When Jeremiah Masoli decided last spring to move on from City College of San Francisco, after winning a national championship and with the blessing of CCSF coach George Rush, he had four main choices: Arizona, Arkansas, Auburn and Oregon.
Arizona had plans to redshirt him this season and have him take over for senior quarterback Willie Tuitama next season. Arkansas and Auburn wanted him to come in and compete for playing time right away.
Oregon’s situation was different. The Ducks had an heir apparent in sophomore Nate Costa, an experienced underdog for the starting job in sophomore Justin Roper, and two highly-touted true freshmen in the mix with Chris Harper and Darron Thomas.
Why, then, would Masoli choose such a murky future as the one that Oregon presented, rather than the more clear-cut paths at the other three schools?
It wasn’t the uniforms, the Nike connection, or the locker rooms. It wasn’t the bowl win over South Florida or the string of NFL-drafted quarterbacks Oregon has produced. It was, simply and rightfully, the offense.
“The other guys really wanted me to come step in and start but I just felt way more comfortable with coach (Chip) Kelly and this offense,” Masoli said. “I really feel like it’s designed for someone with my skill set.”
That skill set includes above-average mobility, a strong arm, and a lightning-quick release, in addition to his previous knowledge of the spread offense, which he ran at CCSF.
“We thought he had tremendous upside,” said Oregon offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Kelly of his first look at Masoli’s highlight reel last spring. “He really throws a great ball. He’s got a quick release and an outstanding arm. He’s a tough kid. He’s everything you’re looking for in a quarterback.”
As for the lack of a clear path to success for Masoli at Oregon, Masoli said he didn’t care.
“As far as how the quarterback situation was, I wasn’t trying to concern myself about that too much,” Masoli said. “I just had faith in my skills, and just the fact that they were recruiting me said something … so I wasn’t too worried about it.”
But neither Kelly nor Masoli – nor anyone affiliated with Oregon football – could have predicted the crucial role Masoli would be asked to fill this fall. He has taken a significant number of snaps in two of the Ducks’ first three games and will play an even greater role this Saturday against Boise State and for the near future, as the date of injured quarterback Roper’s return is as yet unknown.
Kelly said he has been amazed at how quickly Masoli has picked up the offense, but still wishes he had more time to develop in the system before being thrust in to the limelight.
“The only thing he doesn’t have right now is experience in our system. I expected him to be very, very successful here. I just didn’t expect that he would have to play in game one for us,” Kelly said. “He’s way ahead of where I’d expect anybody to be, but because of our situation him and Harp are going to get thrown in and they’re going to have to play on Saturday.”
No one knows, or at least no one is saying, who will get the nod at starting quarterback Saturday. Both Kelly and Bellotti have said Masoli and Harper will both see the field, but how much and who starts remains to be seen.
“I won’t tell you,” Bellotti said of the starting quarterback situation. “You’ll probably watch the first play of the game on offense and that will be the first time anybody knows who will start.”
Kelly was equally vague. “The way it goes now, I’ll find out exactly who is healthy Saturday morning and we’ll make a decision on it,” he said.
But again, that murky future doesn’t bother Masoli, and it doesn’t diminish the importance of his role on the team or the importance of this weekend’s game in the young quarterback’s mind.
“This is one of the biggest games of my life that we’re playing this Saturday, so it’s definitely something special to me,” Masoli said. “It looks like we’re going to rotate (at quarterback) pretty much no matter what. We’re both valuable tools in this offense, so whatever happens, happens, just so long as we win.”
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