Oregon Ducks' Tony Tuioti Reveals Heartwarming Bear Alexander Story

EUGENE – After the Oregon Ducks’ first fall scrimmage, coach Dan Lanning declared that the defense won the day against the offense. During the start of the third week of camp, the roles reversed.

Defensive line coach Tony Tuioti discussed with the media how the defense is performing in camp with new offseason additions.

What Tuioti Said During Week 3 Of Fall Camp:

Oregon Ducks Big Ten Dan Lanning Tony Tuioti Defensive Line Bear Alexander Aydin Breland Matayo Uiagalelei — Oregon defensive line coach Tony Tuioti walks into the hotel as the Oregon Ducks arrive in Los Angeles ahead of the Rose Bowl Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What He Saw From The Defense During The First Scrimmage:

“I think just having all 11 guys in the run game. It takes all 11 guys to be able to stop the run. And then we got some really good edge guys that can get after the quarterback when we put them in passing situations. We can allow the front to go eat and be able to apply pressure on the quarterback and affect the quarterback. And I think that showed up in the scrimmage,” Tuioti said.

“But today, the offense got on us. And that's a testament to the type of team we have. We always talk about iron sharpens iron. This whole camp, it's been offense one day, defense the next day. I wish we responded better to what happened today. We're put in a lot of different situations,” Tuioti continued.

“We were in two-minute situation, four-minute situation. We needed to stop the offense to get the ball back. And they got first downs twice, so we lost that situation. I just love how coach Lanning continues to put us in situations where we compete. Today wasn’t our best day.”

Who Bear Alexander Is Outside Of Typical Narratives:

“As we go through the recruit recruiting process, obviously we gather as much information we can. There's the positive and there's a negative out there. And when we had a chance to sit down with him, my main focus with him is like, what are you going to do in the building?”

Oregon Ducks Big Ten Dan Lanning Tony Tuioti Defensive Line Bear Alexander Aydin Breland Transfer Portal A'Mauri Washington — Jan 9, 2023; Inglewood, CA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs defensive lineman Bear Alexander (99) against the TCU Horned Frogs during the CFP national championship game at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

“Now that's all that matters, and he's been a great teammate. He's a team-first guy. A’Mauri Washington's girlfriend had a baby this summer, and Bear called all the guys together, and they had a baby shower over his house. And now that just shows a testament to what type of teammate he is,” Tuioti added.

“He cares about the brothers in his room. And it showed a lot for him to be able to get a lot of guys together to do that for him. I think, if anything, people don't know that Bear’s here. We want to recruit team first guys, and he definitely fits that mold for us,” Tuioti concluded.

Why A’Mauri Washington Will Be Ready When His Opportunity Comes:

“He's had an opportunity to play with a lot of defensive linemen in the room that are now playing on Sundays. You go back to guys like Taki Taimani, that was a great example for him. Obviously, DJ Harmon and Jamaree Caldwell were guys that he was rotating with,” Tuioti said.

“This is his time. It's not easy to come in as a defensive lineman. It's one of the toughest positions to play. You're asking one person to take on 700 pounds at some point versus double team blocks. He's built himself up physically to be able to play those blocks, but he's got such a unique talent in terms of, it's not like a lot of guys that I've had in my career or even seen that have the ability that he has at 330 pounds to be able to run as fast as he can.”

“Today, we had a high-speed go drill, and he's running with the outside linebackers up in the front. To have a guy that big and that athletic, it's hard to find, and he's doing a really good job of understanding the defense. I see a lot of growth in the way he communicates and lines up guys. He's a guy that would definitely lean on a lot this year, and it is his time. I expect him to have a big season, and he's working really hard to get to that point,” Tuioti concluded.

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On Aydin Breland’s Athleticism:

“I go back to photo shoots during his recruiting visit, and he was doing all these ninja jumps and splits and everything else. And then out there, watching him in the softball game, I've never seen a first baseman do that. Not only did once, he did it like twice, where he's able to do the splits and catch it, but it's just a testament to the type of athlete he is,” Tuioti said.

“He's a big body. He's got position flex. Right now, we're treating him outside, similar to (Jordan) Burch, similar to (Brandon) Dorlus, then also on third down, sliding mid-side. He's got the physical traits to be able to do the job. It's just a matter of him just learning the job and even execute a high level, but so glad we have him. He's a guy that can fluctuate anywhere between 290, 305, and I'm just excited for him to see what he's gonna be able to do for us this year.”

If His Role Recruiting From The Transfer Portal Process Changed:

“When we first came, obviously, we needed to fill some positions, obviously, with what was done. The transfer portal is what we leaned on early. We feel really good about the young men that were recruited the past couple years. We really didn't go hard into the transfer portal, even though we lost Jamaree Caldwell and DJ and we feel like the young men that we have right now are where we want them to be in terms of their development,” Tuioti said.

You talk about Tionne Gray, Terrance Green, even Jericho Johnson, like these guys have completely changed their bodies and are big enough and strong enough to be able to hold a point for us and we want to develop those guys to be the best they can.”

“As far as the transfer portal obviously, people gonna look and see if that's a position to be, but at this point for us we got guys that we feel like we have the depth to be able to play," said Tuioti.

How Many Guys He Thinks Are “Above The Line” After The First Scrimmage:

“Right now, at least six guys I feel really good about, guys that can play winning football for us. Obviously, where we want to be is have as many guys as we can to be above the line,” Tuioti said.

“But I feel really good about the guys that we have right now. Obviously, we got the guys on the edge with Teitum (Tuioti) And Matayo (Uiagalelei) that have got a lot of experience with Blake Purchase. But I think this year is gonna be a season with us to play by committee, find the right guys.”

“We got Tionne Gray and Terrance Green, first, second down, big body type guys that can go stop the run for us. If it’s gonna be third down, second and long type situations, obviously you got A’Mauri Washington, you got Aydin Breeland, Bear Alexander, those guys that can go win on the rush for us inside. We got guys that are playing above the line that can win for us and it’s just a matter of mixing matching personnel in terms of what the situation is, so we can go win those downs,” Tuioti concluded.