The first time media spoke with Mario Cristobal this fall, he described true freshman offensive tackle Penei Sewell as an "autocorrect guy". Essentially, when he does make a mistake, Sewell fixes it immediately.

That when combined with his physical skillset and understanding of the game, which Cristobal has also described as "beyond his years", helped him to earn the start at left tackle in Saturday's opener. And once, again, his head coach was there gushing about him.

"He just stood out as a guy who flashes tremendous potential," Cristobal said on Monday. "He’s more than just potential, he’s doing it now. He’s playing beyond his years with a physicality that’s hard to match."

That's high praise for any freshmen, much less one that made started the season opener (becoming the first lineman to do since 1997), and even more impressive when you consider he'd never played left tackle before.

Schools throughout the country had their eye on Sewell, who eventually chose Oregon over Alabama, USC and Utah. But, the belief was that he'd play the position he'd starred at Desert Hills High School: right tackle.

Yet, after mixing and matching for the first few weeks of fall camp, Cristobal felt he'd found the best fit for his star pupil.

"He just through me at left, and that’s what it was," Sewell said on Tuesday of the position change. “From right to left was hard at first, and it was a challenge. But, at the end of the day, I have to do what I have to do."

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To help gain a better understanding of the new position, he enlisted the help of the player whose role he's replacing: last year's blindside protector Tyrell Crosby. Crosby gave him tips on hand-placement and footwork. Perhaps the most challenging part in the matter was getting a hold of the Detroit Lions fifth round pick.

“I had to reach out him. He’s in the league now. He wouldn’t hit me up," he joked.

The pair bare some resemblance, according to running back Tony Brooks-James, who played with Crosby for the first four years at Oregon.

"In my eyes, he’s another Tyrell Crosby," he said of Sewell. "They have the same size, and play the same, and are both a child at heart. Tyrell is a big child at heart, but you’ve got to love him for who he is."

Sewell drew high marks from his first first collegiate action on Saturday against Bowling Green. His name was the first mentioned by Cristobal when asked about which of the 10 true frosh who played stood out to him.

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And it may ease some concerns to know that star quarterback Justin Herbert isn't remotely concerned by the youngster's presence to his left.

"He did a great job and he knows it," Herbert said. "It can kind of go without saying. We really haven’t had to worry about him all year.

“We knew he was going to go in and dominate, which he did. It was good to see, and I’m excited to see what he will do next week."

So much of an offense's success is due to the cohesion up front. As Sewell said on Tuesday, it's imperative that all five players know that the guy to his left and right will do their jobs, adding "if one person slacks, there’s leakage." According to veteran left guard Shane Lemieux, who plays directly to Sewell's right, there was no "leakage" in the freshman's debut. The Falcon defensive front stunted and twisted throughout the game, but Sewell was ready for all of it.

"He knew exactly what was happening," Lemieux said. "We didn't have to say a word to each other. I think we are just clicking. We'll work on our timing and get it down real good."

Despite the universal praise, the 6-foot-6 360 pounder isn't about to rest on his laurels.

“I’m not satisfied with it," he said. "I’m trying to do better and better. This upcoming game I want do better than the last."