Oregon State coach Dan Lanning said he wants his team to be ready to play in any weather conditions.
On Saturday, the Ducks had a chance to prepare for the cold and rain when they went inside Autzen Stadium for their first scrimmage of the spring practice season.
The scrimmage was closed to the media and public, but Lanning said the offense looked good in the beginning, the defense was better in the second half, and admittedly a game that regularly rained heavily was difficult to play. Ta.
“It certainly made things difficult,” Lanning said. “We did a good job of protecting the ball, but it definitely made it difficult to throw the ball effectively in the second half of the scrimmage. That's when our running game has to shine, so we had a balanced game. We want to be a team.”
The scrimmage took place two weeks before the Ducks close out spring with their annual spring game.
“Overall it was a good operation and we had a lot of things to attack and take away,” he said. “You'll have to watch the film to know what situation we're in, but I thought the players on our team played with good energy.”
Oregon State's quarterback had a good day.
The scrimmage was the first opportunity for Oregon's quarterback to get live reps as the race to start under center to replace Heisman Trophy finalist Bo Nix continues.
The spring depth chart has not been released, but the presumed QB1 and QB2 are sixth-year senior Dillon Gabriel and former five-star sophomore Dante Moore, respectively.
Lanning praised both first-year transfers.
“On the day of scrimmage, the speed of play is even more noticeable because the pace is just a little bit faster, and I thought we both handled it well,” Lanning said. “Those two guys were able to use their legs a little bit and move around…that was a positive from them. Overall, I think we made pretty good decisions.”
But Lanning wasn't just happy with the two veterans, he also mentioned the play of freshmen Austin Novosad and Luke Moga.
“I saw some positives from all of our quarterbacks and I thought some of our young players really stood out. (Moga and Novosad) did a really good job, There were some really positive parts,” Lanning said.
Ducks have a balanced scrimmage
Lanning said the offense was able to convert with some big plays while the defense struggled to catch up early, and an unknown kicker was able to convert on a 50-yard attempt.
“I think they got their butts cracking a few times in the first half of the scrimmage,” Lanning said. “We had a sustained drive and were able to generate some success and get some scores early.”
The Ducks finally evened things out as they finished their eighth practice of the spring.
“There's always going to be ups and downs,” Lanning said. “The offense was able to move the ball early, but the defense lost a little bit of steam late in the scrimmage. … From my perspective, it was a very balanced scrimmage.”
Follow Chris Hansen on X@chansen_RG or send an email tochansen@registerguard.com.
