Oregon quarterback Bo Nix will play in Fiesta Bowl
Oregon star quarterback Bo Nix will play in the Ducks’ Fiesta Bowl showdown with Liberty, Dan Lanning announced on Sunday.
While speaking with reporters via Zoom, Lanning was asked if Nix — or any of the program’s other players — intends to opt out of the bowl game in order to begin preparing for the 2024 NFL Draft.
“We’ve gotten some clarity this morning. I think with some of those guys, it’s probably fair for me to let them have that opportunity to let you guys know that they weren’t gonna go play. But I can say, definitively, that Bo Nix wants to go play in this game,” Lanning said. “He told his teammates the same thing when we met this morning as a team. He wants that opportunity to go out on the field one more time. there’s several other guys who have made that same decision.
“As we go, we’ll continue to get more clarity of what that looks like. These guys are excited to go play this game. Our entire team is excited to go out there one last time and cap off an elite season for us.”
Immediately following Oregon’s loss to Washington in the Pac-12 title game last Friday, Nix said he was unsure at that time if he would play in the Ducks’ bowl game.
Lanning said he and Nix spoke Sunday morning and Nix officially decided he wanted one last opportunity to take the field with his Oregon teammates.
“He’s the ultimate competitor. … I think it speaks to his character and what he thinks of this team,” Lanning said. “What he feels like he owes the players on this team around him. He certainly doesn’t owe anybody anything. For him to go out there and go play, I don’t think it was ever really a question for him. it was just a matter of, ‘Those are things to assess after the situation. I think he took his time to do that and evaluate what he wanted to do moving forward.
“I think any of our players that — it’s not always seen in college football as advantageous for players to just go play. But you gotta remember, you want guys on your team that love to go play for the love of the game. Bo Nix is one of those guys.”
Nix is currently listed as the No. 5 quarterback prospect by ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Matt Miller.
