3 Things We Learned From Oregon State's Week One Win Over Idaho State
With a win over Idaho State to open the 2024 campaign this past weekend, some of the questions swirling about the Oregon State football team now have answers. Of course, there are plenty more things still to learn about this team, but that knowledge will come in time as the Trent Bray era progresses.
Here's what we learned about Bray's squad in the 38-15 opening win.
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We're going to see more of Gabarri Johnson
After a strong fall camp, redshirt freshman quarterback Gabarri Johnson saw some time off the bench in relief of starting quarterback Gevani McCoy. Johnson broke off an 11-yard gain on a designed run with Anthony Hankerson as the lead blocker. After the game, Bray said of the Tacoma product "Gabarri we wanted to get in and we were able to get him in and he he displayed some of the skills of why we're so excited about his future."
Run, run, then run some more
Those that followed the program over the summer were not necessarily surprised, but the run game proved to be Beavs' best asset on Saturday. Jam Griffin and Colorado transfer Anthony Hankerson combined for 315 yards and four touchdowns. OSU's two quarterbacks combined for just 14 pass attempts compared to 58 carries on the ground. Griffin and Hankerson clearly believe in each other and believe in how OSU's offensive line matches up with the opponents on their schedule.
The defense wants to be better
Despite grabbing two interceptions against last years best FCS passing offense, it's clear Oregon State was not satisfied with a defensive performance that included 311 yards allowed and saw Idaho State take a two-point lead into the second quarter. Redshirt junior defensive back Skyler Thomas said "defensively, you know, had some good plays out there but a lot of stuff that we need to work on. So I mean if I was to give it on a scale of 10 I'll probably go a five. Room for improvement." The Beavers face a San Diego State offense next week that scored 45 points against FCS Texas A&M Commerce on Saturday.
Joe Londergan joined the SI brand in 2023 with G5 Football Daily. With over 15 years of experience in covering and working directly in college and pro sports, Joe's expertise has been featured in Front Office Sports, SB Nation, and XRAY.FM. He is a member of both the Football Writers' Association of America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association. Joe holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Louisville and a master's degree in sports administration from Seattle University. Outside of his writing career, Joe enjoys golfing, although he admits that while he hits driver decently, his short game is a liability.