Oregon State Football: Pac-12 Media Day Notebook

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With Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith meeting the press at Pac-12 media day in Hollywood, BeaversEdge.com recaps the info in this in-depth notebook.

MORE: WATCH: Jonathan Smith Media Day Presser | Four Beavers Earn Preseason Honors

Heading into fall camp, all eyes are on the quarterback competition to see who's going to be Oregon State's leader under center in 2021.

Head coach Jonathan Smith, who's entering his fourth year leading the program, arguably has the best collection of talent he's had during his tenure, and it's set the stage for a very intriguing fall camp quarterback battle.

"We feel like we've got a quarterback room that is full of some talent, it's going to be competitive this month in training camp," Smith said.

Tristan Gebbia, who won the starting job last August, is working to be back to 100% on the field after suffering a hamstring injury against Oregon that turned out to be quite the lengthy rehab.

"(He) should be healthy in August here to practice. I think he's got a great skill set. Understands the scheme, good leader. Has won games for us."

Colorado transfer Sam Noyer, who will be firmly in the mix, is a welcome addition to the squad as he proved last season with the Buffs that he's capable of leading his team to the postseason with strong play.

"We added Sam after spring ball and he's a guy that's has won games at quarterback in this league. Has a little bit different skill set, makes the game physical, moving his feet, big-time arm. We're anxious to work with him coming in August."

The Beavers also have 2020 backup turned starter Chance Nolan in the mix as well, with Smith highlighting the strides he's made in his game since the end of the season.

"Chance Nolan has started multiple games, we were really close the last couple of games with him as the starting quarterback. Counting on him making huge strides in his game from year one to year two."

Last, but certainly not least, Smith also lauded the play of true-freshman Sam Vidlak, who had himself an impressive spring session and put the coaching staff on notice that he's wanting to be in the mix as well.

"Excited about Sam Vidlak... he had a great spring. He's going to have an opportunity this August to go."

Time will tell who's able to seize the moment, but Smith feels that the competition within fall camp will yield the best results in the long term.

"The cream rises to the top when you have that type of competition in August, but also it adds to our depth as the season goes."

If there's one concrete goal that stands above all the rest for Oregon State this season, it's returning to the postseason.

Having not reached a bowl game since defeating Boise State in the 2013 Hawaii Bowl, the Beavers are determined as ever to finally get that stubborn monkey off their back this season.

While the Beavers have come close with a 5-7 campaign in 2019 and a closer-than-the-record-indicates 2-5 last season, reaching the promised land of the postseason has alluded them.

"I think we're really close. At the same time, it's not that easy. This league is competitive and you've got to play well to win. We know we've made huge strides and we're confident in what we've got as a program. But we know we have work to do to be able to get over that hump and win all these really close games."

One of the more impressive features of the Oregon State staff under Smith has been their ability to draw quality talent from the transfer portal.

Take this past offseason, for example, the Beavers added quarterback Sam Noyer, running back Deshaun Fenwick, receivers Makiya Tongue & John Dunmore, and defensive lineman Keonte Schad.

"The transfer portal over the last couple of years has been another great avenue to add to your roster. We're going to use every avenue we can to bring talent and fit our place."

Smith feels that the transfer portal can be a big-time avenue for the Beavers to improve the roster and it's something they're going to continue to be aggressive within this new age of college football.

"In this day and age in college football, there are some really good football players that have gone and for whatever reasons, different fits at different places haven't worked, but the fit at Corvallis has been better and we're going to continue to use it."

While most of the talk centered around the upcoming season for the Oregon State football team, Smith took a few moments to discuss the latest on what's happening with the Reser Stadium renovation project.

Smith said that the 2021 season will be the last one played in the current version of the stadium as construction/demolition will begin after the conclusion of the season.

The team will then work through one season of cranes and construction in 2022 before having a fully-ready stadium by the start of the '23 season.

"It will be game-changing for football, but also the athletic department itself and the university, to continue to showcase Corvallis and the great state of Oregon in a big-time stadium on Saturdays in the fall."

- In the Pac-12 media day preseason poll, Oregon State was picked to finish 5th in the north and 10th overall in the conference.

- Per Smith, Oregon State's football team is currently 86% vaccinated.

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