{"id":677762,"date":"2026-01-14T23:24:28","date_gmt":"2026-01-14T23:24:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/677762\/"},"modified":"2026-01-14T23:24:28","modified_gmt":"2026-01-14T23:24:28","slug":"qa-oregon-state-coach-jamarcus-shephard-on-staff-departures-ai-the-state-of-college-football","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/677762\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A: Oregon State coach JaMarcus Shephard on staff departures, AI, the state of college football"},"content":{"rendered":"

CORVALLIS \u2014 The hallway toward JaMarcus Shephard\u2019s office is lined with laminated plaques honoring Oregon State<\/a> football players in the NFL: Brandin Cooks, Johnny Hekker and Nahshon Wright, to name a few.<\/p>\n

Current players wait in the lobby for assistant coaches to finish up their staff meeting. But one of the offices is dark, appears untouched, and is not likely to be used even once that meeting ends. It belonged to defensive coordinator Lance Guidry.<\/p>\n

After less than a week since his hire was announced by the team, the former Miami assistant Guidry is leaving OSU for the same job at Memphis. He is the second recently hired Beavers assistant to unexpectedly bail on Shephard in the last month for a presumably better-paying job.<\/p>\n

Inoke Breckterfield \u2014 whose name is immortalized in the facility as one of OSU\u2019s all-time great defensive players \u2014 left for Utah. His coaching nameplate has already been taken down from outside his very brief time in an OSU office.<\/p>\n

The typically energetic Shephard had tired eyes on Monday. Seated in his office overlooking Reser Stadium, he expressed gratitude that the transfer portal window was coming to a close soon, and determination that his program would weather the storm of losing multiple assistant coaches in this moment.<\/p>\n

The Oregonian\/OregonLive sat down for a wide-ranging interview with Shephard. Readers can find part one of our conversation here<\/a>, and the rest below, edited for length and clarity.<\/p>\n

Ryan Clarke: It\u2019s a never-ending wave of challenges in your business, but how have you navigated the challenge of losing two assistant coaches to other jobs right after they started?<\/p>\n

JaMarcus Shephard: I mean, it\u2019s really not much different than the players. I want guys here who want to be here. That\u2019s what I focus on, and making sure that I don\u2019t lose the integrity of what was the whole intent of the guys that we\u2019re gonna bring into this program. And it\u2019s that they be elite human beings first. I\u2019m not gonna bring people in this program that I feel like are gonna embarrass Oregon State, this staff, themselves or myself. I just don\u2019t feel like I have to rush, you know? I\u2019ve identified the people that are next up on the list before any of this even happened. So, now it\u2019s just a matter of making that final decision. I think that we\u2019re in a great spot when it comes to that piece of it. I have great people on this staff. People want to come work with me because I have good relationships with people across the country.<\/p>\n

Do you plan to hire a new defensive coordinator, or keep that internal with who\u2019s already here?<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t comment on that.<\/p>\n

A lot of young talent returning on the defensive side of the ball, particularly in the secondary. What is your impression of that group?<\/p>\n

I think we\u2019ve got a great young defense right now that I\u2019m excited about what they\u2019re going to do. I\u2019ve already warned our offense that they\u2019re about to get their butts whipped this spring by our defense. And I\u2019m excited to see what those young DB guys can do. They\u2019ve got some work to do because they haven\u2019t been in the spotlight as much. And so, we\u2019re gonna put them in the spotlight now. It\u2019ll find you, okay? And in the moments when you don\u2019t prepare for the spotlight, it\u2019ll find you regardless. So, I\u2019m just trying to help prepare them now. So that when the spotlight\u2019s on, they\u2019re ready to play at their best. Really excited about where we\u2019re at, especially in that secondary. I think we\u2019ve got some really good pieces in the secondary.<\/p>\n

Aiden Sullivan is a guy coming back at the linebacker spot who could captain your defense. What have you seen from him?<\/p>\n

I think that linebacker room is a good group that clicks well together. I think they\u2019ve got a good relationship with each other. It\u2019s their turn. Next man up. Let\u2019s get after it. I started my career coaching the defensive backs and on the defensive side of the ball. So, I think that in that linebacker room, we\u2019ve got a bunch of really good talent in that linebacker room. They\u2019re hungry to show what they\u2019re capable of.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re obviously someone who relates well with people and is a communicator, but so much of what is happening for you right now is transactional. How badly are you itching to get out in the community and start selling the vision of this program in more personal ways than you\u2019ve been able to?<\/p>\n

