In an interview for FishDuck.com on Wednesday, I spoke with Oregon’s offensive coordinator Scott Frost at the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex in Eugene.
Fourteen spring practices are officially over and after five hard-fought weeks, Coach Frost and the rest of Oregon’s coaching staff are ready to take the field this Saturday. One area that the Ducks’ offensive coordinator has paid close attention to this spring has been the quarterback position. Marcus Mariota‘s departure has been well-documented, and while some critics have been pessimistic about Oregon’s chances next season, Frost has maintained confidence in his group of quarterbacks.
Marcus Mariota’s legacy will forever rest in college football lore.
“I’m going to be excited to see them (quarterbacks) operate under more live circumstances, game-like situations,” Frost said after practice on Wednesday. “We’ll see which guys rise to the occasion and which guys are a little more tentative in those situations. Hopefully, our guys attack it and we’ll be able to make some evaluations based off that.”
Frost also mentioned that the environment in practice has been very positive this spring. Aside from a few lackadaisical practices, the team has performed well, and Frost believes that his players are ready to battle it out in front of a packed Autzen Stadium on Saturday.
“Now that they can see the light at the end of the tunnel and with the spring game getting closer, I thought the energy was really good today,” Frost said. “That might be because we’re getting into the end of spring ball, and it might be because we’ve separated into teams and we’re getting to practice that way. I think the guys are looking forward to competing.”
Oregon’s spring game is always one of the most anticipated events in Eugene, but there’s more to celebrate this week than just the spring game. The NFL Draft will officially get underway on Thursday, which means that Mariota, Hroniss Grasu, Arik Armstead and several other former Ducks will have the opportunity to fulfill their lifelong dreams.
“It’s great to have guys from here (Oregon) be successful. We’ve been negatively recruited by some other teams,” Frost said. “They say we’re a spread offense or a gimmick offense and that our quarterbacks can’t get to the NFL. That’s being proven wrong this year. It’s good to beat some of those stereotypes. It’s good for young kids to see the type of success that you can have when you’re here and doing it the right way.”
Top Photo by Dave Peaks
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My name is Omar Garibay and I am a journalism student at the University of Oregon. I was born and raised in Salem, Oregon and I have dreamed of living in Los Angeles since I was 14-years-old. My dream career would be to work for ESPN LA, The Los Angeles Times or as a beat writer for the Los Angeles Lakers or Dodgers. Twitter: @omargaribay8