Oregon State Beavers Football: Wednesday Notebook

With the Oregon State football team officially underway in spring football 2020 with Day 1 in the rearview, BeaversEdge.com gives you the latest from Corvallis as the team prepares for Day 2 on Thursday.

Impressions from Day 1

As the Oregon State football team took to the Prothro Practice fields on Tuesday morning for its first practice of the 2020 year, good vibes were aplenty as the Beavers now resembled a team that was fully immersed in the Jonathan Smith culture.

After laboring through the growing pains of year one and year two of the rebuild, there's no doubt that there was a different feel this spring compared to the past two.

Offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren, who's entering his third season as the Beavers' OC, was very impressed with the fire and determination that the team brought on the first day.

"There was really good energy out there," offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren said. "The guys were ready to get after it, the weather was fantastic, and both sides of the ball made some good plays. There were also some new faces that we as coaches were really excited to see in a live setting, so there were a lot of positives today."

Another big difference that was very noticeable from the get-go was that the Beavers look a lot stronger and bigger than they were last season. Strength and Conditioning coach Mike McDonald has been with the group for multiple seasons now, and Lindgren noted that the work he and his staff did with the players this past offseason was already evident.

"You can tell that Coach Mac and his staff did an awesome job with the guys," Lindgren said. "You can really see the development of strength, fitness, and speed with the whole team. Speaking for the offense, we're a lot faster than we've ever been, which has me really excited.

Early impressions from the quarterbacks

With the Beavers set to have an open quarterback competition that will likely carry on through fall camp, there's no doubt that just about everyone wanted to get a look at Tristan Gebbia and Chance Nolan on Day 1.

Gebbia, who started the Civil War last year and enters spring as the front-runner for the gig given his multiple years of experience in the Lindgren system, felt really good about the first day now that he's seeing the squad come together.

"I love it," Gebbia said. "We've got a lot of guys coming back and we've got the tools and pieces to be really good this season. I love the comfort level with my receivers and if you've got good receivers, it makes the quarterbacks' job a lot easier. I love the intensity they bring to practice and we've got a lot of speed..."

Nolan, who enters the QB derby as one of the Beavers' prized possessions of 2020 recruiting class, is still a little behind the eight-ball in terms of learning the playbook and building chemistry with the receivers, but feels that time will be his friend as far as getting up to speed with the process.

"Every day we've been going over stuff and trying to get me up to speed," Nolan said. "The coaches have been giving me handouts and using the IPAD's to go over our film. It's going to just take reps to get in there and feel comfortable with the offense because it's very complex. Tristan has been helping me since I got here and there's a great competition between us, so it's going to work out very well."

A wealthy backfield

If there's one position group on offense that the Beavers feel really good about going into the 2020 season, it's running back. Despite losing Artavis Pierce to graduation this past offseason, the Beavers return a wealth of talent that includes Jermar Jefferson, BJ Baylor, Calvin Tyler Jr., Trey Lowe, and Ta'Ron Madison. Toss in freshman Isaiah Newell who will join the fold in August and you've got the makings of a very deep and versatile group.

"Coach Pitre does an awesome job with that group," Lindgren said. "Jermar has done a lot of big things for us and we expect an awesome year from him. I thought Baylor ripped off a couple of really nice runs and he's a really patient runner with good vision. It's great to see Lowe in a live setting and we're really excited about what we can add to the offense with him in the fold."

Michalczik says all 5 positions are open

If there's one coach on the Beavers' staff that is going to give it to you straight, it's offensive line coach Jim Michalczik. When asked about the offensive line heading into this season, he noted that he's seen some progress, but that the guys have a long ways to go to be at the level he desires.

"I'm looking at who's the top five guys," Michalczik said. "I want the five guys that succeed together the best and work well the best. We're a long way from picking the top five."

In terms of the early rotations, Michalczik noted that we're going to see a lot of different faces and combinations as the team is trying to figure out which grouping will be the best fit come Septemeber.

"We need competition," Michalczik said. "I hate it when someone names a starter because every position is open. I don't care if we had guys that started last season, we want competition because the cream will always rise to the top."