Tony Tuioti: "There's no better place than having your son at a place here like Oregon."
Oregon defensive line coach Tony Tuioti leads a room full of returning players but with little game experience. That is a common theme of this team this season with every room bringing in new players across the board.
Tuioti believes his room is deep and talented and only missing that final ingredient. He talked about the newcomers and the state of his room including some thoughts on his son, Teitum Tuioti, now being a veteran of this team in his third season.
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On the DL Room:
“When you do things the right way, when guys get here and produce they’re going to get opportunities to go to the next level. We have talent, but experience is what we need now. Those guys are all capable to play for us last year but we had Derrick (Harmon) and JC (Jamaree Caldwell) that were really good. But these guys are guys that can make plays. Obviously A’mauri Washington has been having a great Spring. Adding Bear (Alexander), he’s so twitchy, he’s powerful, he’s strong, he can create havoc for us.”
On Bear Alexander:
“Started off very quiet, very reserved. But he reminds me a lot of how Burch and Jamaree Caldwell were when they got here. He’s been great. He’s been awesome in the building. Taking in coaching, he’s being accountable to his teammates. He’s kind of drinking out of a firehose learning the system right now but that’s what Spring ball is for.”
On A’mauri Washington:
“I’m really excited about A’mauri. I think his best football is in front of him. He’s got strong hands but he can also rush the passer. Now he’s going to get a lot of those reps now. He’s done a good job taking on the leadership role bringing guys along and leading by example.”
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On Other DL Standouts:
“Tionne Gray is a big powerful man. He’s all of 6-6, 345 pounds. He can command four hands. Another guy that has had a really good Spring for us is Jericho Johnson. He does a really good job of being able to attack the line of scrimmage and he’s been showing up time and time again in practice. Aydin Breland has been playing defensive end for us and sliding down, very similar to what Brandon Dorlus did for us. He’s longer, he’s all of 295, he’s been able to show up a lot for us. Towards the end of the season, Aydin Breland was probably our best interior pass-rush defender. Ashton Porter, another guy that didn’t play a lot of reps for us last year but he’s been having a good Spring for us as well.”
On Elijah Rushing:
“Elijah’s done a great job putting lean muscle on his body. He’s got a great frame, he’s got broad shoulders. Elijah’s come and he’s been able to show in practice his ability to pass rush but he’s improved a lot in the run game. Very similar body type to Matayo. I’m excited about what he’s able to do. Easily 15-20 pounds, he can hold more too.”
On (son) Teitum Tuioti:
“I can’t believe it’s going into his third season here. He just turned 20. I’m just amazed he’s been here since day 1, he’s worked really hard. He was 215 when he first came, he’s 270 now. Just taking my hat off as a coach and as a dad, there’s no better place than having your son play at a place here like Oregon. You’ve got the best coaches, the best resources. You’ve got a defensive head coach that’s coached the No. 1 draft pick in his position. You’ve got a defensive coordinator that’s a defensive line coach.”
