Skip to main content
Join
Team Avatar
Utah

Kyle Whittingham says QB is the biggest change for Oregon in 2022

Alex Weberby:Alex Weber•11/17/22
On3 image
Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images

Oregon has had quite the run of quarterback talent. The Ducks almost immediately went from future NFL star Justin Herbert to Auburn transfer Bo Nix, who is having by far his best season after choosing to spend his senior year in the pacific northwest. However, in between those two studs under center, Oregon bridged a one-year gap in 2021 with Anthony Brown. A talented playmaker in his own right, but not the level of passer that Herbert and Nix were.

So after a year of a more run-oriented offensive attack, the Ducks are back to slinging the rock around with Nix. According to Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham, that’s the biggest difference between this year’s team and last year’s. He admitted as much at his press conference this week previewing the massive matchup between his Utes and the Ducks.

Last season, Utah ran Oregon off the field, 38-7, in the regular season to end all hopes of a College Football Playoff appearance. Then, the two teams met again in the Pac 12 title game, where Oregon showed little improvement, losing that one 38-10. That lack of offensive explosiveness won’t be near as much of a problem for the Ducks this weekend, and Kyle Whittingham knows that.

CLICK HERE to subscribe for FREE to the On3 YouTube channel

Here was his take on the quarterback play for Oregon, which he answered was the most improved position on the team from last year when asked.

“QB, without a doubt. Bo Nix is a tremendous player. I believe he’s second or third in the quarterback rating in the country. By the way, we have five, yeah five Pac 12 quarterbacks in the top 12 of QBR this year. Which speaks to the level of the quarterback position in this in this conference and how many good players there are. But that is absolutely the single biggest difference between last year and this year.”

Should be an awesome environment in Eugene this Saturday. A ticket to the Pac 12 title game is potentially on the line. Given the much better QB play that Nix offers compared to last season, this rendition should be far more competitive than the pair of washouts in 2021.