Which Bo Nix will we get in Atlanta on Saturday versus defending national champion Georgia? The former five-star quarterback led Auburn to a 9–4 record in his freshman season at 17 years old, winning the Iron Bowl 48–45 over Alabama in one of the biggest upsets of the 2019 season. Nix was voted the SEC Freshman of The Year, finishing the season with 16 touchdowns and 6 interceptions.
Nix became the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2019 while playing under current offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham, who was one of the most underrated hires of the offseason.
It is worth noting that when Dillingham went to Florida State to join Mike Norvell, Nix had a huge sophomore slump throwing the ball at Auburn in 2020. He threw for 12 touchdowns and 7 interceptions, while rushing for over 300 yards with 7 touchdowns on the ground during the season.
Nix threw for 11 touchdowns and 3 interceptions in 2021 but ended the season with a injury that kept him from playing the last four games. Auburn and new head coach Bryan Harsin finished the season 6-3 in games started by Nix.
Nix announced he would be leaving Auburn to enter the NCAA transfer portal. On December 19, 2021, Nix announced he would transfer to Oregon. Ducks fans are expecting a bounce-back season from the Alabama native. If he can stay healthy he is expected to lead Oregon to a Pac-12 Championship Game berth which might come at USC’s expense.
I sat down with Ducks Wire staff writer and Oregon Ducks football expert Don Smalley to talk about Bo Nix in our Don to Don series.
Trojans Wire: Make the case for Bo Nix as a good Oregon quarterback. Why will he surprise us and play well in 2022?
Ducks Wire: History tells us that transfer quarterbacks don’t quite live up to expectations, from Vernon Adams to Dakota Prukop to Anthony Brown. But Bo Nix could be different. He’s played in the SEC, he’s played against teams such as Alabama and Georgia.
He won’t be fazed by any Pac-12 team and more importantly, he won’t be fazed by a sold-out Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Sept. 3. Nix will have better talent around him, including an experienced offensive line to keep him upright and make plays. Oregon found out firsthand how good Nix can be when they lost to Auburn in 2019, when Nix threw a touchdown pass in the last moment of the game, 27-21.
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