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With Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith meeting the media on Monday afternoon to recap the 52-40 win over Cal and preview Saturday's matchup with UCLA, BeaversEdge recaps all the info in this edition of notes and quotes!
MORE: WATCH: Smith Presser | Snap Counts + Takeaways vs Cal | Beavers In The Polls | PFF: Team Grades & Top Performers vs Cal | WATCH: Beavers Talk Win Over Cal | Highlights + Social Media Reactions | RECAP: Beavers Move To 5-1
Notes
- Speaking on the offensive performance against the Cal Bears, Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith said he was pleased with the balanced production. Between the run and the pass it was arguably the most complete offensive game of the season and the balance is something they really like. Smith said it's a challenge to maintain that balance with tendencies showing up on tape through six games, but want to keep it going.
- Smith said that the defense has not played up to their standard in back-to-back road games... He said the defense has taken the challenge and wants to be much better against the Bruins on Saturday...
- In terms of injuries, Smith said that there were no long-term injuries coming out of the Cal game... Jaden Robinson and Ryan Cooper Jr., who both missed the Cal game, have a chance to return this week against UCLA. Right tackle Taliese Fuaga, who exited the Cal game with an unspecified injury, isn't expected to miss much time, if any, as Smith said there's a chance he's back against the Bruins...
- Smith highlighted the play of defensive backs Jermod McCoy and Noble Thomas who had increased roles with the absences of Robinson and Cooper Jr. He said they were very pleased with what the two young secondary players brought to the table.
Quotes
On DJ Uiagalelei
"His accuracy stood out," Smith said. "Guys were open and he was hitting them in the right spots. He was hitting them in stride and you see that with the catches and the yards after catch. The two third-down throws to Anthony Gould were huge... He was in a nice rhythm, confident, and played really good football."
On UCLA's Defense
"They're long, athletic, and they can really affect the passer from the edge. They're as good of pass rushers as we've seen... A new scheme this year, but they're sound and it's impressive to watch."
On what he likes most about the offense
"We make it physical with the run game, and I like our protection a lot. You watch Deshaun Fenwick and Damien Martinez and the way they're carrying the ball. We've shown with Silas Bolden and Anthony Gould that we have threats on the outside. I also like the decision-making and command that DJ plays with. When we're accurate and explosive, we're tough to defend."
On the run defense vs Cal
"A few things... the mistakes led to some explosive runs, we're not in the B-gap and we should be and that turns into an explosive play. It was also compounded by the fact that they were tough to tackle and we didn't tackle well enough."
On Isaac Hodgins at fullback
"We used the fullback last season with Jack Colletto and we didn't want to stop using that package. So we put some thought into it and who could do it. We actually dabbled with Hodge as a fullback on the goal line last season and thought he could do it more and it's grown since. He's effective, you've got to have some niftiness and we want to keep it going."
On UCLA's offense and Chip Kelly
"He's always evolving, but it was comes back to running the ball. Watching him on tape he's got new wrinkles each week, they've played with pace for years, and he might have been the innovator of going fast. He's tough, he's going to gameplan to throw some new wrinkles you haven't seen and they're tough to defend."
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