own press, he would give them something to read.

      Reply

          • There are so many. I never thought about it before since only the female duck quacks.

            Yes… a salute to the misogynistic online world of stupid Duck fans right there. Being female must make you inferior, therefore make references to such online.

            On a topic just as important as junior-lite, I think the Browns look better than us in our unis… and the Bills just have some of the best unis ever.

            Reply

          • You almost passed as a PO Beav.

            But you had to show your hand. That would be funny if not for its commonality. I thought you really sucked it up and almost showed some intelligence when angry called you out.

            But now you just go full Duck. Too bad for you. Hang around. I’m sure you’ll wanna call scoreboard here and there since there’s just about nothing else worth a damn down there along the river… or near the old cemetary.

            Reply

          • You could have just been a PO ex-pat if not for the so obvious sensitivity to misogyny… borne of rampant misogyny on Duck sites.

            You just couldn’t help it.

            Now you don’t even rate as worthy of being a PO poster. Good for you.

            Reply

          • He was the first to bite on the misogyny hook. That’s a tried and true Duck lure. It’s especially neato when I am not only blatant about it, but I call out Ducks in an overt way… and putz goes ahead and bites down hard on my big shiny lure.

            Are you saying he’s a putz just because?

            Part of that is cj instigating shit and scotty deciding to carry his water. Once that happens, I don’t distinguish one from the other. They’re all thinking with the same brain by that point.

            Reply

          • And even though I’m obvious about where I’m setting my hook, I also give specific verbal hints, we’ll call them words, which point almost exclusively to what kind of person is sure to respond.

            Not to repeat myself, but I think I’m being redundant.If you need clarification, I can repeat all this.

            Reply

          • no, I’m saying you’re a putz by referring to him as a duck. which he isn’t. mebbe you got trolled? Ah, but that’s not possible. Since Jack is so much smarter and wiser in his own mind than anyone else on this planet.

            Reply

          • Jack said,

            “Part of that is cj instigating shit and scotty deciding to carry his water. Once that happens, I don’t distinguish one from the other. They’re all thinking with the same brain by that point.”

            No, no, no…. I was simply indicating, tongue in cheek, that quack rhymes with Jack. What shit did that instigate?

            Come back to Earth now– you get so full of yerself sometimes you float away in all the hot air…

            Now that there is instigating!

            Reply

          • Heh heh. I thought you were just ignoring this freak show of a sub-thread. Honestly did not think of what you intended to rhyme with quack. I was just spraying bbs with little touches of fun luvin thrown in.

            I should have gone more abstract.

            Reply

          • Like I said in a past post (and angry jumped on me for whining) I changed jobs, work nights and a lot of hours, so am not able to frequent the site as often as I have in the past.

            Still whining, I guess…just have more money now. :)

            Reply

          • When you throw the same hook out there every other thread someone’s gonna bite. Although sometimes I think you confuse misogyny with general misanthropy that happens to have a woman on the receiving end for a given instance.

            Reply

          • I was the one who put the misogyny out there. It was not just a subtle play. There was zero confusion.

            However, what you think is confusion is still just misogyny. I don’t understand how that irrationale works other than, “Some of my best friends are women.” That argument always holds water.

            Stop trying to carry it.

            Reply

          • Oh brother. I prefer to consider things on a case by case basis rather than make blanket accusations, though I sometimes fail. You seem to enjoy jumping to assumptions and accusations as much as I enjoy jumping on Biley

            Reply

          • Blanket accusations?

            I guess if the shoe fits, call it a shoe? But you can’t say that trying to insult a man by calling him a woman (or by calling him names that would be immediately recognized by you as misogyny if they were pointed at a woman… I think…?) doesn’t specifically mean that womanhood<manhood.

            Let's say you call some guy a pussy for whatever reason. That is misogyny. Most likely, the reason you call this guy that name has nothing to do with gender. But you have now made it an issue of gender by using that word.

