The long and somewhat messy coaching search at Oregon State has finally come to an end.
The Beavers and Washington co-offensive coordinator Jonathan Smith have finalized a deal to make him Oregon State’s new head coach.
Smith played quarterback at Oregon State from 1998-2001 and then joined the staff as a graduate assistant. He’s had stops at Idaho, Montana and Boise State before moving with Chris Petersen to Washington. He’s been an OC and QB coach for the Huskies since 2014.
Bringing in Smith ends a search that took many turns. Last week, it was reported that Oregon State was going to hire Cal OC Beau Baldwin was head coach, but apparently that fell through. The Beavers were said to have been turned down by former Cal coach Jeff Tedford. Former Beavers coach Dennis Erickson was floated as a possible name as recently as Tuesday.
The Oregonian’s John Canzano reports that Erickson or even Mike Riley could be possibilities to join Smith’s staff.
The 38-year-old Smith will be tasked with turning around his alma mater, which slipped to a pathetic 1-11 this season.
