Published Sep 25, 2019
Oregon State Beavers Football: Quick Hits and Quotes
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Brenden Slaughter  •  BeaversEdge
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In advance of Oregon State's Pac-12 opener against Stanford, BeaversEdge.com recaps the most important pieces of information from offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren, and defensive coordinator Tim Tibesar.

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Quick Hits

- Despite Stanford QB KJ Costello having a slow start to the season, Oregon State defensive coordinator Tim Tibesar has high praise for the senior quarterback. He noted that having over 20 Pac-12 starts is an impressive feat and that the Beavers need to be fully aware of his ability to make plays. Stanford thrives on the ground game powered by Portland native Cameron Scarlett, but Costello is crafty enough to make the OSU defense pay if they're not sound in coverage.

- Offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren said that the offense didn't add a whole lot of new wrinkles or gadget plays during the bye week, rather spending time honing in on the basics of the offense and fundamentals. While Lindgren noted that it's tempting to add something special during a bye week, it was far more important to clean up the mistakes from the first several weeks of play.

- With the Beavers electing to give the team last Thursday through Saturday off, there's some concern of rust heading into the next game. Lindgren addressed the notion by saying that head coach Jonathan Smith has had a strong handle on keeping the team focused and that the coaching staff has challenged the players to walk that line and dial up the intensity at practice this week and leading up the game.

- In terms of areas that Lindgren would like to see improvement on, completing passes and quarterback efficiency are atop the list. The Beavers' OC added that quarterback Jake Luton hasn't been as sharp as he'd like and that the receivers have simply dropped catchable passes. He also added that the receivers' routes and execution were also heavily worked on during the bye week.

- In terms of an ideal pass completion percentage number, Lindgren said he'd like to see Luton completing 65 percent of his passes. When things are humming, Lindgren said that 70 percent isn't unattainable given the expectations that Luton and the receivers have put on themselves. With Luton currently sitting at 57.3, there's certainly room for improvement.

- Lindgren didn't want to reveal a ton in terms of what the Beavers may have found to exploit in the Stanford game film, but he did note that UCF had a lot of success in the hurry-up offense and that it led to explosive plays in the passing game. Oregon State isn't known to be no-huddle, but perhaps we could see an uptick in the pace of the offense as the Beavers could look to move before the Stanford defensive front is able to get set.

Quotable

Tim Tibesar on Stanford looking to likely establish the run early against OSU

"We certainly have to be prepared for that. They're a run-first team and just as they did against Oregon, they're going to look to establish the run game early."

Brian Lindgren on the challenges a physical team like Stanford presents

"It's a big challenge for us because when a team plays physical, you have to match that physical play. Their front seven stands out in a big way because of their big, physical, and strong players. It's going to be a real challenge for our offensive line to handle that."

Tibesar on Stanford tight end Colby Parkinson

"Going into last years' game, he was sort of an afterthought...nobody really knew who he was and then he had his coming out party against us. We're certainly aware of him and the damage he's able to do as we've watched the film a lot from last season. He's become the main target for them this season and we know we have to deal with him and do a better job in coverage."

Tibesar on the benefits of the bye

"It was really good for the guys to be able to get away from football for a little bit and get some time off. Guys look fresh and ready to go and we're hopefully going to get a couple of guys back who were out last game."