Oregon State Football

Oregon State Football: Most Valuable Player Countdown - #23 Brandon Arnold

Arnold returns for his senior year as a leader of the Beaver defense.

By Joe Londergan@joehio_ Aug 3, 2017, 8:30am PDT

Arnold will assuredly be one of the starting safeties when OSU opens the season on August 26th. Ever since he first saw the field, he’s been a solid contributor. After redshirting his first year on campus in 2013, he saw action on special teams and as a defensive substitute during the 2014 season. In 2015, he played in 11 games and started the final three of the season. He maintained the starting job for the 2016 season, save for one game, and put up some of the best numbers of his career.

Some of Arnold’s career highlights include his 2 career picks (one vs Washington State in 2015, and one vs Idaho State in 2016), a ten tackle game against Boise State in 2016, and a fumble recovery against Utah in 2016. Additionally, Arnold has 105 career total tackles to his name along with three passes defended.

NCAA Football: Oregon State at Washington State — Arnold picked up his first career interception against the Washington State Cougars in 2015.

Now, with Oregon State losing some of last year’s defensive backfield to the NFL, Arnold knows he’s in for a bigger leadership role as a returning veteran. He’s shown some good signs in spring ball and in camp. In an article from March, The Oregonian looked at the difference that new defensive backs coach John Rushing has made in Arnold’s mental game.

"Coach Rushing has locked a new gear for us to come out here and be engaged," Arnold said. "I feel like everybody's picked it up intensity-wise."—Brandon Arnold, via The Oregonian, March 9th 2017

If the Beavers hope to improve upon last season that saw them rank 44th nationally in passing defense, the 5’11”, 205 pound safety knows that he will have to be a big part of it.