San Diego State gets an inside look at Oregon State ahead of Pac-12 showdown
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Senior EDGE rusher Kai Wallin will be back in Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Oregon, on Saturday, this time with the San Diego State Aztecs when they face the Oregon State Beavers in the second game of the Pac-12 Conference schedule.
With the advent of the transfer portal, there’s certainly nothing new about a player facing his old team. Sometimes teams change so dramatically that any intel a player has on his old team might be moot.
But even a smidgen of “local knowledge” can help, and Wallin will do what he can to brief his new teammates on what it might take to beat his former Beavers teammates.
This is a big one for the Aztecs, too. At 2-3 overall and 1-0 in the Pac-12 after a stirring home win against Texas State, they can’t afford to fall behind in the Pac-12 race or the march toward bowl eligibility. They still have unsettled injury and health concerns, and the oddsmakers have set them as 14.5-point underdogs.
What Wallin knows about Oregon State
Besides passing along what he knows about his former team, Wallin can help his Aztecs teammates deal with the atmosphere at Reser Stadium, where the Aztecs haven’t won since 1975. SDSU has lost five straight in the series, which OSU leads 5-2.
“Yeah, I think just helping the guys block out the noise, right?” Wallin said. “You get the chainsaws on third down. It gets loud in there. They’ve got a great fan base that is showing out and showing up to the games this year, which is great for them.
“Blocking out the noise goes back to kind of what Joe [offensive lineman Joe Borjon] is saying about game plan and game prep,” Wallin added. “It’s to be so good that the outside factors don't really play a part in it. So, you know, if everyone can get on the same page on all three sides of the ball and be able to know their assignment through and through, front and back, it eliminates the outside stuff.”
The chainsaw Wallin refers to is the “Turnover Chainsaw," a sideline gimmick that’s used when the Beavers force a turnover or other big plays.
A homecoming for the former Beaver
“It’s going to be great. My mom will be up there. I know she's pretty excited, and we’ve built good connections and relationships up there at Oregon State,” Wallin said. “So, we’re looking forward to being able to play in front of the fan base, friends, and family out there. It'll be great.”
As for the Beavers themselves, “Their offense is explosive,” Wallin said. “Primarily a 10-personnel team. They want to spread the field. They want to throw the ball running out of 10 personnel. So, you know, you see their freshman receiver doing big things and helping them out a lot in a lot of different ways, so yeah, I would definitely say they're explosive. You have got to keep the quarterback in the pocket, make them throw from inside the well, and challenge the guys outside.”
The Beavers (3-2, 1-0) have a high-flying offense that ranks No. 2 overall in the Pac-12 and No. 1 in passing.
It’s led by transfer quarterback Braden Atkinson, who has put up some eye-popping numbers. His 1,834 yards passing is tops in the NCAA and his 16 touchdown passes are No. 2. He’s been intercepted only twice.
The freshman receiver Wallin referred to is Jesse Legree, who leads the NCAA with 741 yards receiving and is tied for the most touchdown catches with nine.
How San Diego State plans to build on its win
SDSU stunned the Bobcats despite missing several players in injuries and a mumps outbreak.
“Technique and fundamentals — those are the two main things that were kind of preached and harped on last week at practice the most,” Wallin explained. “That mantra: do basic better, we're carrying that into this week; it's not a one-time deal. As good as it is to get that win under our belt, start the conference off right; we have the mentality of, "So what? Now what?" It's like Joe said, we get 24 hours, enjoy the win, but now we're in the building, getting ready for our next opponent.
“So, we're excited. But yeah, fundamentals, technique and really just honing into our room’s DNA, being violent, setting the edge, and just doing your one-eleventh on the field.”
Wallin’s big interception
Wallin intercepted Brad Jackson deep in Texas State territory in the third quarter last Saturday night, setting up the first of two touchdown runs by true freshman Josiah Lucas.
“I was in ‘sim drop’ coverage and the quarterback read it as man coverage. He was reading the other side of the field and when he looked back my way he was expecting man. He threw a great ball right to me.”
Wallin made seven starts and appeared in nine games for the Beavers last year, when he had one sack, 17 tackles, four hurries and a pass breakup.
He also played two seasons at Nebraska and one at American River College.
Up next
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. Saturday.
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Bernie Wilson recently retired from The Associated Press after nearly 41 years, including stops in Spokane, Los Angeles and, for the final 33 years, San Diego. He grew up in Coeur d'Alene and graduated from the University of Idaho.