Monday’s practice centered on the optimism for the post-Marcus Mariota era, a common theme for the Ducks this spring. Nearing the 2015 Spring Game, which is set for May 2, Mark Helfrich and Co. have embraced their potential depth at the quarterback position while they wait for Vernon Adams’ arrival.
Jeff Lockie has done his best to lead that charge.
“At this point they’re all getting basically the same amount (of reps),” Helfrich said about his quarterback group. “Jeff Lockie is probably getting a few more by virtue of being the incumbent guy who jumps in there and steals reps every so often in drills…which is a good thing.”
They’ve also continued their quest of getting back to the College Football Playoff, which according to the Helfrich, has involved dissecting mistakes made during the title game and using them as motivation.
Here is what Helfrich had to say at practice:
Can Lockie do anything to blow you guys away? 
He’s been fantastic. Been really good all spring. I don’t think that’s surprised anybody. I think the guys have a ton of confidence in him.
Where does Taylor (Alie) fit into all this? 
He’s battling. He’s been at times fantastic and then at times tried to do too much or too little. Taylor’s a smart guy, a competitive guy and has a ton of talent.
Mark, did you spend much time leading up to spring ball dissecting the Ohio State game or is that one you kind of flush it and move on? 
No, we dissect everything. Both from what we’re doing, what other people are doing that we might be able to incorporate into our deal. We need to get better. Game-to-game, we review that in kind of its own little window and then we evaluate everything in the offseason.
Having that big goal (winning a title), have you sensed that guys are driven by that being so close to it and not quite getting there? 
Yeah, to a degree. I think at the same time, if you sit there and whine about what happened then you can’t handle your business today. That’s something we harp on a great deal. This a new team. There’s new voices, new leaders and those guys need to rise up within themselves. We can’t really shape that, fabricate that without it happening.
What do you think about the possibility of Tim Tebow going to the Philadelphia Eagles? 
I just heard about that. I don’t know. That’s exciting for the media I’m sure.
What would say to some of the Eagles fans that maybe think Chip Kelly is a little bit crazy? 
I think it’s unfortunate that that question has been asked more than once. Chip Kelly is not insane. He’s got a plan, he’s got a method.
Follow Hayden Kim on Twitter @HayDayKim