Day 3: Young defenders impress

Additional Day 3 Insights in The Lodge

The weather was mild, the sun was shining, and the pads were on. The Beavers spent the open portion of Sunday’s practice running through live drills and working quick substitutions. The stands may have been empty, but the intensity level was high.

Coach Andersen expects a lot from his new offense, and they didn’t disappoint. The running backs broke through the defensive line, and many receivers made plays. Seth Collins had a highlight-reel catch with his left hand in traffic.

Of course, not everything was perfect for the offense, as a number of young defenders stepped up and made plays. Redshirt freshman Jalen Moore had a big highlight as he broke up a pass intended for Noah Togiai. This play elicited cheers from his teammates as the entire secondary rushed Moore to leap on his back or slap his hands.

As you would expect, Coach Andersen has high hopes for the younger players now that there is a lack of veteran players on defense.

“The younger players are a big part of this team, obviously. We’re low on numbers of seniors. The young guys have gotta step up and play, and there’s a whole bunch of them getting a whole lot of reps. It’s opportunity time for those kids, cuz that window’s closing every day.”

Andersen continued and used Moore’s play to explain what is expected from his newer recruits.

“Jalen made a nice play right there, but we are looking at all these young guys, and you can see the multiple reps they are getting. Again I would say this ‘it’s far from perfect, but they are going full speed’. Which is step one. Step two is understanding where you’re going, what you’re doing.”

Moore was understandably excited about his solid practice and his progress since spring.

“It’s been going good, you know what I’m saying,” said Moore. “It’s not like last fall, I know the plays, I can play faster now, and I feel like I’m back where I need to be.”

Moore also expressed confidence while discussing the play against Togiai that so pleased his teammates.

“I just feel like I’m more athletic, I’ve been studying those plays,” Moore said. “You know, I was doing this last year, but now I feel more mature in my game. I feel like I can make better plays, and next time get the interception.”

Moore wasn’t the only young defender spending significant time on the field. Redshirt freshman Xavier Crawford worked mainly with the starting defense. Although Crawford has been learning a newer position as he spends most of his time as a slot corner. This change has been a process for the defender from Pittsburg, California, but he is taking it all in stride.

“It’s going pretty good. It’s a little bit different than playing outside,” Crawford said. “Inside is more, you gotta work shuffles and drops, lot of zones. It’s a work in progress.”

Of course, Crawford isn’t alone in this process. Many of the other defensive backs, especially senior Treston Decoud have been available whenever Crawford needed guidance.

“Yeah, for sure. Treston, you know, he’s helping a lot of us out, because he’s older. He knows everything. It’s good to go ask him, if you’re not sure about what your coverage and what you should be looking for on a certain defense, and he helps us out with that a lot.”

The Beavers spend two more days in Bend before heading back to Corvallis and an open scrimmage on Friday evening.