Category: VideoMRSS

Kenny Dillingham credits receiver development to Junior Adams

“I think those guys [Thornton and Franklin] are some of his next pupils that are going to follow in the footsteps of some of the guys like Cooper Kupp.”

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Much has been made about the three biggest newcomers to the Oregon Ducks coaching staff: head coach Dan Lanning, offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham, and defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi.

However, with three new coaches came countless other positional coaches, coordinators, and analysts – many who come to Eugene with extremely impressive resumes.

One of those newcomers is Junior Adams, who has the title of co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach after getting hired in early January away from the University of Washington.

“Junior Adams has tremendous experience on the West Coast both as a player and a coach, as well as knowledge and familiarity working in the Pac-12 Conference,” Lanning said at the time of the hiring. “Coach Adams is a terrific teacher and mentor of young men, and I am excited for our student-athletes to get the opportunity to learn from him.”

Adams worked with multiple high level receivers while at UW (2019-2021) and has experience at Western Kentucky and Boise State as well – although his biggest claim to fame may be as the primary recruiter and positional coach at Eastern Washington, where he brought in future Super Bowl star Cooper Kupp.

Now, Adams is helping to mentor a bevy of young receivers at Oregon, including Dont’e Thornton and Troy Franklin.

“I think I think Coach Junior Adams is one of the best one out coaches in the profession,” Dillingham said. “When you look at his track record of developing wide receivers, and I think those guys [Thornton and Franklin] are some of his next pupils that are going to follow in the footsteps of some of the guys like Cooper Kupp that he’s had in his past. And they’ve just come to work every day. And it’s been that the entire room has just grown so much from top to bottom.”

Oregon may have a very young, mostly inexperienced group of receivers heading into 2022, but they have the right personnel to get the most out of these guys for this upcoming season and beyond.

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Wyoming LB Chad Muma

The Cowboys linebacker made replacing a NFL talent look easy. Now he takes aim at the pro ranks himself.

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Wyoming LB Chad Muma

The Cowboys linebacker made replacing a NFL talent look easy. Now he takes aim at the pro ranks himself.

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

A rising star who could anchor a defense.

Sometimes, college football programs develop a knack for sending certain kinds of players to the National Football League. At Wyoming, the name of the game has been defense: Marcus Epps, Andrew Wingard, Logan Wilson, and now Chad Muma.

A native of Lone Tree, Colorado, was actually very close to accepting a scholarship offer at Colorado State before heading north to Laramie, where his father also played in the early 1990s. After cutting his teeth on special teams in 2018, he stepped into a part-time role the following year and made two starts before inheriting a bigger role at linebacker from Wilson and breaking out in 2020, leading Wyoming with 71 tackles and eight tackles for loss.

That would be a taste of things to come. In 2021, Muma finished second among all FBS defenders with 142 total tackles while collecting another eight tackles for loss and three interceptions (including two pick-sixes). That put him in the position where he is now as potentially the first player from the Mountain West to be selected in this year’s NFL Draft.

Measurables (taken from Mockdraftable)

Highlights

Strengths

In a recent conversation on The Athletic Football Show podcast, Robert Mays and Diante Lee discussed how the role of a linebacker has changed in the modern NFL to involve more responsibilities in coverage, which demands more length and athleticism in the middle of the field than ever before. As a prospect, Muma checks many of the boxes that defensive coaches surely have in mind.

To start, he knows how to put himself and his teammates in a position to succeed before the ball is snapped, earning high marks from analysts for his football intelligence and instincts. As Natalie Miller of Draft Wire noted, Muma was responsible for handling the play call on the field in his two years as a starter.

Once the play is live, Muma also has the speed to get himself where he needs to be from sideline to sideline. This is especially true if he gets to play downhill and defend the run or attack quarterbacks: The Athletic’s Dane Brugler calls it “[mashing] the accelerator” while Oliver Hodgkinson of Pro Football Network likens Muma to “[firing] out of a cannon” in pass rushing situations.

