A6 BAKER CITY HERALD • SATURDAY, AUGUST 6, 2022
SPORTS
OREGON FOOTBALL
OREGON STATE FOOTBALL
Former Oregon
star De’Anthony
Thomas, left, and
quarterback Bo
Nix (No. 10) as
the Ducks hold
their annual
spring football
game at Autzen
Stadium in Eu-
gene, Oregon on
Saturday, April
23, 2022.
Beavers bring
energy on opening
day of practice
BY LES GEHRETT
Albany Democrat-Herald
Sean Meagher/The
Oregonian, File
Bo Nix settles into quarterback
competition with Oregon Ducks
BY ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press
EUGENE — Bo Nix has
seen this all before.
A three-year starter at Au-
burn, Nix transferred to Ore-
gon in the offseason and now
finds himself in a competition
at quarterback with young
prospects Ty Thompson and
Jay Butterfield.
Nix competed with LSU
transfer T.J. Finley at Auburn
during fall camp last year. He
won the job, but was replaced
by Finley in mid-November
when be broke his ankle.
Nix said it’s been the same
every fall camp since he was
a freshman: He pours himself
into securing the job.
“I wanted that really bad
obviously,” he said. “It’s some-
thing that I’ve always wanted
to do and so I put my life to it,
and that’s just what I’ve been
doing for the past couple of
years, all this these competi-
tions. I mean, you really do
have to put your life to it and
everything’s got to be about it.”
The former five-star recruit
started the first 34 games of
his career at Auburn before
the season-ending ankle in-
jury. Last season threw for
2,294 yards with 11 touch-
downs and three intercep-
tions. Known for his mobility,
he also ran for four touch-
downs. But the Tigers, under
first-year head coach Bryan
Harsin, struggled somewhat
and finished 6-7 for their first
season below .500 since 2012.
Nix joins a team that is go-
ing through its own transition:
The Ducks are embarking on
their first season under Dan
Lanning, former defensive
coordinator and lineback-
ers coach at Georgia. Oregon
opens fall camp on Friday.
Nix said that even in SEC
country Oregon is a well-
known and respected team,
which is why he settled on the
Ducks.
“The brand of Oregon, the
‘O’ itself signifies so much in
college football, year in and
year out, they have a chance to
be in the top four in the coun-
try,” he said.
“That’s what I wanted to be
a part of. I wanted to be able to
play and have a chance to play
in the playoff. And I know
that with my skills I could
contribute.”
The move also reunites him
with new Oregon offensive co-
ordinator Kenny Dillingham,
who was Auburn’s offensive
coordinator and quarterbacks
coach when Nix was a fresh-
man. That year Nix won SEC
Freshman of the Year honors.
Nix, the son of former Au-
burn quarterback Patrick Nix,
is more comfortable in Eugene
since getting married in the
offseason. At 22, he’s among
the oldest players on the team.
“Especially now being here,
I feel like the oldest guy. Even
though it’s not necessarily my
age. People kind of look at me
because I’m already married,
I’ve been through a lot, they
kind of assume that I’m just a
lot older,” Nix said. “Which is
a good thing, because we have
a lot of younger guys that hav-
en’t had same experience.”
Thompson, his main com-
petition, played in three games
last season as a true freshman
while redshirting. He passed
for 87 total yards with two
touchdowns and one inter-
ception.
But players say Butterfield,
who appeared in one game
last season, is in the mix, too.
“We’re going to compete at
quarterback like we do at ev-
ery position,” Lanning said.
“I’m really excited that we
have quarterbacks that can
play winning football at the
University of Oregon,” Lan-
ning said. “If I felt like it gave
us a competitive advantage to
tell you, I would. I don’t.”
While Nix is the presumed
front-runner in the competi-
tion because of his experience,
he also serves as a mentor to
Thompson and Butterfield.
“Bo is a natural born leader.
He’s like a coach on the field
sometimes. He’s obviously
older, he’s going into his fourth
year in college and he’s been-
there, done-that in the SEC,”
Thompson said. “So he knows
his way around the field and
he just does a really good job
vocalizing stuff like that. And
he’s a really good athlete, we
all know that.”
CORVALLIS — Oregon
State opened fall training
camp under bright blue skies
on Wednesday morning, Aug.
3 at Prothro Field. Contem-
porary football practices are
always fast-paced with play-
ers broken down into small
groups to take part in drills
timed to the minute. But even
by that standard, the players
had an extra spring in their
step, which coach Jonathan
Smith noticed.
“There’s a lot of energy,
which you expect on day one,”
Smith said.
He thought the work play-
ers had done in the offseason
showed up in their appear-
ance and performance on
opening day.
“A lot of guys look better,
physically,” Smith said.
During spring practice Or-
egon State had just three quar-
terbacks available: Chance
Nolan, Tristan Gebbia and
Ben Gulbranson. For fall
camp they have been joined
by true freshmen Travis
Throckmorton of Westlake
Village, California, and Dom
Montiel of Coos Bay.
Having more quarterbacks
available is helpful if only to
spread the throws around
during the 90-minute practice.
There are two outdoor fields
at Prothro and at times there
were seven-on-seven or 11-
on-11 drills taking place on
both fields with quarterbacks
rotating in and out.
“I thought the two young
guys — for their first day —
did some good stuff,” Smith
said.
As always, attention is fo-
cused on the potential starting
quarterbacks. Nolan, a red-
shirt junior, took over that role
early in 2021. Gebbia, a red-
shirt senior, missed all of last
season as he recovered from
injury, but is healthy now.
Smith was asked if there is
a real competition underway
for that starting job. He said
there is.
“It’s a battle and really that’s
at every position,” Smith said.
“I think it’s good for those
guys to compete and get op-
portunities and know that
each day counts.”
During the first seven-on-
seven drill, Nolan and Gul-
branson shared the repetitions
on the field nearest to the
media observers. Nolan com-
pleted his first several attempts
in a row, although most were
for short gains.
His best pass during that
drill was to tight end Luke
Musgrave on an intermedi-
ate crossing pattern which
required a throw into a tight
window as Musgrave was de-
fended well on the play.
Gulbranson completed the
longest throw of that session,
arcing a pass deep down the
left sideline for a completion.
Running back Trey Lowe
also made an impressive one-
handed catch on a pass over
the middle from Gulbranson,
but that play would have to be
scored in favor of the defense
as it took several seconds for
the quarterback to locate a po-
tential target.
Redshirt freshman Jaden
Robinson had one of the bet-
ter defensive plays of that drill,
closing fast to break up a short
pass attempt by Gulbranson.
This was the first of nine
practices in early August
which will lead to a scrim-
mage on Aug. 13. That will be
followed by four practices be-
fore a second scrimmage on
Aug. 20.
Smith said the focus is on
overall improvement during
these early sessions. Later in
the month, the team will be-
gin to turn its attention to pre-
paring for a tough early slate.
The Beavers open the season
at home against Boise State
on Sept. 3 and travel to play
Fresno State on Sept. 10.
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