Oregon State notebook

By Cliff Kirkpatrick
Gazette-Times Reporter

Watching players grow is part of the joy of coaching for Oregon State coach Mike Riley.

They develop over time and the goal is to have them playing at their peak near the end of their careers. Several are doing that this season, but one in particular impressed Riley.

Senior outside linebacker Derrick Doggett has become one of the top players in the nation at his position, and is on the watch list for Nagurski Award.

“He’s really fun to watch,” Riley said. “There has been tremendous growth as a student and player. He’s topnotch. He is an outstanding linebacker. He’s respected by every member of the team.”

Doggett came to OSU five years ago out of San Diego’s University City High. He was a standout receiver, running back and safety because of his speed.

The Beavers brought him in as an athlete. He excelled on special teams for two years before becoming a leader on defense.

Doggett was second-team All-Pac-10 as a special teams player as a sophomore and again as a linebacker last year.

“I feel I’ve come real far,” Doggett said. “At the beginning it was tough. I learned to be patient and everything will fall into place.”

He is similar to former OSU outside linebacker Keith Ellison, who is playing for the Buffalo Bills. Ellison started out as a safety, but changed positions here and it led to his career.

Doggett is a shy person off the field and aggressive when playing. However, his personality evolved.

“When I first got here (two years ago), he was really shy,” linebacker Joey LaRocque said. “As time went along he turned into a funny guy. He’s more of a clown than you think, and likes to have a good time. He’s providing more leadership because he’s opening up with the guys.”

NFLdraftcountdown.com rated Doggett as one of the top 25 outside linebackers in next year’s draft earlier in the season, but he recently dropped out.

He might be looked at as an athlete. The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder is willing to play anywhere on the field.

“I just want to go out there and play,” Doggett said. “They’ll put me where they think I should fit. My speed is a great attribute for me. It helps me a lot because I’m a smaller linebacker.”

For now, he’s looking at the stretch run with the Beavers. Being second on the team in tackles with 63 with two quarterback sacks and an interception, he’s a big reason OSU has played so well defensively.

“I have to keep showing leadership, play with a passion and help everybody get better around me,” Doggett said. “That will help us win games I want to work on everything overall, and be that complete player.”

Moevao progressing

With Sean Canfield out for the second straight game due to a throwing shoulder strain, quarterback Lyle Moevao gets his second start.

He should perform better than he did last week when he completed 10 of 22 for 109 yards and a touchdown, due to experience. There were a mix of strong passes and off-target ones.

“The comfort level will be better,” Riley said. “With his spirit, you can tell he’s having fun out there. But there’s still a burden out there. He was little tight on the short throws. That’s just playing and confidence, and I expect a higher level this week.”

Moevao felt he managed the game well and controlled the huddle. It was his first start since 2005 in junior college, so he was a little rusty.

“My reads were pretty good, but I’m still getting used to the speed,” Moevao said. “That was my first full game at Oregon State, so I had to learn how to do that.”

Record matcher

Offensive lineman Roy Schuening is expected to start his 48th consecutive game today, which ties for the most starts and most consecutive starts at OSU. Richard Seigler started all 48 games of his career from 2000-03.

Schuening is making a name for himself in the NFL draft. ESPN’s Mel Kiper, Jr., considers him the No. 4 senior guard in the country and NFLdraftcountdown.com rates him No. 2.

Serna scoring

Senior place-kicker Alexis Serna can become OSU’s all-time scoring leader today. He’s four points behind record holder Ken Simonton (1998-01), who has 366. Serna is 28 behind Pac-10 career leader John Lee (1982-85) of UCLA.