When Ty Thompson came to Oregon football a few years ago, there were a number of fans who believed that he would be the next star under center.
In 2021, however, he was a true freshman and had to sit behind veteran transfer Anthony Brown. He still managed to throw for 87 yards and two touchdowns on 15 attempts over three games. He used that as a redshirt season and hoped to battle for the starting job under a new coaching staff in 2022.
Unfortunately, Dan Lanning brought in Bo Nix to start and Thompson's job as a backup would extend for at least one more season. He appeared in seven games, completed 11-of-20 passes for 72 yards and threw two picks. He just didn't look overly motivated to be the backup.
And then when Nix announced his return for 2023, he knew he'd be a backup yet again and yet he fared much better, passing for 297 yards and four touchdowns on 24-for-31 completions. He also rushed for 48 yards on eight carries. But with Dillon Gabriel coming to town for 2024, he decided to hit the transfer portal and he found a new home with Tulane.
It was expected that Thompson would be the starter at Tulane, but unfortunately, that's not the case for the former Duck.
Ty Thompson won’t start but will get a chance to play and potentially win the job https://t.co/egzqFBiIQS
— Oregon Updates (@oregon__updates) August 29, 2024
Losing the starting job to a redshirt freshman has to be tough especially when you've backed up guys like Anthony Brown, Bo Nix, and then were about to back up Dillon Gabriel. That has to be a kick in the groin.
But he'll get a chance to prove himself if Tulane does run three quarterbacks out there on Thursday night. Oregon fans will be rooting for him either way.