Updated on September 4, 2017 at 8:39 PMPosted on September 4, 2017 at 4:59 PM
CORVALLIS -- By late Saturday, Oregon State coach Gary Andersen will have faced Minnesota more times in the past five years than any Pac-12 opponent.
Andersen went 2-0 at Wisconsin in the Badgers' rivalry games against the Golden Gophers in 2013 and 2014. And this weekend, Minnesota visits Reser Stadium for the back end of a home-and-home nonconference series after topping OSU 30-23 in Minneapolis in last season's opener.
There's a major change atop the Golden Gophers program, with P.J. Fleck taking over as head coach. But Minnesota, which beat Buffalo 17-7 in its opener last Thursday, is still paced by a solid defense and the rushing duo of Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks.
"There's differences in the offense and defense, but it's not a drastic departure," Andersen said. "They wanted to run the ball physically in the first game, and that's always been an MO of where those guys sit in the Big Ten and what they've done in the past ...
"The players have adapted to the scheme from what we saw in Game 1 very, very well. We should be ready. We've got one game to go on (in film study), but we also have past tape on the coordinators on both sides. We'll do all we can to get the information to the kids."
But despite the familiarity with the Golden Gophers, Andersen hopes these types of nonconference matchups with Big Ten foes become a scheduling strategy of the past. He noted that Saturday's game will kick off at 9 p.m. CST and will put Minnesota's team back in Minneapolis in the wee hours of Sunday morning.
"I'm not in favor of flying across the country and flying over however many football teams that is to get there," Andersen said. "That's just my own opinion, and I'll speak my piece on that and then we'll make decisions ...
"If you don't have to do it, why do that? I know those are tough trips for kids."
OSU (1-1) played at Michigan during Andersen's first season in a game that kicked off at 9 a.m. PST. The Beavers play at Ohio State in 2018, then have a home-and-home series with Oklahoma State in 2019 and 2020. All those games were scheduled before Andersen and current athletic director Scott Barnes arrived in Corvallis.
Andersen also said before last season's nonconference game against Boise State that he would prefer not to host the Broncos, though they are back on the schedule for a home-and-home in 2022 and 2023.
"I don't (want to play Boise State)," Andersen said then. "And I don't mean that in any disrespect in any way, shape or form. I think we should play people from not within our own region, necessarily. That's just my philosophy. I felt the same way at Utah State. I felt the same way at Utah
"We would like to get into a place to where we recruit more. Maybe it's bringing a team in here from Texas or bringing a team in here from Florida or bringing a team in here from Georgia somehow, some way, where it's actually tied more into our kids within the recruiting base."
When asked Monday to draft his ideal type of nonconference schedule, Andersen said he'd like to play one Football Championship Subdivision opponent and then two opponents "that give us a chance to get better and prepare for the Pac-12."
"I'm not saying we're trying to script everything for success," Andersen said. "But I know we only have three (nonconference) games, and then we have nine very tough, physical games on our schedule. The last time I looked, the Pac-12 is highly competitive.
"You always have those opportunities to win those games, but I just think if you stay on your side of the country and play those games, I believe everybody's in a better spot."
Here are some other highlights of Andersen's weekly meeting with the media:
*** Andersen maintains that the Beavers have "a lot of work to do" after their first two games, including Saturday's comeback win over FCS opponent Portland State in their home opener.
He said the defense, which has allowed 1,040 yards to Colorado State and Portland State so far, is "not far away" but needs work on tackling, plugging spaces in the middle of the field and communication. Offensively, Andersen wants the Beavers to "run more snaps" but was pleased with the two-minute drive to win the game.
"Battling to find a way to make some plays at the end, you can't script that," Andersen said. "You can do two-minute drills in practice. You can create situations to where there's a winner and a loser. But when they absolutely had to and they had to find a way to make enough plays to be able to win the game, they did it. I felt like their eyes were pretty darn good that whole football game.
"I can't say that was a drastic improvement from Week 1, but it kind of caved in on us in Week 1 and in Week 2, it didn't. When we got in those spots, we were able to make some plays."
*** Quarterback Jake Luton, running back/returner Artavis Pierce, wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins and linebacker/special teamer Kee Whetzel were among those players with "championship-level" performances against the Vikings. Andersen also noted more players were in the "winner" category than after the Colorado State game.
