For the third time this offseason, head coach Mike Riley has been forced to deal with the loss of a player expected to start in 2010. And, worse yet, all three are on the defensive side of the ball.
This time around, it’s defensive end Matt LaGrone who’s left a hole in Oregon State’s depth chart.
According to Riley, LaGrone decided to leave the football program due to personal reasons. The senior-to-be is married and his wife lives in Reno. The distance between himself and his wife was too much for the lineman to deal with, so he informed Riley of his decision during a meeting before practice began this afternoon.
“From his viewpoint, it was a wise decision about what he needs to do with his family,” Riley said according to The Oregonian. “I think he decided that (being separated) was not the best way to go. ... it came down to the fact he didn’t think he could make this work again (living apart from his wife and playing football at OSU). ... which I admire.”
Riley acknowledged that losing LaGrone, as well as linebackers Keith Pankey (torn achilles) and starting middle linebacker David Pa’aluhi (personal reasons), is “not a good thing at all”, and that it hurts the team in the short-term.