Week one of the college football season came and went in a heartbeat and fans can’t be disappointed. That is, as long as you’re not a University of Tennessee fan.
The biggest story to come out of Saturday’s first full day of college football is the heroics of Bo Nix. The true freshman quarterback did not play particularly well in his debut for Auburn University, but the Tigers were still able to come out with a 27-21 victory over the No. 11 University of Oregon.
As great of a season opener as this was, the outcome of this game should be disappointing to a lot of National Football League scouts.
Nix finished just 13-31 in the game, but his 26-yard touchdown pass sealed the game and capped off 21 unanswered points for Auburn. Justin Herbert, who is expected to be one of the first two picks in the draft next year, didn't put up the type of performance many were expecting against Auburn.
Early in the second half Herbert was able to march down the field and set up a six-yard touchdown run by Darrian Felix.
Oregon led 21-6 at the end of the drive, but failed to put up any points the final 24 minutes of the game.
Rather than close out the team that was led by a quarterback who was playing in high school less than a year ago, the Ducks totaled just 75 yards of offense and punted on their final five drives.
It’s a great storyline, ‘true freshman beats top NFL prospect in his first college game’. Nix stole the show in what was supposed to be Herbert’s first NFL audition.
On paper Herbert played a pretty decent game, going 28-37 for 242 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. But Herbert along with the entire Oregon team seemed to take their foot off the pedal in the second half and it cost them.
Herbert squandered the best opportunity he had to show what he could do against a top defense and his draft stock should take a hit because of it.
He’s impressed in his first three years with the Ducks, but at this point I couldn’t justify choosing him above some of his counterparts who are also likely to head to the draft.
How do you take him over the hero of the 2018 National Championship game, the University of Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa? Or the University of Georgia star quarterback who has been putting five star recruits on the bench since he joined the team, Jake Fromm?
They both played on the biggest stage in college football and done it one of the nation’s top conferences, the Southeastern Conference. With all that being said, Herbert’s talent is undeniable. The only question that is left unanswered is his ability to win.
Playing in the Pac-12 doesn’t help Herbert in that department. Aside from the University of Washington and possibly Stanford University, Herbert likely won’t have another opportunity to prove he can lead the Ducks past any top teams until bowl season.
While it’s not the end of the world for Herbert, he just showed some major red flags to the teams expected to be near the top of the draft next year.
His lackluster performance Saturday is one that will bite him, but he’s got nearly a whole season to make up lost ground.
