CORVALLIS – Talk about your two-way players. Oregon State defensive tackle Keonte Schad once gave players at his position fits as a quarterback.
Schad, now 290 pounds, was a 250-pound quarterback as a sophomore and junior at Madison East High in Wisconsin.
As a freshman, Schad was recovering from an injury and started throwing the ball just for fun. A coach noticed Schad could sling it. The next season, Schad found himself behind center on the JV team.
A year later, Schad played defensive end when the varsity starting quarterback was hurt. Back to offense for Schad, who earned honorable mention all-conference honors at quarterback after throwing for 1,204 yards and 11 touchdowns and running for another 225 yards.
“I did pretty well. I had some decent stats,” Schad said.
Schad proudly talks about how he ran RPOs, and that he was “fast, for how big I was, and hard to bring down.”
Could Oregon State have another Jack Colletto on its roster? Not a chance, Schad said.
“I wasn’t a big quarterback fan. I like to be physical,” Schad said.
There’s no time to waste with quarterback, anyway. Schad is a grad transfer from Minnesota with one year of eligibility remaining. He opted out from Minnesota looking for an opportunity for meaningful playing time at defensive line. Who better than the Beavers, a program in a never-ending search for a good defensive lineman?
Schad struggled during preseason camp with a knee injury, limiting him to one play in the season opener at Purdue. But he’s rebounded to start Oregon State’s last two games, giving the Beavers a sorely needed boost in the middle of the defensive line.
There’s no mystery behind Schad’s departure at Minnesota. He wants to play as much as possible his final year of college. Minnesota signed defensive line transfers from Clemson and North Carolina State during the offseason that figured to severely cut into Schad’s playing time. He went through the Gophers’ spring practice, then decided to transfer in May.
Schad said he was “cool” with the situation.
“I wanted to be the guy,” Schad said.
Schad hasn’t had a linear path to his final year of college. Schad admits to booting academics in high school, which landed him at Ellsworth (Iowa) Community College. Schad said that woke him up, and he started attending classes. Four years later, Schad had a degree in youth studies from Minnesota.
Schad was a hot prospect coming out of Ellsworth, getting plenty of FBS offers, including Oklahoma and Georgia. Schad decided to stay closer to home at Minnesota, where he played in 17 games in two years.
Oregon State was a natural fit for Schad’s next destination, outside of its positional need. The Beavers recruited Schad, and he remembered the relationship upon entering the transfer portal.
“I feel like I fit in pretty well. These are great guys,” Schad said.
Schad is listed on the depth chart as a defensive end, but his preference is defensive tackle.
“I feel like I can stop the run inside and I still have pass rush ability,” Schad said.
Schad wears No. 32 on his jersey, not a typical number for a defensive lineman. It’s not to be different, but in honoring his uncle Gerald Schad. His uncle wore No. 32, and died at age 32.
--Nick Daschel | ndaschel@oregonian.com | @nickdaschel
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