Today, A.J. Feeley will board a plane to Philadelphia to participate in a three-day NFL mini-camp for the Eagles and begin the next stage of his life.
“It hasn’t really sunk in yet,” said Feeley, the former Oregon quarterback who was the only Duck selected in the NFL Draft. “It won’t until I’m actually there and see my name on that locker.”
Once Oregon’s 35-30 Holiday Bowl victory over Texas came to a conclusion Dec. 29, Feeley set his sights on the future.
Until that moment, he had accepted his role as the Ducks’ back-up quarterback to Joey Harrington with little complaint and prepared himself every game for the possibility that he might play. It never happened.
Feeley’s up-and-down Oregon career ended on the sidelines with him wearing a headset and a backwards cap. But after playing only sparingly in September blowout wins against Nevada and Idaho, Feeley knew he still might have a shot at advancing to the pros.
He would work out seven hours a day and then try to attract the attention of National Football League teams. Soon, after impressive performances in pre-draft workouts, there would be 11 teams interested in him.

And on Sunday, in the fifth round of the draft, the Philadelphia Eagles selected him with the 155th overall pick. He was the ninth quarterback taken and was even picked ahead of Oklahoma’s Josh Heupel, who led the Sooners to the national championship last season.
“Hopefully all the stuff that’s happened with me at Oregon will be behind me, and I won’t ever have to think about it again,” said Feeley as he watched a recent Ducks spring practice. “I knew that I’ve always been a good player. I just needed the opportunity.”
It’s hard to blame the guy for wanting to leave his college days in the past after all he went through.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound quarterback from Ontario sat through the 1997 and ’98 seasons as the No. 3 quarterback behind current Cincinnati Bengal Akili Smith and Jason Maas. Then he had to beat out the competitive Harrington to earn the starting nod for the 1999 Ducks.
Feeley began that year on fire. After the first five games, he was ranked eighth in the nation in passing efficiency and led the Pacific-10 Conference in passing after throwing 161 passes for 1,389 yards and 11 touchdowns.
But in the next game, a 34-29 loss at UCLA, Feeley began to feel pain in his throwing elbow, which turned out to be a serious nerve problem. It would be the beginning of the end, as two games later Harrington would take over as the starter for the remainder of the year and lead the Ducks through their storybook 2000 season.
“I don’t know if [being drafted] makes it all worth it,” Feeley said. “But it’s nice that people still looked at me even though I didn’t play much all year.”
Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti has been with Feeley all four years and knows how frustrating it must have been for a talented quarterback to suck in his pride and cheer on his team.
“[Getting drafted] says volumes about A.J. and the kind of player he was,” Bellotti said. “I told A.J. that I believed if he hung in there he’d get a chance. He’s now healthy, he’s had great workouts and he has a great attitude. Flat out, he’s one of the best quarterbacks.”
Feeley will enter a Philadelphia team with a quarterback depth chart that currently has Donovan McNabb as its starter, Koy Detmer as the back-up and Ron Powlus, who went to Notre Dame, in the third slot.
That list might scare off some rookie quarterbacks, but competition is something Feeley’s used to.
“I have a lot ahead of me; it’s not a guaranteed thing,” he said. “I still haven’t made the squad. I’m just a draft pick right now.
“But once again, I’m getting the opportunity and that’s all I ask for.”