"Our champions list is not gigantic," Andersen said. "It was a nice list again, (but) not as many as we would like. Hopefully, that continues to grow."
*** Andersen is still looking for the Beavers' offensive line to sustain blocks better. That group will get a test this week when it faces a stout Minnesota defensive front anchored by Steven Richardson, whom Andersen called one of the best in the country at his position. Kammy Delp and Trent Moore will also continue to rotate at right guard for the Beavers.
"If it was completely solidified and we had a dominant starter in that spot, then we wouldn't be splitting reps," Andersen said. "But we are. So we're looking for someone to take it over or get more consistent play out of that position. The kids are working hard at it and they'll continue to, and so will Coach (T.J.) Woods."
*** Andersen did not provide details when asked why Jay Irvine, who starts at cornerback when the Beavers line up in nickel packages, did not play against Portland State. Irvine was not listed on last week's injury report.
"You'd have to ask (position coach) Cory Hall," Andersen said. "He was healthy, as far as I know."
*** The smoke from nearby wildfires will not impact the Beavers' practice routine "unless somebody tells me that knows a lot more about smoke than me."
"Dr. (Doug) Aukerman will handle that situation with us," Andersen said. "He's just basically told me, 'If there's something you need to know, you'll know.' And right now, I haven't heard anything, so there's nothing different."
*** A week after Andersen proclaimed at his Monday press conference that he wanted the Beavers to get "more edgy," how have players responded in practices and in the Portland State game?
"I'm not necessarily saying I don't think they had an edge," Andersen said. "I think they had an edge, and when you have something that doesn't go your way (the Colorado State loss), you can prepare a little bit different and see if there is an advantage that you can gain in your preparation. So to me, that would be a little bit more edgy. I think we practiced very well, and I hope they get a little more edgy this week, too, now that they've had some success.
"You should always gain a little bit of an edge, because it's one day closer from being over also. As that takes place in a year, whether you're a senior or a freshman, it starts to close in real quick. Yeah, we're only two games in. There's 10 games left that are guaranteed and a couple bye weeks. That seems like a long time, but it's really not. We need to work to continue to get better every day and keep that edge and keep getting sharper and sharper."
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/i...rsen_does_not_see_dra.html#incart_river_index
CORVALLIS -- By late Saturday, Oregon State coach Gary Andersen will have faced Minnesota more times in the past five years than any Pac-12 opponent.
Andersen went 2-0 at Wisconsin in the Badgers' rivalry games against the Golden Gophers in 2013 and 2014. And this weekend, Minnesota visits Reser Stadium for the back end of a home-and-home nonconference series after topping OSU 30-23 in Minneapolis in last season's opener.
There's a major change atop the Golden Gophers program, with P.J. Fleck taking over as head coach. But Minnesota, which beat Buffalo 17-7 in its opener last Thursday, is still paced by a solid defense and the rushing duo of Rodney Smith and Shannon Brooks.
"There's differences in the offense and defense, but it's not a drastic departure," Andersen said. "They wanted to run the ball physically in the first game, and that's always been an MO of where those guys sit in the Big Ten and what they've done in the past ...
"The players have adapted to the scheme from what we saw in Game 1 very, very well. We should be ready. We've got one game to go on (in film study), but we also have past tape on the coordinators on both sides. We'll do all we can to get the information to the kids."
But despite the familiarity with the Golden Gophers, Andersen hopes these types of nonconference matchups with Big Ten foes become a scheduling strategy of the past. He noted that Saturday's game will kick off at 9 p.m. CST and will put Minnesota's team back in Minneapolis in the wee hours of Sunday morning.
"I'm not in favor of flying across the country and flying over however many football teams that is to get there," Andersen said. "That's just my own opinion, and I'll speak my piece on that and then we'll make decisions ...
"If you don't have to do it, why do that? I know those are tough trips for kids."
OSU (1-1) played at Michigan during Andersen's first season in a game that kicked off at 9 a.m. PST. The Beavers play at Ohio State in 2018, then have a home-and-home series with Oklahoma State in 2019 and 2020. All those games were scheduled before Andersen and current athletic director Scott Barnes arrived in Corvallis.
Andersen also said before last season's nonconference game against Boise State that he would prefer not to host the Broncos, though they are back on the schedule for a home-and-home in 2022 and 2023.