            Say you go on a rant about some woman (or any other economic minority) calling for equality by saying dumb shit like, "Why don't men get equal rights?" Well, moron (not you… hypothetical, really dumb you), That woman isn't saying you don't have issues of your own, that life is a 10 out of 10 always for you. She's saying that you get to live a 5 by virtue of who you are, and that she wants to have that same respect. She will take a level field starting at 1. But don't mistake a will to be meritorious as taking anything away from you. Making you start at 1 is not the same as taking your deity-given 5 away from you.

            It's actually pretty simple stuff when you apply logic and forget the emotions of it all.

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJr5iUhORvc

            Reply

          • I would go off on Ducks now. Blazer reminded me that hasn’t been done in a while. But it just seems such easy pickings. Is there no chivalry left in this world? Do we need to make fun of the least of this world in order to have fun?

            I would rather live a challenge, not a drudge.

            Reply

  36. Wow.

    Johnny Manziel sucks more than he did last year… in the preseason… against the third team.

    How did this kid even get drafted?

    Reply

          • how the eff he managed to get Denver to the playoffs a few years back and even win a playoff game is still beyond me. Other than the AFC West was god awful that year.

            Reply

          • Denver’s D was pretty damn good that year. FA busted them up in the off-season. But that run was purely borne of the D talent and play on that team. It’s an insult to football to say Tebow did anything more than not make multiple mistakes in each game… which then led to a loss… as happened in the play-off game.

            Reply

          • umm, they beat the Steelers in OT in a wildcard playoff game before getting blasted by the Patriots in the divisional round. As a Broncos fan, I’m aware. They lost 7-3 to Kansas Shitty on the final day of the regular season and backed into the playoffs at 8-8 by winning a 3 team tiebreaker over Oakland and SD. Like I stated, the AFC west was god awful that season. In spite of all the defense did and TeBlow didn’t do. How they managed to win a playoff game is still beyond me.

            Reply

          • I didn’t even bother watching that playoff game. That’s how compelling it was that year. IIRC, Thomas had a lot to do with making Tebow look good, and Pittsburgh was down to Mike Wallace and nobody else on their roster (was old man Miller still the TE?).

            The one interesting thing is that he does have a body and feel for running the ball in short bursts on the NFL level. With the new 2PAT rule, he could actually have value and take a roster spot on ST. I imagine he could be the up man on punts, the holder on FGs and the QB on 2PATs. That’s actually quite a value if the stupid NFL rule for bringing in the 3rd QB didn’t exist. I wouldn’t keep him as the #2 qb, but I would keep him for that utility role… and sending in plays.

            Reply

    • I think it’s so obvious he’s our future savior that the Oregrunion hired a beat writer with the same surname just to get some pre-emptive fame.

      Reply

      • That was partially meant as a joke, but I really like this kid and am excited to see him mature and move on to the next level. I have to trust that McGiven saw greatness in his game given how quickly his recruitment took place. And I have to think this will possibly be a non-joke before it’s all over. He’s coming in with a couple great receivers in Penn and Bradford. And Pierce looks like a legit full time back in any system, let alone one where a QB like Moran might open up lanes big enough for a truck to drive through. It’s a nice change of pace from watching and hoping for plodding pro-style qbs to do this or that and make it work on this level.

        But the recruiting misses that will stick are the trenchers. Eletise and Auwae should be joining Mauigoa for a slam dunk of an O-line class. As it is, Mauigoa would be an extreme steal (and possibly the best interior lineman of the three). And while we’re unusually deep (in OSU terms) on the D-line right now, another solid NT prospect would do wonders for the balance in this class.

        Other than that, I have to say that I am more than impressed at the quality of recruits GA is getting at positions of need thus far. We’re going to see more speed on our team than we’re used to seeing for many years to come.

        Reply

    • He has some video up on Hudl. Thoughts from everyone?

      He looks like he has great burst and straight line speed; not much of a shifty runner.

      Arm strength looks passable for the Pac-12, nothing outstanding (though it’s hard to tell from the routes in the video). His footwork looks choppy, like he doesn’t get a wide enough base to throw from. He has a quick release, but his throwing motion looks too compact, like he could generate more power if he went through a full wind up.