It comes as no surprise, then, that he finished 2021 with the second-most run stops in the country (50), according to Draft Wire’s Mark Schofield, and only Wisconsin’s Leo Chenal earned a higher run defense grade among FBS linebackers in 2021 (91.1). Once he closes, Muma does so quickly and with force.

Add to that his experience as a team captain and a special teams contributor, and NFL teams probably won’t want to wait too long to put him on their roster.

Weaknesses

Playing in Wyoming’s 4-2-5 defense makes for a question of whether Muma is more likely to play as an inside or outside linebacker at the pro level. There doesn’t seem to be a consensus on what that answer will be, either: The Draft Network’s Drae Harris believes Muma will be better served playing at the edges of a front seven, while Hodgkinson and NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein see him as a better fit inside.

Whatever role he takes on, two big things that he’ll need to polish are refining his instincts to avoid being fooled by misdirection and play action and reaction time in turning to coverage. One particular wrinkle that could come down to is something which Miller, Tony Pauline and Bleacher Report all point out: Improvement in flipping his hips to more cleanly stay with tight ends and running backs down the field. That will help make up for what is probably below-average length for the linebacker position these days.

NFL Comparison

Bobby Wagner

Draft Prediction

Linebacker doesn’t have the same kind of depth in this year’s class as other positions, so while it’s likely teams will dip into those wells first to satisfy other priorities, expect that he’ll be selected in the middle of the second round.

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Air Force DL Jordan Jackson

The Falcons defensive end has the rare opportunity to go from the Academy to the NFL. Will NFL teams see enough in him to provide a chance?

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Air Force DL Jordan Jackson

The Falcons defensive end has the rare opportunity to go from the Academy to the NFL. Will NFL teams see enough in him to provide a chance?

Contact/Follow @PSeanU1 & @MWCwire

A rare caliber of cadet athlete.

The career of one of the most distinguished defensive lineman to come through the Air Force Academy concluded in December, after the Falcons Bowl victory. Jordan Jackson arrived at the Academy in 2017, and has been disrupting opposing offenses ever since.

The rare case at Air Force, Jackson saw the field as a freshman (a year removed from Prep School). Not only was he a starter from his sophomore season on, but he was a distinguished as an All Mountain West Conference Team selection each of those seasons (2019 as an honorable mention).

It should come as no surprise that despite being a defensive tackle sitting in the trenches, Jackson is high on multiple career leader charts. He ranks 8th all-time in Air Force history with 176 yards on tackles for loss (27 career TFL’s) and 3rd all-time with 136 of those lost yards coming off of his 15 sacks.

Jordan Jackson participated in a well represented pro day at the Academy earlier this year, and most notably, Jackson was invited to participate in the NFL combine. The commencement of a college career of excellence in athletics and academics has landed at the doorstep of the NFL. Now the question is, will he hear his name called in this year’s NFL draft?

Measurables (taken from Mockdraftable and Dane Brugler)

40-yard time – 4.95 seconds
10-yard split time – 1.76 seconds
Vertical jump – 30 1/2″
Broad jump – 9′ and 4″ (or 112″)
Shuttle time – 4.40 seconds
3-cone drill time – 7.20 seconds
Bench press – 18 reps

Highlights

Strengths

One of the things that stands out if you look at Jordan Jackson’s career is his ability to be disruptive in critical moments. Go back through games decided by one score, and observe who is most affecting the opposing offenses final drive.

Statistics are the first thing to garner attention, but chaos that Jackson created in the trenches can’t be ignored. As a defensive tackle anchored in a three-man front, you aren’t typically going to post gaudy sack numbers. But the way you stand out is by blowing up the interior line, and eating up multiple blockers.

There have been a lot of benefactors to the attention that Jackson demands from the opposition, as you need look no further than the accompanying positions named to the All-Conference Team in the given years Jackson has played. His ability to draw multiple blockers helped players like Mosese Fifita, Demonte Meeks and Vince Sanford be menaces in their own right, just to name a few.

One of the greatest abilities one can attribute to a player is their ability to raise the level of play of their teammates. Jackson has showed time and again, he makes the players around him better.

