The Beavers’ new head coach is already making key moves.
PULLMAN, Wash. — New head coach JaMarcus Shephard’s staff at Oregon State is taking shape, and it is set to include several names from his time at Alabama.
According to a source with knowledge of the forthcoming hires, Shephard’s football general manager will be Alabama associate director of player personnel Eron Hodges. Having a general manager on staff was a crucial piece of Shephard’s negotiations with OSU, and Hodges brings a breadth of experience at several high-level programs.
Additionally, Shephard is set to bring on Mitch Dahlen as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, sources said. Dahlen is currently the assistant quarterbacks coach and assistant offensive coordinator at Alabama.
It’s unclear at this point who Dahlen’s co-OC will be, as Shephard prioritizes hiring out his defensive staff first. Dahlen is from Oregon and his father, Chris, played football for the the Beavers in the mid-1980s.
Torrey Gill, a familiar face to Beavers fans, is also likely to join Shephard’s offensive staff as wide receivers coach, according to sources. Gill is currently an offensive analyst and assistant wide receivers coach for the Crimson Tide.
Gill is a one-time graduate assistant at Oregon State who also served as an assistant wide receivers coach and interim running backs coach for the Beavers from 2022 to 2024.
More names are expected to emerge in the coming days as Shephard builds out his staff and manages all the forthcoming changes to OSU’s roster. Whether additional staff or players from the Alabama program will join him in Corvallis is unclear.
Shephard’s introductory press conference is scheduled for noon on Tuesday.
