Oregon football announced on Friday Aug. 26, on Twitter that senior-transfer Dakota Prukop will start at quarterback when the Ducks open their season against UC Davis on Sept. 3 at Autzen Stadium. True freshman — and Eugene native — Justin Herbert was named his backup.

Depth chart for Week 1 vs. @UCDfootball #GoDucks #UCDvsUO pic.twitter.com/iDfxo9NaL1
— Oregon Football (@WinTheDay) August 26, 2016

Prukop, an AP All-American, spent his last several seasons at Montana State. In his time there, he accumulated 1,763 rushing yards and 5,584 passing yards. His 7,347 total career yards rank fourth in MSU history. He rushed for 24 touchdowns and threw for 46 more.
Coming into fall camp, there was no clear leader in the quarterback race. Redshirt freshman Travis Jonsen and Prukop appeared to be the top two candidates. But after Oregon’s first scrimmage of fall, head coach Mark Helfrich said that Prukop had been the most consistent quarterback and had begun to separate himself from the pack.
According to Helfrich and quarterbacks coach David Yost, Prukop rose to the top because he commanded the offense. He also limited mistakes, separating himself from the others.
“What it comes down to is his consistency, being able to do it day in and day out, play after play, no matter what the circumstance is,” Yost told reporters this week.
Herbert began to impress late into fall camp and the battle quickly turned to who would be Prukop’s backup. Up until Oregon released its depth chart on Friday, there was still speculation around who would be the second-string quarterback, but many reports indicated that Herbert had made a strong case for himself in camp.
In his final campaign at Sheldon High School, Herbert threw for 3,130 yards and 37 touchdowns on a 66.5 percent completion rate and ran for 543 yards and 10 more scores to lead the Irish to the 2015 6A state semifinals.
Follow Gus Morris on Twitter @JustGusMorris