Weaknesses

Unless you are an avid follower of Air Force football, one of the things that will be lost in an evaluation of Jordan Jackson is his versatility. With depletion at nose guard, there were many times that Jackson found himself lining up at the nose position to fill a need. Combine that, along with the scheme that the Falcons deploy on defense, and even the most outstanding defensive tackles aren’t commonly going to fill the stat sheets.

If you read a lot of the NFL analysts, there are remarks around a lack of productivity consistently, much of which can be attribute to positioning. However, this is the highest level of competition, and the most granular details will be scrutinized, and flaws exposed. In that, some lack of use of technique is pointed to at times, which in the Mountain West, a superior athlete can at times compensate with ability. Such is usually not the case in the NFL.

NFL Comparison

George Silvanic

Draft Prediction

Most draft prognosticators evaluate Jackson as a high-priority free agent, or late round draft pick at best. The same evaluations are also quick to acknowledge there is so much to work with in Jackson, that the things which may be seen as “limiting” are also addressable. Ultimately, Jordan Jackson may follow a similar path to George Silvanic from the prior year; go undrafted and catch on as a free agent post draft. Practice squad or draftee, Jordan Jackson is an NFL talent. 

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Utah State DL Nick Heninger

The Aggies defensive end finished his college career with a flourish, but what do NFL teams see when they put on his tape?

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Utah State DL Nick Heninger

The Aggies defensive end finished his college career with a flourish, but what do NFL teams see when they put on his tape?

Contact/Follow @SamMcConkie & @MWCwire

A late bloomer looks to make good.

Nick Heninger sure made the most of his time at Utah State. The versatile defensive end started his career at Utah and saw some action with the Utes, but he was not given ample playing time.

After Gary Andersen became the Aggies’ coach again in 2019, he brought Heninger along as a grad transfer and the junior playmaker immediately stood out as a solid rotation player. He logged 32 tackles including a team-best five sacks and a team-best 9.5 tackles for loss. He also finished second on the team with two fumble recoveries, making a name for himself as a disruptive edge rusher.

After posting solid stats in 2019 and 2020, he positively flourished in 2021 under Ephraim Banda’s defensive scheme. He earned honorable mention all-Mountain West after starting every game and finishing fourth on the team with 75 tackles. He would lead the team with nine sacks, 21.5 tackles for loss, and five forced fumbles. On top of that, he managed five pass breakups as well.

Measurables (taken from Dane Brugler)

Height – 6′ and 2 1/8″
Weight – 229 pounds
40-yard time – 4.81 seconds
10-yard split time – 1.70 seconds
Arm length – 32″
Hand size – 9 3/8″
Wingspan – 76″
Vertical jump – 36″
Broad jump – 9′ and 11″ (or 119″)
Shuttle time – 4.43 seconds
3-cone drill time – 7.18 seconds
Bench press – 30 reps

Highlights

Strengths

Heninger’s ability to get pressure on the opposing quarterback and disrupt any given play near the line of scrimmage cannot be understated. Against San Diego State in the conference championship game, he batted down two passes right in front of Jordon Brookshire and prevented sure touchdown passes. Heninger is also big enough to make any quarterback uncomfortable and has proven he can deliver big hits in clutch moments. He also wreaked havoc on Oregon State’s passing ability, and their Joe Moore Award-nominated offensive line, by logging three sacks in an Aggie win that wasn’t as close as the score suggests. His natural instincts for the ball are outstanding and he flat out makes plays.

Weaknesses

On the downside, Heninger isn’t a terribly fast player. If he doesn’t get off his initial block at the line of scrimmage, his ability to bring pressure is notably less effective than more athletic defensive ends. If he misses his target the first time, it takes a bit too long for him to come back and make good on a missed play.

His athleticism isn’t where it could be, so it inherently limits some of his versatility. He’s a bit smaller than other college edge rushers as well, which is not ideal when stepping up to the professional level, where players with more impressive measurables are going to have an edge.

