Oregon Spring Game Storyline #1: The Battle for Backup Quarterback

Spring Practice for the Oregon Ducks is in full swing and the annual Spring Game is quickly approaching. The big question entering next Saturday is the Quarterback position, but the key player who will replace former QB Marcus Mariota won’t participate in the game. He won’t even be available.

Vernon Adams announced several months ago that he was leaving Eastern Washington and joining Oregon for one year, but he won’t arrive on campus officially until this summer, which means the Spring Game will feature numerous signal callers who will likely be vying fot the backup position come Fall.

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Jeff Lockie leads the group of Quarterbacks that also include Taylor Alie, Ty Griffin, and Morgan Mahalak.

If you read the almost daily reports coming out of Oregon Practice, the Ducks Offense appears to be in good hands with any of the talented QBs at the helm. Ultimately Lockie is the most seasoned at the position so I would expect to see him as one of the Starters during the scrimmage.

There is plenty of talent to go around, but I don’t think anyone will touch the almost perfect performance of Mariota in last year’s Spring Game. If you missed it he was 13 for 14 with two touchdowns. It will still be intriguing to watch how Oregon will move forward without Mariota, but this sort of thing happens every three or four years.

Lockie should be the lead candidate entering the Fall since he is the most experienced, but I expect Fall Camp to be a battle between Lockie and Adams.

The Spring Game is set for Saturday, May 2nd inside Autzen Stadium.