Monday, Oregon State interim head coach Robb Akey took a moment of his final weekly presser to crack wise about a coaching portal. On closer inspection, Akey’s
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Is Brent Vigen ready to leave Montana State?
Montana State head coach Brent Vigen, a disciple of North Dakota State program-builder
Craig Bohl, has built his own a perennial FCS title contender: his Bobcats just clinched their third Big Sky conference championship over the past four seasons, and their fifth consecutive FCS playoffs berth.
It’s understandable why Scott Barnes and his search committee see potential in Vigen: Montana State, like Oregon State, is a state school in a rural town. If he can win at Montana State, he can win at Oregon State. However, Vigen has heard this same pitch before: last season’s coaching carousel saw Vigen draw interest from
Fresno State, and
Washington State, but he had a compelling reason to turn them down. Vigen’s eldest son Jake is a redshirt sophomore defensive end, and his middle son Grant is a true freshman quarterback, both clad in Bobcat blue & gold. Few coaches would pass up a potential national title, and even fewer would walk out on their own family. If the Beavers are really serious about Vigen, they might need to wait for him.
When does Oregon State want to announce?
Officially, the transfer portal opens back up on January 2nd. Unofficially, coaches and their intermediaries are likely scheming behind the scenes to woo student-athletes. Oregon State heir-apparent quarterback
Tristan Ti’a should receive interest from other schools, as should two-year starting middle linebacker Dexter Foster, textbook
size & speed wide receiver Eddie Freauff, lengthy true freshman corner Trey Glasper, and others.
The pace of Oregon State’s hiring process - assembling a search committee and lining up interviews before the regular season ends - suggests that the Valley Football Center understands time is of the essence. The sooner the Beavers hire their coach of the future, the better chance they have of fending off a horde of poachers pursuing their best players. An announcement as soon as Sunday morning, following the conclusion of the Beavers’ season Saturday in Pullman, would give the new hire a head start.