NFL Comparison

It’s tough to make a comparison when Heninger has measurables that are smaller than the prototypical NFL edge rusher, but in terms of production, he reminds me of Philadelphia’s Brandon Graham. At his peak, he was extremely productive for the Eagles and he routinely logged tackles for loss and sacks to keep any passer nervous, just like Heninger. Both players were extremely reliable during the course of any given season and made big plays in clutch moments.

Draft Prediction

Heninger has great instincts for making plays and he has been nothing but productive for Utah State. He took a major step forward his senior year and became a defensive force in the Mountain West. With that being said, his limited athleticism might end up holding him back on draft day against bigger, faster DEs at more prestigious football programs.

He will almost certainly get a free agency contract or camp invite with a prominent NFL squad. If he ends up getting drafted, it will likely be in the sixth or seventh round where an organization can take a low-risk, high reward chance on him. He has the work ethic and the ability to get bigger, so he’ll be in good shape for a late round draft pick if a team wants to build their depth.

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‘I think the place sells itself;’ Tosh Lupoi details experiences recruiting players at Oregon

“You don’t have to be a car salesman to represent this place and understand how special it is.”

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There was no understating how big of a deal it was when the Oregon Ducks hired former NFL coach Tosh Lupoi to be their new defensive coordinator under head coach Dan Lanning. His resume speaks for itself.

He’s a two-time national championship-winning coach with the Alabama Crismon Tide, and he helped coach his team to the big game in four consecutive years under Nick Saban. More recently, Lupoi spent time with the Cleveland Browns, Atlanta Falcons, and Jacksonville Jaguars. He’s considered one of the best recruiters in all of college football, especially with his ties to the west coast after cutting his teeth at California and Washington earlier in his career.

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So when Lupoi accepted the job in Eugene and had a chance to be one of the leading recruiters for the Ducks, fans certainly got excited.

In talking to Lupoi on Monday afternoon following the Ducks’ final practice of the spring, he was asked how his experience had been thus far, and what his sales pitch was to recruits now that he was at Oregon.

“That’s one of the main reasons I’m here — you don’t have to be a car salesman to represent this place and understand how special it is,” Lupoi said. “You’re at a place where you can consistently compete for a national title — you’re at least in a position that you possibly can. You’re at a place where you’re going to consistently coach top-10 picks, and you’re at a place that’s arguably connected better than any other program in the world when it comes to the relationships — that Nike relationship, the Alumni Association, that’s part of this place. I think the place more so sells itself.”

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So far, the recruiting cycle has been good to the Ducks. After Lanning and his new staff took over in December, they were able to land a number of highly-rated recruits and leave with the 13th-ranked class in 2022. While there is still a lot of work to do in the 2023 class, Oregon seems to be in a good spot to potentially land 5-star players like DL Jayden Wayne, EDGE Matayo Uiagalelei, and DL David Hicks.

Both Hicks and Wayne were inside Autzen Stadium for the spring game, and Uiagalelei has been a frequent visitor to Eugene over the past few months. They’ve certainly been in close contact with Lupoi ever since he took over in Eugene, but if we’re to listen to the Oregon DC, he hasn’t had to work very hard to paint the Oregon Ducks in a nice light.

This place sells itself.

Contact/Follow us @Ducks_Wire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinion.

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Colorado State TE Trey McBride

The Rams tight end showed out throughout his college football career and the pre-draft process. What do NFL teams like about him?

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Colorado State TE Trey McBride

The Rams tight end showed out throughout his college football career and the pre-draft process. What do NFL teams like about him?

Contact/Follow @J0shFr3d & @MWCwire

The best at his position in this year’s class.

Trey McBride, the John Mackey award winner and Colorado State’s first unanimous All-American, is projected to be the first tight end taken in the 2022 NFL Draft. The 22-year-old from Fort Morgan, Colorado looks to follow in the footsteps of fellow Fort Morgan/CSU alum Joel Dreessen.

McBride could’ve left after the shortened 2020 COVID season and gotten drafted, but he came back to improve his draft stock and play one more year with his brother Toby.

