Who will be Oregon starting quarterback for 2023? Exploring the Ducks QB depth chart feat. Bo Nix, Ty Thompson and Marcus Sanders
It was a great relief when former Alabama Mr. Football Bo Nix announced his return as Oregon's starting quarterback for 2023.
Having Nix back for another season saves coach Dan Lanning the headache of settling for a new starting QB.
Beyond that, the quality that the 2019 SEC Freshman of the Year returns with is simply undeniable. The Oregon starter is the most experienced quarterback in the FBS. Nix has been a starter in all four Division I college football seasons, raking in 47 starts.
He also boasts 10,845 passing yards for 68 touchdowns and 1,379 rushing yards for 32 touchdowns. So with Nix on the roster, the Oregon starting quarterback job looks secure.
Except, of course, in the case of his unavailability, probably due to injury. Who starts for the Ducks as quarterback, then?
Potential replacements for the Oregon Ducks starting quarterback
Coach Dan Lanning can rely on three potential replacements for Bo Nix for the starting quarterback job. There's the redshirt sophomore Ty Thompson, who rode a wave of high expectations to Oregon.
Thompson was rated a five-star recruit and ranked among the top 10 players nationally by Rivals. He has featured in about 10 games for the Ducks over two seasons and has only 159 passing yards for two touchdowns.
Redshirt freshman Marcus Sanders is another name on the Oregon quarterback depth chart. Sanders is a three-star recruit from Union City, California.
He featured in eight games during his final high school year at James Logan, passing for 1,218 yards and 13 touchdowns. However, he has no playing experience in college football yet.
Oregon's last quarterback reserve is freshman Austin Novosad. The Dripping Springs, Texas native was a consensus four-star recruit, ranked in the top 100 nationally by 247Sports and Rivals.
Novosad's high school records are incredible, having a passer rating of 64+5% for 9,000 yards and 114 touchdowns. He threw for multiple touchdowns in 27 of his 33 high school career games, throwing for as much as seven touchdowns in three games each.
One thing is certain, Oregon does not lack talent in its quarterback depth chart. But once you remove Bo Nix as Oregon's starting quarterback, there's hardly any experience left. This will worry fans, as this shortage of experience may come to haunt the Ducks in the course of the season.
However, there's one way for inexperienced talents to acquire experience. That's by playing. And the opportunity for that may only come for these backup quarterbacks with Bo Nix out of the picture.