Analysis: Searching for the heir apparent to Bo Nix’s throne

Published 4:13 pm Monday, December 4, 2023

Bo Nix has been at the helm of Oregon’s offense for the past two seasons, with his final culminating in a visit to New York as a Heisman finalist as well as being named Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year. 

However, the senior has expended his eligibility and the Ducks’ matchup with Liberty in the Fiesta Bowl will be his final outing in green and yellow. 

Head coach Dan Lanning and offensive coordinator Will Stein will have to begin their search for the heir to the throne. Let’s take a look through four potential options to inherit one of college football’s top passing offenses. 

Ty Thompson, redshirt junior, Oregon 

Ty Thompson was the highest graded recruit that Oregon had ever signed when he came out of high school. Rivals.com graded the Gilbert, Arizona, product with five stars and 247Sports gave him a 95 overall grade. 

That was, however, three seasons ago. Thompson has stuck it out on this roster, backing up Anthony Brown as a freshman and serving as Nix’s backup the past two years.

He’s seen the field through all three seasons, with 2023 being his best. Thompson posted 296 passing yards with four touchdowns and an interception, completing 77% of his passes in relief of Nix.

He also maintained a redshirt as a freshman, so he’ll enter the 2024 season with two years of eligibility remaining and two years of experience in the offense under his belt. 

Despite Thompson’s high status as a recruit, he is an unknown quantity at the quarterback position, only ever playing in mop-up scenarios. Even with his lack of play through a head coaching change — as well as three offensive coordinators in three years — Thompson never transferred.

2024 may finally be the year Thompson’s patience is rewarded and he gets the reins of the offense.

Dante Moore, sophomore, UCLA

Sticking with unproven quantities is fellow five-star talent Dante Moore.

Ducks fans will remember Moore as the man who broke their collective hearts last signing day when he flipped from his commitment to Oregon to join Chip Kelly at UCLA. 

Moore was apart of a revolving door under center for the Bruins this season and elected to enter the portal when it opened Monday, Dec. 4.

In his lone season with UCLA, Moore passed for just over 1,600 yards with 11 touchdowns and nine interceptions. His best outing came versus San Diego State, where he threw for 290 yards and three scores without a turnover. 

According to Chad Simmons of On3, Moore and Oregon have been communicating and he could potentially make a visit to Eugene in the coming days. 

Cameron Ward, graduate student, Washington State

Cameron Ward has been one of college football’s best upstart success stories of the past few years. 

Ward came out of Columbia High School in Texas as a zero-star recruit and attended FCS Incarnate Word. As a freshman, he won the Jerry Rice Award as the most outstanding freshman in the nation at the FCS level. Ward followed up his freshman campaign with nearly 4,700 passing yards and 47 touchdowns as a sophomore before transferring to Washington State. 

Ward hasn’t matched the stats of his sophomore year since arriving in Pullman, but has been one of the more underrated signal-callers in the Power Five the past two seasons. 

He’s also said publicly that in evaluating his options in the transfer portal, Ward has not ruled out declaring for the NFL draft. Should he return for another season of college football, Ward will likely to be one of the most expensive in the portal and the brave new world of NIL.

Fox Sports’ Brock Huard said on his Seattle-based radio show, Brock and Salk, that Ward had multiple seven-figure offers on the table before the portal had even opened. It is currently unknown who those schools are and if Oregon is among them. 

Dillon Gabriel, sixth year, Oklahoma 

Oregon fans will fondly remember a Hawaiian-born signal caller with the number 8 on his back. Luckily for them, there’s a new one on the market in Oklahoma transfer Dillon Gabriel. 

Gabriel started out his career at UCF in 2019 before transferring to Oklahoma for the 2022 season. He concluded the 2023 season for the Sooners with over 3,600 passing yards and 42 touchdowns, 12 of which came on the ground and emphasized his true dual-threat ability. 

Gabriel, despite his relatively small stature for the position at 5-foot 11-inches, possesses a large arm as a left-handed slinger and has shown the ability to make NFL-type throws. He’s been able to get the ball down the field into tight windows with consistency, ending his season at Oklahoma completing just shy of 70% of his passes. 

He led the Sooners to a victory over rival Texas 34-30 in October, handing the eventual playoff team their lone loss of the season. As a starter, Gabriel has amassed a 33-16 record and a 16-8 record at the Power Five level. 

Gabriel will be entering his sixth and final season of college football when he puts on a helmet next year and — barring injury — would have the ability to break Nix’s all-time record for games started by an NCAA quarterback. 

Peter Thamel of ESPN stated on “College Football Live” Wednesday, Dec. 5, that the Ducks are the leading suitor for Gabriel and it is expected that he’ll make a visit to Eugene “soon.” 

My pick 

I think Oregon would continue to be successful with any of these four under center for the 2024 season. Despite Thompson’s long commitment to the program, I do believe Oregon will look to the transfer portal for a more proven veteran. 

With that being said, the man I believe will be steering the ship for the Ducks’ offense in 2024 has to be Dillon Gabriel. 

Oregon has been the name most often linked to the Oklahoma signal caller since he entered the portal. I believe he can enter in as a plug and play option for Oregon the moment he hits campus and pick up right where Nix left off.