It turned out to be a very good decision. McBride put up the best season for a tight end in Colorado State history with 90 catches, 1,121 yards (the first Rams tight end to go over 1,000 yards) and one receiving touchdown. He also added a 69-yard punt fake touchdown to his resume. He looks to parlay that performance into a long NFL career.

Measurables (taken from Mockdraftable)

Height: 6’4″
Weight: 246 pounds
Wingspan: 78″
Arm: 32 5/8″
Hand: 10 1/8″
40-yard time – 4.56 seconds
10-yard split time – 1.60 seconds
Shuttle time – N/A
3-cone drill time – N/A
Vertical – 33″
Broad Jump – 9’9″

Highlights

Strengths

McBride can be a nasty SOB. He prides himself on his physicality both blocking and after the catch. His ability to get downfield on blocks is another pride point for him. He’s shown the ability to make physical contested catches and athletic catches. To go along with those catch abilities is McBride’s ability to track the ball in the air.

He has above average speed and knows how to read defenses to know when to settle into the soft spots in zone coverage. And he has shown the ability to gain separation at the top of routes. He runs through tackles and doesn’t go down easy as he keeps his legs churning to gain a few more yards.

Weaknesses

McBride has shown inconsistency as a blocker at times. One play he’s pancaking a DL or LB into the ground and the next he’s on the ground because he didn’t have the right leverage and the defender pulled past him. McBride also has the tendency to duck his head into contact as a blocker.

He has below average speed out of the gate, at least on tape, and he doesn’t have consitent speed. McBride only had one touchdown in 2021 and as much as that was a product of the offense and double/triple teams in the red zone, he hasn’t shown a consistent finishing ability outside of one game against the Florida Gators in his freshman year.

NFL Comparison

Hunter Henry

McBride himself says he models his game after George Kittle and you can definitely see that in his game and in their similar measurements. However, Kittle has shown that he can outplay his college tape. McBride needs to show that and that is why Hunter Henry feels like a better comparison. McBride has the better college production and it still remains to be seen if he can live up to the Kittle reputation he put on himself.

Draft Prediction

McBride has the talent to be one of the top tight ends in the league. And plenty of analysts and scouts feel the same way. There are some doubts about his finishing and ability to be a consistent blocker, but he’s still the top tight end in this years draft. Expect him to be drafted from the late first to somewhere in the second round.

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Nevada QB Carson Strong

The Wolf Pack quarterback found plenty of success operating Nevada’s Air Raid, but what traits are NFL teams most interested in?

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Nevada QB Carson Strong

The Wolf Pack quarterback found plenty of success operating Nevada’s Air Raid, but what traits are NFL teams most interested in?

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

A big arm but big questions, as well.

Perhaps no player in the Mountain West generated more excitement over the past few years, and thus makes for a more interesting NFL Draft prospect, than Nevada quarterback Carson Strong.

A native of Vacaville, California, Strong’s scholarship offer from the Wolf Pack was the only one he received from a FBS program. After redshirting his first year with the team, he won the starting quarterback battle in 2019 but didn’t really take off until 2020. While running Jay Norvell’s Air Raid offense, Strong etched his name into many parts of the program’s record book and leaves Reno as part of the conversation as the best signal-caller in its history, earning the Mountain West’s nod as Offensive Player of the Year in each of the last two years.

He looks the part of an NFL quarterback and has many of the obvious traits that teams covet in a passer-friendly league, but he carries just as much risk as any other player at his position in this year’s draft class.

Measurables (taken from Mockdraftable)

Highlights

Strengths

Let’s start with the arm.

Not only does Strong have the confidence to make all of the necessary NFL throws, he has the cannon to do so when given enough time to operate. The Athletic’s Dane Brugler notes that Strong “has a natural feel for downfield touch” while Draft Wire’s Natalie Miller identified an “understanding of touch and accuracy” in the short and intermediate game among his assets. It takes all kinds of throws, after all, to have completed 70% of passes while averaging at least eight yards per attempt over the last two seasons, a feat of which no other quarterback in this class can boast.

