The 3-2-1: What We Learned From Oregon State's Spring Showcase

1. The Quarterback Competition Will Continue Into Fall Camp

-> It shouldn't come as much of a surprise to those who follow Oregon State's quarterback competition closely, but following the entirety of spring, there's not a lot currently separating the trio of quarterbacks...

Staying on brand, don't expect a starting quarterback to be named until several weeks into fall camp... The Beavers' brain trust of head coach Jonathan Smith and Brian Lindgren has been as consistent as consistent can be, each year naming a starting quarterback in fall camp.

After spring, you could say that DJ Uiagalelei and Ben Gulbranson have the inside track to the starting job as the duo split reps with the first and second teams for nearly all of the spring practices while high-flying freshman Aidan Chiles has mostly run with the third team offense against the third team defense.

However, Chiles stole on the show on Saturday, using his lightning-quick feet and escapability to compliment his strong arm and accuracy throwing on the run. He offers the highest upside of any of the three quarterbacks as a runner, and his ability to make plays with his arm while on the move is impressive for a 17-year-old.

Gulbranson is easily the most known commodity of the group as the coaching staff and players know he's capable of leading them to wins. Uiagalelei and Chiles are still both a bit of a mystery box respectively as they each bring unique abilities to the position that the Beavers simply haven't had in previous seasons.

All that being said, we're going to get one heck of a battle between the trio come fall camp...

I expect Uiagalelei to be far more comfortable executing the offense after spending a summer learning the system and building chemistry with off-season workouts. Chiles figures to be even more comfortable in a college setting come August, and Gulbranson is still a steady and reliable option who is more than keeping the competition interesting with his offseason improvements.

2023 fall camp will be no different than any other under Smith as the Beavers will be looking to name a starting quarterback, but the difference this year compared to previous years is that the talent at the position is as deep as it's been in a long, long, time and that's a credit to the coaching/recruiting staff for seeing quarterback as an area that needed to get better this offseason...