Quick Links: Gary Payton Starts Coaching Career In Impressive Fashion

• In his debut outing as the head coach of the “3 Headed Monsters” in the BIG3 League, a new 3-on-3 basketball league, Gary Payton had to overcome a devastating leg injury to star player Jason Williams to guide his team to a thrilling 62-60 victory over the Ghost Ballers. The “3 Headed Monsters” pulled out the win thanks to a late basket plus the foul play from former NBA-er Rashard Lewis, who finished the game with 27 points.

• On the gridiron, Oregon State alum Markus Wheaton is getting a fresh start with the Chicago Bears this season, where he hopes to become a focal point of the team’s newly reworked passing game. Wheaton has some competition with names like Victor Cruz and Kendall Wright also on the roster, but the void left by former pass-catching star Alshon Jeffery could push Wheaton into a heavily-featured role.

• The Beavers loss to LSU in Omaha on Saturday ended one of college baseball’s greatest seasons on an extremely sour note. And while it’s tough in the moment to grasp the magnitude of who Oregon State truly was, D1 Baseball gave a strong look at the scope of what the team did accomplish over the past months and how it should be celebrated. For those still not over the defeat, this is some good comfort reading.

• Oregon State has been struggling a bit on the football recruiting front, as earlier in the week, Corvallis-based offensive lineman Marco Brewer committed to UCLA. On Sunday, things got worse for head coach Gary Andersen and company, when M.J. Cunningham, a three-star linebacker, committed to rival Oregon over the Beavers. Under new head coach Willie Taggart, the Ducks are beginning to make some recruiting headway, which will hopefully be quelled by a strong break-through campaign from Oregon State.

• A few weeks after we profiled three Beavers football alumni who are continuing their professional careers in the Canadian Football League (CFL), former NFL player Victor Butler had a stand-out league debut for the Toronto Argonauts, in which he tallied two sacks and a forced fumble. For a bit more reading on the Beaver alum, check out this piece from “Tip of the Tower”.

ICYMI

There’s still time to vote on our “Sunday Poll” as we let you, the readers, project what you think Oregon State Football’s record will be this season. You pick the winners, game-by-game, and we’ll give you a recap of it all, after the polls close on Monday at midnight.