While he isn’t the most mobile prospect in this year’s quarterback class, Strong also has the toughness and physical profile to hang in and try to give himself the time to make those throws, as well. He also doesn’t typically make many mistakes in that process, either, with an interception rate of just 1.5% in his Nevada career.

Weaknesses

Unlike every other quarterback prospect in this year’s class, one thing sets Strong apart… and not in a good way. He played the entirety of the 2021 season with a knee injury that left him at less than 100%, a joint upon which he’s now had two surgeries. While he doesn’t have any other long-standing medical concerns to speak of, that one could force some war rooms to shy away from selecting him because, relative to every other quarterback in this year’s class, he’s that much less mobile.

That will put pressure on his ability to make appropriate pre-snap reads, a wrinkle about which NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein has concerns, and then manipulate defenders to get the ball out quickly when facing pressure. In his career at Nevada, that wasn’t something Strong always did consistently: Last year, the Wolf Pack absorbed a 6.9% sack rate that ranked 74th among FBS offenses; in 2020, it was 5.1%.

There’s also some disagreement about how effective Strong has been about moving defenders with his eyes as he reads the field. Drae Harris of The Draft Network counts that among the things he does well while Miller and Pro Football Network’s Ian Cummings express reservations. If nothing else, that might be a point of emphasis for whichever quarterbacks coach he ends up working with.

NFL Comparison

Kirk Cousins

Draft Prediction

Strong clearly has the arm strength to compete at the NFL level, but his “high risk, high reward” profile is a bit different from the norm because of the lingering health concerns and the broader reality that many offenses demand a less statuesque signal-caller these days. As a result, he won’t be among the first handful of quarterbacks selected in the draft, but the league-wide need at the position should make him a mid-round pick, in the third or fourth round.

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Hawaii WR Jared Smart

The Warriors wide receiver got plenty of reps as a pass catcher on the islands over the years. How could he contribute in the NFL?

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2022 NFL Draft Profile: Hawaii WR Jared Smart

The Warriors wide receiver got plenty of reps as a pass catcher on the islands over the years. How could he contribute in the NFL?

Contact/Follow @MattK_FS & @MWCwire

Good hands and experience could go a long way.

The history of Hawaii football is littered with quality pass catchers and Jared Smart will leave the islands having etched his name onto that list despite the program’s recent up and downs.

A native of Bloomington, Indiana, Smart came to the islands as a junior college transfer and became a vital cog in Nick Rolovich’s run-and-shoot offense right away, finishing the 2019 season as one of three Warriors wide receivers with at least 1,000 yards as the team won its first West division crown. While 2020 wasn’t as eye-popping on the stat sheet, Smart still led Hawaii in receptions; last fall, he averaged nearly 16 yards per catch.

Now, only the jump from the college ranks to the pro ranks remains. What does Smart bring to the table that could help his name get called at this year’s NFL Draft?

Measurables (taken from Dane Brugler and DraftScout.com)

Height – 5′ and 11 1/4″
Weight – 189 pounds
40-yard time – 4.62 seconds
10-yard split time – 1.65 seconds
Arm length – 30 1/2″
Hand size – 9 3/4″
Wingspan – 75 1/4″
Vertical jump – 36″
Broad jump – 9′ and 11″ (or 119″)
Shuttle time – 4.12 seconds
3-cone drill time – 6.93 seconds
Bench press – 4 reps

Highlights

Strengths

Two things that translated in the different offenses Smart learned over the past three years are his balance and his hands. According to NFL Draft Buzz, that enables him to “make acrobatic catches look easy”, as seen in the highlights above. He’s also capable of making a defender miss in space, which bodes well for any team that envisions him as a possession-type receiver (interestingly, Smart compared himself to former Seattle Seahawk Doug Baldwin during an interview with The Spun with this in mind).

Smart also has some experience in returning kicks and punts, as well, which could bolster his chances of sticking on a pro roster.

Weaknesses

The most immediate concern about Smart is that his physical profile is more fine than one with any outrageous traits: His vertical, for instance, is comparable to recent NFL Combine participants Garrett Wilson and Jalen Tolbert, but there’s a significant gap in their 40-yard times and 10-yard splits.