"I don't (want to play Boise State)," Andersen said then. "And I don't mean that in any disrespect in any way, shape or form. I think we should play people from not within our own region, necessarily. That's just my philosophy. I felt the same way at Utah State. I felt the same way at Utah
"We would like to get into a place to where we recruit more. Maybe it's bringing a team in here from Texas or bringing a team in here from Florida or bringing a team in here from Georgia somehow, some way, where it's actually tied more into our kids within the recruiting base."
When asked Monday to draft his ideal type of nonconference schedule, Andersen said he'd like to play one Football Championship Subdivision opponent and then two opponents "that give us a chance to get better and prepare for the Pac-12."
"I'm not saying we're trying to script everything for success," Andersen said. "But I know we only have three (nonconference) games, and then we have nine very tough, physical games on our schedule. The last time I looked, the Pac-12 is highly competitive.
"You always have those opportunities to win those games, but I just think if you stay on your side of the country and play those games, I believe everybody's in a better spot."
Here are some other highlights of Andersen's weekly meeting with the media:
*** Andersen maintains that the Beavers have "a lot of work to do" after their first two games, including Saturday's comeback win over FCS opponent Portland State in their home opener.
He said the defense, which has allowed 1,040 yards to Colorado State and Portland State so far, is "not far away" but needs work on tackling, plugging spaces in the middle of the field and communication. Offensively, Andersen wants the Beavers to "run more snaps" but was pleased with the two-minute drive to win the game.
"Battling to find a way to make some plays at the end, you can't script that," Andersen said. "You can do two-minute drills in practice. You can create situations to where there's a winner and a loser. But when they absolutely had to and they had to find a way to make enough plays to be able to win the game, they did it. I felt like their eyes were pretty darn good that whole football game.
"I can't say that was a drastic improvement from Week 1, but it kind of caved in on us in Week 1 and in Week 2, it didn't. When we got in those spots, we were able to make some plays."
*** Quarterback Jake Luton, running back/returner Artavis Pierce, wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins and linebacker/special teamer Kee Whetzel were among those players with "championship-level" performances against the Vikings. Andersen also noted more players were in the "winner" category than after the Colorado State game.
"Our champions list is not gigantic," Andersen said. "It was a nice list again, (but) not as many as we would like. Hopefully, that continues to grow."
*** Andersen is still looking for the Beavers' offensive line to sustain blocks better. That group will get a test this week when it faces a stout Minnesota defensive front anchored by Steven Richardson, whom Andersen called one of the best in the country at his position. Kammy Delp and Trent Moore will also continue to rotate at right guard for the Beavers.
"If it was completely solidified and we had a dominant starter in that spot, then we wouldn't be splitting reps," Andersen said. "But we are. So we're looking for someone to take it over or get more consistent play out of that position. The kids are working hard at it and they'll continue to, and so will Coach (T.J.) Woods."
*** Andersen did not provide details when asked why Jay Irvine, who starts at cornerback when the Beavers line up in nickel packages, did not play against Portland State. Irvine was not listed on last week's injury report.
"You'd have to ask (position coach) Cory Hall," Andersen said. "He was healthy, as far as I know."
*** The smoke from nearby wildfires will not impact the Beavers' practice routine "unless somebody tells me that knows a lot more about smoke than me."
"Dr. (Doug) Aukerman will handle that situation with us," Andersen said. "He's just basically told me, 'If there's something you need to know, you'll know.' And right now, I haven't heard anything, so there's nothing different."
*** A week after Andersen proclaimed at his Monday press conference that he wanted the Beavers to get "more edgy," how have players responded in practices and in the Portland State game?
"I'm not necessarily saying I don't think they had an edge," Andersen said. "I think they had an edge, and when you have something that doesn't go your way (the Colorado State loss), you can prepare a little bit different and see if there is an advantage that you can gain in your preparation. So to me, that would be a little bit more edgy. I think we practiced very well, and I hope they get a little more edgy this week, too, now that they've had some success.
"You should always gain a little bit of an edge, because it's one day closer from being over also. As that takes place in a year, whether you're a senior or a freshman, it starts to close in real quick. Yeah, we're only two games in. There's 10 games left that are guaranteed and a couple bye weeks. That seems like a long time, but it's really not. We need to work to continue to get better every day and keep that edge and keep getting sharper and sharper."
http://www.oregonlive.com/beavers/i...rsen_does_not_see_dra.html#incart_river_index
