Jonathan Smith on Monday made it clear that he was not making a change at quarterback after Oregon State’s 38-35 loss to Washington State.

It was a bit of a rough outing for DJ Uiagalelei, who went 17-of-34 for 198 yards while throwing for a touchdown and an interception, despite 61 yards and a touchdown on 9 carries. That came a week after a 26-9 win over San Diego State where he was just 14-of-30 for 284 yards, throwing a touchdown but getting picked twice.

“He did some good things in the game. Got us back into the game with a couple drives,” the Beavers head coach said, according to The Oregonian’s Nick Daschel. “Could he play better? One hundred percent. We need to protect him. We need to make some plays on the ball. And then he’s got a couple throws that he needs to make.”

While he responded in the affirmative when asked if freshman Aidan Chiles could possibly be featured during Friday’s game against Utah, Smith noted that Uiagalelei wasn’t fully to blame for his play.

“Am I saying that we love being below 50 percent? No, DJ included. But he’s not on his own. It’s schematics from the coaches, separation (by receivers) and protection, all that,” he said.