Well, I don\u2019t necessarily see it as selling. I mean, it\u2019s really just delivering it. It\u2019s funny because I\u2019ve sat in this room where we\u2019re at now and I\u2019ve said to these parents, \u2018How do you know that what I\u2019m saying, I\u2019m gonna be able to bring it to fruition?\u2019 How do I know that? How do you know? And it\u2019s it\u2019s really because it\u2019s what I\u2019ve been saying my whole career. It\u2019s never been transactional for me. This whole experience as a collegiate coach has been about transformation. Transforming young men\u2019s lives into the life that they see for themselves for the long haul. You come walking in the halls already, our athletic director Scott Barnes said it\u2019s good to see a lot of smiling faces and whatnot walking through the halls.<\/p>\n

For sure. The energy seems more positive.<\/p>\n

And you can have fun, but we\u2019ve also got to win. We\u2019ve got to teach them how to be winners. And not just on Saturdays, but to win in all things in life, you know? I\u2019m in it, okay? I\u2019m an example. I am winning life. Nobody can tell me different. I am winning at life, okay? And if people knew my story, and for me to be sitting right here where I am right now, it\u2019s like, no, these two things cannot happen. (Laughs) And so, I try to win every day, every single day. We\u2019ve got to get these guys to win every day.<\/p>\n

That is something I wanted to ask you about. How does your story as someone who grew up with food insecurity, wondering where his next meal might come from, shape your desire to positively impact young men\u2019s lives?<\/p>\n

You know what? Every school that I\u2019ve ever coached at, the players are complaining about the food. (Laughs) Every single school. One of the places I was at, we had crab legs, we had steak, lobster tail. And players wouldn\u2019t eat it. They wouldn\u2019t touch it. But what you need to understand is, no place and no situation is perfect. It\u2019s about being able to go out there and have grit through the imperfection that life gives you. You need to expect that every day is going to present a challenge for you, some type of adversity for you. Every single day. How are you going to respond to it?<\/p>\n

That, to me, is at the essence of these young people\u2019s lives. With the advent of this transfer portal and the NIL, rev share thing that we\u2019re doing. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I\u2019m really happy for them. They deserve it. And it\u2019s not their fault. A bunch of grown men and women got in a room somewhere, probably in Indianapolis, and they finally signed off on saying, \u2018Hey, we\u2019re gonna let these kids do this.\u2019 Then everybody wants to get mad at the kids because they\u2019ve been told they\u2019re allowed to do it. But at the same time, I think we\u2019re teaching them that they don\u2019t have to go through adversity as much.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t get my first car until I graduated college and got a job and was able to go buy that first car. Some of these kids are driving around in some really nice cars. And that\u2019s okay. But how did I get around? How do you be resourceful in life, when all this is over? What do you do when you and your wife are actually getting into an argument? Do you go get in the transfer portal and get a divorce?<\/p>\n

Right. There are certainly life lessons that apply to their situation.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re teaching them right now to never deal with adversity. I\u2019m gonna help our players be able to handle that the right way. I always say this: How you do anything is how you do everything. So, if you can handle that adversity here, going through this portal situation, you can go through, \u2018Hey, my rent needs to be paid, My mom is sick. How do I help her with this?\u2019 You\u2019re gonna have some adversity out there on Saturdays when Texas Tech is here in Corvallis. It\u2019s 3rd and 7 and we\u2019ve got to get a stop to win the game. You\u2019ll be able to handle that adversity. And it all goes hand in hand. If you don\u2019t clean your room properly, make your bed, it\u2019s just showing laziness. And that laziness is going to show up out there on a football field.<\/p>\n

This institution has been through its share of adversity, too. Things completely out of its own control. That has left a lot of fans feeling cynical about the future of the football program. What would you say to them?<\/p>\n

Well, this is this college football. There\u2019s nothing to me that I\u2019m cynical about with college football. Guess what? You know what\u2019s cynical? When college football is over with and you gotta watch everything else, and there\u2019s no more games coming up. We should be excited, man. We should be overjoyed. We should be fired up. We should have an intensity about us, a love, a passion, a desire to enjoy college football at all levels. My college receiver coach just won the national championship in Division III as the head football coach at University of Wisconsin-River Falls. And I was super excited for him. It\u2019s college football at its purest.<\/p>\n

