Oregon State’s second fall scrimmage carries the kind of weight that can start sorting out a camp in a hurry. It’s the last fully game-like practice before the season opener in two weeks, and for the Beavers, it arrives as the 13th practice of fall camp - the point where evaluation gets sharper and the noise of early camp starts to fade.
Offensive coordinator Mitch Dahlen said this is the stage where things look more like football and less like a fresh start.
“That’s more telling of actual football, where the highs of that first week of camp are gone and you’re in the dog days of camp,” Dahlen said. “It’s a season element of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday what’s your practice like, then what it is like on game day.”
The biggest spotlight remains on quarterback, where JaMarcus Shephard has kept the door open on a close three-man competition between Maalik Murphy, Braden Atkinson and Brady Jones. Still, it would be a major surprise if Murphy - the returning starter and the most physically gifted and experienced of the group - doesn’t come out on top.
Dahlen has made clear that decision-making is the key trait he’s watching most closely as the staff sorts through the battle.
Oregon State was still installing plays earlier this week and figuring out how much of the scheme it could put on the field before the opener. Shephard said he has been encouraged by how the players have handled the mental load, and he noted that effort hasn’t been the problem.
“We’re going to get it out of you one way or the other,” Shephard said. “It’s going to be great intensity or we’re going to have more volume. Let’s make sure we have the right intensity.”
There are other jobs still up for grabs on offense, though most of them sit lower on the depth chart. The third running back spot is unsettled, and tight end has competition behind the top names as well.
AJ Newberry and Cornell Hatcher Jr. have separated themselves as the top two running backs, while Jake Reichle and Kourdey Glass are fighting for the next role. At tight end, Gabe Milbourn is the clear leader, Eric Olsen seems to have edged ahead, and DeCorion Temple and Jackson Bowers are still involved.
“We’re going to have to get them on the field as many different ways in 12 personnel, even 13 if we’ve got to,” Dahlen said.
At receiver, the depth chart is starting to take shape a little more clearly. Up front on the offensive line, the first group is essentially in place now that Van Wells is no longer eligible to return.
On the other side of the ball, Oregon State wants cleaner execution from its defense in the scrimmage. Defensive coordinator Mike MacIntyre said he’s looking for faster reactions to formations and more exact positioning and leverage from snap to snap.
“I need to see them be able to adjust to the formations quicker and better,” MacIntyre said. “Carrying it out play after play and being more exact is what I’m looking for.”
In Other News...
Oregon State's Quarterback Decision Now Puts One Big Pressure On Braden Atkinson
Oregon State has settled on Braden Atkinson as its new starting quarterback, giving the job to the sophomore transfer from Mercer after a spring competition that drew plenty of attention inside the program. Atkinson arrives with a notable rsum, including the Jerry Rice Award as the top freshman in the FCS and second-team all-SoCon honors, and he gave the Beavers a different kind of option as they sorted through the position.
Now the focus shifts to how quickly Atkinson can make the job his own, because the decision leaves him carrying the weight that comes with being the guy Oregon State chose to lead the offense. Offensive coordinator Mitch Dahlen has already singled out Atkinsons football intelligence during spring practices, and that will matter as the Beavers ask him to turn promise into production once the real games begin. [Read more 🡒]
Former Oregon State 1,000-Yard Back Could Reopen A Big Beavers Debate
Anthony Hankersons path back to college football may be opening again just as quickly as it seemed to close. The former Oregon State running back, who began his career at Colorado before making his mark with the Beavers, was recently waived by the Seattle Seahawks and is now reportedly planning to return to school and enter the transfer portal.
Hankerson is also among the players granted a temporary restraining order by a Louisiana court as part of an eligibility case that could clear the way for a fifth season. A court date is set for Aug. 31, and for Oregon State, the situation carries a familiar twist: a back who once mattered in Corvallis could soon be part of a bigger conversation about what his next football chapter looks like. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon States New Offense Is Putting These Beavers In Focus
Oregon State is spending fall camp trying to get comfortable with a much different look on offense, one built around tempo and pressure under first-year head coach JaMarcus Shephard and offensive coordinator Mitch Dahlen. The scheme is designed to move faster and put more of the field in play, and it brings some familiar coaching DNA with it, since both men have leaned on productive passing concepts before at Alabama and Washington. For a roster that has spent the offseason adjusting to the change, the new system is already reshaping which players are going to matter most.
Eddie Freauff looks like one of the Beavers who could benefit from the shift, while AJ Newberry is another name expected to see a bigger role in the backfield. The larger question still hanging over the offense is how the quarterback situation settles, since the competition remains open as camp rolls on. However that battle ends, Oregon State appears committed to leaning into a quicker, more aggressive identity and letting the personnel sort itself out around it. [Read more 🡒]