Jump to content

Lanning raves about transfer QB Nix


aubiefifty

Recommended Posts

Oregon football: Head coach Dan Lanning raves about Auburn transfer QB Bo Nix

ByMatt Howe
3-4 minutes

 

College football coaching carousel is spinning wildly

 

After spending the first three years of his collegiate career at Auburn, quarterback Bo Nix transferred to Oregon for the 2022 college football season. Nix is a former 247Sports Composite five-star recruit in the class of 2019.

In three seasons at Auburn as the starter, Nix completed 59.4% of his passes for 7,251 yards with 39 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He also rushed for 869 yards and 18 touchdowns.

Following Oregon’s spring practice Tuesday, new Ducks head coach Dan Lanning raved about Nix’s competitiveness and drive.

"Bo's really what I thought he was," Lanning said. "He's an extreme competitor. He's super smart. He works really hard at it. And I think he's really intentional. I think he would tell you he's got a lot of things he can get better at and I certainly agree — there's a lot of things he can improve on. But he's attacking those every day, so I'm pleased to see that."

Lanning then talked about what he thought the offense did well and also what they need to improve on.

"Well, certainly was positive today as the offense had some explosive plays out there which is exciting," Lanning said. "On the same note, we also had some turnovers, which I don't want to see. I thought we could've been a little bit better in our two-minute scenario there at the end of practice, with our offense and the operation there. So good job on the explosive plays, but we want to take care of the ball going forward."

There are no guarantees Nix is Oregon’s 2022 starter. It’s the likely outcome given his experience, but Nix will spend the spring competing with Ty Thompson, a talented second-year signal-caller largely viewed as the program’s future, and former four-star prospect Jay Butterfield. It’s easy to envision a higher ceiling for Nix as a senior – his weapons at Oregon will be better and the defensive competition less fierce – but he’s got to win the job first. In an interview with 247Sports’ Carl Reed, Lanning explained what he wants to see out of that position battle.

“You want to see how they operate with the 10 other guys around them,” Lanning said. “Make sure the guys around them are playing with a high level of confidence.”

Get the fastest scores, stats, news, LIVE videos, and more. CLICK HERE to download the CBS Sports Mobile App and get the latest on your team today.

Nix will bring a dual-threat presence to Oregon’s quarterback room, but he struggled at times during 2021. He threw for a career-low 2,294 yards and 11 touchdowns, but completed a career-high 61% of his passes. Nix also threw a career-low three interceptions. He was benched for T.J. Finley at one point, but he earned his starting job back. However, Nix suffered a nasty ankle injury against Mississippi State that ended his season prematurely. He was one of several Auburn players to enter the NCAA transfer portal after Bryan Harsin’s first season on The Plains.

Isaac Trotter contributed to this report.

">247Sports
  • Like 1
  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites





I think most rational people expect Bo Nix to have a highly successful year at Oregon. Of course, the haters among the Auburn fans don't want to admit it, but Nix is a very good QB with three years of starting experience. Oregon's gain was Auburn's loss.

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, Mikey said:

I think most rational people expect Bo Nix to have a highly successful year at Oregon. Of course, the haters among the Auburn fans don't want to admit it, but Nix is a very good QB with three years of starting experience. Oregon's gain was Auburn's loss.

You jinxed him.... reported today that he's running second team behind a redshirt freshman. Messing with you. Hope he balls out, but I will say I wonder what he does if he's still behind Thompson at the end of spring

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 minutes ago, au302 said:

You jinxed him.... reported today that he's running second team behind a redshirt freshman. Messing with you. Hope he balls out, but I will say I wonder what he does if he's still behind Thompson at the end of spring

He's going to have to tough it out. He's made his bed and soft or lumpy, he'll have to sleep in it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

"He's an extreme competitor. He's super smart. He works really hard at it. And I think he's really intentional. I think he would tell you he's got a lot of things he can get better at and I certainly agree — there's a lot of things he can improve on. But he's attacking those every day, so I'm pleased to see that."
 

I think the sums up what a lot of people liked about Bo, and why so many were willing to stand up for him, even when his play didn’t meet the standard. Every coach he’s played for has praised his athleticism, work ethic and competitiveness. I’ve always felt like he has a high ceiling, it just never fully materialized at Auburn. Maybe it will at Oregon? 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Barnacle said:

"He's an extreme competitor. He's super smart. He works really hard at it. And I think he's really intentional. I think he would tell you he's got a lot of things he can get better at and I certainly agree — there's a lot of things he can improve on. But he's attacking those every day, so I'm pleased to see that."
 

I think the sums up what a lot of people liked about Bo, and why so many were willing to stand up for him, even when his play didn’t meet the standard. Every coach he’s played for has praised his athleticism, work ethic and competitiveness. I’ve always felt like he has a high ceiling, it just never fully materialized at Auburn. Maybe it will at Oregon? 

Very possible, and I really hope it does for him. Want him and all our former players to do well, even though I didn't think he was the answer for us at QB. There's a lot of pros for him. Away from the pressure of the southeast, reunited and comfortable with Dilly, good talent around him, and facing pac-12 defenses instead of SEC monsters that can outrun him. 

That said, a few concerns I do have. First that Dilly doesn't exactly have the greatest track record on fielding good offenses. Secondly that a lot of us, myself included, may have underestimated the battle he's facing. I still think he wins it due to being Dilly's boy, but this week we're learning that Thompson looks like the real deal right now.

If this move and surrounding hype turns into him riding the bench, it will be a total disaster for him. The point of this move is to get good tape in an easier conference because this is his last year and he needs to show more consistency. He cannot afford to sit at all.

Imo if he doesn't feel that he's got a hold on the job by the end of spring, I wouldn't be surprised to see him re-enter the portal and to try to backdoor into another team last minute in the summer. I think since he's a grad transfer he could do that. I do think he still wins the job tho. Just gonna be more interesting than initially thought 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...