Tight End Andrew Olesh discusses his journey to Oregon

I'm Bria Maranthus with Oregon Ducks on SI with tight end Andrew Olash. Okay, Andrew, you were at the Oregon-Penn State game, but you were on the opposite sideline. What do you remember most about that game? Yeah, I mean, I remember, I mean, both teams played a really good game. Obviously, I was on the right side of it, but I was really impressed with what Oregon had and how they finished out the game. But overall, I mean, really good game on both sides. You gotta watch it if you haven't. Did that maybe change your perception of how you saw the Ducks? Yeah, a little bit. Because I saw, you know, after they won the game, obviously, everybody was disappointed on our sideline, but I kind of, I was like, damn. You know, they were recruiting me in high school, so I was like, I could have been on that side of the ball. But I mean, at the end of the day, though, I don't regret picking Penn State. They did a lot for me. Coach Franklin, Coach Howell, all of them did a really, really good job. And it's unfortunate how stuff turned out, but I'm very, very happy where I'm at now. Yeah, what about Oregon Coach Dan Lanning's culture made you really excited to transfer here? Yeah, I mean, just how often, you know, he's a winning coach. I mean, you look at the stats, you look at the past couple years, he's been getting better and better every year. So, I mean, he just has a program I really wanted to be a part of. What have you learned most from tight end Jamari Johnson so far? Yeah, I mean, he's, obviously, he's a great tight end. You gotta ask anybody on our team. You know, I've learned a lot, just, like, the way he runs routes. He's really smooth. And that's, like, one of my biggest strengths is the passing game and just seeing, like, stuff I can learn off of him. That helps my game a lot. And he's a really good blocker, too. So, I mean, he's all around a great player. You can learn a lot from him just by watching the film. Really great player, great guy, too. What is the biggest, like, number one difference in you from this time last year to right now? I think my confidence. I think last year, that was something I struggled with a lot. But, you know, as you get older, as you, you know, develop in the game, like, I feel like the game slows down and you get more confident as you go. So, I think, for me, the biggest thing is confidence. How has it been, maybe, developing some chemistry with quarterback Dante Moore so far? Yeah, he's, you know, Dante's a great quarterback. You can ask anybody on the team. You know, he's, you know, he's good. He's really confident. He puts the ball in the perfect spot every time. Like, it's crazy. Like, you could get, like, covered like a blanket on one play, and then the next thing you know, he puts the ball in a spot that you can make a play on it. And just, you know, he's a really good player and I'm excited to, you know, keep building chemistry with him. Seems like the team really trusts him. What is he doing behind the scenes to maybe earn that trust? I mean, he's just working hard. At the end of the day, you know, you come to Oregon and if you put the time and put in the work, you're gonna develop. And I think that's what Dante's really good at, is, you know, putting in hard work. And that's why he's where he's at. Yeah. Obviously, Drew Merringer gets promoted to OC. What do you know about him and how does it feel with him as OC? Yeah, he's one of the main reasons I came to Oregon. You know, it does feel really good that, you know, he was a tight end coach last year and now he's the coordinator. So, you know, he knows how to get the tight ends the ball. So that's gonna, you know, that's a really good thing to have. He's a great coach, great person too. What is it about Coach Dan Lanning that maybe makes him different from other coaches that you've had? Yeah, that's a great question. You know, Coach Lanning, he's not just about football. He's also about like family. He's not just about business. Like he's gonna, you know, he's gonna randomly text you one day or randomly call you one day just to ask how you're doing. And that's something like, that's something I really appreciate. Like he's not just for football, he's for family. And stuff outside of football. So I'd say, yeah, that. Is there, how would you describe the tight ends room? Like a lot of times, you know, people, we can't be in your room. So how would you describe the camaraderie? Yeah, you know, we're a really competitive group and we're always pushing each other every single day to get better and better. So at the end of the day, like we want Oregon to win football games. So we're gonna do what we can to push each other and get better and better every day. Okay, I'm gonna have you finish some of these sentences for me. Oregon coach, Dane Lanning, is happiest when? Happiest when we win. Oregon coach, Dane Lanning, is most intense when? When we jump off sides. That actually really makes me laugh. That's a good one. The toughest player on this team is? Toughest player? That's a good one, that's a really good one. We got a lot of good players and tough players. I'm gonna give it to my man, Mateo. Okay, I like that pick. He's actually the first time I've heard that one today. The coolest part about playing for Oregon is? The fans. Last but not least, the Ducks can be the best team in the country because? Because we got the best tight end group in the country. I like the confidence there. That's exactly what I was hoping to hear. Okay, who is one player that Ducks fans should be talking more about, like needs more attention right now? Needs more attention, like on our team or just in general? On our team, I'd say, I mean, he's already kind of talked about, but J-Mac, he's a really good receiver and he puts a lot of good stuff on tape and I'm excited to see what he does this season. It seems like he's really outgoing and really kind of brings everybody together. Is that kind of what he's like behind the scenes? Yeah, yeah, 100%. He's got a great personality, the guy's great. And then is there maybe a true freshman that has turned some heads? Yeah, there's a couple. Yeah, we got a lot of good guys. My buddy Kendra is really good. There's a lot of guys on the defensive side of the ball. I think Traderian Ball is a running back who just came in this year. He's really good. Obviously, the guy's on the defensive side of the ball, but I think we got a lot of good freshmen coming in.