5 Takeaways from Oregon State's first practice
Oregon State opened fall camp on Tuesday, and we breaks down our five takeaways below.
DAY 1 PRACTICE CONTENT FROM BEAVERSEDGE.COM
Practice Report: Marcus Greaves' notes from Day 1
Oregon State begins year three of Gary Andersen era
VID: Andersen discusses first day of fall camp
VID: BeaversEdge.com's Marcus Greaves interviews Jordan Villamin
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1. The Beavers' defense is going to be good
Although Craig Evans did not participate in practice on Tuesday, the defense looked sharp. Bright Ugwoegbu had a great practice and looked like he didn't miss a beat after missing spring football due to his injury that he suffered in the fall. Paisa Savea also had a strong practice as he looks to take ahold of a starting spot on the defensive line. With All-American performers such as Xavier Crawford and Manase Hungalu, the sky is the limit for this group.
2. Tyner is working his way back in
Former five-star running back Thomas Tyner is finding his footing in Corvallis. He has already clicked with his teammates, especially star running back Ryan Nall. He came in looking bigger than in year's past, and he is working on shedding what he called his "fishing weight." Oregon State's running back corps is not only extremely deep, but they're also extremely talented.
3. Luton looks like the guy
After being the No. 1 quarterback throughout spring practices, it's no surprise that junior college transfer Jake Luton was the quarterback to take first team reps on Tuesday. Former Oregon State running back and BeaversEdge.com Football Analyst Marcus Greaves wrote in his practice report that "[Luton] came out making a statement, slinging the ball left and right and moving the offense down the field at will."
4. Collins looks healthy
Greaves really liked what Seth Collins did in his first practice in a long time. Collins was not with the starting wide receiver group (or at least the starting WR group based on what we could see), but that is obviously because Collins is adjusting to getting back on the field full time.
"I think it's just because it was the first practice back, and they didn't want to just throw him in the mix and have him go full speed," Greaves said about Collins. "He took it a little slower than he usually does, but it was impressive to see Collins balling out yesterday."
5. Bend is going to help the team once again
Going to Bend for a few practices helps the team fully focus on football since that is really the only thing that is going on for them when they are there. The benefit that Bend offers for the Beavers is the high altitude. Bend is well over 3,000 high compared to Corvallis that is only 235'. The high altitude is a big plus for the Beavers in terms of getting into better physical shape since oxygen is more scarce. It also builds comradery within the units.