Everything you wanted to know about Beaver football, but were afraid to ask

“Real leaders show up when times are hard,” new Oregon State football coach Trent Bray says (courtesy Karl Maasdam/OSU sports communications)

Notes quotes and observations about Oregon State and the gridiron …

• Former Oregon State quarterback Ryan Gunderson will be Trent Bray’s offensive coordinator.

Gunderson, 39, has spent the past three years as quarterbacks coach for Chip Kelly at UCLA.

The Central Catholic grad played at Oregon State from 2004-07. Gunderson was never a starter for the Beavers but was highly regarded for smarts and character. He was team captain as a senior, recipient of the “Coach’s Award” and a two-time Academic All-Pac-10 selection.

Gundy spent five years in the player personnel department at Oregon State from 2010-15, then joined Mike Riley in the same capacity at Nebraska the next two years. Ryan moved to San Jose State and spent four years as quarterbacks coach and passing-game coordinator for the Spartans. In 2019 he was nominated for the Broyles Award as the top assistant coach in the FBS ranks.

I have no idea if the Gunderson hire will impact the attempt to keep quarterback Aidan Chiles on campus. Chiles participated in the Beavers’ Thursday practice in Corvallis, their first since the Civil War game in preparation for whatever bowl game they get. Seems like a good sign, but no official word on his future plans. I will be surprised if he doesn’t transfer to Michigan State.

One other name to keep in mind: Kyle Devan, who could become the Beavers’ offensive-line coach. Devan, a center from 2004-07 and a three-year starter at OSU, has been associate head coach/run game coordinator/O-line coach at FCS school North-Carolina Charlotte for two years.

Devan played four seasons (2009-12) in the NFL with the Colts, Eagles and Titans before beginning his coaching career as assistant O-line coach for the Saints in 2015. He served as an assistant or analyst at Ball State, Arizona, Michigan and Colorado before moving to Charlotte in 2022.

• I covered OSU football for the Portland Tribune from 2001-2020. In the early years, Dennis Erickson and Riley had a string of outstanding linebackers who made it to the NFL — players such as Nick Barnett, James Allen, Richard Seigler and Keith Ellison.

Bray was as good a player as any of them.

Bray wasn’t fast. He wasn’t big — 6-1 and 235, probably bulked up about 20 pounds over what he is today. But he was damn tough, and intuitive, and a magnet to the ball (Insight Bowl Defensive MVP as a junior, first-team All-Pac-10 as a senior). He never made it to the NFL, but he made his mark as a great player at the college level. “Hard-hitting” could have been his middle name.

As a sophomore, Bray was backup middle linebacker to Seigler, a first-team All-Pac-10 selection that season.

“Trent was not as athletic as most of us,” Seigler told me Thursday night. “But he became an outstanding linebacker. It spoke to his football IQ and aptitude for the game, and the way he studied to learn everything he could. He had great eyes, great vision on the field. He didn’t waste any movement. Him being there made everybody in the (linebacker) room better, too. Coach Newhouse (Greg, the linebackers coach) would speak to that. It helped us all to be a little more disciplined.”

Erickson coached Bray as a freshman in 2002 before moving on as head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.

Bray was a first-team All-Pac-10 linebacker as a senior for the Beavers in 2005 (courtesy OSU sports communications)

“I knew what we had, and I watched with pride as he developed into one of the best middle linebackers I’ve seen in college,” Erickson says. “Trent was like a coach on the field. Studied the game, understood the game, and once he became a starter (as a sophomore), ran the show.”

Riley had Bray for three seasons at OSU.

“Trent was the ultimate guy who prepared himself — watching film, building himself up in the weight room, and he practiced like crazy,” Riley said. “He played with a ton of passion and intelligence. A great team guy and a quiet leader.”

• Now Bray, 41, is head coach of the Beavers. He was asked during Wednesday’s press conference if it is his dream job.

“This is the only university I’d want to be the head coach at,” Bray said. “I’ve had opportunities to (serve as defensive coordinator at other schools) … this university, this town — there’s not a place I’d rather be. I have never had an interest in leaving this place. It means a great deal to me — the community, the friends I have, the relationships I’ve made as a student-athlete and coach. I’m appreciative for and excited about this opportunity.”

While what Bray said about the Oregon State job may be true now, it wasn’t in 2020, when he interviewed for the vacant head coaching position at Montana State. Before you suggest that Trent’s nose is growing, consider that feelings change over time. Nobody is doubting his allegiance to Oregon State.

When after the Civil War game, Smith beckoned members of his OSU staff to board the private jet to East Lansing, five assistants came along. Not Bray.

