Gary Andersen looking for answers after loss to Minnesota
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For several brief moments at Reser Stadium on Saturday night, OSU appeared that they were primed to turn the corner and be one of the better teams that Gary Andersen has had during his tenure in Corvallis.
However, those brief moments were just that brief as Minnesota ran the Beavers out of the Reser Stadium by way of a 48-14 loss.
What’s next for Gary Andersen and Co.? It’s hard to say, but one thing is for sure, the Beavers have a long way to go to make this team competitive for four quarters.
One of the reasons for OSU’s downfall against Minnesota was the lack of urgency and efficiency from the offense in the third quarter. The Beavers headed into the halftime break down only six, and needed just one touchdown to take the lead. However, the completely stalled for the final two stanzas.
“I don’t know,” Andersen said. “We had no offense in the third quarter. We turned it over, and made it a short field for our defense. We couldn’t throw it, we couldn’t run it, and the offensive coaches will have to answer those questions.”
Defensively, the Beavers played a very solid first half all-considering. The Beavers only allowed 20 points and were showing signs of improvements in terms of being gap sound and making sure tackles. However, the Beavers began to falter in the second half due to the offense’s inability to stay on the field.
“We didn’t tackle well,” Andersen said. “There were three or four times where we were out of drives but we gave them first downs from pass interference, targeting, and personal fouls. Minnesota executed.
Andersen was blunt when stating that it’s on him to fix the Beavers. He noted that this falls on him and he needs to find a way to get this team back on track.
“It’s on me to hopefully find a way to fix this for these kids to give them a chance to win,” Andersen said. “We didn’t have any offense in the third quarter and defensively we struggled to stop the run when the game was on the line. When we tried to get back into it, we couldn’t stop the run.”
When asked about what his message would be to the fans of Beaver Nation, Andersen sympathized with fans and said that his team will not give up as they continue to build.
“It’s a pretty tough deal for the fans, I would imagine,” Andersen said. “This is absolutely not what I expected in anyway, shape, or form. It’s on me. It’s not on those kids. I’m the one who hired the coaches, so it’s all on me. We will keep battling, and fighting.”