Bo Nix ranked among College Sports Wire’s 25 most dominant players list

A year ago today, the notion that Bo Nix would be in the 2023 Heisman conversation and have a billboard of himself in New York City would’ve been a laughable one. Expectations were not high for Nix’s time in Eugene. As a transfer, he was rated as a 3-star recruit by 247 Sports, despite being a 5-star recruit in high school.

After a dismal start to the season against Georgia, the little hope most Duck fans had for Nix to start the season was washed away. They clamored for Ty Thompson or wrote the season off.

Three weeks later at Washington State, everyone changed their tune.

After a pick-six late in the first half, Nix was electric. He led the Ducks to a comeback victory in a game that would’ve derailed Oregon’s season if it had ended up a loss. He didn’t stop there, and continued to dazzle fans all season.

Now, headed in 2023, the opinions surrounding Nix are much different. There are heavy expectations being placed on him — like I said he’s a Heisman favorite. The College Sports Wire network has a high opinion of him as well. The managing editor of every site in this network was asked in a survey for who they think the 25 most dominant players in the country are, Nix ended up 12th on Thursday’s list. Below is what Ducks Wire’s Managing Editor, Zac Neel had to say about the Ducks’ QB phenom.

“Before his late-season ankle injury a year ago, Bo Nix was widely considered among the top quarterbacks in the nation as far as production goes. If you take away the season opener vs. Georgia, he was averaging over 4 total TDs per game with a completion percentage of 75.5%. His injury vs. Washington derailed things a bit for the Ducks, but I don’t see why he shouldn’t be considered one of the top returning players in the nation. Oregon retooled the position group around him, and though he has a new offensive coordinator calling the plays in Will Stein, the Ducks expect to be just as dynamic as last season, frequently taking shots downfield. If you want to bet against Nix in 2023, be my guest. I will be riding the Bo Train all the way to New York City in December.”

I’m excited to see what year two holds for Nix. Having a full year under your belt with a team is huge as a player, but in contrast, Nix now has much more pressure to perform being placed on him than he ever has as a Duck. With how much pressure was placed on him as an Auburn Tiger, he should hopefully be able to overcome it.

It’s hard for me to say if I see this season ending with Nix sitting onstage in New York for the Heisman ceremony. I can see there being challenges arising from an inexperienced offensive line, but I can also see Nix exploding even more offensively than he did last season, due to the additional offensive weaponry acquired by the Ducks this offseason. All I really hope to see is Nix lead this team to its highest ceiling, whether that be a conference championship, an undefeated season, or the College Football Playoff.

Story originally appeared on Ducks Wire