Oregon State Football; Blue Adams; Defensive Backs;

Oregon State secondary coach Blue Adams met with BeaversEdge.com and a host of others via zoom to catch us up on the latest with him and the team as they continue to navigate the sports world amidst COVID-19.

Q: How are you keeping your guys motivated and what have you primarily been working on with the defensive backs?

Blue Adams: "I like to think that I've had some help from Jaydon Grant, David Morris, and Isaiah Dunn. To me, it's not a matter of keeping them interested. I look at more at it from the perspective of a solider that has a job to do and that this is just another obstacle in our way that we have to overcome. When I say those guys are doing a good job leading by example, it's because they've been doing a terrific job of keeping everyone locked in.

The reason we didn't go bowling was because of the guys in the back end and I'm a firm believer in that. They go as we go. If we play well, then we win. If we don't, then we lose. Because we have such a veteran and experienced group of guys, there's a high level of accountability and expectation and they also believe the team goes as they go.

The whole focus right now as a group is improving our football IQ. The smarter our guys are means that the game slows down and we get the advantage on the field. Last year we had guys who were in new positions and they didn't really understand the ins and outs of those various techniques we were teaching. Now, I feel that we're all over it and the guys are chomping at the bit to get back out there.

To have a successful unit, you have to drive the bus from the back and heat the competition from the bottom up. If I can coach the last guy on the depth chart and get him to move with urgency, everyone picks their game up.

We've also been doing studies on other teams in the conference. What we've found is that a lot of the successful teams are doing the same things we are, just at a higher level of execution and fundamental play. Now our guys understand that we weren't doing anything different than what most of the country is doing, but that we weren't doing it at the level of efficiency needed to win consistently. We have to perfect it and be better this season."

Q: How do you feel about the digital transition? Do you think there will be anything that sticks and are you in favor of it?

BA: "It's definitely a possibility, but I wouldn't want to use it too much. I want that player right in front of me because he needs to feel what I feel. You can only learn so much from a digital setting before I just need to have the guy in my office to be able to talk through it and break it all down. Technology is convenient, but I like the old way of doing things."

Q: What's led to the staff continuity?

BA: "It's a great coaching staff with a lot of great men. There's an opportunity for us to be better than we were last year and that's really driving all of us. The group as a whole working so well as a whole really speaks volumes to the coach and leader that Jonathan Smith is. Having this type of cohesion and continuity between the coaches is really going to pay dividends this season. It'll further help accelerate our rebuild."

Q: How has the acclimation process been for some of the newer DB's?

BA: "It's been good. As you go through spring ball, there's so much for you do get through in such a short amount of time. Having a young guy or a new guy come in, the volume is stifling sometimes. Having so much time to take it easy, it's really helped because it's allowed me to slow my coaching down to a crawl.

There are various degrees of learning this deal. The first thing I focus on is just understanding the playbook and knowing the ins and outs of it. Secondly, the next step is walkthroughs. We have to have those so our guys can actually see what we're expecting them to cover against. Lastly, the practice aspect is simply applying more pressure to what we've already done to see a close to finished product.

When you bring in JUCO guys, you aren't asking them to sit on the bench, so it's motivating guys like Alex Austin and JoJo Forest to go and be their best selves through competition.

With the whole COVID-19, it's allowed me to take things slow with our guys and make sure we're all on the same page because we aren't as tied down to practice prep on a daily basis. A lot of times, guys don't learn a ton of schemes in JUCO as it's mostly man coverage or Cover 3, but we're asking more of them here so having that extra time to make sure they're comfortable is a big plus. Being able to bring guys along at their own pace is a very underrated aspect of this whole thing."

Q: What's the film study process been like?

BA: "I've got a great graduate-assistant in Taylor Richards who has really been a big help in helping gather film. I'll have a cut-up of the drawing, then I'll have the cut-ups with the drawings that have the defense. Then I can take those and show the guys where they got things right and where they need to improve. Film study is always endless and the more that the guys understand what we're asking of them, the better off we'll be on the field.

It all ends with the guys in the back whether it's through the air or on the ground, and that's where we have to be held accountable moving forward. The smarter we are, the more the game slows down and hopefully, it'll lead to faster play.

I feel really, really good about our DB's this year...

Q: Talk a little about the guys you highlighted previously in David Morris, Jaydon Grant, and Isaiah Dunn.

BA: "You got Morris who's coming off an up and down career, but knows that he needs to be more vocal. I'm really pushing him because personality-wise, he's a non-confrontational guy and he's going to do everything right. The next progression of his leadership is going to be a confrontational guy that seeks that sort of attention. That's the next progression of Dunny's too.

The only guy that is mean enough to push us to where we need to go is Grant. He's abrasive and what you want out of a corner. I want more guys like him because when you understand the urgency, you're going to give it to me.

Nahshon (Wright) is getting closer to being that guy as well, but he's a really nice guy and needs that killer drive. Being a nice guy is great and all, but sometimes you've got to have a little prick in you. Those other guys are coming along, but Grant is the only guy who's got that supreme edge I'm looking for."