“It didn’t sit quite right with me, which is why I wasn’t in a hurry to get on the plane when he asked me to go,” Bray said. “When I was presented this opportunity, I stayed even longer and wanted to hear this out. Best decision I’ve made.”

Part of it, he said, was that “I had a sense of responsibility to this place for its care. I believe in what’s going on here. I believe in what our administration is doing, what the fan base is doing, in the athletes we have here.”

And: “Real leaders show up when times are hard. We’re in a tough situation with everything that’s happened. To me, that made it so much more important that I step into the fight and help this place.”

Bray wasn’t being critical of Smith or his decision to leave, or even how he left. If their relationship was strained by the split, I’m guessing a mutual respect will help them maintain a healthy relationship in the future.

“I’ll give Coach Smith a ton of credit,” Bray said. “He built a great program where the kids felt valued and welcome. We continue to push forward with that culture.

“What we have done the last few years with Coach Smith and the place he has left this program for me to take over puts us in a great position. We are excited to keep this thing moving and compete at a championship level, a top-25 level. That’s the expectations.… our kids are ready for that fight. I am ready for that fight. The administration is ready for that fight.

“I truly believe with what we’ve done, with the players in this building right now, we’re more than capable of getting to the college football playoffs next year. We’re excited to go out on the field to do it.”

While I applaud Bray for his optimism, the realistic side of me says maintaining a top-25 level program — and certainly making the CFP final dozen — is improbable given the financial resources that are likely to be available in the coming years.

The Beavers will play an independent schedule the next two years as they attempt to position themselves to remain a Power 5 entity. Athletic director Scott Barnes is trying to put together a schedule for 2024 that includes five Power 5 opponents, six Mountain West Conference foes and FCS team Idaho State. “We’ll have an announcement on the bulk of the (schedule) very soon,” Barnes said. “There will be a couple that will trickle in afterward.”

The only Power 5 teams on the slate that we know of are Purdue and Washington State. Word is there have been negotiations with such schools as Utah, California and Stanford, but scheduling them requires their dropping a team from a schedule already completed for next year. That’s not easy.

Bray was going to have options if he didn’t get the OSU job, incidentally. Southern Cal had him under consideration for its vacant defensive coordinator job. Other programs had their eye on him. Now, he’s not available.

• Much has been said and written about Smith’s departure from Oregon State. I’m not going to add much. I understand his uneasiness with the Beavers’ athletic future, and he’ll make enough money to take care of all his bills and then some at Michigan State.

It would have been nice if he had stayed a little longer, maybe just to see what other jobs would pop up. He was a hot enough name that it was going to happen. Had UCLA fired Chip Kelly, it could have been a natural return for him to Westwood, not far from his hometown of Glendora, California.

One thing that seemed disingenuous was Smith’s answer to a question in his opening press conference at East Lansing, when he was asked how much the breakup of the Pac-12 affected his decision to leave Oregon State.

“Not a major factor,” Smith said. “There was something brewing in me about going somewhere if the fit was right, and just being really selective on that … the more engaged I got in conversation with Michigan State, I got more and more excited about it.”

That’s poppycock. Those who know Smith well say he was extremely happy living in Corvallis and coaching at OSU. He had a stable program, a brand-new stadium and good facilities, was living in a city in which his children could be raised in a safe and comfortable environment. All believe he would have been there for another decade had not the conference been blown up.

• Barnes said he interviewed seven candidates for the head coaching position. None was stronger than Paul Chryst, who amassed a record of 67-26 during seven-plus years at Wisconsin.

Chryst, now the favorite to get the Indiana head job, had been offensive coordinator for Riley at OSU in 1997 and ’98 and 2003 and ’04. While head coach at Wisconsin, his teams went 6-1 in bowl games, losing only to Oregon 28-27 in the 2020 Rose Bowl. The Badgers went 3-3 against Michigan on Chryst’s watch. He was fired by new AD Chris McIntosh after they started the 2022 campaign 2-3.

Barnes opted for Bray, in no small part because of Trent’s ability to connect with his players.

“I’ve always put a premium on the trust and connection that a coach can make with student-athletes,” Barnes said. “Given the uncharted waters we’re navigating, that is even more important than it’s ever been. As I’ve watched Coach Bray work and have gotten to know him, it’s evident we have a new leader who values those things. The care factor he has for our student-athletes is real. He works at relationships, and it’s sincere. There’s a trust level that you don’t see very often.”

