A pattern is forming with Oregon St.'s preseason football practices, where every other day has been a lot less notable than the one before. The good thing about that is nothing bad came out of today that we need to talk about, and compared with what happened recently up the road with our neighbors to the North, that's a good thing.
Washington suffered the season-ending loss of Deontae Cooper, who has suffered 3 torn ACLs in 2 years, and has now torn up both knees. This happened in a non-contact drill. Regardless of which team he plays for, or which one you pull for, its sad whenever one of these kids we love to watch suffers such a serious injury.
Speaking of knee injuries, Oregon St. offensive tackle Collin Kelly, who tweaked his knee yesterday, did not practice today, and his status is still a day to day question.
Troy Whalen, who was originally projected to be the backup long-snapper for Michael Morovick, didn't meet academic standards, so 10 players participated in tryouts yesterday, and today, head coach Mike Riley indicated that tight ends Kellen Clute and Caleb Smith, and safety Peter Ashton were all possibilities.
You know not much earth shaking is going on when we are talking about tryouts for backup long-snapper, though what has been a point of reliability in recent years could become an instant issue, and if it does, it will be a big deal.
After a business-like practice, Jordan Poyer talked about his anticipated future in the NFL. You have to get past the afternoon train's horn, but its always interesting to hear what Poyer has to say.
For fans looking for more on the Beavers, the team put out a video today focusing on the defensive line, and the preparations Coach Seumalo has them making.
Practice continues Friday morning at 11 AM, with the first full-gear session for the team. Saturday will be the first day of doubles, with a full-pads practice at 11 AM, followed by an evening session with shoulder pads only at 6:30 PM.
Andy_Wooldridge@yahoo.com