Photo by: Karl Maasdam/Oregon State Athletics
Get to Know Tyler Gray
November 08, 2019 | Men's Rowing
Before he was rowing in orange and black, he was playing center for his basketball team and playing the end on both sides of the football in high school. Tyler Gray may not have started his time in Corvallis as a rower, but once he joined the team he never looked back.
Tyler joined the Beaver men's rowing program in his sophomore year as a walk-on, looking for the drive of competition that he had been missing in his first year on campus.
"I wanted to compete again -- I had the itch," Tyler said. "The regiment of practice, the hard training, and the team environment. I just loved it, so I kept going."
The first time he heard about the Oregon State men's rowing program was on a trip to Corvallis for a basketball camp in high school. Tyler played basketball and football for Marist High School in Eugene, and at the time he didn't focus on the idea.
"I don't know. I was being a dumb kid I guess and thought 'Why would I row I'm a basketball player' man was I wrong," Tyler said. "Well a couple years later and no more basketball I picked up a flyer in the quad one day and never looked back."
Tyler, a double major in Bio Health Sciences with a pre-med option and Spanish in Oregon State's Honors College, says that his time so far with the rowing program has taught him a lot more about what it means to push yourself towards success. And he credits the team environment as a big factor on why he has been able to succeed.
"There's days when you're exhausted and have to get to class and then finish your homework and get ready for practice," Tyler started. "But everyone is going through it together, and when you see everyone else giving their all you just have to turn it on and put in the work."
His favorite memories at Oregon State are a pair of personal firsts, his first race at nationals and his first race in the varsity eight. The former because of the atmosphere at the event, and the later because of the team bonding.
"We were in Vegas and all the guys who's first race it was (in the Varsity boat) shaved our heads," Tyler said with a big grin and a laugh. "Like half of our boat was completely bald, I think we were probably blinding people with the sun reflecting off of us."
Tyler and the rest of the Beavers will compete in the Orange and Black Regatta in Corvallis at 9:00 a.m. on November 16th before heading into winter training to prepare for the spring schedule. You can find more information on the event and sign up here.
Follow Us on Social
For more information on the Oregon State men's rowing team, visit OSUBeavers.com or follow the team's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeaverMRowing, on Facebook at Facebook.com/BeaverRowing, or on Instagram at Instagram.com/BeaverMRowing.
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).
Tyler joined the Beaver men's rowing program in his sophomore year as a walk-on, looking for the drive of competition that he had been missing in his first year on campus.
"I wanted to compete again -- I had the itch," Tyler said. "The regiment of practice, the hard training, and the team environment. I just loved it, so I kept going."
The first time he heard about the Oregon State men's rowing program was on a trip to Corvallis for a basketball camp in high school. Tyler played basketball and football for Marist High School in Eugene, and at the time he didn't focus on the idea.
"I don't know. I was being a dumb kid I guess and thought 'Why would I row I'm a basketball player' man was I wrong," Tyler said. "Well a couple years later and no more basketball I picked up a flyer in the quad one day and never looked back."
Tyler, a double major in Bio Health Sciences with a pre-med option and Spanish in Oregon State's Honors College, says that his time so far with the rowing program has taught him a lot more about what it means to push yourself towards success. And he credits the team environment as a big factor on why he has been able to succeed.
"There's days when you're exhausted and have to get to class and then finish your homework and get ready for practice," Tyler started. "But everyone is going through it together, and when you see everyone else giving their all you just have to turn it on and put in the work."
His favorite memories at Oregon State are a pair of personal firsts, his first race at nationals and his first race in the varsity eight. The former because of the atmosphere at the event, and the later because of the team bonding.
"We were in Vegas and all the guys who's first race it was (in the Varsity boat) shaved our heads," Tyler said with a big grin and a laugh. "Like half of our boat was completely bald, I think we were probably blinding people with the sun reflecting off of us."
Tyler and the rest of the Beavers will compete in the Orange and Black Regatta in Corvallis at 9:00 a.m. on November 16th before heading into winter training to prepare for the spring schedule. You can find more information on the event and sign up here.
Follow Us on Social
For more information on the Oregon State men's rowing team, visit OSUBeavers.com or follow the team's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeaverMRowing, on Facebook at Facebook.com/BeaverRowing, or on Instagram at Instagram.com/BeaverMRowing.
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).
Players Mentioned
Rower
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