• The assistants Smith brings with him to Michigan State are Brian Lindgren (offensive coordinator), Jim Michalczik (offensive line), Keith Bhonapha (running backs), Brian Wozniak (tight ends) and Blue Adams (secondary).

That leaves Kefense Hynson (receivers), Legi Suiaunoa (defensive line), Anthony Perkins (cornerbacks) and Jake Cookus (special teams). Hynson — well-respected by players and a trusted voice in coaches meetings — will serve as interim head coach and will run the team in its bowl game. Bray has chosen not to coach in the game.

“With all the work I have to get done to build a coaching staff and in recruiting, I don’t feel I can give the correct amount of time to these players,” Bray said. “I have total trust in Kefense and the rest of the coaches here to lead them on the field.”

Bray agreed to a five-year, $10-million contract — well below Smith’s six-year, $30.6-million deal at Oregon State (he will make $53 million over seven years at Michigan State). However, Barnes has bumped up his assistant coaches’ salary pool to $4.85 million.

“Our coaching staff is going to be remarkable,” Bray said. “I’m excited about the interest I’ve had — hundreds of calls and texts from people all over the country. I’ll probably build an offensive staff faster. I can sell the defense. I know what we’re going to do there. We’ll put it together as fast as it needs to be done. “

I asked Bray whether he will retain any OSU assistants.

“I talked to a couple of them about staying, and they expressed to me they want to,” he said. “A group of coaches have committed to stay here to coach the bowl game, to finishing out this process with the players.”

For the bowl game, Hynson will coach tight ends. Joining him on the staff will be Jon Boyer (senior advisor/offense and quarterbacks) as offensive coordinator, Suiaunoa as defensive coordinator, Perkins with cornerbacks and Cookus with special teams and safeties. Filling the other spots will be grad assistants/analysts Trevon Bradford (receivers), Kayden Lyles (offensive line) Brandon Huppert and Avery Roberts (linebackers), Keanu Yamamoto (defensive ends) and Michael Frisina (special teams).

That’s not ideal, especially since Bray is stepping away from the coaching reins. At least four key players will not participate in the bowl game — Damien Martinez (ruled out after a Wednesday DUII arrest in Corvallis), quarterback DJ Uiagalelei (already announced for transfer portal) and offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga and receiver Anthony Gould, who have chosen not to play. Fuaga is expected to be a first-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft. My guess is there will be more who opt not to play.

Bray will spend a good portion of the next couple of weeks trying to re-recruit players on Oregon State’s current roster.

“That’s college football in general nowadays,” Bray said. “You have to recruit your roster every year just as hard you recruit new players. It’s painting a picture for them of where we’re going and what we’re going to do and making them feel good about the place they’re in.”

• Bray had several mentors during his coaching career, including Erickson, Riley and Mark Banker, Riley’s defensive coordinator. But nobody was more of an inspiration than his father, Craig Bray.

“The foundation of my football knowledge and the way I go about my work came from my father,” Trent said. “Just watching him and seeing how he interacted with his players, the care that was taken for them not just as a player but as a person. That’s been my model for how I move in this business.

“I’ve been fortunate to have a bunch of other mentors who were very similar — coach Erickson, coach Riley, coach Banker. It was more than just football with them. When the players believe you care about them more than what they can provide in a stat line, that’s when trust and belief are built. That’s a huge part of this game.”

The Brays and Erickson go way back. Craig coached under Erickson at six college stops, including Oregon State from 2000-02. Also: Washington State, Idaho, Wyoming, Miami and Arizona State.

“Dennis did a lot for me; he did a lot for Trent,” the senior Bray said. “He hired Trent as a GA (at Arizona State). He then turned around and hired him as a full-time coach and got Trent off and going on his career. We owe Dennis a bunch.”

What sets Trent apart as a coach?

“His energy, his passion for the game,” said Craig, now retired and living in Glen, Mont. “Coaching is something he has wanted to do almost forever. I tried to talk him out of it. His football IQ is phenomenal — he was so far ahead of where I was at different stages in my coaching career.”

If Trent hadn’t gone into coaching, what might he have done for a career?

“I have no idea,” the senior Bray said with a smile. “It’s all he wanted to do since he was a kid. He just loves the game of football.”

• Banker, now retired, lives next door to Bray in Corvallis. Banker succeeded Craig Bray as OSU’s defensive coordinator in 2003, before Trent’s sophomore season.

“My first meeting with Trent was interesting,” Banker said. “I knew he was going to be a special player. I had him up to my office. I wanted to make sure our relationship got off to a good start. I said, ‘I just want to make sure we clear the air.’ He said, ‘Hey, I’m good. I’m just here to play football. Is that all you want to talk about?’

