There’s a reason that Bo Nix came back to the Oregon Ducks for the 2023 season.
Sure, you could say that his NFL Draft stock was not as high as he wanted it to be, or that he had more to learn at the college level before testing his mettle against the best of the best on Sundays. The Oregon QB will tell you it’s because he wants to continue having fun, and he learned in 2022 how fun college football can be.
I think a big part of it is that Nix wants to prove to himself, and everyone else in the nation, that he can be the same QB that he was last year for the Ducks, if not even better.
For the 11 games of the season a year ago, Nix was among the best quarterbacks in the nation. He led the Ducks to a 9-1 record and was not far away from making it 10-1 before an injury in the fourth quarter against the Washington Huskies derailed things.
After that fateful play on November 12, Nix wasn’t quite the same. He was still able to produce for the Ducks and figure out ways in which he could contribute to their success, but it wasn’t hard to see his abilities drop off a bit while gritting through a lower-leg injury that easily could have ended his season.
So going into the 2023 season, can he get back to those same heights from last year, pre-injury?
The betting market seems to think so. At the moment, Nix has some of the best odds to win the 2023 Heisman Trophy Award, alongside USC quarterback Caleb Williams and Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. Before the injury, Nix was among the favorites to win the award, and likely was on a trajectory to be invited to the Heisman ceremony in New York City in December.
How likely is it that he can be in the mix once again this year? That’s a question that can be broken down into several parts. First off, what are the general expectations of a Heisman-worthy QB when it comes to stats, and how close was Nix to getting there before his injury? What would his stats need to look like in 2023 to have him in the running once again this year?
Let’s break it all down.