      Reply

      • You sound like any number of people who critique every single read option qb out there. They dink and dunk and misdirect and roll out and run. This is the real problem with highlight reels. To know how really effective he is we need to see how well he sells the play action or reads at the mesh point, and we need to see if all his passes, completions and misses, show that he’s on the same page as his playmakers.

        I think he looks pretty good. He doesn’t hesitate or panic. And he doesn’t look as loosy goosy as many HS qbs tend to look in this offense.

        Reply

      • I don’t see anything new on his HUDL. But I do like that he can drop it in the bucket and feather out routes. Like I said, it’s a highlight reel… and a JV one at that. But the quality of the throws is apparent. I just wonder how many he misses that we don’t see.

        Reply

        • Last night he connected on all but 1 pass, which was batted down. Something like 13-14 on passing plays, in a blowout. Hard to say what the level of competition was. Chandler is a talented team and should easily win most of their games. Next week they play a national power in Bishop Gorman out of LV, so those stats should help tell the story. It might even be on TV i think, although i’ll have to look that up.

          Moran also had 2 rushing td’s last night.

          Reply

    • That monicker is earned because no matter what you think in terms of how someone should be built for a position, he just gets results. I’m usually a “ends don’t justify means” kind of person. But this kid manages to make the ends meet despite everything that doesn’t fit.

      He looks like Zach Thomas to me… a fireplug of a backer. He gets his arms in the way and runs through people. And that’s all you can ask of that position.

      Who cares if he doesn’t look the part?

      Reply

      • Yeah I think it’s funny he doesn’t look the part, but I don’t care about that. But I think he could be getting okay results because the D is ahead of the O (if we are to believe reports). It sounds like the offense is slowly implementing plays. Maybe he is actually good, but I’m skeptical and need to see it vs Pac competition. I love the Inspector Clouseu moniker.

        Reply

        • It might be that the D is ahead of the O, which, in itself, is refreshing… versus the opposite we’ve seen in many of the recent camps. But it looks like he’s making plays just because he’s in the right place to make plays. If he actually fit the past and was in the right place all the time, we might be talking about that potential AA backer who pick-sixes everything. As it is, he managed to take advantage of at least one opportunity.

          Reply

        • Who writes the posts around here? Are we going to continue to make several little side stories that have nothing to do with “Tuesday’s practice” or is there going to be an updated topic? We have had a few practices since then and other topics are worthy. I’ve never seen a board where you couldn’t post your own posts. Just sayin’!

          Go Beavs!

          Reply

      • Yeah, Willis, too.
        I thought Liuchan, Willis, and Bright O. would make a good LB foundation. We just haven’t heard much of anything about this group. Probably the least of all the groups.

        Reply

    • Those are, like, the two people I care about most in the world at this precise moment and place in space and time. I’m going to, like, go listen to it immediately.

      Reply

    • funny, they addressed the damn/dam complaints during the podcast, although they haven’t stopped doing it.

      The podcast isn’t bad. I think if I didn’t follow OSU news very closely, it would be more interesting to me, but much of the content is rehash by the time i get around to listening to it. There’s a little too much coaching staff ass kissing going on too. I get that they want to stay on the staff’s good side since they’re reporters, but debating if Coach A is the most intimidating coach in college football? C’mon…..

      Reply

  45. I wonder if we’ll ever get to hear the audio from this? I think it’s pretty cool that he took the time out of his schedule to do this. Anybody know if this is a new thing or something that has always happened but we’re just hearing about it this year because of social media?

    https://twitter.com/beaverathletics/status/634811634377093120
    Beaver AthleticsVerified account
    ?@beaverathletics

    .@oregonstateuniv President Dr. Ed Ray gave a very passionate speech to @osubeaversfb after practice today. #gobeavs

    Reply

    • bit”Hope Weber State doesn’t bring their A-game or we’ll get our butts kicked in our house”? I might have jumbled that up a bit

      Reply

    • I think it’s a lot of wait and see. The average person doesn’t know a whole lot about Andersen. Like Tinkle, the story is that Andersen was a good hire but since the season hasn’t started, there’s hesitation to commit to a whole season.

