Dan Lanning reveals how things are different for Bo Nix this year

A transfer to Oregon last season couldn’t have worked out much better for Bo Nix. The former Auburn quarterback had the best season of his career in leading the Ducks to a 10-3 finish and Holiday Bowl victory against North Carolina.

Now Nix returns to Eugene in 2023 for his final season of eligibility with much higher expectations than he entered with last year. He has the sixth-best odds of any player to take home the Heisman Trophy, putting him among the highest-regarded quarterbacks in the nation. That is a lot to handle for any player, but Oregon coach Dan Lanning has seen Nix step up to the challenge so far this spring.

“I had a long convo with Bo yesterday,” Lanning said. “There’s a big difference in where he is this year compared to where he was last year. It was kind of ‘earning the respect’ versus ‘he’s earned the respect.’ Now that leadership role is expected for Bo. Expect him to step and he has those traits.

“He’s been that guy. But certainly you want the best from your best players. He’s proven to be one of our better players, especially in this conference and the nation, at quarterback. Want to see that carry over to the field.”

Bo Nix set career highs across the board in his first season at Oregon to finish with a passer rating of 165.7. His completion percentage of 71.9% was more than 10% higher than any other season in his career to rank second in the country. He passed for 3,593 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Nix led the Ducks to an 8-1 start to the season and had them receiving College Football Playoff consideration in early November as they climbed as high as No. 6 in the rankings. However, they went 1-2 in their final three games of the regular season, dropping contests to Washington and Oregon State to fall out of the Pac-12 title face.

Nix faces plenty of competition among quarterbacks in his own conference, including the reigning Heisman Trophy winner in USC‘s Caleb Williams and Washington’s Michael Penix. Oregon did not face Williams and the Trojans in 2022 but as a Nov. 11 meeting scheduled for this season.

Thankfully, Nix returns his top target from a year ago in Troy Franklin and the Ducks also added transfers Traeshon Holden and Tez Johnson. He’ll look to continue developing chemistry with those players throughout the spring as he attempts to reach even greater heights.