Oregon State coach Mike Riley discussed the Beavers' uneven 29-14 victory over Portland Sate, their upcoming road contest at Hawaii and more during his normal Sunday evening teleconference with media members.
How did you come out of Saturday's game injury-wise?
"Pretty good. Ryan Murphy has a little bit of a shoulder bruise, but he'll be OK to play. It's just whether or not he can go full speed in practice tomorrow. But we came out of it in pretty good shape."
How close are Damien Haskins and Dashon Hunt to being able to play in a game following their injuries?
"Both should be full go right now."
Is from Week 1 to Week 2 typically where you see some of the most improvement in your team?
"I hope so. I hope that's true. The problem is everybody else does that, too. Obviously, it wasn't always very pretty yesterday. It was a funny game. Offensively, it was sporadic. There were some real nice plays and then some real bad plays and too many penalties and miscues. Defensively, actually, after we started taking away what hurt us in the first half, we had an excellent game. I was really proud of the adjustments by the coaches and the players, and then (they) really did a nice job in the second half, in particular. And then in the kicking game, lots of good stuff there. Coverage teams were physical. Like I said, a lot of good things and some things that we have to improve on."
In years past, in a game where you had so many mistakes and penalties, Oregon State might have lost a game like that. Does that maybe say something about the potential of this team?
"It's a good sign, for sure, We have lost these openers like this in our history, because we never did recover and we didn't keep our poise and we didn't get better within the game. And so that was definitely different. That is a positive a sign. I suppose my biggest concern is finding continuity offensively and making sure we score touchdowns, we finish the drives. And we've got a tall order this week ... boy, (Hawaii's) defense sure played well against Washington. It'll be interesting."
Who were some newcomers that particularly impressed you?
"I thought (offensive lineman) Garrett Weinreich played well for the first time playing (on offense). That was a good sign. Ricky Ortiz, who got his first start, I thought he played well. Defensively, (Obum Gwacham) did a nice job, Special teams, Chris Brown and Cyril Noland-(Lewis), who have had sporadic duty in the past, did a nice job. There's some names for you."
Has there ever been any thought to letting Sean Mannion call a play when it gets down into a two-minute drill?
"What he was trying to do is there was a certain front that we saw that we were audible-ing (into another play), and it happened to be in the two-minute drill. We had the play called early and they were all set to do it, and then (Mannion) made a good decision finally in just calling timeout, because it wasn't anything that we really wanted to run the play called against. That part of it was a good, fifth-year-senior deal. He probably could have done it a little quicker. I really wondered, "What in the heck is going on?" and I didn't see the front from where I was."
Are you pleased with the way the running game looked?
"Partially pleased, I'd say. It was good, and we can continue to make sure we get better at it. Yeah, it was more what we need and want to do, for sure."
Storm (Woods) talked during fall camp about how he wanted to run stronger this year at the line of scrimmage. Did you see some of that from him?
"Yeah, I thought he had a really solid game and made some real tough runs. Made some big runs and then caught, obviously, a big pass. Had a good all-around performance, I would say."
You mentioned Hawaii's defense. What are your early impressions of that team, obviously in pushing Washington to the brink?
"That was impressive by them. I think that they are a much-improved team. Very physical team. Very physical on defense. They've got the big back (Joey Iosefa) on offense. Norm (Chow's) doing a nice job with that team, after just being there (three years). We'll have our hands full, for sure, because that's a physical football team that probably built some confidence playing the Huskies like that."
Since Hawaii is a different type of road game, does it help that a lot of your players have already been there recently?
"Well, I hope so. A lot of our players have been there and been in the stadium, all that stuff. Because of the travel, we're going over early. After Wednesday's practice, we're actually leaving. We're gonna practice in the stadium Thursday, and then where we're staying actually has a field that we'll have our walk-through on Friday. Hopefully we'll get our guys over there and get our travel behind us, so they can travel and rest."
Coaches tend to be creatures of habit. Does the different travel schedule throw off your routine?
"After Wednesday's practice, it will throw it off. But you've got be flexible in this business. Not too much this year, but you'll encounter short weeks and Thursday games. You've got stuff all the time that you just have to adjust to and make it work. Nobody's gonna give you a pass for it. We scheduled this game and knew it was gonna be a little different, and so we just have to do everything that we possibly can, practice-wise, to maintain the rhythm that we need. We figure this is the best way to do it."
Is this game good for recruiting and for the fan base in Hawaii?
"It's been a good series with them, for the fact that we recruit there and families are there that we're a part of. We're gonna continue to recruit there, so it's good for us that way. And then through that, through our history, I think we built up a good fan base. And it's obviously a good place for our fans to go."
Are you surprised at Brandin Cooks' early NFL success? Many are talking about him as a breakout player.
"Not really a surprise. I think the team that picked him (the New Orleans Saints) knew what they were getting and how they were gonna use him. When you take a guy that high, you've got to have good plans for him. I think this is a good organization, well-coached team that liked what they saw in Brandin. I haven't seen much of him myself, but everybody's talking about how much they're talking about him and how well he's done. I guess I would say I'm not really surprised, just because I think probably it was a very good, thought-out plan to get him. And the guy is very coachable, so he'll do whatever they want him to do."
Obviously, nobody will replace Cooks. But did Victor Bolden take a positive step Saturday?
"Yeah, he did a lot of things. I like Victor a lot. He's a good football player. He's tough and he's smart and I think he'll continue to grow."