      Reply

    • I was kind of surprised to hear that too. I am not sure now where the sales are, but I do know there is an excitement about the program. Most believe that this will be a down year and maybe that has something to do with it? The proof will be when we go to the games and see how full the stadium is. Maybe the fans are waiting for individual games rather than buying season tickets? Because of the scheduled Friday games it might not make for a great season long schedule, maybe people are waiting to buy the Saturday games.

      Reply

  51. Nall says he’s slow and feeling pressure on his knees due to being 250lbs. Coaches need to decide on a position for the guy and let him get to ideal weight. He should be 235lbs or less if playing RB. This isn’t fair to the guy.

    Reply

  54. Andersen with some straight talk relating to the last staff, per Horowitz:

    “The last two years, 46 percent of the penalties at Oregon State have been administrative penalties,” Andersen said. “That’s way too many.”

    Even with the remarks about the lack of strength, it seems to me this is the most direct swipe at the previous staff. Reducing admin penalties (which include false starts and delay of game miscues) would be simple if not for having a new system and QB. I’m still expecting a reduction, particularly as the season goes on.

    http://www.statesmanjournal.com/story/sports/college/oregon-state/2015/08/21/andersen-wants-reduction-administrative-penalties/32156157/

    Reply

  56. Women’s soccer opened tonight against UP up there. Had a 1-0 lead until the final minute then pulled out a win in the final minute of OT. 1-0 in one game, and the first win since 2013. Nice start to the season.

    Reply

  57. I’m gonna say that Seth Collins wins the QB competition! Paul Lucas is on the Freshman All PAC 12 Team! We wont have A single 1000 yard rusher. The Beaver’s win at least 6 games and the Civil War may be one of those wins for the Beavs!

    Go Beavs!

    Reply

    • I like your optimism. However, I think Marcus McMaryion will get the starting nod due to him making fewer mistakes. Seth Collins will play situationally. Or if McMaryion gets injured. I agree there will not be a 1000 yard rusher but probably 2-3 500+ yard rushers. 6 wins sounds about right. The civil war will not be one of them. Not this year at least.

      Reply

  60. A tweet from Gina, surprise, surprise:

    OC Dave Baldwin announces both Seth Collins and Marcus McMaryion will play in first game. And prob second and third game.

    Reply

    • OTOH, it isn’t too far fetched to believe he fully expected to play immediately given the circumstances at QB. Not saying promises were made, but from what little we know of SethTheGreat, he may have created a real fuss if redshirted.
      Then, there is always the fact that chances are good two or more QB’s will be needed sometime during the season.

      Reply

    • I used to feel the same way, but considering Collins graduated HS early, he’ll probably have no problem graduating from OSU early, so sitting him a year now could lead to him transferring as a graduate with 1-2 years of eligibility left. Might as well start the clock now to get the most out of his time here.

      Reply

    • Burning a year, otherwise known as redshirting is a prehistoric concept. Some kids are not ready. So then they sit , grow and mature. This warped concept where parents wait until their kid is seven before entering kindergarden, so that they will have an advantage, or where coaches in college wait for the player to reach twenty four before playing, is a dying concept. If a guy can contribute this year, he needs to play this year.

      Reply

    • Thanks for the links. I know a lot of what was said will appear in reporters stories, but it sure would be nice to have decent audio. I’d feel it a good trade off: closed practices–better understandable interviews after. There, got that off my chest!

      Reply

      • It’s tough, periscope is a phone app and the microphones on them aren’t great. Plus with the music blaring over the stadium speakers and in every interview Baldwin has trouble projecting when he is not on the sideline.

        Reply

        • Understood. My point is that, as an offset to closing practices, it would be nice to have a more organized press conference. Not a big deal, Gina et al will regurgitate what she hears; of course, some scribes don’t stick around for all the coaches comments.

          Reply

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