Mike MacIntyre on Defense: "I believe in these young men"
Last Saturday's contest versus Texas State ended in a lopesided scoreline. This Saturday, the Beavers face another tall task at top-25 ranked Boise State.
Enter Mike MacIntyre.
In a thirteen minute conversation with local media today, Oregon State's defensive coordinator beamed with optimism ahead of his team's next challenge.
"I definitely think [our issues] are fixable", MacIntyre told reporters. "I believe in these young men and we just got keep working at it. The thing is, like, with the team we're about to play, they're a phenomenal running team, and they've got two pro running backs. I mean, legit pros. So we have to be in the exact right spot. You can't reach and get them with an arm tackle. You've got to be able to get your shoulder on them. You've got to be able to wrap up, you can't be halfway in the B gap. You got to be all the way in the B gap if you're supposed to be in the B gap. So, I think that those [are] types of things that our kids understand, and we believe we can do it."
The two Boise State runners MacIntyre alluded to, Dylan Riley and Sire Gaines, have combined for 1659 yards and 15 touchdowns across 259 carries (6.4 yards per carry). What's more, they've run behind an offensive line that has only given up 7 sacks across 9 games. In contrast, Oregon State's offensive line has surrendered 16 sacks through 9 games. In his comments today, the Beavers' defensive coordinator stressed that his team must maintain gap discipline.
"They're going to run stretch, and you have to strain and fight and claw to stay in your gap. You can't give in for a second, then all of a sudden you went from holding the B gap to you're in the A gap, and then he slashes and makes it a harder tackle on the backer, or the other linemen coming, or the secondary guy. So, we have to do a better job of coaching that, working with that, understanding that."
One aid in the coaching sessions this week has been a sense of urgency in Oregon State's locker room. The Beavers have lost two straight games, and are now stuck in a four team logjam for second place in the Pac-12 Conference. MacIntyre believes that pressure has sharpened his team's focus.
"I know our guys - they had that look in their eyes Sunday - when we're talking about [the Texas State loss] and they're watching the film, and their response on watching the film was excellent: us coaching them, and showing, and working on it. I thought their response was excellent, and now we just got to go put it into practice tomorrow and through the week, and then go play an excellent team."
Oregon State and Boise State are slated to do battle Saturday afternoon at 3 PM PST, with the game televised on CBS.
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Matt fell in love with radio during his college days at Oregon Tech, and pursued a nine year career in sports broadcasting with Klamath Falls' and Medford's highest-rated sports radio stations. He currently lives in McMinnville wine country and is excited to talk about the Beavers again.