Oregon State looking to rebuild defense in 2018
After hitting the lowest of the lows last season, the Beaver defense is ready for a fresh start under first year defensive coordinator Tim Tibesar.
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The 2017 season was one to forget for Oregon State fans, coaches, and players alike for a multitude of reasons, but perhaps no bigger reason was the lackluster play on defense.
The defense was supposed to be a strength coming into the season under then defensive-coordinator Kevin Clune, who was entering his second year with a defense full of talent. However, it wasn’t to be as the Beavers never found their rhythm and became the worst statistical defensive team in all of the power five conferences.
OSU wasn’t just bad on defense in 2017, they were flat out ugly on that side of the ball as they allowed boatloads of points and yards to mid-tier teams such as Colorado State, Minnesota, Arizona, and others.
When the Beavers hired Jonathan Smith to take over their program and begin the process of a rebuild, Smith sought the help of his former quarterbacks coach at Oregon State in Wisconsin head coach Paul Chryst.
Chryst, who is one of the most respected coaches in the country, recommended Smith take a look at his linebackers coach Tim Tibesar to be OSU’s next defensive coordinator. Everything fell into place for Smith and Tibesar after that conversation as the Beavers had secured the services of one of the best defensive minds in college football.
Since his arrival at OSU, Tibesar has opted to give the players and team a fresh start from the mess of 2017.
“I hadn’t spent a lot of time watching the 2017 Oregon State defense because I wanted to give the guys an opportunity to have a fresh start,” Tibesar said. “Obviously, we want to improve in all areas and we’re looking for that thing that coach Smith is always talking about which is a constant state of improvement. We have to play better football and that’s what we’re trying to do with the guys on defense.”
Improvement for the Beavers defensively is going to start with pressure on the quarterback. OSU has been one of the worst statistical teams in terms of points, yards, sacks and turnovers on defense and it all stems from giving the quarterback too much time to throw.
“The one thing with the way our defense is set up, all four linebackers have to be able to stop the run and rush the passer,” Tibesar said. “It will be a team effort to get to the quarterback and across the board, we’ve to improve our pass rush skill.”
One of the first things that Tibesar implemented on the field was starting in spring practice, he moved sophomore outside linebackers Hamilcar Rashed and Kee Whetzel to hybrid linebacker/defensive ends allowing them to use their full range of athletic ability while providing some much needed depth on the defensive line.
“I’ve got high expectations for both of those guys,” Tibesar said. “They have the kind of skill set that allows them to be successful at this position. What they’ve got to continue to do is build muscle memory in the techniques that we’re teaching and training to them so it becomes instinct rather than a thought process.”
Whetzel, who is entering his first season as a full-time penciled in starter, feels that the Beavers could have something special with Rashed and himself on the edges.
“Ham (Hamilcar Rashed) and I are definitely molding well with the positions we’re playing,” Whetzel said. “There’s high expectations for both of us coming from coach Tibs (Tibesar) and we’re looking to fill them. He wants us to be leaders in our positions, coach up the younger guys, and getting a lot of sacks off the edges.”
Smith and Tibesar have done a fine job of putting together a defensive staff that is experienced, versatile, and knows what it takes to win and while it may not show in year one, the Beavers are building to something special on defense under the tutelage of Tibesar.
