10 most important college football players returning to school over entering draft

Top 10 college football players returning to school over entering draft

No. 4: Bo Nix, Oregon QB

No quarterback in college football did himself more favors by transferring in 2022 than Bo Nix. He went from a punch line at Auburn after years of unfulfilled offseason hype to a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate and NFL Draft prospect seemingly overnight.

Playing for Oregon, Nix threw for 3,593 yards and 29 touchdowns, all career highs. He rushed for a career-high 510 yards and 14 touchdowns as well. He didn’t get the Ducks to the Pac-12 title game but he came close despite an ankle injury late in the season. It was quite the turnaround after beginning the year with a beatdown at the hands of Georgia.

Basically, everything came together for Nix as a quarterback. He would have been justified to call it a day and head for the NFL, leaving Oregon to figure out how to replicate or better their 10-4 success with a new QB and OC.

Nix, however, chose to come back. He’ll be among the Heisman favorites for 2023 and he’ll have the Ducks looking like a playoff contender going into the season. That’s certainly not what was being predicted for the quarterback when he first jumped in the transfer portal. Who knows what could come next?