You never want to go into a game expecting a blowout, seeing as there is always the chance that an upset happens. Look no further than what happened with the Washington Huskies and the Montana Grizzlies.
With that being said, should the Ducks do what we expect and take care of business in the first half against the Stony Brook Seawolves on Saturday, there’s a good chance that backup players on the roster are going to get some playing time.
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That means that at long last, we might get a chance to see what Oregon has in the way of backup quarterbacks. Between Ty Thompson, Jay Butterfield, and Robby Ashford, Oregon fans have been desperate to find out who the “next guy” is going to be for the Ducks once Anthony Brown departs next season.
When talking to the media on Wednesday, some expected Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal to make some kind of announcement concerning who we might see after Anthony Brown’s day is finished. He stopped short of that.
Mario Cristobal just said in his talk with the media that the team has made a decision on the QB2 position, but they won’t announce until closer to game time.
Ty Thompson?
Jay Butterfield?
Robby Ashford?We’ll see.
— Zachary Neel (@zacharycneel) September 15, 2021
Most are expecting true freshman Ty Thompson to trot out onto the field first. He is the highest-rated quarterback to commit to Oregon after all, and many believe he will be the future at the position for the Ducks. But again, without that formal declaration, it might be a surprise. Butterfield has received rave reviews out of practice and Ashford showed how dynamic he can be in the Spring Game.
Having this kind of depth at the quarterback position is something Oregon really has never experienced before. It’s a good problem to have. All three signal-callers are capable of starting for most other Pac-12 schools.
One of the reasons teams schedule so-called cupcake games is to see what the backups have to offer in real game situations should the unthinkable happen and Brown does go down for any time. The Ducks need to know that the season won’t go down the drain if that scenario occurs. Those have all the talent in the world and have stars beside their name. But how they truly react in a live game in front of close to 60,000 people still remains to be seen.
So much will be revealed on Saturday.
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