How OSU used Collin Oliver, Kendal Daniels with new roles in opener
- Sep 2, 2024 Updated 10 hrs ago
Tyler Waldrep
OSU Sports WriterFor months, Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy discussed plans to shift linebacker Collin Oliver to more of an edge role this season. To offset that, safety Kendal Daniels would slide up and play linebacker.
Of course, this was always spoken about as one of the few ways the Cowboys would use these guys. In Saturday’s 44-20 win over South Dakota State that appeared to be the only option as Oliver lined up on the line of scrimmage the majority of, if not the entire, game. Pro Football Focus placed Oliver on the defensive line for 55-of-56 defensive snaps. For comparison, PFF had Oliver on the defensive line for only 47.5% of his defensive snaps in 2023.
Meanwhile, Daniels looked like any other linebacker from a schematic standpoint and PFF placed him as a linebacker inside the box for 25-of-51 defensive snaps (49%). He also played 14 snaps on the line, which matched his entire total of line snaps for the 2023 season. For comparison, Daniels was listed as filling a linebacker role in the box during 42.8% of his snaps last season.
“They were in a lot of heavy personnel, so that brings him (Oliver) up on the edge more than what it would,” Gundy said. “They play a lot of 12 (two tight ends) and 13 (three tight ends) personnel. So there’s packages we have for him to do different things, but that side of it brought him up a lot today, and I can’t see as much from the sideline there, because, you know, he’s in the mix. There’s so much going on, but I didn’t hear anybody on the headphones concerned about his play today.”
Oliver, the school’s all-time leader in quarterback hurries, padded his lead finishing with five in Saturday’s win. Although he was a menace for most of the afternoon, Oliver recorded only two tackles, but he made the most of them with one going down a 4-yard sack on third down.
Daniels finished with a similar performance, finishing with three tackles, all solo stops, and one pass breakup when Daniels jumped a route that should have resulted in an interception.
“Very comfortable with it,” Oliver said, speaking of his changing role. “As a defense, I think we’re really good at adjusting and we’re really good at understanding that whatever coach tells us to do is probably what’s best for us and our team. So, as a defense, we understand that concept. We’re going to be comfortable in whatever situation we’re put in.”