No matter the situation that we\u2019re in right now as a program, we\u2019re not about to sit back here and talk about all the problems. Let\u2019s worry about solutions, okay? Let\u2019s go win some games. Let\u2019s fill the stands up. So then, guess what? When some representative comes by here and sees, oh, shoot, Oregon State, their stands are filled every single game. You want to make it to a bigger Pac-12 or something else? You make sure the stands are filled. Make sure we\u2019ve got a bunch of good players on our roster so that we can keep winning.<\/p>\n

People need to understand: this place is respected around the country. When I started calling around asking people, \u2018Hey, what do you think about going to Oregon State?\u2019 They\u2019re like, \u2018Yes, that\u2019s a great place, Shephard. That is a great place to go.\u2019 I couldn\u2019t be more grateful to be here. I hope the people that love this place and cherish this place are grateful that we get a good program that is gonna get a chance to go out there and showcase that.<\/p>\n

Maybe this is pie in the sky, but one thing people have brought up on message boards and social media is the idea of pursuing partnerships with Nvidia and Jensen Huang<\/a>. What do you think about that?<\/p>\n

(Speaking into phone) Jensen, if you ever want to talk football with me, I\u2019m all in, okay? I\u2019m all in.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s not listening. Probably.<\/p>\n

No, it\u2019s been fun to really do some research and get to know his company. We had a few folks from (Nvidia) already in the building, talking to them about ideas we\u2019ve had and how we can collaborate and utilize some of the things that they do to make our process easier. Make the processes here a lot more seamless. The biggest problem sometimes is coaches, they want to hold everything in. They don\u2019t want people to get ahold of their information. And that\u2019s one of the biggest fears of them. I\u2019ve told some of their representatives that, hey, I\u2019m ready to open up the doors, open up the floodgates, and allow our program to be \u2014 not the guinea pig \u2014 but to be the first program to really utilize this technology in AI to really push the envelope and help us with our processes and whatnot.<\/p>\n

I think they (BVR ST CO<\/a>) have an idea and a concept that they are wanting us to help them with, and we\u2019re gonna try our best to help them with it. Hopefully that gives us a good chance to partner with (Nvidia). At the end of the day, it\u2019ll be beneficial to us regardless. Whatever Jensen chooses to do, it\u2019ll be beneficial for us.<\/p>\n

But certainly you see how one individual can change the whole trajectory of a football program. I mean, you\u2019re seeing it at Texas Tech. You\u2019re seeing it from that team that\u2019s in this same state that we\u2019re in. One person has pretty much changed the trajectory of that program. And I hate to say it, but it wasn\u2019t like they all started to become better coaches over there. It wasn\u2019t like they all of a sudden became better evaluators of talent over there. And it wasn\u2019t like all of a sudden they became better at developing. The acquisition and investment piece of it, that\u2019s what changed. And so, I\u2019m all for it.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m married to an OSU engineering alum. She feels this way, but I think that whole \u2018spirit of innovation\u2019 is something that a lot of people in this community are incredibly proud of.<\/p>\n

Talking to Pat Reser \u2014 and I\u2019ve said this multiple times \u2014 she was great when I talked to her. She just sees this place as a place of excellence, and I couldn\u2019t agree more. You start to get around more, you start to realize this love of excellence that has been obtained here. And so, why not absorb some of that excellence into the football program or into the athletics programs as well? I mean, baseball has a level of excellence that is pretty damn impressive. People know when you come and play baseball against this Oregon State team, you better have your bats ready. And wrestling, man, thoroughly enjoyed seeing it in the wrestling program. Oregon State has had that in football, too. People have been terrified to come play in Reser. It\u2019s a great venue, man.<\/p>\n

Read part one of The Oregonian\/OregonLive\u2019s Q&A with JaMarcus Shephard here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CORVALLIS \u2014 The hallway toward JaMarcus Shephard\u2019s office is lined with laminated plaques honoring Oregon State football players…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":677763,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2026],"tags":[19862,331,7,4599,1569],"class_list":{"0":"post-677762","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-football","8":"tag-beavers-football","9":"tag-college-football","10":"tag-football","11":"tag-oregon-state-beavers-football","12":"tag-osu-football"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115896035880964934","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677762","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=677762"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/677762\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/677763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=677762"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=677762"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=677762"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}