Following the Oregon State Beavers’ loss to UNLV on Saturday night, head coach Trent Bray discussed his team’s performance during a postgame news conference with reporters.
Here’s a transcript, edited for brevity and clarity.
Bray: Yeah, that’s not the outcome we wanted. We made too many mistakes on our own, especially in the third quarter. When you’re up against a strong team like UNLV, it becomes difficult to bounce back. I admire their effort; I never doubted that. However, we need to cut out the self-inflicted errors that have been hurting us over the past few weeks
Q: Trent, what did you notice about your offense in the second half that wasn’t functioning well?
Bray: I believe that’s the case. We turned the ball over in critical areas, giving them scoring chances, and we didn’t protect as well as we usually do, resulting in sacks. These are mistakes we could have avoided
Q: Did you notice any changes in UNLV’s approach?
Bray: No, they’re solid. Their pass rushers applied pressure, and we need to stay focused at all times when facing a strong team. We can’t afford to have those lapses, and that’s what happened
Q: This marks three consecutive weeks where you’ve lost a first-half lead. How concerning is that as you look ahead to the remainder of the season
Bray: You never want to give up a lead. In college football, things can shift quickly, and close games often see leads change hands. We just need to stay focused, even though we got a bit off track.
Q: There were certainly some positives, especially from the secondary, which did a solid job against UNLV’s passing game. Can you talk about the players who have stepped up during the injuries?
Bray: Absolutely, I saw a lot of solid plays in the secondary. Exodus Ayers, a true freshman who hasn’t seen much action this season, really stepped up in the second half. Andre Jordan also kept making plays, which is fantastic. There are definitely players showing continuous improvement
Q: How significant do you think the blocked punt at the end of the second quarter was in shifting momentum?
Bray: It was crucial. It allowed them the chance to score a field goal, which could have put them ahead by four points. Instead, they only led by one at halftime. It wasn’t ideal. I did appreciate that we managed to stop them and prevent them from fully taking advantage during that key stretch. Still, it was a setback.
Q: What are your thoughts on Gevani (McCoy)’s performance, especially with his drive at the end?
Bray: He made the necessary throws, and we moved the ball well—though we ultimately ran out of time.
Q: Following last week’s game at Nevada, what did you notice about the run defense today?
Bray: I thought the run defense was definitely improved. We still have room for growth, but it was good to see progress in that area, and we need to keep building on it
Q: Trent, just two minutes ago, you scored. How much consideration did you give to attempting an onside kick at that moment?
Bray: We did consider it. However, with the two-minute timeout still available and having all three timeouts left, we felt confident about kicking it deep and getting the ball back.
Q: Did you get a chance to review that last play of the game?
Bray: I haven’t seen it yet. I wanted to before coming in here, but I think it’s probably for the best that I didn’t.
Q: You fought hard and had a shot at the end, but that makes it two losses in a row. What do you say to your team to prevent this from spiraling?
Bray: We need to learn and grow from every win and loss. I think we made progress since last week against a strong UNLV team, but there are definitely lessons to take away because we could’ve controlled some of the mistakes that happened tonight. We need to focus on the aspects we can control and address those issues.
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