Right now Oregon fans are almost swooning in a classic “honeymoon” phase with new head coach Dan Lanning before any games are played. To a degree, I have detected Oregon fans, (yours truly included) being quite willing to whitewash any negative components associated with transfer quarterback Bo Nix up to now. I was enjoying some sports betting but had to return to pondering this after watching the results of the Oregon Spring Game. Did that game make you reconsider your expectations of the former Auburn quarterback?
I really loved so much of what I witnessed from Nix, especially the long touch-passes that were easy for fleet receivers such as Dont’e Thornton and Troy Franklin to pull in. His arm strength is not a major attribute, and throwing a catchable ball is permissible if he is extremely accurate. But the track record on Nix is scattered, as he has had games where he is not accurate and thus the win is elusive….something Oregon fans have witnessed a bit too often at Autzen in recent years.
All quarterbacks are going to have bad days, and thus some tolerance is always needed by the fans. But is it a trend, and thus his welcome was worn out–initiating his departure from Auburn? The game below illustrates fan frustrations, and it can cost a coach his job…
The impression I received from other articles was that he was mostly accurate, but would throw a pass on occasion that defied explanation. I passed it off as “now he is a senior, will have a veteran offense and an offensive coordinator he is comfortable with, and he’ll be fine.”
That is, until he threw the inexplicable interception in the Oregon Spring Game that got me rethinking my bliss about his apparent starting position. That pass was terrible judgment, the kind I would expect from a newbie freshman, but not from a savvy quarterback such as Bo Nix. It really shocked me, and jolted me out of the honeymoon stupor I was luxuriating in from his joining the Ducks. This will now require new expectations–would you agree?
I am already resigned to seeing an occasional dumb interception (since I’ve just witnessed one) if the remaining stats in a game are fine (like in the Spring Game) and we win. One bad pick will not lose a game, but three, like in the example above, will. Yet considering how unprepared the remainder of the quarterback room is…what choice do the coaches have?
Bo Nix, like Anthony Brown “is who he is” by this time.
While the Spring Game pick by Nix was jarring, it was good to get my head clear and expectations altered. In the end–I believe Bo Nix is our best option, and I do believe we have enough weapons on offense coupled with a scheme that will score scads of points to come close to my hopes for a 40-point scoring average in the 2022 season. Has your bubble been burst? Let’s discuss it at the “forum with decorum” because…
“Oh, how we love to ponder about Our Beloved Ducks!”
Charles Fischer (Mr. FishDuck)
Eugene, Oregon
Top Photo by Gary Breedlove
Charles Fischer has been an intense fan of the Ducks, a season ticket holder at Autzen Stadium for 35 years and has written reports on football boards for over 23 years. Known as “FishDuck” on those boards, he is acknowledged for providing intense detail in his scrimmage reports and in his Xs and Os play analyses. He and his wife Lois, have a daughter Christine, reside in Eugene Oregon, where he was a Financial Advisor for 36 years and now focuses full-time on Charitable Planned Giving Workshops for churches and non-profit organizations.
He does not profess to be a coach or analyst, but simply a “hack” that enjoys sharing what he has learned and invites others to correct or add to this body of Oregon Football! See More…
