Oregon State aims for upset under Hall
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The Oregon State football team is back in business this Saturday as the Beavers prepare to take on Colorado for Homecoming. The Beavers have a new look squad as Gary Andersen is out and interim head coach Cory Hall is in.
With Hall having the first week of practice under his belt, he feels that his team has performed well in practice under the circumstances.
“It went well,” Hall said. “The boys had fun and were very energetic and poised. They enjoyed practice this week. There wasn’t a day that felt like a drag. These boys are determined.”
OSU will have their work cut out for them against a very physical and tough Colorado team. Hall has nothing but respect for the Buffs.
“I like their physical style of play,” Hall said. “I’m old school football and I like their brand of football. I have a lot of respect for (Mike MacIntyre) and his staff. They have done a tremendous job over the past five years.
In order for the Beavers to pull off this victory against Colorado, they first must improve on offense where the Beavers have scored just seven and 17 points in their last two games. Hall notes that OSU has to protect their QB.
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“We have get behind Darell (Garretson) and protect him,” Hall said. “We have to establish the run and have a physical run game. After that, the rest will come.”
The Beavers will certainly get a boost on offense with the return of Ryan Nall. Nall who sat out against USC should bring a fresh and revived mindset to the Beaver offense.
It’s been well noted this week that the energy from the team has been at an all-time high.
“The energy that has been out here reminds me of when we were in camp,” Hall said. “The kids are out here enjoying football and all of the other things and outside distractions went away. The whole family concept is real and you can tell everyone is genuine about it.”
When asked about his desire to succeed, Hall had quite the analogy to describe his winning matra.
“Anything I do, I want to win,” Hall said. “If I sit down and eat breakfast next to you, I want to finish first and win. It would be huge for the program. Anytime you perform and compete you want to win.”
Many teams struggle to come back from such a radical coaching change midway through the season, but under Hall the Beavers appear to be rolling with new life just in the knick of time.
“We want to pump life and breathe life back into this (program),” Hall said. “The student-athletes and the community are all one and are for Beaver Nation. It should be this way week in week out.”
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With Saturday perhaps being the last nice day of the year, and OSU having a 1 p.m. kickoff, the hope is that Reser Stadium will be full for the game and the honoring of the 1967 Giant Killers team. The Beavers will be plenty energized for the Buffs on Saturday according to Hall.
“It’s for the players, by the players,” Hall said. “I’m pretty sure those boys got something planned and going on in the back of their minds. I’m all for it. I’m all for them having fun. I talked to Seth Collins and he told me ‘Coach I’m bringing it. Coach I’m bringing the juice.’ The turn up is real. The guys keep saying the turn up is real.”