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First it was Al Afalava, the hard-hitting senior safety who ran afoul of the law. Afalava was involved in a weird story a few months ago, where he was charged with a DUI, criminal mischief and hit-and-run charges for destroying a city bus shelter with his car and then fleeing the scene on foot. Afalava is also the guy Washington fans officially hate after his helmet-to-helmet hit on QB Jake Locker last year that could have been a disaster. Afalava's punishment for his off-the-field incident is that he will miss the upcoming season opener vs. Stanford.

But now in an unusual story, senior safety Bryan Payton has suddenly left the Beaver football program. Payton was set to be the starting free safety next to Afalava this season, listed as a co-starter with senior Greg Laybourn.

The details are still hazy as to why Payton left. The Oregonian reports that he wasn't exactly kicked off the team, and that it wasn't a football issue. The speculation appears to be a mutual parting of the ways, with a few comments insinuating that Payton was a bit of a headache to the coaching staff. He had some past issues, including being sent home from the 2004 Insight.com bowl and reportedly had some academic problems over his career.

Losing Afalava as a starter is bad enough for a defense that is only projected to return three total starters from last year. But at least Afalava's loss is only for one game. Payton was one of the few members of the defense who has actually started a game in the past, but it will certainly be Laybourn's job now.

While the 2007 version of the Beaver defense is set to be as strong as it's ever been, heading into spring ball it was hard to ignore the gaping hole in the back of the D. Replacing an all-conference safety is never easy, and OSU lost a special player in Sabby Piscitelli, the heart of soul of the defensive backfield. Not only will they miss Piscitelli's senior leadership, but he also filled the stat sheet with a team-leading five interceptions and ten pass-breakups from 2006, as well as 71 tackles, an impressive number for a safety.

There are some strong challengers on the rise, however, led by junior Bryan Payton. While Payton at 6-2, 215 doesn't have Piscitelli's linebacker-esque size (6-3, 226), he's still set to slide nicely into Piscitelli's old position. Payton opened some eyes last year with 50 tackles and two interceptions as a sophomore, and thus far has had a strong spring while cementing himself as the starter at strong safety.

The even better news is that for the first time in a while, OSU is building some serious depth behind Payton and the starter at the free safety position, Al Afalava. Senior Daniel Drayton has a lot of experience, and junior Greg Laybourn is building a strong case for playing time. And even further, there are freshman in James Dockery, Suaesi Tuimaunei and walk-on Austin Hall that are all making plays and per the Portland Tribune, they are impressing Mike Riley:

"We lost an all-star in Sabby (Piscitelli) at safety, but we feel we have excellent depth at that position for next fall."