CORVALLIS — For nearly half a decade, Joshua Gray has anchored Oregon State's line as the program's starting left tackle.
But after an offseason that featured wholesale changes up and down the roster, the Beavers' star veteran is making a substantial change of his own.
Gray, a four-time all-conference selection, is making the shift to the interior offensive line this fall. It's a move that could prove to be beneficial for his long-term professional outlook, and could also boost OSU's offensive front as it aims to replace four starters from last year's Joe Moore Award semifinalist unit.
"I started hearing talks about it last year. Before that, I thought I was cool — and then (NFL scouts) found out I have short arms," Gray said with a laugh when asked what prompted his position change. "So, they said I was going to be playing guard or center. ... I want to give myself the best chance at the next level. If that's where it's going to be, guard or center, I figured I might as well take a year and learn it best I can."
Oregon State is in the process of replacing last year's starting right tackle, too, after the New Orleans Saints selected star Taliese Fuaga with the No. 14 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Gone too are all-conference center Jake Levengood, all-conference guard Tanner Miller and starting guard Heneli Bloomfield.
The Beavers have also replaced longtime offensive line coach Jim Michalczik, who followed Jonathan Smith to Michigan State. Replacing him is Kyle DeVan, who served as Colorado's offensive line coach in 2022 and spent the 2023 season as an associate head coach and offensive line coach at Charlotte.
Despite the flurry of offseason incomings and outgoings, though, the Beavers' ethos in the trenches will remain mostly the same this season.
"A lot of the stuff we're doing offensively, coach Michalczik was doing," DeVan said following an OSU practice this past week. "When we're running the outside zone play; literally, when you watch his film and my film, what you want to see out of it are the exact same things. So, that part's been good. I think we're gonna run a little more directly at people, whether it's downhill, or have some pullers."
DeVan inherited a position group that boasts plenty of intriguing talent from last year's OSU squad — and also features a pair of impact transfers who worked under him during his time in Boulder. Van Wells started at center for the Buffs last season and is the frontrunner to lock down the starting job at the same position for the Beavers in 2024.
Gerad Christian-Lichtenhan, a massive 6-foot-10, 315-pound senior who played a team-high 827 offensive snaps for Colorado last season, has frequently been repping at left tackle with Oregon State's first-team offense during the early portion of fall camp.
Both Wells and Christian-Lichtenhan declined to dive into details on what spurred their respective departures from Deion Sanders' Colorado program. But both cited their relationship with DeVan as a key factor in their decision to transfer to OSU.
"Seeing the culture that they have around here; winning culture, winning team, the brotherhood that they have, I believe in the coaching staff and coach Bray," Wells said. "I knew coach DeVan from Colorado my freshman year. He was good to me. He kept it real with me. That's all you want as a player, somebody who is gonna keep it real with you and get you better."
Christian-Lichtenhan wasn't with the Beavers during spring ball as he was finishing up his undergraduate degree at Colorado. But, as soon as he arrived in Corvallis, he made up for lost time and immersed himself in the offensive scheme with the help of graduate assistant Kayden Lyles.
"(DeVan) called me up when I was in the portal and didn't offer me anything. I didn't want anything," Christian-Lichtenhan said of his decision to transfer to Oregon State. "He was just telling me, 'You need to do this, this and this, and then you'll get picked up. I was like, 'Okay. I'm sold on that.' I love him as a coach. I had a great season with him when he was (at Colorado). So, I have a lot of trust and faith in him."
Now, the player who teammates and friends fondly refer to as "Tank" has an opportunity to be an integral part of the Beavers' new-look offense during his final college season. While Christian-Lichtenhan's 6-10 frame is rather unconventional for an offensive tackle, he has found ways to use his it to his advantage throughout his career.
"We overemphasize him playing with his linear length. I think he has, like, 37-inch arms — a seven-and-half-foot wingspan," DeVan said. "So let's utilize that, right? He can touch guys before they touch him. ... You don't have to be as low as a 6-foot guy because you're going to hit them sooner."
Jarrid Denney covers high school sports and Oregon State for the Statesman Journal. He can be reached at JDenney@salem.gannett.com or on X@jarrid_denney
