Oregon St. kicked off spring drills, and the persistent wet weather in western Oregon drove the Beavers inside, working more than the scheduled 2 1/2 hours in the Truax Indoor Facility.
Oregon St. coach Mike Riley started early and stayed late, with the search for a rushing game a priority. Terron Ward worked with the first string, with Jordan Jenkins and Storm Woods following, and Malcolm Agnew still down in the rotation as he was at the end of the regular season.
"I thought they looked good, considering they weren't going to get tackled today," Riley said. "They stayed on their feet. We'll have more information at the end of the spring. We might not have a final answer by then. We have a lot of good football player there. I don't know now who is going to step up and be great."
Players must work in helmets only initially, with full pads not going on until Saturday's session, and so not much that happened really met with any resistance.
"A lot of vanilla stuff," Riley admitted.
RB Jovan Stevenson and WR Jordan Bishop, both rehabbing injuries, were out for drills, and ran on the sideline, though they didn't participate in the simulated contact and change of direction work.
Recently suspended players Malcolm Marable, Sean Martin, and Mishawn Cummings have all been reinstated, having attended to their off-field affairs, and participated in drills, but several other players did not.
Redshirt freshman DT Desmond Collins broke a bone in his foot playing basketball recently, the same thing that cost Bishop his spring last year. Collins has already had surgery, and was on crutches at practice, looking and learning, but obviously out for the spring. Riley said Collins will be ready come time for fall camp.
Two new suspensions have been handed out, sidelining redshirt freshmen WR Tyler Trosin and DE Akeem Gonzales for unspecified violations of team rules.
It was also the first look at the team for new secondary coach Rod Perry, and former Beavers Kyle DeVan and Trent Bray, who will be Graduate Assistants this year, also returned to the program.
Incoming freshman TE Caleb Smith has enrolled for spring term, and is participating in spring drills as well.
"You would not know he's a senior in high school," Riley said of Smith. "With 15 (spring) practices, a summer to work out and fall camp, I don't know why he can't be in the mix when we get to the games."
Here's Riley after practice as recorded by the Gazette-Times:
Practice continues Thursday afternoon at 2:45, or possibly a little earlier, and they are open to the public.
Andy_Wooldridge@yahoo.com