And while he played mostly on the outside with Hawaii, the lack of size may limit where he can be used in a pro offense (according to Pro Football Focus, however, he had 259 snaps out of the slot in 2021, so Smart isn’t unprepared to play inside).

NFL Comparison

Tyler Boyd

Draft Prediction

Smart has a good foundation to stick as a role player, but with a litany of high-end wide receiver prospects ahead of him in this year’s class, he’s most likely to sign somewhere as an undrafted free agent.

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Oregon quarterback Bo Nix reacts to first game inside of Autzen Stadium

“I wasn’t expecting that many people for a spring game.” QB Bo Nix was impressed with his first Autzen experience and left with glowing reviews.

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As far as debuts go, it would be pretty hard to impress a fanbase more than quarterback Bo Nix did out of the gates on Saturday afternoon.

On the first play from scrimmage, Nix — a veteran transfer from Auburn brought in to compete for the starting job — unleashed a bomb to wide receiver Seven McGee, chewing up 70 yards and putting the Ducks in prime scoring position.

Oregon fans, Bo Nix. Bo Nix, Oregon fans.

Safe to say it was a pleasant meeting.

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Nix went on to be the most impressive QB of the day, throwing 3 touchdowns and 1 INT on 8-for-15 passing. He had 230 total yards, with two bombs of 70-yards each, one to McGee, and the other a TD to WR Dont’e Thornton.

No matter what his expectations were for the day, he left Autzen Stadium in awe of the environment.

“That was awesome,” Nix said. “With the crowd like that, it was an impressive spring game. I wasn’t expecting that many people for the spring game. The atmosphere was really fun.”

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That should come as some pretty high praise coming from a player with the SEC background that Nix has. After three years as the Auburn starter — a place where crowds regularly exceed 87,500 during the season —Nix celebrating the atmosphere in Autzen is notable.

More than the crowd, though, it was Oregon’s offense that was the real talk of the day. The Ducks put up a combined 611 yards and 52 points, with 5 total explosion plays (35+ yards gained).

“We just wanted to execute and have some drives and explosive plays that ended in touchdowns,” Nix said. “And we did that.”

With his debut, Nix helped usher in a new era of Oregon football. There’s no telling whether or not he will be the starting QB come September, but his career as an Oregon quarterback officially got off the ground on Saturday. It was a memorable day for all.

Contact/Follow us @Ducks_Wire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinion.

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

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Ducks Wire Player of the Game: WR Dont’e Thorton steals the show

Dont’e Thornton’s 116 yards and two-touchdown performance earned him our MVP nod for the Spring Game.

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Oregon’s receiving corps is very talented and very deep. The only thing they are lacking is experience.

During this spring camp, new head coach Dan Lanning was looking for someone in that group to step up in a leadership role on and off the field. According to several people in the know, that player turned out to be sophomore Dont’e Thornton.

The 6-foot-5, 200-pounder was the logical choice to be that guy to step up after making a leap in the Alamo Bowl last season. Thornton proved that wasn’t some fluke and showed how much he has improved with a stellar Spring Game.

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Although he caught just three passes, Thornton led the team with 116 yards and two touchdowns, one for 39 yards, the other for 70 yards. He showed that he can be that deep threat Oregon has been lacking for quite some time.

There were a number of candidates for our Ducks Wire Player of the Game award on Saturday. Seven McGee also accumulated 116 yards receiving and a TD, while Chase Cota was able to finish up with an even 100 yards on some impressive catches. Over on the defensive side of the ball, DJ Johnson was an absolute monster, racking up 7 total tackles, 5 TFL, and 4 sacks, while Trikweze Bridges had a 42-yard pick-six to open the second half.

In the end, though, there was no player who quite impressed us as much as Thornton did. In a stacked WR room, it looks like he might have the ability to stand apart. Let’s hope this is the first of many DWPOG awards he sees.

Contact/Follow us @Ducks_Wire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinion.

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

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