One of the last times Oregon quarterback A.J. Feeley was seen in the spring, he had an ice bandage around his right arm and a solemn look on his face.
The Ducks’ annual Spring Game had just ended and Feeley was not very pleased with his 3-of-10 passing performance for only 30 yards.
What couldn’t have made matters any easier was that his quarterback counterpart Joey Harrington seemed to pick up right where he left on in the fall by completing 8 of 10 passes for 185 yards and one touchdown to help lead the Green team to a dominating 31-0 victory over the White team.
A couple of months have passed since that day, and Feeley again was seen last week with a wrapped ice pack around his arm. This time, the distraught look was gone.
Instead, there was an engaging smile on his face. Feeley was quick to point out that the ice was around his left arm — his non-throwing one — just for precautionary reasons and that his right arm was feeling “10 times better” than it did in the spring.
“I’m lifting every day and it just keeps getting stronger and stronger,” said Feeley, who initially won the starting QB job over Harrington last fall before relinquishing it halfway through the year. “Since that Spring Game my body definitely feels better and my elbow is not as bruised as it once was. Taking the time off really helped.”
As Feeley talks, Harrington strolls onto the Kilkenny Practice Field just outside of Autzen Stadium and he too is sporting a smile and has a certain spring to his step.
Maybe it’s just the serene Eugene-summer sunshine, but the two both seem to be feeling pretty good about the upcoming season — a season in which they will be competing every day to earn the coveted No. 1 quarterback spot.
“Yeah, me and Joey are both doing well,” said Feeley, who wore a cast over the winter to heal nerve damage in his elbow. “We’re both in the weight room every day and we’re always out here throwing every day. We both respect each other and we’re both going at it. Same ol’ same ol’.”
Indeed, the competition between the two is nothing new. They’ve been “going at it” since the spring of 1998 when then-redshirt freshman Harrington joined Feeley, Jason Maas and Akili Smith in the quarterback battle. When Maas and Smith departed, the position was left to Feeley and Harrington.
Oregon wide receiver Keenan Howry said that it really doesn’t matter to him which quarterback is out there because he knows what to expect of both of them.
“I think all of us wideouts are definitely confident in either one,” Howry said. “This offense is geared to where we are going to make big plays and both of them can get it done for us. We’ll have to wait and see how the offense starts clicking once the fall comes.”
The topics of their competition are ones that both players aren’t eager to discuss so they choose to slide by such talk and focus on the actual team as a whole.
Harrington has always said that the summertime is the perfect chance for the team to get to know one another and create a bond that will be carried on into the fall.
“Oh yeah, everybody is doing really well,” Harrington said. “We have a lot of guys out here for the summertime, definitely more than last year. These guys could take off and go on vacation, but they stayed here and they’re working hard.”

Feeley also notes the importance of these summer months and how much impact they could have later on in the year.
“Everybody is dedicated and willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done,” he said. “When you see another guy sweating and working his butt off out here on the field, you kind of get a sense of pride that we’re all in this together.
“It makes you want to go that extra mile for somebody else.”
While Harrington and Feeley both try to put on a demeanor that they are just going with the flow, their competitive fire is evident even in the simple unsupervised seven-on-seven drills they take part in.
Feeley, however, insists that his thoughts are not of his teammate, but of himself only.
“I’m really just focusing on getting my arm healthy and 100 percent again and worrying about only one thing, which is me.”
Head coach Mike Bellotti has long been one to compliment both quarterbacks when given the chance. He doesn’t consider it a burden, but rather a blessing to have two athletes who are starting Pac-10 material.
In his assessment of both players’ spring seasons, he mentioned how it was tough to compare them due to Feeley’s arm injury.
“We all know Joey and A.J. can play and they have done a great job,” Bellotti said at the conclusion of the spring. “A.J.’s shoulder is sound and his elbow is sound, but they’re not where he wants them to be. He will benefit a great deal from these next couple of months in terms of not being hit, and being able to work at a pace to get the strength and the natural throwing motion back.”
Feeley seems to have followed coach’s orders and says he is actually excited for the upcoming fall camp — a time of the year many players moan and groan about.
“A lot of people dread fall camp, but I don’t — I look forward to it,” Feeley said. “Any time I get right now until the beginning of the fall, I’m going to utilize every bit of it. Because every day I get stronger and every day I get better.”
Harrington also is counting down the days until the real deal begins.
While Feeley is out for redemption after a year gone bad due to injury, Harrington is out to prove that he deserves to remain the starter. He capped a remarkable year by leading the Ducks to a 24-20 upset win over 13th-ranked Minnesota in the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31.
“Oh yeah, I’m definitely excited and have been getting kind of antsy,” Harrington said. “I mean, I’ve been waiting for this for awhile.”
So once again, the two quarterbacks head into fall camp with the intent of leading the Ducks onto the field in their home opener against Nevada on Sept. 2.
“The Minnesota game feels like yesterday, but it feels like forever ago in the same sense,” Harrington said. “I don’t know. I’m just ready to play. I’ve been sitting around long enough and I’m ready to get out there and get it done.
“My body’s feeling great.”
But then again, so is Feeley’s.