“For Trent, football has been life, and life has been football. I see him go out in the morning; I don’t see him coming back at night. I’m already in bed. I’m sure in his office he is leaving no stone unturned. I’ve enjoyed over time watching Trent grow as a coach.”

And now as a head coach at his alma mater?

“I think he’ll be fine,” Banker said. “He is going to have to learn and grow into that. From a football standpoint — the recruiting aspect, the X’s and O’s, the energy it takes to lead a good program — he is going to be fantastic.”

Banker said “it’s a different world” in coaching, with the advent of NIL and the transfer portal. The demise of the Pac-12 muddles Oregon State’s waters further.

“In the current situation Oregon State is in, you need somebody the players love and have another reason to stay in Corvallis,” Banker said. “Not everybody is going to be retained. Some kids will leave. But Trent is a good recruiter. He gets out of the gate fast. He’ll have players, and that’s the most important thing.”

Erickson puts it succinctly: “I’m really excited for the Beavers. He can deal with all the BS that is going on right now. He’s the right guy for all that stuff. I’m excited for Trent, too. It’s a heckuva deal.”

Bray coached for Riley at OSU and at Nebraska.

“Trent is a very detailed coach,” Riley said. “A really good teacher, a great instructor on the field. He’s animated, intense. Players have a strong belief Trent can help them.”

At Nebraska, Bray was tasked with trying to recruit five-star linebacker Micah Parsons out of Harrisburg, Pa.

“Trent had a great relationship with Micah,” Riley said. “He was on our campus three times unofficially before we got to the official visit. It was due to the groundwork Trent laid.”

Riley was fired during Parsons’ senior year in high school. He wound up playing at Penn State and was Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2021 for the Dallas Cowboys.

• A close friend of Bray is Scott Sanders, the former OSU football/baseball player who coached football for many years at Crescent Valley and still lives in Corvallis. Bray drove back home from Eugene with Sanders following the Civil War game.

“Trent initially told me he was possibly going with Jonathan to Michigan State,” Sanders said. “We talked at great length. When you’re coaching at your alma mater and you have a love for the place, and an opportunity comes up as head coach? He was the right guy for the job.”

Sanders and Bray discussed the situation Oregon State is in with the Pac-12’s dissolution.

“It came down to, you don’t abandon something because it’s getting hard,” Sanders said. “This is the time you stay and fight. You have the killer mentality and take the world by storm. He knew that the whole time … but it’s good to have a friend reassure you that you’re going to be OK and you’re going to have support like no other.”

Sanders founded the first Oregon State NIL collective, “Giant Killers.” The collective was officially dismantled  this week and joined with Dam Nation, in part so Sanders can spend time with Bray and help him with the transition to head coach through the month of December.

“I’m going to help in any manner he needs me,” said Sanders, adding with a smile, “It will be gratis. Oregon State won’t have to pay me, so it’s all good.”

• Former Oregon State players seem thrilled with Bray’s selection as head coach. Joe Newton played two seasons with Bray.

“Trent was one of the tough guys, and one of the smartest defensive players I ever played against,” said Newton, a star tight end from 2003-06. “So smart, so tough, so good.

“I’ve really enjoyed seeing what he has done with our defense over the past two years. I’m very happy that a former Beaver is stepping in here. I’m excited to see what he can do. It’s not an easy situation the Beavers are in. I’m glad Trent is going to be the guy to navigate us through it.”

Jaydon Grant played a record seven seasons for Oregon State as a defensive back from 2016-22.

“I’m really excited Trent will be taking over — more than anything for those returning players,” said Grant, now a member of the practice squad for the Las Vegas Raiders. “Trent has their trust and has earned their respect from being genuine and authentic over the years, from coaching them hard and loving them hard.

“He was great as a coordinator, especially for a DB. The way he calls his defenses, you know he has confidence in you. He puts a lot on the DBs to cover, but he also dials it up pretty well. The biggest change of our defense was our ability to stop the run and pressure the quarterback. Two really big things that happened instantly with our defense when he took over.”

Grant predicts Bray will be a more fiery coach than his predecessor.

“I love Coach Smith,” Grant said. “I always will. But he wasn’t a guy who was going to give you a rah rah speech. We all would have run through a brick wall for Smitty because of who he was. We felt the same way with Bray, but at the same time, he adds a little fuel to the fire with those motivational speeches, and through just seeing the look on his face. It’s like he’s about to suit up and play.”

Richard Seigler is part of an Internet chat group that includes former Beavers Ken Simonton, TJ Houshmandszadeh, Nick Barnett, Eric Manning and Dwan Edwards.

