Football Practice Report: Oct. 16
10/16/18 | Football, @GoDucksMoseley
Junior offensive tackle Brady Aiello helped block for the game-winning touchdown against UW, and he'll be counted on moving forward after an injury to Penei Sewell.
Venue: Outdoor practice fields
Format: Full pads
Two seasons in a row, Brady Aiello was a starting offensive lineman for the Oregon football team. Two seasons in a row, he entered the next fall without a starting job.
A lesser teammate might have let that affect his preparation. Not Aiello, who kept preparing as if he were a starter, and saw that pay off for the third year in a row last week, when the junior offensive tackle was pressed into action with the first-team offense due to Penei Sewell's injury.
"I've grown accustomed to being ready," Aiello said Tuesday, after Oregon's first of two full-pads practices for its game at Washington State on Saturday (4:30 p.m., FOX). "By now, it's second nature."
Aiello entered last week's overtime win over Washington after both Sewell and guard Dallas Warmack were lost to injury. Starting right tackle Calvin Throckmorton flopped to the left side in Sewell's place, Capra replaced Warmack at right guard and Aiello took over at right tackle.
The game-winning touchdown in overtime was a run by C.J. Verdell between the blocks of Capra and Aiello. Oregon's offensive line depth will continue to be an asset this week, after the news Tuesday that Sewell will miss several weeks due to the ankle injury that knocked him out of the UW game.
In practice Tuesday, Throckmorton was back at left tackle. And there at right tackle was Aiello, who didn't become a full-time starter in 2016 until after Tyrell Crosby's foot injury, nor in 2017 until the final three games of the season.
"You can tell how much character he has, and how much he loves this team and this program, with how much he still worked," Aiello's fellow lineman and close friend, Shane Lemieux, said Tuesday. "That could ruin anyone's morale; he's getting older, getting close to getting his degree, and seeing guys younger than him starting. That could be tough.
"The way he battled, and how much he cared for the team and was willing to work while he wasn't getting the reps Saturdays, that's what he's been waiting for all along. I'm proud of him."
Oregon's offensive line has been playing at an elite level through six games this season. Sewell, Throckmorton and Lemieux are some of the highest graded players at their positions in the nation, according to the analytics website Pro Football Focus. On Tuesday, Lemieux was named a midseason all-American by multiple outlets.
Aiello will be tasked with helping sustain that level of play beginning this week. UO head coach Mario Cristobal said he has considered Aiello and Capra to be "co-starters" on the line with the five regular first-team players, and Aiello has embraced that role despite being displaced in the starting lineup by Crosby entering the 2017 season, and by Sewell entering this fall.
"It doesn't matter what role it is," Aiello said. "As long as it's a role to help this team, I'll be ready."
Not to be overlooked is the ease with which Throckmorton moved from right to left tackle last in the middle of the UW game. Afterward, he downplayed the difficulty of doing so, but on Tuesday offensive coordinator Marcus Arrroyo made clear how much Throckmorton's versatility is appreciated.
"To be able to play any position on the front is really impressive," Arroyo said. "We're really fortunate to have him."
Other highlights: Dillon Mitchell had probably the catch of the year in practice so far this fall. In the first "good on good" period, he went deep against Ugochukwu Amadi, and cut toward the left sideline. Looking back over his left shoulder, Mitchell saw a pass coming over his head; his instinct would have been to reach up with his right arm, but Amadi had a grasp on his right hand, for which a penalty flag was thrown. So Mitchell turned his shoulders all the way back around toward the play, reached up with his left arm and made a one-handed catch that called to mind Odell Beckham Jr.'s famous grab in 2014. Indeed, more than one teammate yelled, "reach back like 1-3!"…
Two reps after that, Justin Herbert hit another deep ball against the No. 1 defense, over the top to Johnny Johnson III for a touchdown of about 45 yards. … In a "good on good" 7-on-7 period, Herbert nearly hit yet another deep ball, to Brenden Schooler, but Jevon Holland swooped in to break it up. … In a team period against scouts, La'Mar Winston Jr. had an interception and Holland forced a fumble that Kaulana Apelu jumped on. … Cyrus Habibi-Likio got the bulk of the carries for the No. 1 offense in the final "good on good" team period and was running really well.
Other observations: Pass-rush drills included good back-and-forth between Popo Aumavae and Alex Forsyth. On one rep, Aumavae really went out of his way to get low in his stance, and used that leverage to drive Forsyth back before shedding him on the way to a sack. When they matched up again, Forsyth set a stronger base, held Aumavae at bay and then drove him to the turf and Aumavae tried to wriggle loose and lost his balance. … Speaking of defensive linemen, Andrew Faoliu was back working with the scout team Tuesday after spending last week with the travel squad. But he looked really good in his reps during pass rush. … With a rowdy crowd anticipated in Pullman on Saturday, the Ducks cranked up the volume of the music for some drills Tuesday, and both sides of the ball really stressed details in terms of pre-snap cadence.
Post-practice interviews:
Offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo
Junior offensive lineman Shane Lemieux
