With the hectic first few months of the offseason nearly over, the Oregon State football team took to the field Thursday for its first official spring practice for light drills and walk-throughs.
The Ducks practiced in jerseys and shorts during the practice period, when media was allowed, and were joined by new players like quarterbacks Dillon Gabriel and Dante Moore, as well as coaches in their first official capacity this spring. Dozens of rookies who practice together also participated.
As in recent years, the Ducks will train on Thursday and practice again on Saturday before going on a two-week hiatus for spring break before returning on April 2 for a more full-time practice schedule.
“There's always good energy on the first day of practice, but we have a lot of things to clean up,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “We want to continue attacking technically. It's good to see these young guys pick it up. A walk-through like this heading into spring ball gives us an opportunity to move forward and practice We will have a meeting later and we will be able to work on the same with the players.”
Gabriel and Moore took center stage Thursday as the new faces of the Oregon State offense as Bo Nix heads to the NFL after Tuesday's pro day at the Moshofsky Center.
Dillon Gabriel and Dante Moore take center stage at Oregon State's spring practice
Gabriel is a sixth-year player who started as a freshman at UCF before transferring to Oklahoma. Gabriel, who coached the Sooner offense for two seasons and scored more than 50 touchdowns last season, is playing his final year in Eugene.
Moore, a former Oregon State commit, spent one year at UCLA before transferring to Oregon State this offseason.
“They jumped into the water,” Lanning said. “Overall, they haven't dipped their toe in. They're aware of it right away. These walk-throughs and meetings have given them the advantage of figuring it out. Many from today. We're seeing growth, so we'll have to wait and see, but we're excited about the work they're doing.”
True freshman, transfer practice with Ducks
Outside of transfers, 20 true freshmen enrolled early and participated in Oregon State's first spring practice. All 20 were part of the highest-ranked Ducks class in program history.
“There were some good things and some bad things,” Lanning said of the rookie. “The biggest thing was seeing the players have energy and move from drill to drill with a purpose. We made mistakes and we will continue to make mistakes and we fixed them. It’s important to do that.”
All transfers made Oregon's roster except for receiver Evan Stewart (Texas A&M) and defensive backs Brandon Johnson (Duke) and Jabbar Muhammad (Washington). These three students are scheduled to enroll at a later date. The spring roster also did not include offensive linemen Michael Wooten and Fa'aope LaRolle, as well as walk-on tight end Kaden Ludwick.
Mr. Lanning later announced that LaRoure would take on the role of student assistant.
Running back Noah Whittington was seen doing some stretch practice Thursday after suffering a season-ending injury in Oregon's Pac-12 opener against Colorado last fall. Cornerback Jaleel Florence did not practice as he is recovering from an injury.
Lanning said treatment staff had Whittington well ahead of schedule, but he was still keeping an eye on both Whittington and Florence during the spring.
True freshmen who enrolled early include quarterback Luke Moga, defensive back Dakoda Fields, receiver Jeremiah McClellan, quarterback Ryder Hayes, defensive back Aaron Flowers, linebacker Brayden Pratt, defensive back Kingston Lopa, linebacker Kamal Motudi, They include defensive lineman Aydin Breland and linebacker Elijah Rushing. , defensive lineman Tion Gray, offensive lineman Jaquan McCloy, defensive lineman Jericho Johnson, receiver Dillon Gresham, linebacker Jackson Jones, receiver Ryan Pelham and tight end Roger Salepaga. , receiver Jack Ressler, tight end AJ Priano and defensive lineman Zadavian Sims.
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football, volleyball, women's basketball and baseball for The Register-Guard.you can contact him adietz@registerguard.com You can follow him on Twitter @AlecDietz.
