The 3-2-1: Oregon State entering stretch run of fall camp

1. Oregon State’s offense is finding a rhythm

With offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren’s offense now fully installed, the Beavers appear to be finding their groove on the field. Since the install was completed near the end of last week, we’ve seen crisper execution from the 1st team offense in practice as evidenced by several impressive touchdown throws and runs in the past few practices. While the Beavers are still trying to decide on which quarterback will win the job, the offensive line, running backs, and receivers are all showing off their abilities to make plays as well. Whether Jake Luton, Conor Blount, or Jack Colletto will be the starting quarterback remains to be seen, but now it’s a matter of seeing which guy runs the offense most efficiently in the next week.

2. Defense is using versatility for success

Coming into the 2018 season, new defensive coordinator Tim Tibesar was given the challenge of rebuilding the worst defenses in Power Five football in 2017. Not an easy task, but Tibesar has shown why he was considered one of the best hires by Smith for this new staff as he’s fielding a defense that could be very exciting to watch. While the Beavers don’t have the depth or experience on the defensive line to field the personnel and packages they’d like, OSU has gotten creative with its ability to put playmakers on the field. Recently, the Beavers have been showing a 2-4-5 formation defense where they’re able to offset their lack of defense line depth with a versatile linebacker or cornerback who could play near the line of scrimmage or drop back into coverage. I’ve been impressed with what the Beavers have been showing on defense in practice in terms of pride and leadership on defense and that was something that was desperately lacking last season.