“We’re all really excited, and relieved,” Seigler said. “We knew Trent had the possibility of being the next guy up and were hoping Scott would make the right decision.

“It’s a wonderful thing. I want to be careful not to say anything negative about Jonathan — he’s a good man and did a great job. But we needed someone with the loyalty factor, with all the things going on. … to be able to trust somebody with a deep connection to the university and community. All of Beaver Nation, we’re confident in Trent. He might be tasked with one of the greatest challenges in Oregon State, at least in recent memory, as we’re trying to transition and find our way. It’s really important we all get behind one of our own and support him.”

• Seigler is already doing that. A licensed marriage and family therapist and a certified alcohol and drug counselor with an office in Pendleton and two in Portland, Seigler has established an on-line program he is calling “Beaver Believer Support Group.”

“Jonathan was my quarterback when I played at Oregon State,” Seigler said. “He was a security blanket. With him leaving, I was going through my own emotional stuff. I’m supposed to be a professional. If I’m struggling with those feelings, I’m imagining what others are thinking, and hearing from others who are feeling the same thing.”

Seigler is hosting free one-hour sessions once a week for the next three weeks. He advertised on social media, limiting each session to 10 to 12 participants. “It literally took off,” he said. All the groups filled quickly.

“It’s a processing group for Oregon State sports enthusiasts,” Siegler said. “A lot of people are struggling with grief right now. Some people are experiencing feelings of betrayal. This is an opportunity for people to come together and share how they’re working through their difficult emotions.”

For information on Seigler’s programs, go to inrichtherapy.org.

• Oregon State’s existing NIL collective, “Dam Nation,” hit its fund-raising goal of $1 million Thursday night with a contribution from the owner of Wild Mike’s Ultimate Pizza in Clackamas.

Steve Piazza donated $24,444.44 — the “fours” a tribute to Bray’s number as a player at OSU — to get Dam Nation to the $1 million mark. That kicked in a matching contribution of $1 million from an anonymous donor.

“I looked at their website and noticed it was close,” Piazza said. “I thought, ‘I’d like to push it over the top (to $1 million) and have some fun with it.’ ”

Piazza, 63, grew up in Gresham and didn’t attend college.

“But I’m a diehard Beaver junkie, and so is our company,” he said. “I’m a big-time Trent Bray fan. I was one of those who said a couple of years ago, ‘Come on, Jonathan, let’s make Trent the defensive coordinator.’  They pretty much turned it around when that happened.”

Piazza was a friend of the late Al Reser, the namesake of Reser Stadium.

“I was in Al’s office one day years ago, looking for some tickets for a game,” Piazza said. “He said, ‘I can get you 55 seats together.’ After Al hooked me up, we started running a bus to Corvallis for games, and I fell in love with Oregon State.”

Piazza now owns a dozen season tickets for football.

“The school and program fit my personality,” he said. “I fit into the blue-collar behavior. Our business is like that. Oregon State and I are like a couple of clones.”

• Piazza’s donation is an offshoot of a recent phenomenon connected to Dam Nation. After Smith announced he was leaving Oregon State on Saturday, fans started making donations to the collective for $44 to honor Bray’s number and push his candidacy for head coach. They called it “$44 for 44.”

It was organic, said Dam Nation founder Kyle Bjornstad, who doesn’t promote personal donations, only general or team ones.

“It was not my idea,” he said. “This was not a Dam Nation-led drive. I just let it happen. It was 36 hours straight of a crazy number of donations in $44 increments. Between Monday and (Thursday) morning, we had more than 1,000 individual gifts. The large majority were $44 or variations. The largest was $44,444.”

Dam Nation has about 2,100 contributors.

“Less than a week ago, we were at 800,” Bjornstad said.

Over the last few days, Dam Nation has also received a number of $22 donations in honor of freshman quarterback Aidan Chiles. No, he doesn’t wear No. 2, or 22. He wore No. 0 this year for the Beavers.

“It wouldn’t make much sense for a $0 donation,” Bjornstad said with a laugh. “He wore No. 2 in high school. The photo he took on his official visit (to OSU) showed him wearing No. 2. So that’s what it’s been for some of our donors.”

• Finally, I asked Barnes for the meaning of this week’s Washington Supreme Court ruling that sides with the 10 departing members of the Pac-12, granting an emergency stay.

“That essentially gives veto power back to the group,” the OSU AD said. “We have appealed that. It’s ping pong now. We won the preliminary injunction hearing. We have leverage to get to the table and make a reasonable settlement, and that’s our goal.”

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