Last Saturday marked the first official day of the Darron Thomas era.
And as I stood watching practice that morning, someone brought to my attention one of the most intriguing points of this lengthy quarterback competition.
Ultimately, the man’s case was this: Who’s the better fit to save the season — Darron Thomas or Nate Costa?
He went on to explain that if something were to sideline Thomas midway though the season, wouldn’t it be more ideal to have a trusty Costa come in and manage the team down the final stretch? Purely speculative of course, but I saw his point.
With Costa’s final year of eligibility drawing close, and the next knee injury undoubtedly his last, having that go-to senior on the bench when things get rocky could ultimately be the biggest payoff.
He knows the playbook. He knows the conference. He’s proved he can win on a week’s notice (see UCLA last season). He has the edge experience wise, and maybe that’s what ultimately came back to haunt him when the final decision was made.
In Thomas’ limited action in 2008, he showed flashes of being the next great Oregon quarterback — R.I.P. Jeremiah — but since that three-touchdown fourth quarter showing against Boise State, Thomas has yet to return to that superior level.
After redshirting last fall, a decent spring campaign in May, and a slightly-above-average fall camp, Thomas now sits at the top of Oregon’s quarterback depth chart.
If you followed the competition through spring ball and into these past several weeks, you know there was no clear winner.
Some days Nate was the guy. Other days it was Darron. Sometimes it was neither.
But there is no denying the buzz and obvious physical comparisons to former Oregon star Dennis Dixon, and maybe that will pan out as a good thing.
Thomas is not the same player Dixon was — at least not yet, anyway.
His mobility and big play capabilities, arguably the lone variable that put him over Costa, is what excites people.
The specifics on what ultimately landed Thomas the job were unclear — leaving me to believe the decision was based largely on potential.
Late in the game with an open field and only one man to beat, it’s hard to picture Costa shaking off a Pac-10 corner and gliding down the sideline for the score. Isn’t it? I don’t mean to knock Costa’s mobility, for he’s a far better athlete than the credit he receives. Yet when you put Thomas in the same scenario, it seems like the perfect fit.
But alas, Oregon fans have grown attached to the dangerously fast, what’s-he-gonna-do-next, prolific quarterback type they’ve seen for the past several seasons. Myself included.
So the question I find myself asking now is, “Can he live up to what the Oregon faithful need and want him to be?”
Handling the pressures off the field can be just as challenging as the physical aspects of the game (see the entire Oregon offseason), and we all hope he’ll be prepared.
The skill set is there with a plethora of talent surrounding him on both sides of the ball.
Fortunately Thomas will have this first New Mexico game to get his feet wet and start the aerial attack off on a strong note — a task that took the Ducks more than a month to fully complete last season — before his first big test at Tennessee.
It will be there, in front of 108,000 strong Volunteer faithful, that we will see Darron Thomas’ true potential as the next Oregon quarterback.
